Wounded Bird Records
1977
Dowdy Ferry Road
About This Album
Sustaining radio airplay through most of 1977 with the two hit singles from their album Dowdy Ferry Road, both 45s hovering just above the Top 25 (although "It's Sad To Belong" topped the AC charts where these guys ruled), this project is the most bleak in the repertoire of England Dan and John Ford Coley. The front cover is dark, with the two men looking very serious, while the back of the album has them in a very affectionate pose -- much happier. "It's Sad to Belong" was written by Randy Goodrun who would hit two years later with Anne Murray's version of "Broken Hearted Me." Dan Seals and John Coley recorded "Broken Hearted Me" as well for 1979's uneven Dr. Heckyll and Mr. Jive, and it would have fit perfectly in this melancholy setting. Outside of Parker McGee's "Where Do I Go From Here" and the aforementioned "It's Sad to Belong," the Dowdy Ferry Road album was entirely written or co-written by the singers. Just about everything on this collection has minor keys and sad voices: "Soldier in the Rain," "Love Is the One Thing We Have," and "Don't Feel That Way No More" are rife with lines like "time has brought me here with empty hands" or "the way to my heart is a closed door.
Track List (try tracks 2,3,4,6 and 9)

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