ROCKASTERIA : BLIND FAITH - Live in Hyde Park 1969

Blind Faith - Blind Faith (1969 - 2001 double disc remaster)

Yes I was there . . . .a favourite concert and one of the first live outdoor gigs I ever went to!

Blind Faith were the band that introduced the world to the notion of a rock "supergroup," a combo featuring several musicians who had already achieved popularity and critical acclaim before joining forces to make music. Blind Faith also unwittingly established one of the most common features of supergroups -- most featured enough performers with strong resumes and egos to match that internal conflicts were all but inevitable, and as a consequence, they usually fell apart rather quickly. Despite a hit album and a financially successful international concert tour, Blind Faith managed to rise and fall in the space of less than a year, and ultimately proved to be a large but curious footnote in the careers of four giants of British rock: Eric Clapton, Steve Winwood, Ginger Baker, and Rick Grech.

Blind Faith were born of discord within two noted British acts of the late '60s. Cream were at the peak of their fame when the band broke up in 1969, in part because guitarist Eric Clapton was uncertain about the group's creative direction, but mainly because bassist Jack Bruce and drummer Ginger Baker found it all but impossible to see eye to eye. Meanwhile, vocalist and keyboard player Steve Winwood had founded Traffic after leaving the Spencer Davis Group to explore an adventurous brand of rootsy but instrumentally adept psychedelia informed by jazz and blues. After initial success, however, they had trouble negotiating egos as well as working out the balance of songwriting and instrumental work within the band, and in 1969, Traffic shut down.

Clapton and Winwood were friends and mutual admirers who had jammed together on several occasions, so when both found themselves at liberty following the breakup of their respective groups, they investigated the idea of forming a band together. One day, Ginger Baker stopped by while Clapton and Winwood were working out material, and he sat in on drums. Musically, Clapton and Winwood were happy with the way Baker's ambitious percussion melded with their new songs, which explored a more subtle blend of blues and R&B than Cream. While Clapton was wary of reuniting with Baker so soon after closing the book on Cream, Winwood's enthusiasm won out, and Baker joined the band. The group became a quartet with the addition of bassist Rick Grech, who had been playing with the celebrated U.K. band Family.

By May 1969, the quartet was recording an album with Jimmy Miller serving as producer. Given the massive commercial success of Cream and widespread curiosity about Clapton's next project, the new band -- dubbed Blind Faith by the tongue-in-cheek Clapton -- signed a lucrative record deal with Atlantic in the United States as well as Polydor in the U.K. Promoters were clamoring for a tour, and the band scheduled dates in Europe, the United States, and Canada. Blind Faith made their public debut with a show at London's Hyde Park on June 7, 1969. An estimated 100,000 people were on hand for the show, and while most in attendance seemed thrilled with the concert, Clapton in particular was not pleased with how loose and informal Blind Faith sounded on-stage. 

By the end of the month, Blind Faith had set out on a club tour of Europe, and the smaller shows allowed them better control of their sound and performances. When they hit America in July, however, they were booked into large arenas often saddled with dubious acoustics and poor sound systems. Fans eager to see the new band that was the talk of the rock press often battled with police and security as they rushed the stage, and the musicians were displeased with the chaotic atmosphere. It didn't help that Blind Faith had less than an hour's worth of new music to perform before they set out on tour; the band played North America for seven weeks, and by most reports they were rarely happy with their performances or the circumstances of the tour.

In August 1969, the Blind Faith album finally hit the streets, and while "Presence of the Lord" and "Can't Find My Way Home" quickly became FM rock staples and the album topped the charts in Britain and the United States, reaction to the project was less enthusiastic than many had expected. The band received negative press for the LP's cover, which featured a topless schoolgirl playing with a silver airplane model. (The sleeve was rejected in America in favor of a cover featuring a portrait of the band.) After Blind Faith returned home from the North American tour at the end of August, the members went their separate ways. Clapton joined Delaney & Bonnie & Friends on tour as a sideman, and next formed Derek & the Dominos, while Winwood re-formed Traffic, who became more successful than ever. Baker formed his own group, Ginger Baker's Air Force, which would feature Grech in the lineup. Grech also played briefly with Traffic, and in 1976 became involved with another ill-fated supergroup, KGB, featuring Michael Bloomfield, Carmine Appice, and Barry Goldberg.

