Jim Gilmour

 

 

 

Great Escape

 

Since 1980, Jim Gilmour (not related to David Gilmour) has had the keyboard duties for one of the most interesting and enduring bands in prog rock music, namely Saga. He also does the backing and sometimes lead vocals for Saga, as well as being one of the songwriters for the band. Now Jim goes it all the way on this new solo album following upon his solo album from 1997 called Instrumental Encounters.

On this second solo album you can listen to five instrumental tracks and five with vocals. The music and words on this CD were written with the help of images and experiences Jim had on his excursions in the Canadian wilderness. That is probably the reason why the entire album sounds a lot like film music, some songs could perhaps even by used as a soundtrack for a "romantic" movie…..

For me the keyboards dominate too much and I would rather have liked it if Jim would have stayed closer to the Saga sound. Just the opening song reminds me of good old Saga, meaning real prog rock with lots of guitar and keys, scrambled together into a great catchy melody. During the keyboard passages in songs like Algonquin, No Sign and Canoe Do It?, Gilmour sounds like keyboard giants such as Jordan Rudess, Kevin Moore, Patrick Moraz or Richard Andersson. The vocals on this album are definitely NOT to my liking as they are far too sweet and poppy. Further I really do not enjoy the piano improvisation Carden Isle and the last five minutes of Last Portage, which also only consists of piano "exercises".

Best tracks are No Sign, Algonquin, Canoe Do It? and the first 6 minutes of Last Portage. But as I already said before, the album is too much dominated by keyboards, making it perhaps an essential listening for all keyboard players in the world???? The true Saga fans, like yours truly, should first listen very carefully to this album before buying it.

Tracklist: No Sign (7:19), Algonquin (5:30), Lost Among The Way (5:12), Killarney Sunrise (4:42), The Northwind (4:01), Radiant Lake (4:41), Carden Isle (3:44), Wasteland (2:59), Canoe Do It? (5:27), Last Portage (13:28)

 

 

Jing Chi

 

 

 

3 D

 

Jing Chi are a veritable supergroup comprising a trio of top-notch musicians whose combined CV reads like an A to Z of popular music. Bassist and ringleader Jimmy Haslip started his career in Tommy Bolin's band of the mid 1970s and has since contributed to albums by the likes of Steely Dan, Crosby, Stills and Nash, Rod Stewart and Cher. Guitarist Robben Ford has bent the old six string for the likes of Joni Mitchell, Little Feet and Ricki Lee Jones as well as being a prolific solo artist, while drummer Vinnie Colaiuta is ubiquitous: Frank Zappa, Sting, Stevie Nicks, John McLaughlin and Chick Corea (to name but a few) have all benefited from his precise and inventive playing.

The trio came together in 2001 to release their self-titled debut album which was followed up by a live album in 2003. For the latest release, the band have gone for a harder edged approach, drawing influence from '60s rock icons Cream, Hendrix's Band Of Gypsies and The Allman Brothers. The result is eight original instrumentals and a remarkable cover version of Blind Willie Johnson's 1927 classic It's Nobody's Fault But Mine, where the trio are joined by blues icon Robert Cray who sings and adds additional guitar. The album niftily defies categorisation, incorporating blues, rock, tinges of fusion and elements of the jam-based bands resulting in a collection of tunes that will find favour across a broad spectrum of musical disciplines.

Opener Colonel Panic sets a heavy tone where the Cream influences stand out and superbly displays the individual talents of the three protagonists - it's as if all three decided to play a solo for five minutes and then they combined the results (indeed, it's the only track where all three musicians are credited as composers). Chi Town is rather mellower with flowing guitar lines from Ford underpinned by some simple synth lines played by Haslip. Move On is a simple, melodic tune, in complete contrast to the fusion drenched Hidden Treasure on which the renowned Larry Goldings guests on organ. Time Is A Magazine takes King Crimson's Red as a template, twisting it about resulting in another heavier number with funky overtones. On this track Ford's wah-wah pedal is put into overdrive and he even loans it to Haslip who dishes out some amazing bass playing.

A couple of blues numbers takes the tempo down a notch with Ford once again taking the plaudits for his work on Mezzanine Blues (which also features the soprano sax of Steve Tavaglione) and Larry Goldings making his organ's presence known on Blues Alley. The extended nature of It's Nobody's Fault But Mine means that, despite being the only track to feature vocals, the majority of the song is actually instrumental. Ford and Cray combine well with some precise playing that manages to maintain a loose, jamming feel to it. Thrown into the mix are some rather ambient textures and also a further nod to Cream with the inclusion of the guitar riff to Spoonful midway through the song. Tangled Up ends the album as it began, a charged instrumental that more than adequately demonstrates just how good the three musicians are and how well the combine.

All-in-all an exciting album of superb playing demonstrating why Ford, Colaiuta and Haslip are amongst the most in-demand session musicians. Despite the antipathy of some people towards instrumental music, 3D is worthy of a place in the record collections of a wide cross selection of music lovers.

Tracklist: Colonel Panic (5:15), Chi Town (6:05), [3hui (Good Men) (1:44)], Move On (4:00), [Zest (0:19)], Hidden Treasure (6:23), [Ki 3i (All Things Are Well Established) (1:12)], Time Is A Magazine (4:38), Mezzanine Blues (5:10), Blues Alley (7:40), [3in (The Sun Shines Clear And Bright) (0:59)], It's Nobody's Fault But Mine (13:22), [Wires (1:16)], Tangled Up (6:04)
Tracks in square brackets are ambient linking pieces

 

 

Jefferson Airplane

 

 

 

Jefferson Airplane formed in San Francisco during the summer of 1965, emerging from the San Francisco Bay folk music boom. Although the Airplane was considered the pre-eminent San Francisco group of the period, Paul Kantner was the only native San Franciscan in the band.

The group's founder was singer Marty Balin, who had established a minor career as a pop singer in the early Sixties and had made several recordings under his own name. In mid-1965 Balin raised funds to open a night club, The Matrix.

