ALBUM REVIEW: TAKE A TRIP WITH YOUNGSTOWN’S BULL RUN
My friend Evan is always owing me beers for doing stuff for him. Finally, he said, “I’m just going to buy you this album to check out, pick you up a few beers next time we go out, and we’ll call it even.” As soon as I put this record on my turntable, it was clear I got the better end of the deal.
Evan said something about vinyl that stuck with me: when you buy a record, you’re buying the story, and the music is the bonus. Well, Evan, what a bonus this is. And the story? It’s a wild one for this self-titled album, finally released on April 1, 2024.
According to Andy Gray’s Vindicator article, “Bull Run is off to the races 53 years later,” Bull Run’s self-titled album began in Youngstown in 1971, when the short-lived heavy rock trio of Jim Connor, Craig Davis, and Frank Zoccole recorded a collection of original songs. The music was captured in several places, including GS Productions in Youngstown, possibly Peppermint Recording Studio, and mostly in Connor’s own primitive home studio. Although the band played shows across the region and opened alongside popular local acts, its raw, heavy sound was not considered commercial at the time. Clubs wanted danceable Top 40 music, and even big labels encouraged the band to move in a more mainstream direction. As a result, the album was never released.
More than 50 years later, the album finally came to life because of Jim Connor’s daughter, Kim Connor. After her father’s death in 2019, she continued sharing memories, photos, and music online as a way to keep his work alive. Musician Dean Anshutz, part of the Peppermint Presents project, noticed her posts and eventually heard a rough cassette transfer of Bull Run’s music. He was immediately struck by its raw, edgy sound and asked whether the original tapes still existed. Kim had preserved not only the tapes, but also photos, records, and other materials, giving Peppermint everything needed to finally release the album.
The release became part of Peppermint Presents’ larger effort to uncover and reissue vintage recordings from the Mahoning Valley. For Kim Connor, seeing Bull Run on vinyl was emotional because it meant her father’s music, along with the work of Davis and Zoccole, was finally receiving the recognition it had missed in the early 1970s. The album’s belated release also helps shine a light on the kind of heavy, original music being made in Youngstown during that era.
The album itself is a perfect mix of Sabbath-influenced heavy rock, early metal, and just the right amount of psychedelic weirdness. It all blends beautifully, making the listener want to run to the nearest dispensary, grab a nice pre-roll, spark it up, and let the music come even more alive.
Even though the album is only five tracks deep, it never feels short. The shortest song, “Just a Dream,” still clocks in at 5:15 and moves from a hazy, almost drifting mood into a heavier, raw-edged rock groove. It shows Bull Run’s mix of dreamlike atmosphere and gritty early-’70s Youngstown underground energy.
The longest track, “Leper’s Castle,” is a whopping 9:02 and stretches out into a darker, more ominous trip. It builds from a shadowy atmosphere into a heavy, fuzzed-out rock jam that shows the band to be mysterious and ambitious.
The rest of the album falls right into place, making this one of those records where you can just drop the needle, sit back, and not worry about what track it’s on. It’s raw, heavy, strange, and full of character…just how I like it.
I score it an 8.5/10, and this is a must-have for any collector.