Grech died in 1990, and Baker passed in 2019. While Clapton and Winwood would occasionally perform together, there has been no effort to revive Blind Faith; presumably their brief run in 1969 was enough for all involved. 

by Mark Deming

Tracks

Disc 1

1. Had To Cry Today (Steve Winwood) - 8:48

2. Can't Find My Way Home (Steve Winwood) - 3:16

3. Well All Right (Buddy Holly, Jerry Allison, Joe Mauldin, Norman Petty) - 4:27

4. Presence Of The Lord (Eric Clapton) - 4:50

5. Sea Of Joy (Steve Winwood) - 5:22

6. Do What You Like (Ginger Baker) - 15:18

7. Sleeping In The Ground (Sam Myers) - 2:49

8. Can't Find My Way Home (Steve Winwood) - 5:40

9. Acoustic Jam (Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker, Rick Grech, Steve Winwood) - 15:50

10.Time Winds (Steve Winwood) - 3:15

11.Sleeping In The Ground (Sam Myers) - 4:44

Albums bought when they came out! TRAFFIC 1968 | Plain and Fancy

Traffic - Traffic (1968 - 2018 remastered and expanded) 

You Can All Join In (Dave Mason)

Now I think I first heard Traffic on the compilation album of the same titular name as this great song that has haunted me ever since but just check out how many songs were actually written by Mason!

An album that became a Top 10 hit in the UK and a Top 20 hit in America cannot be described with that overused phrase “underrated”, but Traffic‘s self-titled album is a low-key addition to the classic records of 1968, a year when a sense of place distinguished the latest releases from the UK’s premier league bands.

After following the Beatles down the psychedelic rabbit hole in 1967, the Rolling Stones re-established their critical standing with Beggars Banquet, a record firmly rooted in Americana. The Kinks, banned from touring in America since 1965, were now the quintessentially English Village Green Preservation Society. While it cannot be seriously argued that The Beatles (White Album) had a sense of place, 19 of its 30 tracks had been written while they were on retreat in India. During the recording of Electric Ladyland, Jimi Hendrix could just as well have been beaming his guitar by satellite from outer space.

Traffic, meanwhile, came from Birmingham. For much of the 20th century, Birmingham was England’s unofficial second city. Its musical identity would come to be defined by heavy metal upon the surfacing of Black Sabbath. Beneath the radar, it had boasted of a music scene that had flourished in the wake of rock ‘n’ roll, reputedly with more working bands than in Liverpool. Still, by the middle of the 1960s, it had not established the national profile of Liverpool or London.

In 1968, there was a handful of noteworthy album releases by Birmingham-based groups, including the Moody Blues, the Move, and Traffic. All three shared some psychedelic common ground, as per fashion circa 1967, but only in so far as psychedelia equated to pushing boundaries, and the bands would sooner differentiate their musical identities than did the Merseybeat and London blues bands. So, while the Move took their cue from Sgt. Pepper‘s era art-pop and the Moody Blues worked orchestral textures into their proto-prog, Traffic, whose line-up emphasized keyboards and horns, with guitars often pushed back into a supporting role, gradually distinguished themselves as a premier jazz-rock band.

Traffic occupied a plum position on rock’s family tree. Steve Winwood had sung and played keyboards as a teen prodigy with the Spencer Davis Group (and he was only 19 years old when Traffic’s debut record was released in 1967). From that group, he brought along Jimmy Miller, a producer who had “got that art of being able to put music into words” and would start work that same year with the Rolling Stones, working with them through their much-vaunted golden period until 1973. Many Traffic members would feature on Electric Ladyland, and all four would play with Jimi Hendrix at one time or another. Winwood would go on to collaborate with Eric Clapton in Blind Faith, while Clapton would also cross paths with Dave Mason as part of Delaney & Bonnie and Friends, a coterie of blue-eyed soul musicians.