Balin met folk musician Paul Kantner at another local club, the Drinking Gourd. Kantner had started out performing on the Bay Area folk circuit in the early 1960s, alongside fellow folkies Jerry Garcia, David Crosby and Janis Joplin. He has cited folk group The Kingston Trio as a strong early influence. Kantner briefly moved to Los Angeles, California, in 1964 to work in a folk duo with future Airplane/Starship member David Freiberg (who subsequently joined Quicksilver Messenger Service).

After Balin recruited Kantner, the two set about selecting other musicians to form the house band at the Matrix. After Balin heard female vocalist Signe Toly Anderson at the Drinking Gourd, he invited her to be the group's co-lead singer. Anderson sang with the band for a year, departing in late 1966 after the birth of her first child.

Kantner next recruited an old friend, blues guitarist Jorma Kaukonen. Originally from Washington, DC, Kaukonen had moved to California in the early 1960s and had met Kantner while at Santa Clara University in 1962. Kaukonen was invited to jam with the new band and although initially reluctant to join, was won over after playing his guitar through a tape delay device that was part of the sound system used by Ken Kesey for his Acid Test parties. The original lineup was completed by drummer Jerry Peloquin and acoustic bassist Bob Harvey.

The origin of the group's name is often disputed. "Jefferson airplane" is slang for a used paper match split to hold a marijuana joint that has been smoked too short to hold without burning the hands - an improvised roach clip . An urban legend claims this was the origin of the band's name, but according to band member Jorma Kaukonen, the name was invented by his friend Steve Talbot as a parody of blues names such as Blind Lemon Jefferson. [2] A 2007 press release quoted Kaukonen as saying:

"I had this friend [Talbot] in Berkeley who came up with funny names for people," explains Kaukonen. "His name for me was Blind Thomas Jefferson Airplane (for blues pioneer Blind Lemon Jefferson). When the guys were looking for band names and nobody could come up with something, I remember saying, 'You want a silly band name? I got a silly band name for you!'"

 

 

 

The group made its first public appearance at the opening night of The Matrix club on 13 August 1965. The band drew inspiration from The Beatles, The Byrds and The Lovin' Spoonful, gradually developing a more pop-oriented electric sound.

A few weeks after the group was formed, Peloquin departed, in part because of his disdain for the others' drug use. Although he was not a drummer, singer-guitarist Skip Spence (who later founded Moby Grape) was then invited to replace Peloquin. In October 1965, after the other members decided that Harvey's bass playing was not up to par, Harvey was replaced by guitarist-bassist Jack Casady, an old friend of Kaukonen's from Washington. Casady played his first gig with the Airplane at a college concert in Berkeley, California, two weeks after he arrived in San Francisco.

The group's performing skills improved rapidly and they gained a following in and around San Francisco, aided by reviews from veteran music journalist Ralph J. Gleason, the jazz critic of the San Francisco Chronicle; after seeing the band at the Matrix in late 1965 he proclaimed them "one of the best bands ever." Gleason's support raised the band's profile greatly, and within three months their manager Matthew Katz was fielding offers from record companies, although they had yet to perform outside the Bay Area.

Two significant early concerts featuring the Airplane were held in late 1965. The first was the dance at the Longshoremen's Hall in San Francisco on 16 October 1965, the first of many happenings in the Bay Area, and it was here that Ralph Gleason first saw the Airplane. At this concert they were supported by a local folk-rock group, The Great Society, which featured Grace Slick as lead singer. Kantner met her for the first time that night. A few weeks later, on 6 November, they headlined a benefit concert for the San Francisco Mime Troupe, the first of many engagements for rising entrepreneur Bill Graham, who became their manager.

In November 1965 Jefferson Airplane signed a recording contract with RCA Victor, which included an unheard-of advance of $25,000. On December 10, 1965 the group played at the first Bill Graham show at the Fillmore ballroom, supported by The Great Society and others. The Airplane also appeared at Family Dog shows promoted by Chet Helms.

The group's first single was Balin's "It's No Secret" (a tune he had written with Otis Redding in mind); the B-side was "Runnin' Round The World", the song that led to the band's first major clash with RCA.

After the Airplane's debut LP Jefferson Airplane Takes Off was completed in March 1966, Skip Spence quit the band. He was eventually replaced by Spencer Dryden, who played his first show with the Airplane at the Berkeley Folk Festival on July 4, 1966.

 

 

 

 

Manager Matthew Katz was fired in August -- causing legal fallout that continued for years -- and Balin's friend and roommate Bill Thompson was installed as permanent road manager and temporary band manager. Thompson, a friend and ally of the band, was a former Chronicle staffer who had convinced reviewers Ralph Gleason and John Wasserman to see the band. Thanks to Gleason's influence, Thompson was able to book the group for appearances at the Berkeley Folk Festival and the Monterey Jazz Festival.

Jefferson Airplane Takes Off was released in September 1966. The folk-music-influenced album included John D. Loudermilk's "Tobacco Road" and Dino Valente's "Let's Get Together", as well as original ballads "It's No Secret" and "Come Up the Years." The LP garnered considerable attention in the USA and became a gold album. RCA initially pressed only 15,000 copies, but it sold more than 10,000 in San Francisco alone, prompting the label to reprint it. For the reprinting, the company deleted "Runnin' Round This World" (which had appeared on early mono pressings), because executives objected to the word "trip" in the lyrics. For similar reasons, RCA also substituted altered versions for two other tracks: "Let Me In," changing the line "you shut your door; you know where" to "you shut your door; now it ain't fair" and "Run Around," changing the line "flowers that sway as you lay under me" to "flowers that sway as you stay here by me". The original pressings of Takes Off featuring "Runnin' 'Round The World" and the uncensored tracks of "Let Me In" and "Run Around" are now worth thousands of dollars.

