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Hit Parader - February, 1967

If you want to get an idea of how much the Top 40 scene has declined during the last 50 years or so, look no further than the mainstream music magazines of the mid to late 1960s. It's simply amazing to see the massive number of excellent singers and bands who were classified as pop artists during that era. Although a lot of people would like to consider the MP3 Generation to be the most sophisticated group of cultural consumers in history, the fact remains that no other age group was exposed to as much musical diversity as the youth culture of the 1960s. Consequently, pop music has never been more inclusive than it was during that tumultuous decade.

JILL GIBSON, WHO BRIEFLY REPLACED MICHELLE
PHILLIPS IN THE MAMAS AND PAPAS - REMEMBER HER?

Rolling Stone would have you believe that there were no serious music magazines geared toward teens and twenty-somethings prior to its existence. This is simply not true, as a cursory glance through issues of Hit Parader from the 1960s will convincingly demonstrate. Growing up in the 1980s, I associated this periodical with hair metal bands and the other non-talents that were usually plastered all over the covers at that point in time. I had no idea that the publication had such an illustrious history until I developed an interest in music from the past and had an opportunity to look through vintage back issues.

SOME AMAZING PHOTOS FROM THE ARTICLE
ABOUT LOTHAR AND THE HAND PEOPLE

Blog team member vinylplastic has generously let me borrow the copies of this magazine that he has in his colossal periodical archive so that I can scan them as PDFs and make them more easily available in the blogosphere for research purposes. This particular issue is the February 1967 edition. However, back in those days, the date on the cover did not necessarily correspond with when the publication actually hit the newsstands. In fact, it was typical at the time for many periodicals to be released seemingly several months ahead of schedule. With this in mind and judging by the content of this Hit Parader, I'm guessing that it actually came out some time in the late autumn of 1966. Not only do its articles (which are better written than you might initially think) cover an extremely wide variety of musicians, but other intriguing features include letters to the editor, lyrics to the popular songs of the day, and, of course, priceless period advertisements such as "Don't Be Skinny!", "Learn To Play Guitar The Chet Atkins Way!", "For Instant Skin Beauty! Cover Up Ugly Blemishes," and "How to Make Money with Simple Cartoons," to name but a few.

PHOTO OF LOVE THAT WAS PLACED NEXT TO A LETTER FROM A
HUGE FAN IN THE "WE READ YOUR MAIL" SECTION OF THE MAGAZINE

To give you a better idea of what this issue has in store, what follows is a plagiarization of the table of contents:

-We Read Your Mail / Nice Letters From You
-The Scene / From Folk To Rock
-The Rolling Stones / Have They Gone Too Far?
-James Brown Contest / Win A Portable Phonograph
-The Beach Boys / Brian Wilson Talks About His Friends
-Jill Gibson / The One-Month Mama
-The Lovin' Spoonful / Joe & John Remember Their Childhood
-Larry Coverdale & The Horsemen / Watch Out For This Group
-The London Scene / By Miranda Ward
-Chad Stuart / Today & Tomorrow, An Interview
-New Stars / Keith, The Left Banke, Count 5, ? & The Mysterians
-New Albums / A Check List For You
-Music Spotlight / Some Newsy Baloney
-John Sebastian Interviews Fritz Richmond / Member Of The Kweskin Jug Band
-Tommy Roe / The Big Comeback
-The Four Tops / All The Groovy Sounds
-Lothar & The Hand People / An Interview
-Granny's Gossip / Did Diana Ross Really Get Married?
-Otis Redding / Swinging In London
-Steps To Stardom / How To Be A Singer
-Mike Bloomfield / Last Part Of An Interview
-Tempo / Composer-Arranger, Gary McFarland by Jim Delehant
-My Favorite Records / By Keith Relf Of The Yardbirds
-Platter Chatter / New Sounds On Plastic (reviews of Sunshine Superman by Donovan, East-West by the Butterfield Blues Band, Verve jazz reissues, Pretty Flamingo by Manfred Mann, The Sounds of India by Ravi Shankar, The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore by the Walker Brothers, et al.)

PICS FROM THIS ISSUE'S FEATURE ON THE FOUR TOPS

String Bands 1926-1929 (Document, 1993)

By request.