Yet still, the competition Traffic faced was massive. In a music industry flush with the Beatles’ success, the array of new, established, and emerging talent in the UK at this time was dizzying. The year 1968 saw significant debut records in blues-rock (Fleetwood Mac, Jethro Tull), folk-rock (Fairport Convention, Pentangle), heavy rock (Deep Purple, the Jeff Beck Group), and progressive rock (Soft Machine, the Nice). What was more remarkable still was how so many of these acts could distinguish themselves. 

What somewhat improbably helped the most talented artists to make their mark was that, amidst this wave of talent, there remained a vital element of purism, where only the most prominent names, like the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, were mixing genres freely. Peter Green of Fleetwood Mac was the most expressive British blues guitarist, but his band was still playing many Chicago blues covers and originals based on the rhythms and tonality of the blues. Sandy Denny of Fairport Convention would sing stirringly both on her original songs and on Fairport’s many Bob Dylan covers, but would also be influential on the group’s future decision to record only covers of British folk standards. Rod Stewart, too, was a fervent singer, but there were no gentle moments within the blues-derived proto-metal of the Jeff Beck Group.

Traffic were relatively less constrained. Winwood, Capaldi, and Wood liked to jam. With Wood’s distinctive array of horns and Capaldi’s exciting, meticulous drumming, this dimension formed their reputation as a 1970s jazz-rock band. They would later fit neatly in with the American jam-band aesthetic and were galvanized by the American “underground” scene of the time, where “all the groups just live for their music, and jam sessions are a pretty regular thing, with everyone getting up on stage to have a blow”. Dave Mason, however, wrote concise songs. Traffic, the album, is therefore split roughly between two distinct sides of their character, with Dave Mason’s songs typically delivered in a relaxed, amiable manner and the Steve Winwood/Jim Capaldi collaborations reaching into more progressive territory. However, Winwood’s remarkable talent and soulfulness as a vocalist, organist, and guitar player unites all of the material. 

Among the self-contained rock bands of the period, only the Jimi Hendrix Experience were as soulful as Traffic. Hendrix’s firsthand experience of playing with the Isley Brother aside, his pioneering work in psychedelic soul was aiming for the stars. In the Small Faces, Steve Marriott was another powerhouse vocalist, and the band had mod pedigree, but on Ogdens’ Nut Gone Flake, they would dilute their soulfulness with English whimsy. Traffic is shot through with down-to-earth soulfulness, with each song covering new ground and side one of the original vinyl record, especially being one winner after another. It’s a post-psychedelic record that retains the adventurous spirit of its predecessor, Mr Fantasy, while reconnecting with the roots of rock & roll. “Drugs show you the door, but they don’t open it, they don’t take you there. Music is getting honest, real, and natural,” said Winwood in an interview with his American counterpart, Al Kooper. Unlike many other groups of the time, Traffic did not see their record as a conceptual piece, with Winwood seeing it as “really ten songs rather than the concept of an album. They’re compositions. Or exercises, if you like.”

The Mason-written album opener, “You Can All Join In”, is an up-tempo rocker in which Winwood’s flowing call-and-response guitar licks meet Mason’s vocal melody. Contemporary music critics heard some country-rock flavor in the guitar, in the vein of Duane Allman, then a session guitar ace at Muscle Shoals studios, and later of the Allman Brothers Band. 

“Pearly Queen”, written by Winwood and Capaldi, could be Traffic‘s most rock-orientated piece, but features a rousing, soul-inflected vocal melody, punctuated by Winwood’s stinging rhythm guitar, ala Steve Cropper of Booker T & the MGs, and vast, echoing production on the instrumental sections, giving the piece a strong Atlantic Records vibe.

“Don’t Be Sad” is a wistful, gentle ballad written by Mason, in which Mason and Winwood take turns to sing verses and harmonise on the bridge, further enriched by Mason’s harmonica and Chris Wood’s saxophone accompaniment. “Who Knows What Tomorrow May Bring”, written by Winwood and Capaldi, is the funkiest cut on the record, driven by Winwood’s organ, which continuously pushes and pulls against Capaldi’s drums with an elastic groove in the manner of a soul-jazz organist like Jimmy Smith. 