 

 

Signe Anderson gave birth to her daughter in May 1966, and in October announced her departure. Her final gig with the Airplane took place at the Fillmore on 15 October 1966. The following night, her replacement Grace Slick made her first appearance. Slick, a former model, was already known to the band - she had attended the Airplane's debut gig at the Matrix in 1965 and her previous group, The Great Society, had often supported the Airplane in concert.

 

 

Grace Slick i før og nå utgave, og det er temmelig åpenbart at ungdommelighet er et forbigående fenomen for alle oss som enda ikke har funnet ungdomskilden!

 

Slick's recruitment proved pivotal to the Airplane's commercial breakthrough — she possessed a powerful and supple contralto voice, well-suited to the group's amplified psychedelic music, she was good looking, and her stage presence greatly enhanced the group's live impact.

 

 

The Great Society had recorded an early version of "Somebody To Love" (under the title "Someone To Love") as the B-side of their only single, "Free Advice"; it was produced by Sylvester Stewart (soon to become Sly Stone) but it reportedly took more than 50 takes to achieve a satisfactory rendition. The Great Society decided to split up in late 1966 and played its last show on September 11. Soon after, Slick was asked to join Jefferson Airplane by Jack Casady (whose musicianship was a major influence on her decision) and her Great Society contract was bought out for $750.

In December 1966 Jefferson Airplane was featured in a Newsweek article about the booming San Francisco music scene, one of the first in an avalanche of similar reports that prompted a massive influx of young people to the city and contributed to the commercialization and exploitation of the hippie culture.

Around the beginning of 1967 Bill Graham took over from Bill Thompson as manager. In January the group traveled to Los Angeles to record the tracks for their next LP, and also made their first visit to the East Coast. On January 14, alongside The Grateful Dead and Quicksilver Messenger Service, Jefferson Airplane headlined the now-legendary "Human Be-In", the famous all-day 'happening' staged in Golden Gate Park, one of the key events leading up to the "Summer of Love."

During this period the band gained their first international recognition when rising British pop star Donovan, who saw them during his stint on the US West Coast in early 1966, mentioned the Airplane in his song "The Fat Angel," which subsequently appeared on his Sunshine Superman LP.

The group's second LP, Surrealistic Pillow, recorded in Los Angeles with producer Rick Jarrard in only thirteen days at a cost of $8000, launched the Airplane to international fame. Released in February 1967, the LP entered the Billboard album chart on March 25 and remained there for over a year, peaking at #3. Alongside The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, it is widely regarded as one of the seminal albums of the "Summer of Love." The name Surrealistic Pillow was suggested by the 'shadow' producer of the album, Jerry Garcia, when he mentioned that, as a whole, the album sounded "as Surrealistic as a pillow." Although the record company would not acknowledge Garcia's considerable contributions to the album with a "Producer" credit, he is listed in the album's credits as "spiritual advisor."

In addition to the group's two best-known tracks, "White Rabbit" and "Somebody to Love," the album featured "My Best Friend" by former drummer Skip Spence, Balin's driving "Plastic Fantastic Lover," and the atmospheric Balin-Kantner ballad "Today." A reminder of their earlier folk incarnation was Kaukonen's solo acoustic guitar tour de force, "Embryonic Journey" (his first composition), which referenced contemporary acoustic guitar masters such as John Fahey and helped to establish the popular genre exemplified by acoustic guitarist Leo Kottke.

 

 

 

 

The first single from the album, Spence's "My Best Friend," failed to chart, but the next two singles rocketed the group to prominence. Both "Somebody to Love" and "White Rabbit" become major US hits when released as singles -- the former reaching #5 and the latter #8 on the Billboard singles chart -- and by late 1967 the Airplane were national and international stars and had become one of the hottest (and highest-paid) groups in America.

This phase of the Airplane's career peaked with their famous performance at the Monterey International Pop Festival in June 1967. Monterey showcased leading bands from several major music "scenes" including New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and the United Kingdom, and the resulting TV and film coverage gave national (and international) exposure to groups that had previously had only regional fame. Two songs from the Airplane's set were subsequently included in the D.A. Pennebaker film documentary of the event.

The Airplane also benefitted greatly from appearances on nationally syndicated TV shows such as Johnny Carson's Tonight Show and The Ed Sullivan Show. The Airplane's famous appearance on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour performing "White Rabbit" and "Somebody to Love" was videotaped in color and augmented by developments in video techniques. It has been frequently re-screened and is notable for its pioneering use of the Chroma key process to simulate the Airplane's psychedelic light show. The membership of Jefferson Airplane remained relatively stable from 1967 to 1970. During that period they recorded five more albums and performed extensively in the USA and Europe. The group's music underwent a significant transformation after Surrealistic Pillow, however. Key influences on the group's new direction were the popularity and success of Jimi Hendrix and the British supergroup Cream, which prompted the Airplane (like many other groups) to adopt a 'heavier' sound and to place a greater emphasis on improvisation.

The band's third LP, After Bathing at Baxter's, was released on 27 November 1967 and eventually peaked in the charts at #17. Its famous cover, drawn by renowned artist and cartoonist Ron Cobb depicts a Heath Robinson-inspired flying machine soaring about the chaos of American commercial culture.

Recorded over more than four months, with little interference from the nominal producer Al Schmitt, the new album demonstrated the group's growing engagement with psychedelic rock. Where the previous LP had consisted entirely of standard-length songs, was dominated by long multi-part suites. It also marked the emergence of Kantner and Slick as the band's major composers and the concurrent decline in the influence and involvement of founder Marty Balin. Among other reasons, Balin was becoming increasingly disenchanted with the "star trips" and inflated egos produced by the band's runaway commercial success.

Baxter's also marked the end of the Airplane's brief run of success on the singles chart. While both "White Rabbit" and "Somebody To Love" were US Top 10 hits, the only single from Baxter's, "The Ballad of You and Me and Pooneil", peaked at #43. None of the band's subsequent singles made it into the Top 50 and several did not chart at all.

