U.F.O. is probably just your average album sounding like many a 1970 album by artists mentioned in reviews below.  I can't account for why I return to this album as often as I do, which has been reissued on vinyl by Light in the Attic, other than the fact that some of the material is very strong.  Much of side one is tuneful but nothing sticks out like the lead-off track Jerome.  The same holds true for the second side with the title track and the beautiful ballad, So Natural, being my favorites.  Maybe his mysterious history adds to the mystique of the album.  Certainly the performances by the Wrecking Crew makes this record sound like a close cousin of John Phillips' solo effort, Wolfking of L.A., and elevates the material immeasurably.  An album that deserves the small bit of press it has a received recently

The story surrounding the obscurity and subsequent disappearance of Jim Sullivan often overshadows the quality of the music on his fine, private press debut LP, U.F.O. Using a personal connection to hire members of The Wrecking Crew (you know, the session group who plays on The Beach Boys' Pet Sounds and SMiLE and all those great Phil Spector girl group records), Sullivan's brand of folky baroque pop soars at times under the direction and production of Wrecking Crew stalwart Jimmy Bond. His plaintive voice avoids the corniness of Jim Croce or Cat Stevens, yet is strong enough to hang with the string arrangements that bolster his sturdy acoustic guitar playing. Admittedly, this is not usually my kind of music. But U.F.O. creeps up on the listener. Subtle, jazzy numbers like "Plain as Your Eyes Can See" or the AM pop-friendly "Johnny" might not leave the initial impression that "Rosey," "U.F.O.," or "So Natural" do, but they make this an album that you'll keep coming back to. At only 28 minutes in length, Sullivan manages to leave an ethereal yet substantial impression, never overstaying his welcome.

Never have such beautiful folk songs, full of such desperation and genuineness, ever been compiled into such a perfectly mystic arrangement. This is the essence of the mysterious Jim Sullivan, the aspiring musician who disappeared along his voyage from southern California to Nashville. Though it may be improbable that he's still alive, I'd like to think he's still poking around in the desert in some form.Heartbreaking. Essential listening.