“Feelin’ Alright”, written by Mason, became the LP’s most well-known song, covered many times by soul and rock performers, and is bolstered by Winwood’s lolling piano, drawing on the New Orleans R&B of Allen Toussaint and the Meters, with some fantastic tenor sax soloing by Wood.

Starting side two of Traffic, “Vagabond Virgin” and “Roamin’ Thru’ the Gloamin’ with 40,000 Headmen” diverge from the overall character of the record, both tracks harkening back to the whimsical acid-folk of Traffic’s debut, although they are both worthy compositions. “Vagabond Virgin” is the album’s story song, telling the well-worn tale of a London groupie based on a Latin American rhythm and has Capaldi playing claves.

“Cryin’ to be Heard”, written by Mason, has powerful dynamic shifts and multi-part vocal harmonies, deepened by Winwood on organ and harpsichord, which brings a gospel flavor to the record. “No Time to Live”, written by Winwood and Capaldi, intensifies the melancholy of Cryin’ to be Heard, with Winwood’s vocals yearning and pleading over a desolate backdrop dominated by piano, spare ornamental saxophone, and Capaldi on the tympani. “Means to an End”, written by Winwood and Capaldi and featuring only the two performers, closes the Traffic in the most straightforward manner, with a rock ‘n’ roll rave-up. Capaldi plays drums on this track, while Winwood overdubs all the guitar and keyboard parts.

by Jeremy McDonagh, 17 October 2023

References

Welch, C. (1968) “Traffic: Traffic (Island)”. Melody Maker.

Altham, K. (1968) “Traffic: Traffic Without Dave”. New Musical Express.

Boltwood, D. (1968) “Traffic and the US Underground”. Record Mirror.

Kooper, A. (1968) “Traffic: Stevie Winwood, A Calm, Shy Superfreak”. Rolling Stone.

Nelson, P. (1969) “Into Traffic with Steve Winwood”. Hullabaloo.

Tracks

1. You Can All Join In (Dave Mason) - 3:39

2. Pearly Queen (Jim Capaldi, Steve Winwood) - 4:21

3. Don't Be Sad (Dave Mason) - 3:22

4. Who Knows What Tomorrow May Bring (Jim Capaldi, Steve Winwood, Chris Wood) - 3:14

5. Feelin' Alright? (Dave Mason) - 4:18

6. Vagabond Virgin (Jim Capaldi, Dave Mason) - 5:23

7. (Roamin' Thro' the Gloamin' With) 40.000 Headman (Jim Capaldi, Steve Winwood) - 3:15

8. Cryin' To Be Heard (Dave Mason) - 5:33

9. No Time To Live (Jim Capaldi, Steve Winwood) - 5:02

10.Means To an End (Jim Capaldi, Steve Winwood) - 2:37

11.Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush (Jim Capaldi, Dave Mason, Steve Winwood, Chris Wood) - 2:46

12.Am I What Was or Am I What I Am (Jim Capaldi, Muff Winwood, Steve Winwood, Chris Wood) - 2:37

13.Withering Tree (Jim Capaldi, Steve Winwood) - 2:57

14.Medicated Goo (Jimmy Miller, Steve Winwood) - 3:40

15.Shanghai Noodle Factory (Jim Capaldi, Steve Winwood, Chris Wood) - 5:06

Traffic

*Jim Capaldi - Drums, Percussion, Lead Vocal 

*Dave Mason - Lead Vocal, Acoustic Guitar, Guitar, Harmonica, Bass Guitar, Organ 

*Steve Winwood - Lead Vocal, Organ, Lead Guitar, Bass Guitar, Rhythm Guitar, Piano, Harpsichord 

*Chris Wood - Tenor, Soprano Sax, Flute, Coke Tin, Sleigh Bells, Bass Guitar, Percussion, Vocal

for all those who stopped by to comment!

Feelin’ Alright

Traffic - 1968 Peel Sessions

We lost the force of nature that was Melanie Safka earlier this year | Here her classic THIRD album : Candles in The Rain | Plain & Fancy

Melanie - Candles In The Rain (1971, 2015 bonus tracks remaster)

here . . . .