Despite this, Jefferson Airplane continued to enjoy significant success as "album" artists. Between 1967 and 1972 they scored a run of eight consecutive Top 20 albums in the USA, with both Surrealistic Pillow and Crown of Creation making the Top 10.

In February 1968 manager Bill Graham was fired after Grace Slick delivered an "either he goes or I go" ultimatum to the group. Bill Thompson took over as permanent manager and set about consolidating the group's financial security, establishing Icebag Corp. to oversee the band's publishing interests and purchasing a 20-room mansion at 2400 Fulton Street across from Golden Gate Park near the Haight-Ashbury district, which became the band's office and communal residence.

 

 

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The Airplane undertook their first major tour of Europe in mid-to-late 1968, co-headlining with The Doors in the Netherlands, England, Belgium, Germany and Sweden. In a notorious incident at a concert in Amsterdam, while the Airplane was performing "Plastic Fantastic Lover," a heavily intoxicated Jim Morrison appeared on stage and began dancing. As the group played faster and faster, Morrison spun around wildly until he finally fell senseless on the stage at Marty Balin's feet. (Not surprisingly, Morrison was unable to perform his set with the Doors and Ray Manzarek was forced to sing all the vocals[citation needed].)

Jefferson Airplane's fourth LP, Crown of Creation (released in September 1968), was a huge commercial success, peaking at #6 on the album chart. Grace Slick's "Lather", which opens the album, is said to be about her affair with drummer Spencer Dryden. "Triad", a David Crosby piece, had been rejected by The Byrds because they deemed its subject matter (a ménage à trois) to be too "hot" to record. Slick's searing sex and drug anthem "Greasy Heart" had been released as a single in March 1968. Several tracks recorded for the LP were left off the album, including the freeform Grace Slick/Frank Zappa collaboration "Would You Like A Snack?"

In February 1969 RCA released the live album Bless Its Pointed Little Head, which was culled from late 1968 live concert performances at the Fillmore West on October 24-26 and the Fillmore East on November 28-30. It became the Airplane's fourth Top 20 album, peaking at #17.

In early August 1969, a few days after the band headlined at a free concert in New York's Central Park, they performed in what Grace Slick called an early "morning maniac music" slot at the Woodstock festival, for which the group was joined by noted British session keyboard player Nicky Hopkins. When interviewed about Woodstock by Jeff Tamarkin in 1992, Paul Kantner still recalled it with fondness, although Grace Slick and Spencer Dryden had less than rosy memories.

Immediately after their Woodstock performance, the band played a live concert on The Dick Cavett Show; then sessions began for their next album, Volunteers, using new 16-track facilities at the Wally Heider Studio in San Francisco. This proved to be the last album by the "classic" lineup of the group. Released in the USA in November 1969, Volunteers continued the Airplane's run of Top 20 LPs, peaking at #13 early in 1970. It was their most political venture, showcasing the group's vocal opposition to the Vietnam War and documenting their reaction to the changing political atmosphere in the United States. Tracks included "Volunteers," "We Can Be Together," "Good Shepherd," and the post-apocalyptic "Wooden Ships", which Paul Kantner co-wrote with David Crosby and Stephen Stills and which Crosby, Stills & Nash also recorded on their debut album.

RCA voiced objections to the phrase "up against the wall, motherfucker" in the lyrics of Kantner's song "We Can Be Together," but the group managed to prevent it from being censored, pointing out that RCA had already allowed the offending word to be included on the cast album of the rock musical Hair.

In December the Airplane played at the Altamont Free Concert held at the Altamont Speedway in California. Headlined by The Rolling Stones, the concert was marred by violence. Marty Balin was knocked out during a scuffle with Hells Angels members who had been hired to act as "security". The event became notorious for the now-famous "Gimme Shelter Incident": the fatal stabbing of black teenager Meredith Hunter in front of the stage by Hells Angels "guards" after he pulled out a revolver during the Stones' performance. (This incident was the centerpiece of the documentary film Gimme Shelter.)

Spencer Dryden quit the band in February 1970, burned out by four years on the "acid merry-go-round" and deeply disillusioned by the events of Altamont, which, he later recalled, "... did not look like a bunch of happy hippies in streaming colors. It looked more like sepia-toned Hieronymus Bosch." He took time off and later returned to music in 1972 as a drummer for the Grateful Dead spin-off band New Riders of the Purple Sage. Dryden's replacement was Joey Covington, an L.A. musician who had been sitting in with Hot Tuna during 1969.

Touring continued through early 1970 but the group's only new recording that year was the single, "Have You Seen the Saucers?" b/w "Mexico". "Mexico" was an attack on then President Richard Nixon's Operation Intercept, which had been implemented to curtail the flow of marijuana into the United States. "Have You Seen the Saucers" marked the beginning of a science-fiction obsession that Kantner would explore with his music over the rest of the decade.

During 1969 Jack Casady and Jorma Kaukonen launched their side project, a return to their blues roots, which they eventually dubbed Hot Tuna. This began as a duo, with the pair performing short sets before the main Airplane concert, but over the ensuing months other members of the Airplane, as well as outside musicians (including Joey Covington), often sat in for Hot Tuna performances.

During late 1969 Casady and Kaukonen recorded an all-acoustic blues album, which was released in the spring of 1970. This initial Hot Tuna album was remarkably successful, reaching #30 on the US album chart. Over the next two years, Hot Tuna began to occupy more and more of Casady's and Kaukonen's time, contributing to the growing divisions within Jefferson Airplane that would come to a head during 1972.

The Hot Tuna project also led to the addition of a new band member. Covington had met veteran jazz-blues violinist Papa John Creach in Los Angeles in the mid-1960s; he invited Creach to sit in with the Airplane for a concert at Winterland in San Francisco on October 5, 1970. As a result, Creach was immediately invited to join Hot Tuna and became a permanent member of the Airplane in time for their fall tour.

