4. SONGS WRITTEN BY JOHN D LOUDERMILK

 
In 1971 Loudermilk's WB album Volume 1 - Elloree was released. Album title refers to a small town in South Carolina, guess a holiday resort for young John D. "There is such a place - in eveyone's heart".
A sort of 'Greatest Hits' in accoustic versions. "Unplugged", we would say these days.
In some ways a strange, unconventional album. An album I like very much, its sober and simple renditions of the songs. But I know some other folks who don't think much of it.

A review says:
Although this album is about as inscrutable in tone and intention as the average Loudermilk LP, it's preferable to most, chiefly because the production is so sparse. The acoustic arrangements emphasize Loudermilk's own guitar and occasional harmonica, although Norman Blake adds some mandolin and dobro. As Loudermilk often segues from one song to another without a break, there's an intimate living-room feel to the proceedings, accentuated by occasional indications that Loudermilk is not taking the project entirely seriously (he breaks into bird whistles at one point, for instance).
The program is something of a greatest-hits set, with "Tobacco Road," "The Lament of the Cherokee Reservation Indian", "Google Eye," and "Abilene" all present, although these are not all Loudermilk's first versions of these compositions (if any are); it's the third time around for "Tobacco Road," in fact. The versions of "Lament of the Cherokee Reservation Indian" and "Tobacco Road" are bluesier and more down-home than you might expect, though he punctures "Cherokee"'s effect with pseudo-Indian war chants and a flip spoken aside in the middle.
On lesser-known items like "The Jones'" and "Ma Baker's Little Acre," it's really hard, as always, to figure out where Loudermilk is coming from -- if he's trying to offer social protest, social satire, or just make up some silly ditties reflecting the absurdity of contemporary society.

In 1977 a "Volume 2" album followed, "Just Passing Through"
 

 
In 1972 Loudermilk performed on the UK Wembley Country Festival.
In the review in Dutch music paper "Oor" (1972/9, May 10th), Karel van der Kemp writes:

(...) Anne Murray and John D Loudermilk were the disappointments of the festival. (...)
I was a little shocked after hearing the last album by John D Loudermilk on WB. John lives in Engeland nowadays and lives the life of a retired millionaire. He now has a beard, by which he is as two peas in a pod with Burl Ives. Hij makes awful music which completely mismatched this festival. Incredible, when you realise this man made such outstanding songs as 'A Rose and a Baby Ruth', 'Tobacco Road', 'Google Eye', to mention a few (...)

The reviewer back then apparently was more enchanted by the festival's commercial mainstream country like Loretta Lynn, Conway Twitty, Dottie West.
 

 
In the winter of 1977 the album Volume 2 - Just Passing Through was released.

Most songs were written during the travels and sailings of the Loudermilk family over England, Germany, France and the Mediterrenean. The songs originally were recorded in England in 1971-1976. The album was arranged by Jeremy Lubbock.