1970s Candles in the Rain was Melanie Safka's third album, but while her first two LPs found her trying to make a coherent whole out of her grab bag of influences and ideas, this was where she seemed to truly hit the mark for the first time. "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)" was that rarity, a hit single that truly presented an eclectic artist in her best light -- the Woodstock rock festival that inspired the tune was just the sort of event that would appeal to Melanie's hippie-styled idealism, and with the power of the Edwin Hawkins Singers backing her, she had a level of musical strength on hand that would prevent her from sounding histrionic. 

While "Lay Down" was easily the most effective track on Candles in the Rain, the rest of the album found Melanie sounding more confident and expressive than ever before -- there's a emotional gravity to "Citiest People" and "Leftover Wine" that's compelling even when she pushes a little to hard for pathos, and "What Have They Done to My Song Ma?" was the first of her many musical broadsides against the music business, and its wit doesn't blunt its wounded passion. And while Melanie is generally thought of as a singer/songwriter, she was always an imaginative interpreter of the songs of others, and her versions of "Ruby Tuesday" and "Carolina on My Mind" exist on an entirely separate plane from the originals. 

Finally, the production and arrangements by Peter Schekeryk create fine backdrops for Melanie, punctuating her performances and complementing her emotional peaks and valleys without getting in the way (and the accompanists deliver uniformly superb work). If Candles in the Rain was the album that broke Melanie to a larger audience, it did so not just because it featured her biggest hit single to date, but because it matched material and interpretation with greater skill than she had in the past, and it ranks with her finest work. 

by Mark Deming

Sadly Melanie Anne Safka Schekeryk, passed away on January 23, 2024, at the age of 76.

Tracks

1. Candles In The Rain - 1:49

2. Lay Down (Candles In The Rain) - 3:49

3. Carolina In My Mind (James Taylor) - 3:49

4. Citiest People - 3:42

5. What Have They Done To My Song Ma? - 4:06

6. Alexander Beetle (Alan Alexander Milne, Melanie Safka) - 3:05

7. Good Guys - 3:11

8. Lovin' Baby Girl - 4:05

9. Ruby Tuesday (Mick Jagger, Keith Richards) - 4:48

10.Leftover Wine - 6:15

11.Almost Like Being In Love (Alan Jay Lerner, Frederick Loewe) - 3:51

12.Dream Seller (Rod Clements) - 3:36

Music and Words by Melanie Safka except where noted

Bonus Songs 11-12

Musicians

*Melanie - Vocals, Guitar

*Alan Parker - Guitars

*Alan Hawkshaw - Keyboards, Organ

*Edwin Hawkins - Piano (Track 2)

*Harold Mcnair - Fiddle, Flute

*Herbie Flowers - Bass

*Barry Morgan - Drums

*Rico Reyes - Congas, Percussion (Track 2)

*John Abbott - Arrangement (Track 2), Conductor (Track 5)

*Lee Holdridge - String Arrangements (Tracks 4,9)

 Lay Down, Lay Down (Candles In The Rain) 

FULL RECORDING Melanie & The Edwin Hawkins Singers ('70)

In tribute to Peter Schekeryk (the Record Man), and of course Melanie herself, creator of this 8-minute record. Peter made the call to Edwin Hawkins, leader of the gospel group. They had just come off their hit "Oh Happy Day." Peter was in high gear talking Edwin Hawkins’s ear off. Then out of nowhere he said, “Here....Melanie wants to talk to you.” I looked at him in horror as I put the phone to my ear. Earlier I had said, “Peter, wouldn't it be great if the Edwin Hawkins Singers sang on Candles In The Rain?" He was off and running. He orchestrated the whole thing. We flew out to Oakland, California where they were rehearsing in a high school gym. They only do nonsecular music, I thought…couldn’t believe he got me into this! When we walked in they were in the middle of a song. They trailed off and all looked at me. A white girl with a guitar and a wildly gesticulating man standing next to her. Peter ran up to Edwin Hawkins who was playing the piano. What I'm certain of is that he wasn't apologizing for barging in on their rehearsal. I thought Peter had prearranged this meeting. Apparently it was a surprise visit! So in this spirit of ("I wish I could crawl under a seat and hide") I sang my heart out on a solo version of “Lay Down.” When I got to the second chorus, the Edwin Hawkins Singers joined in. The rest is, as they say, history.

