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Fifty Year Friday: April 1972

GENTLE GIANT: THREE FRIENDS

Released on April 14, 1972, Three Friends is Gentle Giant’s third album and their first self produced album, and takes a musical direction quite different from the previous two, with the music coalesced around the thematic concept of three schoolmates and the different directions they take. Whereas the music of the previous album generally flows and evades concrete musical borders, owing much to medieval and renaissance musical sensibilities, the music of Three Friends is distinctly of the twentieth century with repeated musical cells and patterns, occurrences of syncopation, and both subtle and more strongly emphasized meter changes — all taken together, form the initial characteristics of an identifiable Gentle Giant style that would become more prevalent in their fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth albums.

The first track, the prologue, starts off in 3/4, appropriate for the concept of “three friends”, then shifts into 4/4 in preparation for the lyrics and then ends in mostly 3/4 with a few apparent meter changes for the ending. The high register synthesizer, like the wispiness of memory, adds to the overall effect of detailed stereo separation. The interlaced vocals continues with the next track, “School Days”, which brings to mind that back and forth playfulness of school children, with some more shuffling of the time signature and then a brief dark middle interlude that shifts into 4/4 for the “remember” section which includes Ray Shulman’s son providing age-appropriate vocals against uncle Phil Shulmans grown-up vocals. After a jazzy vibraphone solo from Kerry Minnear, there are some more meter changes and the the reflection on past school days quietly ends.

Each of the next three tracks focuses on one of the three friends. “Working All Day” is the stoic pronouncement of the manual laborer, voiced appropriately by Derek Shulman, who matter of factly accepts his fate with “no regrets” in mostly straight 4/4 common time. Notable is the introduction, a free multi-voiced, contrapuntal, synthesizer part, that, through the magic of magnetic type, slowly (and seamlessly) grinds down to the plodding working class tempo of the opening theme. Near the end of the piece, in the recap of that initial “working all day” theme, we get a few bars of what I call the Gentle Giant “stride” style (see Fifty Year Friday: July 1971), a “keep on trucking” era type of passage, that appears about twenty-seconds before the end of the song.  

“Peel the Paint” showcases, lyrically, Phil Shulman, light and airy with “free from the start”, then Derek with an anguished “peel the paint”, “nothing’s been learned”, and musically, the two sides of the artist — the aesthetic highs and the tortured lows — with the “peel the paint”, “same old savage beast”, and “nothing’s been learned, no, nothing at all” section relying heavily on the use of the “devil of music” (“diabolus in musica”), the tritone, and a guitar solo that starts out tormented and appears to flop into a drunken-like stupor with the piece ending with a recap of “nothing’s been learned.”

The third track covers the final friend, the lad that made the “big time”, reflecting on the material advantages of success, in a mostly 12/8 meter with some shorter bars for typical Gentle Giant variety. The album ends with “Three Friends” redeploying material from the prologue, including use of both 3/4 and 4/4 meters. The album, though maybe not delivering the most profound concept or realization of that concept, succeeds musically, and with its ample occurrence of 4/4, 2/4 and 12/8 rhythms, makes wonderful driving music. I would also suggest listening to it with visual cues — perhaps something like “light speakers” — devices that bundle different colors of strings of Christmas lights with each color associated to a band of audio frequencies and placed behind a semi-transparent plastic to create dazzling color effects coordinated with the music.’

Overcast: The Approaching Storm

Recorded in a series of contentious sessions in January 1972, made even more difficult by equipment issues and studio logistic headaches (with the band unpleasantly mired in the resulting red tape spawned by recent ownership changes at the La Brea recording studios), Overcast’s fifth album, The Approaching Storm, saw the light of day on the first of April, 1972.

Shifting tentatively from the basic blues and blues-rock formula that had provided their only hit, “Better Yet”, the band, led by the urging of classically trained keyboardist Trevor Stuart (see Fifty Year Friday: Overcast, With a Chance of Showers) explored more complex musical avenues, incorporating a range of influences from the The Who’s recent 1971 album, Who’s Next to the Yes’s Fragile album — though clearly, David Amato was no Keith Moon or Bill Bruford, and Douglas Brandt was no John Entwistle or Chris Squire.