The Winterland concert also marked a turning point of another kind for the Airplane -- it was a memorial for their old friend Janis Joplin, who had died in Los Angeles from a heroin overdose the previous day. Because of her death, her close friend Marty Balin refused to perform with the band that night.

 

 

 

During this period, Paul Kantner had been working on his first solo album, a science fiction-themed project recorded with members of the Airplane and other friends. It was released in December 1970 under the title Blows Against The Empire, and credited to "Paul Kantner/Jefferson Starship". This "prototype" version of Jefferson Starship included David Crosby and Graham Nash, Grateful Dead members Jerry Garcia, Bill Kreutzmann, and Mickey Hart, and Airplane members Grace Slick, Joey Covington, and Jack Casady.

Jefferson Airplane ended 1970 with their traditional Thanksgiving Day engagement at the Fillmore East (the final performance of the short-lived Kantner/Balin/Slick/Kaukonen/Casady/Creach/Covington line-up) and the release of their first compilation album, The Worst of Jefferson Airplane, which continued their unbroken run of chart success, reaching #12 on the Billboard album chart.

1971 was a year of major upheaval for Jefferson Airplane. Grace Slick and Paul Kantner had begun a relationship during 1970, and on January 25, 1971 their daughter China Wing Kantner was born. Grace's divorce from her first husband had come through shortly before this, but she and Kantner agreed that they did not wish to marry.

In March 1971, Airplane's founder and co-lead singer Marty Balin decided to leave the band officially after months of isolation from the others. Although he had remained part of the band's live performances after the band's creative direction shifted from the brooding love songs that he specialized in, an emerging drinking problem, compounded by the evolution of the polarized Kantner/Slick and Kaukonen/Casady cliques, had finally left him the odd man out. He had also been deeply affected by the death of his friend Janis Joplin and had begun to pursue a healthier lifestyle; Balin's study of yoga and abstention from drugs and alcohol further distanced him from the other members of the group, whose prodigious drug intake continued unabated. This further complicated the recording of their long-overdue follow-up to Volunteers. Balin had recently completed several new songs, including "Emergency" and the elongated R&B-infused "You Wear Your Dresses Too Short" (both of which would later see the light of day on archival releases).

On May 13, 1971, Grace Slick was injured in a near-fatal automobile crash when her car slammed into a wall in a tunnel near the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. Her recuperation took several months, forcing the Airplane to cancel most of their concert and touring commitments for 1971.

The band still managed studio dates during 1971. Their next LP Bark (whose cover featured a dead fish wrapped in an A&P-style grocery bag) was issued in September 1971. Although it was the final album owed to RCA under the band's existing contract, it became the inaugural release on the band's Grunt Records vanity label. Manager Bill Thompson eventually struck a deal with RCA to distribute for Grunt.

The single "Pretty As You Feel", excerpted from a longer jam on the LP, featured Carlos Santana and lead vocals by Joey Covington, the song's composer. It was the last Jefferson Airplane single to place on the US singles chart, peaking at #60.

Even after the departure of Balin, major creative & personal divisions persisted between Slick and Kantner on the one side and Kaukonen and Casady on the other. (Jorma Kaukonen's song "Third Week In The Chelsea," from Bark, chronicles the thoughts he himself was having about leaving the band.) These problems were exacerbated by escalating drug use – especially Slick's alcoholism – which caused the Airplane to become increasingly unreliable in their live commitments and led to some chaotic situations at concerts. By the beginning of 1972 it was evident to most people close to the group that Jefferson Airplane was about to collapse.

The band held together long enough to record one more LP, a rather desultory effort entitled Long John Silver, begun in April 1972 and released in July. By this time the various members were far more engaged with their various solo projects. Hot Tuna, for instance, had released a second (electric) LP during 1971, which proved even more successful than its predecessor. As a result, the sessions for Bark were interspersed with Hot Tuna and Kantner/Slick duo sessions. Though still a nominal member of the band, Joey Covington had immersed himself in the production of his own album with Peter Kaukonen and Black Kangaroo on Grunt; consequently, John Barbata (formerly of The Turtles and CSNY) played on most of the album and continued on for the promotional tour that followed. The Long John Silver LP is notable mainly for its cover, which folded out into a humidor (presumably for the storage of marijuana).

With the formal departure of Covington and addition of Kantner's old friend David Freiberg on vocals, Jefferson Airplane began a tour to promote the Long John Silver LP in the summer of 1972, their first concerts in over a year. This tour included a major free concert in Central Park that drew more than 50,000 people.

They returned to the West Coast in September, playing concerts in San Diego, Hollywood and Albuquerque. The tour culminated in two shows at Winterland in San Francisco (September 21-22), both of which were recorded. At the end of the second show the group was joined on stage by Marty Balin, who sang lead vocals on "Volunteers" and the final song, "You Wear Your Dresses Too Short".

Although no official announcement was ever released, the Winterland shows proved to be the last live performances by Jefferson Airplane until their reunion in 1989. By the beginning of 1973 Casady and Kaukonen had left the group to concentrate on Hot Tuna and their recently acquired love of speed skating, which Freiberg had reluctantly taken up in an attempt to bolster group camaraderie. With Kantner and Slick, he would record Baron Von Tollbooth and the Chrome Nun before the creation of their own Airplane offshoot, Jefferson Starship; both Kantner and Slick would record further solo albums.

Jefferson Airplane's second live album, Thirty Seconds Over Winterland was released in April 1973. It is now best remembered for its cover art, which depicts a squadron of flying toasters, a design that the band later alleged was plagiarized for the famous "After Dark" computer screensaver design.

In 1974, a collection of leftovers -- singles and B-sides, including "Mexico" and "Have You Seen The Saucers," as well as other non-album material -- was released as Early Flight, the last official Jefferson Airplane album.

In 1974, four years after Blows Against The Empire (the Jefferson Starship-prototype album with Paul Kantner and Grace Slick), Jefferson Starship was formally launched with the release of the album Dragon Fly and its single “Ride The Tiger.” Balin sang on one song, "Caroline," and in addition to Kantner and Slick the band consisted of David Freiberg (keyboards, bass), Craig Chaquico (lead guitar), Pete Sears (bass, keyboards), John Barbata (drums) and Papa John Creach (electric violin).