  / melaniesafka  

LAST FLIGHT TONIGHT : The Last Jefferson Airplane (bought when they came out series!) |PLAIN & FANCY

Jefferson Airplane - Bark

 (1971- 2013 remaster)

this was the last album by the Airplane that I bought (when it came out as it goes)  and after Blows Against The Empire I pretty much gave it up there . . . . . . . 

 JEFFERSON AIRPLANE - When The Earth Moves Again

Bark is the beautiful unraveling of Jefferson Airplane. Founding member Marty Balin had bailed, following the departed Spencer Dryden (who actually left during Volunteers), and the remaining members (which now included violinist Papa John Creach from Joey Covington’s previous band) embarked on their strangest journey to date. The Airplane had essentially splintered into three different parts: Jorma Kaukonen’s inner battle between Jimi Hendrix and gentleman farmer, Grace Slick’s trained monsters and Paul Kantner’s groupthink apocalypse. 

On a paper-bag poster, it might have looked messy. On vinyl, it was exciting as hell. In my opinion, this is the first Jefferson Airplane album that could be filed under progressive rock, as the psychedelic label has now completely worn off. You’ll hear the influence of Frank Zappa (“Wild Turkey” is their approximation of Hot Rats), Santana (compare “Pretty As You Feel” to “Oye Como Va”) and even The Beach Boys (on both Kantner’s “Rock And Roll Island” and Covington’s “Thunk”). And then there are Grace Slick’s songs, which defy description. “Crazy Miranda” is in line with earlier songs about foolish girls, but “Law Man” is like a shotgun blast of rock & roll in the face and her “European Song” is Marlene Dietrich genius mit more than a touch of madness. That the band couldn’t sustain this level of intensity is made plain in Kaukonen’s “Third Week In Chelsea,” which explains his change of heart in a song that might have stepped off a Lou Reed record. 

Kantner tries to rally the troops one more time for “War Movie,” but it’s clear that the Airplane’s journey is coming to an end. Yet Bark also makes clear that the band members still have plenty to say. I find myself wishing they’d extended this into a double album so I could hear more from Slick, Kaukonen, Kanter and even Covington, with Jack Casady and his unbreakable bass holding it all together.

by Dave Connolly, April 25, 2018

Tracks

1. When The Earth Moves Again (Paul Kantner) - 3:53

2. Feel So Good (Jorma Kaukonen) - 4:36

3. Crazy Miranda (Grace Slick) - 3:22

4. Pretty As You Feel (Joey Covington, Jack Casady, Jorma Kaukonen) - 4:28

5. Wild Turkey (Jorma Kaukonen) - 4:44

6. Law Man (Grace Slick) - 2:41

7. Rock And Roll Island (Paul Kantner) - 3:43

8. Third Week In The Chelsea (Jorma Kaukonen) - 4:33

9. Never Argue With A German If You’re Tired or European Song (Grace Slick) - 4:32

10.Thunk (Joey Covington) - 2:58

11.War Movie (Paul Kantner) - 4:42

Jefferson Airplane

*Jack Casady - Bass Guitar, Bass Balalaika

*Joey Covington - Percussion, Drums, Vocals

*Paul Kantner - Guitar, Vocals

*Jorma Kaukonen - Lead Guitar, Vocals

*Grace Slick - Piano, Vocals

*Papa John Creach - Violin ((Tracks 1, 4, 5) 

With

*Bill Laudner - Vocals (Track 11)

*Will Scarlett - Harmonica (Track 8)

*Carlos Santana - Guitar (Track 4)

*Michael Shrieve - Drums (Track 4)

JEFFERSON AIRPLANE LAST FLIGHT TONIGHT :: Jefferson Airplane - Long John Silver | ROCKASTERIA

Jefferson Airplane - Long John Silver 

(1972, 2013 audiophile remaster)

I finished my flight with The Airplane with Bark as I have said and this was the last album that I didn’t even bother with until years later . . . . . . . 

 Jefferson Airplane - Eat Starch Mom!

