Traces was the most successful album for
Dennis Yost and
Classics IV, nearly reaching the Top 40 in 1968. The title track was the group's biggest hit (although "Spooky" is better remembered) and "Everyday With You Girl" made the Top 20. The poetic lyrics and the soft instrumental blend of strings and an occasional flute were ubiquitous on easy listening records of this period, and although the songwriting of producer Buddy Buie and guitarist J.R. Cobb is vital, the blue-eyed soul of
Yost's vocals is the focal point. A handful of low-key originals fill out the album, plus covers of
the Fleetwoods' "Mr. Blue,"
Bobby Hebb's "Sunny," and
Tommy Roe's "Traffic Jam" (the hardest-rocking cut on the album). That the covers surpass the non-hit originals in quality is no great criticism since the band chose excellent material to record. ~ Greg Adams