One of the most intriguing aspects of race records from the 1920s is that they occasionally provide a fascinating glimpse into the world of 19th-century black music that otherwise would have remained undocumented. Although Henry "Ragtime Texas" Thomas was arguably the most significant and prolific artist to have recorded such material during this time, there were many other African American musicians who also waxed 78s that featured performances with origins in the 1800s. In many cases, this archaic music was preserved in the repertories of string bands that often continued to utilize violins, banjos, mandolins, and other instruments that had largely fallen out of favor with most black audiences by the 1920s.


String Bands 1926-1929 collects the recordings of seven ensembles whose material for the most part was already passe when it was recorded. For that we can thank the clueless white music industry executives who had no idea what was hip in black culture at the time. Sometimes ignorance works to the benefit of historically-minded record collectors. While some would simply classify these 25 sides as "blues" - indeed, many of these performances contain that term in their titles - further analysis shows that some are actually rags. Of course, these are not the same as the ragtime piano works of Scott Joplin, but they share a common ancestor in the black dance music played at country frolics in the rural South during the immediate postbellum era.


In most cases, information about the performers appearing on this CD is nonexistent. Such is the case with the Kansas City Blues Strummers, whose excellent lone 78 "Broken Bed Blues" b/w "String Band Blues" features a violinist, banjoist, guitarist, and - according to the booklet notes by Terry Zwigoff - a cellist(!). The same lack of biographical details applies to the delightfully-named Old Pal Smoke Shop Four. "Surprised Blues" and "Black Cat Blues" are essentially instrumentals that feature the musicians playing banjo, guitar, mandolin, and a bowed string bass. Due to the manner in which that last instrument is played, I find these recordings to be very similar to works by the Dallas String Band. If the four titles by Taylor's Kentucky Boys - "Gray Eagle," "Forked Deer," "Soldier Joy," and "Maxwell Girl" - sound like hillbilly breakdowns to your ears, that's because they more or less are. These sides are rare examples of a black musician (in this case, violinist Jim Booker) performing with rural white musicians Marion Underwood on banjo, Willie Young on guitar, and - on the last two titles - Aulton Ray on vocals. Booker's younger fiddle-playing brothers John and Joe are accompanied by guitarist-kazooist Robert Steele (collectively known as the Booker Orchestra) on the jaunty instrumental "Camp Nelson Blues." "G Rag" provides another instance in which a black musician recorded with a white string band, with Andrew Baxter supplying violin accompaniment to the Georgia Yellow Hammers, whose personnel included guitarists Clyde Evans and Phil Reeve, banjoist Charles Ernest Moody, and square dance caller Uncle Bud Landress. The next seven sides feature Andrew and his brother (?) Jim Baxter on guitar as well as vocals and are fascinating illustrations of material that sounds "white" but is played by black musicians. Judging by the photo below, I'm guessing that they were often hired to perform at white parties (note the Caucasian woman with the hat in the background) in Georgia much in the same fashion that the Mississippi Sheiks were regulars at similar society events in their home state. "Bamalong Blues," "K.C. Railroad Blues" (similar to the Memphis Jug Band's "K.C. Moan"), and "It Tickles Me" are reminiscent of guitarist Frank Stokes' duets with fiddler Will Batts, while the driving "Moore Girl" and "Georgia Stomp" are pieces that were obviously intended for square dancing. To wit, you can plainly hear Jim calling out instructions on the latter track. Their most interesting performances are "Forty Drops" and "Dance the Georgia Poss" as they were derived from rags that date back to at least the 1890s, according to researchers Doug Seroff and Lynn Abbott. Regarding the first track, they provide the following information:

Fiddler Andrew Baxter gives a roughed-out country interpretation of the essential theme, struggling through a muddy variation or two, while Jim Baxter posits a verbal elucidation of the song title: "Now this is the 'Forty Drops.' Forty drops of what? Forty drops of rye!...Who's gonna carry me home when the dance is over? 'Cause I'm getting about full of this rye." The Baxters were separated from the source of "40 Drops" by more than a generation, so the accuracy of their interpretation of exactly what was "the 40 Drops" is open to question. It might also have been morphine or laudenum, popular recreational drugs of the 1890s period, typically dispensed in drops.*

