The Blues Image is known by most, and not by their name, for one song: "Ride Captain Ride", a fine late-night classic rock staple. In fact, I never would have given this album any thought if I didn't like that song. The funny thing about Open is that none of the other songs sound like it, and, for the most part, that's a good thing. Otherwise it would be a very poppy album, when in fact it fall comfortable among the hard rock of the day, with a Latin tinge. The Santana-style percussion section is prominent throughout, accompanied by some bluesy vocals, and fairly heavy guitar. If you think "Captain" is wimpy, check out songs like "Pay My Dues" and "Clean Love", which are anything but.
This album used to be crazy expensive (over $200), but a re-release with bonus tracks deflated that unexpected windfall. Eventually the even-harder-to-find first and third albums were released as a two-fer, so it seems that the Blues Image isn't so obscure after all. The band falls into what I've called "organ donor" status to other bands. Founder Mike Pinera would join a later incarnation of Iron Butterfly, and a later member of the band, Kent Henry, would catapult on to Steppenwolf, leaving poor old Blues Image as a veritable one-hit wonder.
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