History:

The Vara-Tones were a lounge rock band from Sharon, Pennsylvania. The group consisted of siblings Jim and Patty Stevenson (on drums and lead vocals respectively), along with organist Diane Graham and guitarist Gary J. Peidle. The band formed sometime in the early 1970’s and played at clubs and parties around Sharon. The group eventually met up with Grove City engineer Bob Dowdy to record an album. 

The “on location” recording was released as “Vara-Tones” on their own label. It’s unclear what year the album was released but signs point to a 1974 release date. The band performed all cover material from 1972-1974, save for a nearly side-long “Gershwin Medley”. The Vara-Tones heavily rearranged the album’s music. Most of the material is a mix of pop and soul tunes performed in a wah wah filled lo-fi style. The album is quite elusive, so I assume only a few hundred copies were pressed. 

The Vara-Tones continued performing together for another two decades before breaking up. They primarily played at their local church during this later period. Jim Stevenson passed away in 2024 while Gary J. Peidle is supposedly still performing in a covers band on lead guitar.

Review:

Vara-Tones (Not On Label, 1974?)

Rating: 6/10

Some really good cover versions on this album but the lack of original material keeps this one from the upper echelon of lounge rock. “Nightningale” is a great take with some dreamy keys and groovy lead guitar work. Really pleasant version. There is a good amount of soul covers on here that are good including “The Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me”, “What Are You Doing For The Rest Of Your Life”, and “You Make Me Feel Brand New”. All three of these are solid takes with more wah wah guitar and good vocals from Patty Stevenson and (I think) Gary J. Peidle. 

“Miniature / Tin Man” is a psychedelic lounge take on the America tune. I like the vocal on that one a lot and the lush organ is neat. Rest of the album is very boring and not well done pop music.