The "poss" in "Dance the Georgia Poss" is a corruption of "pas ma la," an early black folk dance whose name originated from pas mele, French for "mixed step." Seroff and Abbott state, "In 1929 the black fiddle and guitar duo Andrew & Jim Baxter recorded 'Dance The Georgia Poss' advising dancers to 'get way back and "poss"' [sic, "pass"], perpetuating a theme from the 19th century black string band dance heritage."* Nap Hayes and Matthew Prater's superb guitar-mandolin duets consist of recordings sourced from Scott Joplin's piano rags ("Somethin' Doin'" and "Easy Winner") in addition to blues instrumentals ("Nothin' Doin'" and "Prater Blues"). The Alabama Sheiks - violinist Eddie West and guitarist Ad Fox - contribute four competent performances that interpret material that was more contemporary to their recording session in 1931 (which is obviously not acknowledged in the 1926-1929 part of the CD's title). Thus, "Travelin' Railroad Man Blues" seems to be derived from "Travelin' Coon" to a certain extent, whereas they didn't even bother to change the name of their straight-ahead cover of the Mississippi Sheiks' "Sittin' on Top of the World." "The New Talkin' 'Bout You" is a variation on Memphis Minnie and Kansas Joe's "I'm Talking About You," and "Lawdy Lawdy Blues" belongs to the same family of songs as Papa Charlie Jackson's "Cat's Got the Measles."

ANDREW (L) & JIM BAXTER

1. Broken Bed Blues - Kansas City Blues Strummers
2. String Band Blues - Kansas City Blues Strummers
3. Surprised Blues - Old Pal Smoke Shop Four
4. Black Cat Blues - Old Pal Smoke Shop Four
5. Gray Eagle - Taylor's Kentucky Boys
6. Forked Deer - Taylor's Kentucky Boys
7. Soldier Joy - Taylor's Kentucky Boys
8. Maxwell Girl - Taylor's Kentucky Boys
9. Camp Nelson Blues - Booker Orchestra
10. G Rag - Andrew & Jim Baxter (w/the Georgia Yellow Hammers)
11. Bamalong Blues - Andrew & Jim Baxter
12. K.C. Railroad Blues - Andrew & Jim Baxter
13. The Moore Girl - Andrew & Jim Baxter
14. Georgia Stomp - Andrew & Jim Baxter
15. Forty Drops - Andrew & Jim Baxter
16. It Tickles Me - Andrew & Jim Baxter
17. Dance the Georgia Poss - Andrew & Jim Baxter
18. Somethin' Doin' - Nap Hayes & Matthew Prater
19. Easy Winner - Nap Hayes & Matthew Prater
20. Nothin' Doin' - Nap Hayes & Matthew Prater
21. Prater Blues - Nap Hayes & Matthew Prater
22. Travelin' Railroad Man Blues - Alabama Sheiks
23. Sittin' on Top of the World - Alabama Sheiks
24. The New Talkin' 'Bout You - Alabama Sheiks
25. Lawdy Lawdy Blues - Alabama Sheiks


*Doug Seroff and Lynn Abbott. "100 Years from Today: The Origins of Ragtime." 78 Quarterly Vol. 1 No. 10 (1999): pp. 121-143.

The Best of Ian & Sylvia (Columbia, 1974)

Despite the misleading title, The Best of Ian & Sylvia is not, in fact, a compilation of their greatest hits. This two-LP set, however, does compile the two albums that they did for Columbia Records, Ian & Sylvia (1971) and You Were on My Mind (1972). These were the last records that they released as a duo. Neither sold well, and they were reissued as a two-fer in 1974 in the format presented here. By the following year, they had divorced, both professionally and personally. Even though these LPs were recorded toward the end of their career as a husband-wife team, for the most part, both hold up rather well and sound considerably more inspired than one would expect. At this point in their history, Ian and Sylvia seemed to have developed a workable formula that allowed them to combine the country and country rock elements of Nashville and Great Speckled Bird along with the pop moves of Lovin' Sound and the baroque orchestrated folk prevalent on So Much for Dreaming.