The first side starts with the title track, with heavy bass and darkly-tinged doom-laced lyrics contrasted with pleas for optimism (“No room for grooming this looming, mushrooming doom and gloom”), followed by “Cognitive Unconsciousness” with its bagpipe-like synthesizer passage, and then “Decidedly Dangerous”, which merges into “Disaster Part One: Recognized, Resisted, Realized”, which effectively ends the first side.

Side Two opens with “Disaster Part Two: Reality” with stabbing marimba-like effects from the synthesizer and concludes with the dramatic and stormy, fifteen-minute, “Crystal Palace Workshop”, which leans heavily on Stuarts multi-track use of moog synthesizer and Bill Fortney’s heavily arpeggiated and intermittently apocalyptic electric guitar.

David Crosby & Graham Nash: David Crosby & Graham Nash; Stephen Stills: Manassas; Jim Croce: You Don’t Mess Around with Jim; Procol Harum: In Concert with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra

Additional albums released in April of 1972 include the first Crosby/Graham album, with an exquisite balance between the well-crafted Nash compositions and the mellower Crosby tunes crowned by Nash’s timeless gem “Immigration Man”. the Stephen Stills two LP Manassas with its individually themed LP sides, Jim Croce’s breakout commercial album, You Don’t Mess Around with Jim, with its quality arrangements, well-recorded acoustic guitar and the elegantly-wrought classic, “Time in a Bottle”, and Procol Harum’s best selling album recorded live with full orchestra.

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Blues Rock, Country Folk Rock, Fifty Year Friday, Folk Rock, Gentle Giant, Hard Rock, Music, Progressive Rock, Rock

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Fifty Year Friday: Crosby, Stills and Nash

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The first generally-recognized rock “supergroup” was the blues-leaning Cream with Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker.  Prior to that, Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce, and Stevie Winwood had formed Powerhouse, originally to have included Ginger Baker, but with only an output of three songs, and with two lesser-known members, Powerhouse could hardly have been considered the first supergroup. When Cream formed, Eric Clapton was already considered an established guitarist, Jack Bruce had survived the Graham Bond Organisation and made a name for himself in Manfred Mann, and Ginger Baker had established his credentials as a skilled drummer in the Graham Bond Organisation before founding Cream in 1966.

The second rock supergroup was formed during the initial stages of the inevitable rise of country-rock and country-folk-rock by three talented and recently “released” artists: David Crosby, was given the boot by the Byrds, mainly due to Crosby’s vision of the direction the Byrds should take not aligning with Roger McGuinn’s and Chris Hillman’s views, Stephen Stills was now free with the break-up of the Buffalo Springfield, and Graham Nash was now seeking new opportunities — Nash, the effective leader of the Hollies, had grown dissatisfied with the Hollie’s aggressive touring schedule and was also no longer interested in having to navigate the gap between Nash’s more creative and musically adventurous aspirations and the other Hollies’ members tendency towards more traditionally pop-oriented music.

Story goes that at a party in July 1968, either at Mama Cass’s or Judy Collin’s home, Nash had asked Stills and Crosby to sing Stills’ “You Don’t Have To Cry” and at some point Nash joined in, harmonizing on the spot.  The three then realized that had something, and soon determined to form a group — but not a group that would continue without any of them — and so they determined the best way to equate the group with the founding members was to name that group after those founding members: “Crosby, Stills and Nash.”

The trio reached out to the management team of Elliot Roberts and David Geffen who signed them with Atlantic, which then had to basically work out a trade for Graham Nash, sending  Richie Furay and his new band Poco to Epic.  (Note that Poco fit nicely into the rising popularity of country rock, releasing their first album, Pickin’ Up the Pieces, on May 19, 1968, only ten days before the release of Crosby, Stills and Nash. I ran out of time last week to review, but for those that like country-rock, this is a very solid country-rock album.)