Marty Balin joined Jefferson Starship in 1975 and they subsequently released the #1 album Red Octopus, featuring Balin singing lead on the #3 hit “Miracles.” Jefferson Starship released four albums between 1974 and 1978 and scored several hits, including “Count On Me,” “With Your Love” and “Runaway.”

In 1978, Balin left the band. He issued a self-titled solo album in 1981 and had hit singles with "Hearts" and "Atlanta Lady (Something About Your Love)." "Hearts" was a soft pop ballad and also gave Balin a moderate Adult Contemporary chart hit.

Slick also left Jefferson Starship in 1978, and by the release of 1979’s Freedom At Point Zero the band consisted of Kantner, Chaquico, Freiberg, Sears and newcomers Mickey Thomas (vocals) and Aynsley Dunbar (drums). The newly-reconfigured band had a hit single, “Jane.” In 1981 Slick rejoined in time to duet with Thomas on one song, “Stranger,” from the album Modern Times. Jefferson Starship released two more albums and then Kantner left in 1984 shortly after the release of Nuclear Furniture. Freiberg continued to tour with the band but left before the next album was recorded.

Kantner took legal action to prevent Slick and company from recording or touring as Jefferson Starship, so they instead named the band Starship. Although critically-panned for their lightweight pop sound, they were commercially successful and scored the number one hits "We Built This City" and "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now." Slick left in 1988 after two albums, and the remaining members made one unsuccessful album without her and then broke up. Mickey Thomas revived Starship shortly thereafter and has toured steadily ever since, usually billed as “Starship featuring Mickey Thomas.” In concert he plays songs from his stint in Jefferson Starship (1979-1984) as well as Starship material.

After the acrimonious events that resulted in Jefferson Starship’s 1984 breakup, Paul Kantner reunited with Balin and Jack Casady in 1985 to form the KBC Band. They released their only album, KBC Band (which included Kantner's hit, "America"), in 1987 on Arista Records. The KBC Band also featured keyboardist Tim Gorman (who had played with The Who) and guitarist Slick Aguilar (who had played with David Crosby's band).

With Kantner reunited with Balin and Casady, the KBC Band opened the door to a full-blown Jefferson Airplane reunion. In 1989, during a solo San Francisco gig, Paul Kantner found himself joined by former bandmate (and lover) Grace Slick and two other ex-Airplane members for a cameo appearance. This led to a formal reunion of the original Jefferson Airplane (featuring nearly all the main members, including founder Marty Balin, but without Spencer Dryden). A self-titled album was released by Columbia Records to modest sales. The accompanying tour was a success, but their revival was short-lived, and Jefferson Airplane's 'definitive' line-up officially disbanded for good.

Jefferson Starship rose from the ashes in the early ‘90s and is still active as of 2007. The revived band grew out of Kantner’s decision to hit the road in 1991 with a stripped down, acoustic ensemble called Paul Kantner’s Wooden Ships, a trio that included Aguilar and Gorman from the KBC Band. In addition to his classic songs, Kantner and his group performed new material which received resounding praise.

The success of this project prompted Kantner to reinvent his electric band, and Jefferson Starship took off once again. In addition to Aguilar and Gorman, Kantner recruited former collaborators Jack Casady and blues violin master Papa John Creach; former Tubes drummer Prairie Prince; and former World Entertainment War vocalist Darby Gould.

In 1993 Marty Balin rejoined Jefferson Starship, ending a 15-year hiatus from the group. Papa John died in early 1993, weeks after touring Europe. Concurrently a sensational young vocalist, Diana Mangano, joined the group as Gould’s replacement.

In 1995 Jefferson Starship released Deep Space/Virgin Sky, a live album recorded at the House of Blues in Hollywood, California. The album featured eight new and seven classic tunes. Grace Slick joined the band for four songs, “Lawman,” “Wooden Ships,” “Somebody To Love” and “White Rabbit.” In 1999 Jefferson Starship released the studio album “Windows of Heaven,” which featured Slick on background vocals on one song, “I’m On Fire.”

Balin continued as a full-time member of the reunited band until 2003 and still occasionally joins them in concert as of 2007. Casady remained a member until the late ‘90s and has since joined Jorma Kaukonen in a reunited Hot Tuna. Gorman left in the late ‘90s as well and was replaced by former Supremes keyboardist Chris Smith. In 2005, David Freiberg rejoined the group.

Jefferson Starship continues to entertain audiences worldwide with frequent live appearances. Mangano is an expressive and effective singer, and this revived Jefferson Starship can often capture a good deal of the feeling of the original Airplane.

As of 2007 Jefferson Starship continues to tour with a lineup of Paul Kantner (vocals, guitar), David Freiberg (vocals, bass, keyboards), Diana Mangano (vocals), Slick Aguilar (lead guitar), Chris Smith (keyboards) and Prairie Prince (drums). The band sometimes features guest musicians such as Balin, Gould, Gorman and former Grateful Dead keyboardist Tom Constanten. Jefferson Starship played three songs on NBC’s “The Today Show” on June 30, 2007.

Jorma Kaukonen still tours as a solo act, often playing over 100 acoustic shows a year at small clubs throughout the country. Occasionally, Jack Casady joins him, and the pair perform as Hot Tuna. Kaukonen also operates a guitar camp in southern Ohio, where he teaches would-be guitar virtuosos his unique style of finger-picking blues.

Grace Slick retired from the music business after the reunion in 1989. In 1998, she released her autobiography Somebody to Love? Since her retirement, she has made a few appearances at Jefferson Starship concerts. Her most prominent performances include the groups 1995 live album Deep Space/Virgin Sky and a performance at a September 11 benefit concert. Slick has also made a few appearances on studio material including Linda Perry's 1996 solo debut and Starship's 1999 album. She is now an acclaimed painter with most of her work focusing on old music legends and her interest in Alice in Wonderland.