COVERS OF THE ORIGINAL COLUMBIA ALBUMS

Not to be confused with their like-titled debut for Vanguard, Ian & Sylvia shows the pair comfortably adapting to the 1970s without completely abandoning their traditional roots, as many former folkies turned singer-songwriters had done. The agreeable interpretation of David Wiffen's "More Often Than Not" pretty much sets the tone for both of these albums, instrumentally speaking - acoustic guitars with an electric rhythm section supplemented by just the right amount of strings and steel guitar. Another cover, "Creators of Rain" (originally performed by Smokey & his Sister) is more of a team effort with Sylvia sharing the lead vocal duties, while "Summer Wages" finds Ian revisiting and improving upon a tune that had originally appeared on So Much for Dreaming. Sylvia's lovely voice graces "Midnight" and is nicely complemented by the dobro playing of either Joe Renzetti or Stu Schaff. "Barney" is a touching tribute to an old horse that has to be put out of its misery. An affecting performance to say the least, you might want to skip this one if you have a soft spot for animals because the sorrow-tinged lyrics are rather graphic. "Some Kind of Fool" comes off as a nice straight-ahead country song, and despite the somewhat silly title, "The Shark and the Cockroach" puts the rock in country rock. "Last Lonely Eagle" features Ian and Sylvia's vocal harmonies at their most exquisite and is an excellent take on the New Riders of the Purple Sage's better-known original version. Although these two Canadians easily could have embarrassed themselves doing a musical narrative of an old slave's emancipation, "Lincoln Freed Me Today" (written by David Patton and also recorded by Joan Baez on the Blessed Are LP from the same year) succeeds by virtue of their sensitive but not overwrought performance. The string of excellent covers continues with Sylvia's haunting reading of Bert Jansch's "Needle of Death" before the album closes, appropriately enough, with an outstanding original by Sylvia titled "Everybody Has to Say Goodbye." (For those with a preference for compact discs, I recommend seeking out Beginning of the End, which contains Ian & Sylvia in its entirety plus four bonus tracks unavailable elsewhere. More info: here.)


The follow-up, You Were on My Mind was actually attributed to "Ian & Sylvia and The Great Speckled Bird" and features the second version of that group, who toured with Ian and Sylvia in the early 1970s but (with the exception of one holdover, drummer N.D. Smart) did not participate in the recording of the Great Speckled Bird album. (Again, more info: here.) I have to give the edge to this fine Canadian country rock outfit over the Nashville studio musicians who play on Ian & Sylvia and help make this album slightly the superior of the two. Things get off to a rousing start in which the duo out-Band the Band with a superb rendition of Robbie Robertson's "Get Up Jake." Unlike their first record for Columbia, which was more reliant on outside writers, the only other track not penned by Ian and/or Sylvia on You Were on My Mind is a pretty rocking version of the traditional "Lonesome Valley." "Old Cheyenne" and "Antelope" are Western-themed numbers evocative of the Great Plains, while the tastefully orchestrated "Miriam" serves as a showcase for Sylvia's graceful vocals. Even though I miss the original's trademark autoharp, this reimagined version of "You Were on My Mind" acquits itself rather convincingly as a twangy country tune. The all-but-a-cappella "Joshua" provides another opportunity for the couple to show off their vocal harmonies just as "You're Not Alone Anymore" exhibits Ben Keith's considerable skills on steel guitar. "The Beginning of the End," which foreshadows Ian and Sylvia's impending split, does both. With the exception of the prominent electric bass, "Salmon in the Sea" hearkens back to the sound of the early I&S albums on Vanguard. I'm not sure who it might be dedicated to, but "Bill (Won't You Please Take Me Home)" features Sylvia singing her heart out on the song that not only concludes the LP, but also one that marks the unfortunate end of Ian and Sylvia as a recording act.


Ian & Sylvia (1971)
1. More Often Than Not
2. Creators of Rain
3. Summer Wages
4. Midnight
5. Barney
6. Some Kind of Fool
7. Shark and the Cockroach
8. Last Lonely Eagle
9. Lincoln Freed Me
10. Needle of Death
11. Everybody Has to Say Goodbye

You Were on My Mind (1972)
1. Get Up Jake
2. Old Cheyenne
3. Antelope
4. Miriam
5. Lonesome Valley
6. You Were on My Mind
7. Joshua
8. You're Not Alone Anymore
9. Salmon in the Sea
10. The Beginning of the End
11. Bill (Won't You Please Take Me Home)

James Knight & the Butlers - Black Knight (Cat, 1971)

Anyone who is a vinyl collector will have to admit to being burned at least once from buying an LP with a great cover only to find that the music on the record itself completely sucked. Back in the old days before you could sample everything by downloading before purchasing, sleeve illustrations were a major factor in whether an album sold or not. Although some LP covers are true works of art, many were designed simply to encourage impulse purchases. With the exception of belly dance albums, sleeve photography that exploits physically attractive women typically does not bode well for the quality of the music. My point is that wax addicts like me know that when it comes to records, the old adage "You can't judge a book by looking at the cover" is a rule by which to live. Nevertheless, there are still occasions when checking out the sleeve illustration that you just know the album is going to be an outstanding listening experience. Such is the case with Black Knight.