Recorded in February and March of 1969, and released on May 29, 1969, Crosby, Stills and Nash album became almost instantly popular, with “Marrakesh Express”, a song Nash originally intended for the Hollies, getting airplay on AM radios in the middle of July, eventually reaching number 28 spot, soon followed by Suite Judy Blue Eyes peaking at number 21.  FM radio stations embraced the entire album, playing a number of the other fine tracks.

Excellency is really the hallmark of this album. Even if someone is not a fan of folk-rock, the effervescent and transparent blend of vocals and acoustic guitar work has to resonate with even the most selective of listeners.  If somehow you missed growing up with this classic album, or have otherwise not heard it, seek it out, for it is one of the most enjoyable country-folk rock albums ever recorded, so much so that I include this as another valid entry in my list of non-progressive-rock progressive rock albums!

Track listing [From Wikipedia]

Side one

#

Title

Writer(s)

Lead vocals

Length

1.

 “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes“ Stephen Stills Stills

7:25

2.

 “Marrakesh Express“ Graham Nash Nash

2:39

3.

 “Guinnevere“ David Crosby Crosby with Nash

4:40

4.

 “You Don’t Have to Cry” Stephen Stills Stills with Crosby & Nash

2:45

5.

 “Pre-Road Downs” Graham Nash Nash

2:56

Side two

#

Title

Writer(s)

Lead vocals

Length

1.

 “Wooden Ships“ Crosby, Paul Kantner, Stills Crosby with Stills

5:29

2.

 “Lady of the Island“ Graham Nash Nash

2:39

3.

 “Helplessly Hoping“ Stephen Stills Stills with Crosby & Nash

2:41

4.

 “Long Time Gone” David Crosby Crosby with Stills

4:17

5.

 “49 Bye-Byes” Stephen Stills Stills

5:16

 

Personnel 

Category:

1969, Album review, Country Folk Rock, Fifty Year Friday, Folk Rock, Rock, Uncategorized

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Fifty Year Friday: Byrds, Hollies and Buffalo Springfield

Formed in 1964, in Los Angeles California, the Byrds are generally, with the advantage of retrospect, considered one of the more essential and influential bands of the mid-sixties, primarily due to their blending the rock style of the British Invasion with elements of country and western music, folk, west coast rock and psychedelia.

The fourth album, opens robustly with the semi-ironic, partly humorous, “So You Want to Be a Rock ‘n’ Roll Star” Other strong songs include the jingly-jangly arranged Chris Hillman composition “Have You Seen Her Face”, Hillman’s “The Girl with No Name” (apparently inspired by a young lady with then real name of “Girl Freiberg”, one of the better known covers of Bob Dylan’s “My Back Pages”, and the David Crosby tracks “”Renaissance Fair” , “Everybody’s Been Burned”, “Mind Gardens” and “Why.” Psychedelia and Indian musical influences are present on several tracks with an  electronic oscillator providing suitable effects and McGuinn’s guitar providing a suitable substitute for the sitar on “Why.”

Track listing [from Wikipedia]

Side one

  1. “So You Want to Be a Rock ‘n’ Roll Star” (Jim McGuinn, Chris Hillman) – 2:05
  2. “Have You Seen Her Face” (Chris Hillman) – 2:25
  3. “C.T.A.-102” (Jim McGuinn, Robert J. Hippard) – 2:28
  4. “Renaissance Fair” (David Crosby, Jim McGuinn) – 1:51
  5. “Time Between” (Chris Hillman) – 1:53
  6. “Everybody’s Been Burned” (David Crosby) – 3:05

Side two

  1. “Thoughts and Words” (Chris Hillman) – 2:56
  2. “Mind Gardens” (David Crosby) – 3:28
  3. “My Back Pages” (Bob Dylan) – 3:08
  4. “The Girl with No Name” (Chris Hillman) – 1:50
  5. “Why” (Jim McGuinn, David Crosby) – 2:45

Personnel

Sources for this section are as follows:[1][5][23][54][55]

The Byrds

 

The Hollies, released two albums in 1967, “Evolution” and “Butterfly”

Both  albums have their annoying, overly-commercial, teeny-bop elements (think of what you dislike about Herman’s Hermits) but this is compensated by the inclusion of several excellent tracks.  Lot of the credit for what is really good here goes to Graham Nash.

