Stellar blue folk-rock debut

By the time of this 1966 release, Hardin had transformed himself almost fully from an average blues singer to a stellar folk artist. Failed sessions for Columbia found him re-signed to Verve for which he recorded this commercial debut. The album mixes spare demo takes with more fully produced tracks that feature tasteful strings. Hardin was apparently unhappy about the inclusion of both the unfinished tracks, which showed how his blues roots were translating into folk rock, and the overdubbing, which added a polish that elevated these tracks beyond a singer-songwriter sitting on a stool. The opening “Don’t Make Promises” found favor with a surprising range of other artists, including Bobby Darin (who later had a hit with Hardin’s “If I Were a Carpenter), Helen Reddy, Three Dog Night and Paul Weller. Even more famous is “Reason to Believe,” which became a hit for Rod Stewart. The rest of the album lives up to these standards, with small combos backing Hardin’s jazz-tinged vocals. Tim Hardin 1 has been packaged here as straight-up reissue, but it’s also been available as a two-fer with its followup, and as part of the complete Hang on to a Dream: The Verve Recordings. [©2009 hyperbolium dot com]