JAMES KNIGHT & THE BUTLERS, CA. 1968 (L TO R): NAPOLEON
WILLIAMS*, DWIGHT JONES*, KNIGHT, FOSTER NEWBERRY*,
ROBERT JOHNSON*, & ROSCOE RICE* (* PROBABLY)

Black Knight is not the name of the dude with the guitar, cape, and stovepipe hat on the cover, though you could be forgiven for thinking that it is. In fact, Black Knight is the title of the first and apparently only album by James Knight and the (Fabulous) Butlers in addition to being the first LP release by Miami, Florida-based Cat Records (probably best known for Little Beaver and Gwen McRae). Singer-guitarist-composer-bandleader Knight (real name Billy James Lewis) was born in the aforementioned city and by age 19 was performing regularly with his heavy funk band, which also included Ernest "Snuff" Stewart on keyboards, Napoleon "Cool" Williams on bass, Roscoe Rice on drums, Foster Newberry on trumpet, Robert "Flea" Johnson on trombone, and Dwight "Hound" Jones on saxophone. This crack unit may or may not be the backing musicians on the album since Knight was well-connected not only in Miami but throughout the country as a result of constant touring and sharing bills with a diverse group of soul, funk, and blues musicians. With the exception of a few 45s, Black Knight seems to be the only thing that James Knight and the Butlers recorded, which is a tremendous pity considering their impressive talents. There is not a lot of information about Knight available online, so if anyone out there can add to the body of knowledge about this great musician, please leave some information in the comments.

JAMES KNIGHT, CIRCA 1971

The music on this album is unadulterated funk of the highest order without a trace of slickness or glossiness - which is what you'd expect from a black guitarist-led band in 1971, right before this kind of stuff started going soft. I'd say that the sound is somewhere between early-period Funkadelic and Kool & the Gang with a touch of Miami Latin-style rhythm thrown in for good measure. Knight is a fantastic guitarist and displays full mastery of wah-wah, fuzz, tremolo, and other effects; it's obvious that he had been taking notes during the musically fertile late 1960s. Although his instrumental skills are his greatest strength, he shows himself the be a respectable singer and songwriter throughout the LP as well. The opening cut, "Funky Cat," sets the tone for the rest of the record as Knight sorta raps his way through the performance as the backing musicians settle into an irresistible groove. "Uncle Joe" rocks hard, and Knight unleashes some guitar moves of which even Jimi Hendrix and Eddie Hazel would be envious. "Flyin' High" has to be one of the greatest odes to cannabis of all time, and while the lyrics to "Cotton Candy" are just a bit ridiculous ("Cotton candy on a candy stick, cotton candy I like to lick"), the song is still engagingly weird enough to hold my interest. The ferocious "Fantasy World" more or less picks up where "Uncle Joe" left off, and "I Love You" keeps up the guitar assault in between the romantic but not necessarily sappy lyrics. Knight evidently had a regional hit with this hard-charging version of Aretha Franklin's "Save Me" that arguably improves upon the original. With the exception of the Latin breakdown in the middle of the song, "Just My Love for You" concludes things on a soothing note, somewhat atypical for the album, but an affecting performance nonetheless.

KNIGHT SPORTIN' A 'FRO, CIRCA 1972

1. Funky Cat
2. Uncle Joe
3. Flyin' High
4. Cotton Candy
5. Fantasy World
6. I Love You
7. Save Me
8. Just My Love for You

Calypso Calaloo (Rounder, 1993)

A calaloo (also callaloo) is a thick coconut milk-based soup made with vegetables leaves (typically amaranth or taro), okra, and pigtail or crab meat that is popular in Trinidad and Tobago as well as other countries in the Caribbean. Since the culinary item is a mishmash of various ingredients, the term can also be used to describe confusion or, better yet, a mixture. Just as Trinidad itself is a fascinating amalgam of various cultural influences, so too is calypso, its native musical form. Thus, Calypso Calaloo is the perfect title for both Donald R. Hill's excellent history on the subject and the companion compact disc, which will be the subject of this review.