The best track on “Evolution” is the simply arranged and perfectly conceived “Stop Right There.”  Other worthwhile tracks include the hyper-vibrato-infused “”Lullaby to Tim”, the catchy, if outdated-sounding for 1967, “Have You Ever Loved Somebody?”, the wistful, and melancholic “Rain on the Window”, the early Beatles-era “Heading for a Fall”, and the AM radio hit “Carrie Anne.”

US/Canada track listing of “Evolution” [from Wikipedia]

Side 1

  1. “Carrie Anne” (Clarke-Hicks-Nash) lead vocal: Clarke, Hicks and Nash
  2. “Stop Right There”
  3. “Rain on the Window”
  4. “Then the Heartaches Begin”
  5. “Ye Olde Toffee Shoppe”

Side 2

  1. “You Need Love”
  2. “Heading for a Fall”
  3. “The Games We Play”
  4. “Lullaby to Tim”
  5. “Have You Ever Loved Somebody”

Personnel

 

“Butterfly” (retitled “Dear Eloise / King Midas in Reverse” in the US)  has its moments also such as the introduction to “Eloise”,  the upbeat, yet also partly annoyingly cloying “Wishyouawish” and “Away Away Away”, Nash’s  simple and direct “Butterfly” (similar to “Stop Right There” on “Evolution”), and “Leave Me”, which was on the original twelve track UK “Evolution” album but not on the US ten track release of “Evolution.” Another notable track, not on the UK version, but only on the US version of the “Butterfly” LP, is the quirky,  “King Midas with a Curse.”

US/Canada track listing of “Butterfly” released as “Dear Eloise / King Midas in Reverse”  [from Wikipedia]

Side 1

  1. “Dear Eloise”
  2. “Wishyouawish”
  3. “Charlie and Fred”
  4. “Butterfly”
  5. “Leave Me” (Clarke-Hicks-Nash)
  6. “Postcard”

Side 2

  1. “King Midas in Reverse“
  2. “Would You Believe?”
  3. “Away Away Away”
  4. “Maker”
  5. “Step Inside”

Personnel

 

At this point the reader probably sees where I am going with this post — covering the Byrds, which had David Crosby writing some of their best songs, the Hollies, with Graham Nash writing some of their best tunes, and next, Buffalo Springfield, with Neil Young and Stephen Stills — these four guitarists/singers/composers forming Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young.

Buffalo Springfield’s first album. simply titled after the band, was released in December 1966, but it qualifies as one of the first solidly 1967-sounding albums.  In January 1967, the most impressive song of the first half of 1967 hit the airwaves, a rare objective view of the widening political divide in the U.S.. “For What It’s Worth”.  I was eleven when I heard this, and it was, for me, clearly the coolest song on AM radio of all time.  It is worth re-examaning the lyrics so relevant to 1967, but also applicable to today:

What it is ain’t exactly clear:
There’s a man with a gun over there
Telling me I got to beware.
I think it’s time we stop, children, what’s that sound?
Everybody look what’s going down.
There’s battle lines being drawn:
Nobody’s right if everybody’s wrong.
Young people speaking their minds —
Getting so much resistance from behind.
It’s time we stop, hey, what’s that sound?
Everybody look what’s going down.
What a field-day for the heat:
A thousand people in the street
Singing songs and carrying signs
Mostly say hooray for our side!
It’s s time we stop, hey, what’s that sound?
Everybody look what’s going down.
Paranoia strikes deep:
Into your life it will creep.
It starts when you’re always afraid:
You step out of line, the man come and take you away.
We better stop, hey, what’s that sound?
Everybody look what’s going down.
Stop, hey, what’s that sound?
Everybody look what’s going down.
Stop, now, what’s that sound?
Everybody look what’s going down.
Stop, children, what’s that sound?
Everybody look what’s going down.
This is clearly Stephen Still’s masterpiece of his career and was of such impact that ATCO, the album’s label, re-released this first Buffalo Springfield album in March 1967, including this track. For this reason, its fair game to consider this album belonging to 1967.