Long John Silver is the last adventure of the Jefferson Airplane. The album cover was designed to shock: it converted into a box to store your weed. The music is also designed to shock: “Easter,” “Son of Jesus,” “Eat Starch Mom.” If you haven’t been offended by Grace Slick already, I can’t imagine being offended now. I felt that Bark showed a band moving in different directions, while LJS is the same band expending the last of its increasingly directionless energy. 

The record does make a strong case for bringing Papa John Creach on board, as his violin mixes sweetly with the rest of the band and gives the songs a strange, spectral and almost elegiac quality. It had become clear, however, that Slick, Kantner and Kaukoken, Casady had split into separate factions. Kaukoken’s “Trial By Fire” and Kantner’s “Alexander The Medium,” for example, sound like the work of different bands. Slick and Kantner had grown long in the tooth by this stage, writing meandering protest songs and science-fiction fairy tales that felt like Hawkwind transported to an alternate, acoustic universe. As unfocused as it is, LJS is seldom less than interesting. 

The opening pair of tracks, “Long John Silver” and “Aerie,” are fearless in their freedom and artfully conceived in spots. You’ll find exciting instrumental passages, thought-provoking themes and blows against the establishment—in other words, the same ingredients that are synonymous with the best of Jefferson Airplane. What you won’t find on here is a hit single or definitive moment in the history of the Airplane, making it one of the least essential (if not the least essential) -  album from the original group. But even a bad Jefferson Airplane album is better than most things, including nearly all of the Jefferson Starship albums that came after.

by Dave Connolly, June 16, 2018

Tracks

1. Long John Silver (Jack Casady, Grace Slick) - 4:22

2. Aerie (Gang Of Eagles) (Grace Slick) - 3:52

3. Twilight Double Leader (Paul Kantner) - 4:41

4. Milk Train (Papa John Creach, Grace Slick, Roger Spotts) - 3:17

5. The Son Of Jesus (Paul Kantner) - 5:26

6. Easter? (Grace Slick) - 4:00

7. Trial By Fire (Jorma Kaukonen) - 4:30

8. Alexander The Medium (Paul Kantner) - 6:37

9. Eat Starch Mom (Jorma Kaukonen, Grace Slick) - 4:33

Jefferson Airplane

*Grace Slick - Vocals, Piano

*Jack Casady - Bass

*Paul Kantner - Vocals, Rhythm Guitar

*Jorma Kaukonen - Lead Guitar, Vocals

*Papa John Creach - Electric Violin

*John Barbata - Drums, Tambourine 

*Joey Covington - Drums (Tracks 3,5)

John Hammond And The Nighthawks - Hot Tracks (1979) - Plain & Fancy

 Next we have a great set from the legendary John Hammond and The Nighthawks over at Plain & Fancy. I always feel I should post more John Hammond because as blues men go he is up there with John Mayall and Alexis Korner in terms of bringing the essence of black music to a white audience IMHO and man this man can PLAY!

Despite one of the worst album covers of all time this is really worth listing to! The notes as per at Rockasteria are always interesting and this is no exception with a lesson in the sources of these song selections and well worth the read. This time from Bruce Eder.

He says:

" . . . .  this isn't a bad way to spend 40 minutes, especially given the really crunchy guitar sound achieved by Jeff Zaraya and the uncredited producer. A real diamond in the rough, and one of Hammond's best albums."

Musicians

John Hammond - Vocals, Guitar, Harmonica

Jimmy Thackery - Guitar 

Marc Wenner - Mouth Harp

Jan Zukowski - Bass

Pete Ragusa - Drums

Sweet Home Chicago - John Hammond and The Nighthawks 

Enjoy! I know I am!

* note - though only published in 1979 on CD this is seemingly out of print and not available anywhere I could find. If you know otherwise then please let me know otherwise and I will remove it

ROCKASTERIA :: Early Morning Blues And Greens (1969 USA, 2006 remastered) | Plain & Fancy

 DIANE HILDEBRAND

EARLY MORNING BLUES & GREENS

Fantastic notes as ever by the ever reliable Richie Unterberger about this rare classic and I am ashamed to say I did not know Diane's work and I missed out for sure. Read about her at the link below

Diane Hildebrand - Early Morning Blues & Greens 1969 - Plain & Fancy