In 2004, Marty Balin pointed out that unlike many of their contemporaries, all of the original members of Jefferson Airplane survived the 1960s; all except original drummer Spence lived into the 21st century. Dryden, who had long languished under financial and health problems, died of colon cancer on January 11, 2005 at the age of 66.

The original 'Jefferson Airplane' - along with The Byrds, The Doors, The Grateful Dead, The Lovin' Spoonful, The Mamas and the Papas, Tommy James & the Shondells, and, to some degree, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and Credence Clearwater Revival - will always be associated with the more melodic end of the North American rock spectrum. In due course other groups, such as Steely Dan and Eagles, continued to blend elements of folk, jazz and rock and bring the results to a global audience. Of all these bands, Jefferson Airplane excelled in the psychedelic domain and in their penchant for pretentious track titles, which came to characterize the era of 1965-75.

British bands apparently influenced by the mellow lyricism of the West Coast sound included Barclay James Harvest, David Bowie, Curved Air, Family, Fairport Convention, Jethro Tull, King Crimson, Led Zeppelin, The Moody Blues, The Small Faces, Pentangle, and Yes. The Beatles have always stressed the influence that The Beach Boys had on their musical development (especially Pet Sounds), but it seems likely that other music from the West Coast also spread eastward, to play a key part in making pop music more symphonic and less predictable than it had been before 1965. The era of trans-Atlantic jet travel and the ability to send television broadcasts by satellite also facilitated a greater interplay of musical influences across the Atlantic. Donovan was evidently one of the first British pop musicians to become aware of them and was undoubtedly influenced by the group to some degree; he famously namechecked the band in his 1966 song "The Fat Angel" (included on his album Sunshine Superman in 1967), written many months before Jefferson Airplane achieved international stardom.

Record producers who worked with the original band included Greg Edward, Rick Jarrard, Matthew Katz, Ron Nevison, Tommy Oliver and Al Schmitt.

Members

Bass

Jack Casady (1965-1973)

Drums

Skip Spence (1965–1966)

Spencer Dryden (1966–1970)

Joey Covington (1970–1972)

John Barbata (1972–1973)

Guitars

Jorma Kaukonen (1965–1973)

Paul Kantner (1965–1973)

Violin

Papa John Creach (1970–1973)

Piano

Grace Slick (1966–1973)

Vocals

Marty Balin (1965–1971)

Signe Anderson (1965–1966)

Grace Slick (1966–1973)

Paul Kantner (1965–1973)

Joey Covington (1971)

David Freiberg (1972–1973)

 

Jethro Tull

 

 

Thick As A Brick

 

It seems quite clear that many progressive rock enthusiasts primarily view Jethro Tull as a second-tier representative of the style. I believe the usual discussion runs along this line: Jethro Tull was a decent, late 60s, blues-based rock band with jazz overtones and an eccentric frontman (one Ian Anderson); after the departure of founding member Mick Abrahams, Tull became a bit more eclectic, offering a hard rock ‘n’ roll tinged with acoustic touches and world-music flourishes; Aqualung made the band an arena smash and an FM radio staple; it then enjoyed back-to-back number one releases in the United States – Thick as a Brick and A Passion Play – which were composed in the contemporary idiom of progressive rock; and subsequently, Tull returned to a more streamlined musicality, perhaps highlighted by the folk-rock musings of Songs from the Wood. That is the story, indeed, in the proverbial nutshell, except that it fails to capture the grandness of Tull’s foray into progressive rock. And not only is Thick as a Brick exemplary of Jethro Tull’s immersion into the genre – of the band’s control over the compositional complexity and performance acumen typical for progressive rock – but it is exemplary for the entire era. Here’s why.

 

Jethro Tull first and foremost did not take the progressive rock rubric too seriously or too much to heart. In fact, Thick as a Brick is in some ways a satire of the entire development of the genre. Ian Anderson has stated that his original intent, in response to the incorrect assertion that Aqualung had been a concept album, was to create the “mother of all concept albums”, but as “a bit of a spoof”. So, while the fans and sundry listeners do find Thick as a Brick a conceptual piece, it is clearly a laugh up the sleeve as well. The liner notes—in the form of daily newspaper articles, no less—indicate that the lyrics are authored by one “Gerald (Little Milton) Bostock”, an eight-year-old poetic prodigy, who has won first-place in a writing contest. Alas, though, there is a scandal; Gerald’s work is protested; the judge’s revoke Gerald’s prize; and the Thick as a Brick lyrics are deemed “obscure and verbose assertions”. A conceptual non-concept: that is the joke of Thick as a Brick. Tull blurs the distinction between art and comedy, between impressive aesthetic display and mockery. Especially in contrast with A Passion Play, which is foreboding and marginally disjointed, Thick as a Brick is light in its refusal to be too well-lauded. And whereas something like Van der Graaf Generator’s Pawn Hearts smacks of self-consciousness and existential absorption, Thick as a Brick seems quite playful, but all the while ambitious and clever.

Tull’s line-up in 1972 had altered significantly since the previous year’s success of Aqualung and the musicianship of the players certainly bears the stamp of progressive rock prowess. Thick as a Brick is possibly John Evan’s finest hour, as the various keyboard solos and accompaniments fill the album: most notably, it is rare for any individual tone to repeat, except as reprise, and Evan’s contribution is remarkably fresh, moreso because he does not play with an Emersonian grandiosity but strives to accent and complement. Barriemore Barlow – easily the unsung drum hero of progressive rock – lends subtle intricacies here and there but does not hesitate to pound out a menacing throb when requisite. Martin Barre as always is a study in understatement, but also he is the epitome of finesse and guitar tact. Ian Anderson of course commands the show and holds the loose ends together. The vocals range from weary resignation:

"Your sperm’s in the gutter, your love’s in the sink".