Track listing of “Buffalo Springfield”  [from Wikipedia]

 

March 1967 pressing side one
No. Title Writer(s) Vocals Length
1. “For What It’s Worth” (Dec. 5) Stephen Stills Steve with Richie & Dewey 2:40
2. “Go and Say Goodbye” (July 18) Stephen Stills Richie & Steve 2:20
3. “Sit Down, I Think I Love You” (August) Stephen Stills Richie and Steve 2:30
4. “Nowadays Clancy Can’t Even Sing” (July 18) Neil Young Richie with Steve and Neil 3:24
5. “Hot Dusty Roads” (August) Stephen Stills Steve with Richie 2:47
6. “Everybody’s Wrong” (August) Stephen Stills Richie with Steve and Neil 2:25

 

 

March 1967 pressing side two
No. Title Writer(s) Vocals Length
1. “Flying on the Ground Is Wrong” (September 10) Neil Young Richie with Steve and Neil 2:40
2. “Burned” (August) Neil Young Neil with Richie and Steve 2:15
3. “Do I Have to Come Right Out and Say It” (August) Neil Young Richie with Steve and Neil 3:04
4. “Leave” (August) Stephen Stills Steve with Richie 2:42
5. “Out of My Mind” (August) Neil Young Neil with Richie and Steve 3:06
6. “Pay the Price” (August) Stephen Stills Steve with Richie 2:36

Personnel

Buffalo Springfield

 

 .
As distinct and noteworthy as the first Buffalo Springfield album was, the second one is even better.  Neil Young’s driving, anthem-like “Mr. Soul” opens the album and Young’s surreal “Broken Arrow” closes it.  In between are additional songs by Young and Stephen Stills with three pretty good tracks authored by Richie Furay —  one of these, “Good Time Boy”, arranged to include excellent horn-work by the Louisiana group, “the American Soul Train”   This album is distinctly American, or more accurately, Canadian-American (Dewey Martin, Bruce Palmer and Neil Young being Canadian-born musicians), combining rock, folk, country and psychedelic-rock elements.  One should also note David Crosby’s involvement in the Stephen Stills song, “Rock and Roll Woman”, which is predictive of Still’s later “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes.”

Track listing [from Wikipedia]

 

Side one
No. Title Writer(s) Vocals Length
1. “Mr. Soul“ Neil Young Neil with Richie and Steve 2:49
2. “A Child’s Claim to Fame” Richie Furay Richie with Steve and Neil 2:09
3. “Everydays” Stephen Stills Steve with Richie 2:40
4. “Expecting to Fly“ Neil Young Neil 3:43
5. “Bluebird” Stephen Stills Steve and Richie 4:28

 

Side two
No. Title Writer(s) Vocals Length
1. “Hung Upside Down” Stephen Stills Richie and Steve with Neil and Richie 3:27
2. “Sad Memory” Richie Furay Richie 3:01
3. “Good Time Boy” Richie Furay Dewey 2:14
4. “Rock and Roll Woman” Stephen Stills Steve with Richie and Neil 2:46
5. “Broken Arrow“ Neil Young Neil and Richie 6:14

Personnel

Buffalo Springfield
Additional personnel
  • James Burton — dobro on “A Child’s Claim to Fame”
  • Chris Sarns — guitar on “Broken Arrow”
  • Charlie Chin — banjo on “Bluebird”
  • Jack Nitzsche — electric piano on “Expecting to Fly”
  • Don Randi — piano on “Expecting to Fly” and “Broken Arrow”
  • Jim Fielder — bass on “Everydays”
  • Bobby West — bass on “Bluebird”
  • The American Soul Train — horn section on “Good Time Boy”

Category:

Fifty Year Friday, Music, Rock

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