Song ID: The Hot Dogs – “Say What You Mean” (1973)
The Hot Dogs were Ardent label mates with Big Star. But when I bought this in my teens from a used record bin, I hadn’t yet heard of Big Star, so I thought the album might sound like a lesser Brewer and Shipley. It ended up winning me over from the start with its opening title track – an epic pop rock ballad that you’d swear features some of the strings and woodwinds the liner notes credit to Memphis State University, even though the track doesn’t.