THE TIPICAL ORCHESTRA OF TRINIDAD (LOVEY'S BAND) CIRCA 1912

Back in my graduate student days, I had the pleasure of briefly meeting Hill at Arkansas State University's Delta Symposium III in 1997, where we both presented research papers. Although his project focused on Clarksdale, Mississippi barber and bluesman Wade Walton, our discussion revealed his biggest musical passion, Trinidadian calypso from the 1910s through the 1950s. Due to my interest in the cultural ramifications of the African diaspora in the Americas, he felt that my enthusiasm for blues would translate into similar feelings for his favorite kind of music. He recited the names of singers worth investigating such as the Roaring Lion, Atilla the Hun, and Lord Caresser, whose appellations I thought to be just a bit silly at the time, I must admit. Several years and albums later, I don't think twice anymore about the names, but I'm still in love with the music.

EARLY COLLECTION OF WILMOTH HOUDINI RECORDINGS

Although the tracks on this CD include only a fraction of the calypsos discussed in the book, they are sufficiently wide-ranging to exemplify the many variations of the genre. "La Impresion" and "Petrol" are two instrumental performances from 1914 by the Tipical Orchestra of Trinidad (aka Lovey's Band), an ensemble that was popular with members of the island's upper class. While this outfit was welcome at patrician social events, the singers who performed in tents during Carnival season were still considered too lowbrow and insufficiently worthy of attention by the country's elites. Lionel Belasco, who popularized calypso in similar fashion to what Scott Joplin did with ragtime, was quite simply one of the most important figures in the history of Caribbean music. Although equally gifted as a composer and bandleader, "Trinidad Carnival" and "Buddy Abraham" are solo piano works, with the former being a relatively modern-day recording (circa 1993) of a piano roll from 1922 and the latter a 78 from 1915. The Roaring Lion and the Cyril Monrose String Orchestra perform one of my all-time favorite calypsos, the exotic "African War Call," which is essentially an invocation to the gods of the Shango religion such as Ajaja, Oro, Abatala, and Emanja. For the most part, the lyrics utilize terms of the Yoruba people from Nigeria. As its title suggests, "Yaraba Shango," performed by Tiger with Gerald Clark and his Orchestra, also falls into the category of religious praise song, although the singer's vocals are in English this time around. "Lis Camille," a field recording by the obscure Babb and Williams, is an example of a calypso sung in French Creole whose subject matter concerns both a balloon jump and a murder trial from the late 19th century. Despite the fact that Wilmoth Houdini was not held in high regard by calypsonians back on the home island, he was a prolific New York-based performer who recorded several worthy sides in the 1920s and 1930s, with "Uncle Jo' Gimme Mo'" being among the best. The title and subject matter of Lord Executor's "Lajobless" concerns a mythical beast - a beautiful woman otherwise normal except for one of her feet being a cow's hoof - that is somewhat analogous with the Sirens of ancient Greek mythology. "Legnum Vital," an instrumental by Merrick's Orchestra, is a fine example of a type of performance known as a paseo (from the Spanish pasillo), which was intended for ballroom dancing. Even though "Back to My West Indian Home" is a product of Tin Pan Alley and not authentically Trinidadian, early calypsonian Sam Manning succeeds in helping this tune transcend its origins. Thanks to the Andrews Sisters hit version, "Rum and Coca Cola" ranks among the best-known calypso songs in the world, although it has a rather convoluted history in which its authorship has been the subject of great debate and even a lawsuit. Regardless of its true origins, Lord Invader's rendition places it in a more authentic musical setting in this live recording from his Port of Spain club in 1950. The subsequent tracks, "Introduction" and "Last Train to San Fernando," were taped at the same location in the same year and are especially significant because the Woodbrook Invaders Steel Orchestra is likely to have been the first such group to be aurally documented. As such, their sound possess an engaging rawness absent from the music of later practitioners of this style. "L'Annee Passee" is another title sung in Patois, although it is an a cappella performance by Patrick Jones and, according to Hill, a musical relative of the aforementioned "Rum and Coca Cola." The concluding track, "Walter Winchell," provides further evidence that in the right hands - in this case, Gerald Clark (who backed many notables on guitar) and His Calypso Orchestra with vocals by the Duke of Iron - a Tin Pan Alley tune can be transformed into an outstanding calypso.

LORD INVADER CIRCA 1953

1. Trinidad Carnival - Lionel Belasco (piano roll)
2. La Impresion - Tipical Orchestra of Trinidad (Lovey's Band)
3. Buddy Abraham - Lionel Belasco
4. African War Call - The Roaring Lion with the Cyril Monrose String Orchestra
5. Lis Camille - Babb and Williams
6. Petrol - Tipical Orchestra of Trinidad (Lovey's Band)
7. Yaraba Shango - Tiger with Gerald Clark's Iere String Band
8. Uncle Jo' Gimme Mo' - Wilmoth Houdini with Gerald Clark's Iere String Band
9. The Lajobless - Lord Executor
10. Legnum Vital - Merrick's Orchestra
11. Back to My West Indian Home - Sam Manning and Orchestra
12. Rum and Coca Cola - Lord Invader
13. Introduction of Steelbandsmen
14. Last Train to San Fernando - Woodbrook Invaders Steel Orchestra
15. L'Annee Passee - Patrick Jones
16. Walter Winchell - George (sic) Clark and His Calypso Orchestra, vocal by the Duke of Iron

Quicksilver Messenger Service - Winterland - April 6, 1968

(FRONT): GREG ELMORE (REAR L TO R): GARY
DUNCAN, DAVID FREIBERG, & JOHN CIPOLLINA

This marks the conclusion of my second of three planned installments focusing on concert recordings by Quicksilver Messenger Service, one of my top three favorite first-wave San Francisco Bay-area groups from the 1960s. I have approximately four more shows' worth of material from the their 1966-1968 heyday, which I'll wait to post until sometime in 2011. Part of the fun in making this stuff available is finding a use for the numerous photos of the band that I've saved on my desktop computer's hard drive over the years. Two of the pictures featured here are particularly interesting to me. The one above deserves attention because of the fact that it features the musicians toting rifles, which helps demolish the mainstream media-created notion that all hippies were about the stereotypical peace 'n' love bullshit. The bottom photo shows the guys with their wives/girlfriends and children. Well, everybody except for John Cipollina, who apparently preferred to be without such attachments at the time. Again, photographic evidence demonstrates that many of the commonly-held assumptions about the counterculture were simply not true. Sure, with the advent of the birth control pill and a loosening of so-called morals in the 1960s, there was a lot of "free love" going around Haight-Ashbury and other similar communities. But in many instances, the hippies that were viewed as a threat by people like Nixon's "silent majority" were trying to start families (albeit more open-minded ones) and go about their lives, just like everybody else.

(CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT): GREG ELMORE, JOHN
CIPOLLINA, DAVID FREIBERG, & GARY DUNCAN

At this point in Quicksilver's history, Jim Murray was no longer part of the band, which then consisted of the classic four-man lineup - Cipollina and Gary Duncan on guitars, David Freiberg on bass, and Greg Elmore on drums - that recorded the first album and Happy Trails. According to various sources, these two sets (in which QMS was the opening act for Eric Burdon & the Animals) were recorded at Winterland in the spring of 1968 just after the eponymous debut had been released, thus accounting for the inclusion of all but one of the songs that appeared on the LP. As fans of the group know, there seems to be an overabundance of concert recordings from this era, and perhaps many of these tracks will rank too highly on your overfamiliarity meter. The sound quality of these shows leaves a bit to be desired as well. (Is it just me, or is the audio from Winterland concerts always inferior to those taped at the Fillmore?) However, if you can look past these minor limitations, this should be a rather enjoyable listen.

MY FAVORITE PHOTO OF CIPOLLINA

The 11 tracks that comprise these sets feature Quicksilver at the height of their powers and compare favorably to the live material on the first disc of the two-CD release Unreleased Quicksilver: Lost Gold and Silver. True, there isn't an incredible amount of difference between the versions of "The Fool" and "Who Do You Love" from the early and late shows, but that still doesn't take away anything from the breathtaking instrumental work to be found in each performance. The blues covers - "Walkin' Blues," "Smokestack Lightnin," and "Back Door Man" are at the very least competent, while the shorter pieces from Quicksilver Messenger Service - "Pride of Man," "Light Your Windows," and "It's Been Too Long" - are all superb. In similar fashion to the Winterland show from December 29, 1967, "Gold and Silver" features guest musician Steve Schuster on saxophone, who is the same person listed in the "G. Duncan-S. Schuster" composers' credits on the album version.

MEN, WOMEN, CHILDREN, & ONE HELL OF A GUITARIST

Early Show

1. The Fool
2. Pride of Man
3. Walkin' Blues
4. Light Your Windows
5. Who Do You Love
6. Smokestack Lightnin'

Late Show

1. The Fool
2. Who Do You Love
3. Gold and Silver
4. It's Been Too Long
5. Back Door Man