Tracks:

[1] Thick As A Brick (22:45), [2] Thick As A Brick (21:05)

 

Band Members:

Ian Anderson (Flute, Acoustic Guitar, Vocals, Violin, Saxophone, Trumpet)
Martin Barre (Electric Guitar & Lute)
Barriemore Barlow (Drums, Percussion & Timpani)
John Evan (Piano, Hammond Organ & Harpsichord)
Jeffrey "Hammond" Hammond (Bass Guitar & Vocals)

 

John Lennon

 

 

John Winston Lennon ble født på kvelden den 9. oktober 1940, midt under Slaget om England. Begge foreldrene hadde en musikalsk bakgrunn, selv om ingen av dem spilte profesjonelt. Han bodde sammen med foreldrene inntil faren, Fred Lennon, forlot familien. Hans mor, Julia Lennon, maktet ikke oppgaven som alenemor og overlot sønnen til søsteren Mimi som bodde i nærheten.

I likhet med store deler av befolkningen i Liverpool hadde Lennons slekt røtter i Irland. Hans bestefar, James Lennon, ble født i Dublin i 1858, og hans bestemor Mary (née Maguire) var også født i Irland. Lennons mor Julia (née Stanley) var av walisisk opprinnelse. Selv om Lennon hadde liten påvirkning fra sine irske røtter da han vokste kom han til å identifisere seg med Irland senere i livet.

Tante Mimi fikk oppgaven å oppdra gutten mens moren ble en «tante» som kom på besøkt og koste med ham. Selv om hun ikke bodde sammen med sønn påvirket hun sønnen, blant annet ved å gi ham interessen for musikk. Kort tid etter at Lennon fylte 16 år ble moren drept av en fyllekjører. Hendelsen gikk sterkt inn på unge Lennon, og mange av sangene han skrev på slutten av Beatles-perioden bearbeider savnet av moren, blant annet den vakre «Julia» på The Beatles (White Album) og den hjerteskjærende «Mother» på hans første reelle soloalbum, Plastic Ono Band. Tapet av moren knyttet også et tett vennskap til Paul McCartney, som hadde mistet sin mor da han var 14 år.

I puberteten ble Lennon ganske nærsynt og ble nødt til bruke tykke hornbriller. Det tynget ham, selv om et av hans idoler, Buddy Holly, også brukte briller. I starten av karrieren brukte han kontaktlinser, men i 1966 skiftet ham dem ut til runde bestefarsbriller, som skulle bli et kjennetegn for både Lennon og mange andre unge, intellektuelle menn på slutten av 1960-tallet.

Tante Mimi fikk overtalt Lennon til å begynne på kunstskolen Liverpool College of Art ved å vise fram noen av tegningene han hadde gjort. Her møtte han for første gang Cynthia Powell, sin første kone. Lennon var en rastløs elev og rock'n'roll tiltrakk ham mer enn å sitte ved en pult og følge lærerens instruksjoner. På slutten av 1950-tallet dannet Lennon sin egen skiffle-gruppe som han kalte «The Quarry Men». Senere døpte ham om gruppen til «The Silver Beatles» (en hentydning til Buddy Hollys «Crickets»), men kort tid etter ble det bare The Beatles – «Billene» («beetles» skrevet med beat).

Lennon giftet seg med Cynthia mens hun var gravid med sønnen Julian.

Som medlem av The Beatles hadde John Lennon en betydelig innflytelse på rockens utvikling opp gjennom 1960-tallet Han ble sammen med McCartney ansett som en av de mest innflytelsesrike sangerne, komponistene og musikerne på slutten av 1900-tallet. Av de to komponistene som delte kreditering som «Lennon & McCartney» ble Lennon sett på den av dem som var den skarpeste tekstforfatteren, mens McCartney var musikeren som hadde større interesse i å eksperimentere og gå ny veger rent musikalsk. Denne fordelingen er likevel en forenkling, sannheten er at de begge hadde en positiv innflytelse på hverandre; McCartney utfordret Lennon musikalsk og Lennon utfordret McCartney lyrisk, selv om de skrev flertallet av sine sanger hver for seg.

En stor andel av Lennons sanger var retrospektive og selvbiografiske. Sangtekstene var ofte preget av pussige ordspill, dobbeltbetydninger og anvendelse av slang og dialektord fra Liverpool. Blant hans mest surrealistiske sanger er Strawberry Fields Forever og I Am the Walrus som begge framhever hans unike stil, og som bidro til at rockemusikk på midten av 1960-tallet ikke lenger var enkle popsanger blott til lyst og underholdning. Lennon og McCartney var i store trekk både samspilte og konkurrenter. Enkelt sett framsto McCartney som den lyse og positive mens Lennon hadde en mørk og mer truende framtoning.

John Lennon var ofte frittalende. I et intervju med avisen London Evening Standard sa han blant annet at «Kristendommen vil forsvinne. Den vil skrumpe inn og synke hen. Jeg trenger ikke å argumentere for det. Jeg har rett og det vil tiden vise. Vi er mer populær enn hva Jesus er nå. Jeg vet ikke hva som vil forsvinne først, rock’n’roll eller kristendommen. Jesus var en flott fyr, men hans disipler var dumme og enkle. Det er deres fordreining som har ødelagt det hele for meg.»

Artikkelen ble utgitt uten at noe skjedde, inntil et amerikansk tenåringsmagasin seks måneder senere trykket noen sitater på førstesiden. Det førte til et frontalangrep på Lennon fra den konservative høyresiden i USA, spesielt i sydstatene og midtvesten. Radiostasjoner bannlyste gruppens plateinnspillinger, og albumene og andre utgivelser de sto bak ble brent på flammende bål til medias forlystelse. Den 11. august, 1966 følte Lennon seg nødtvungent til å gå ut offentlig og beklage sine unnskyldninger med en pressekonferanse i regi av The Beatles i Chicago, Illinois, USA, og hvor han sa blant annet følgende:

Opprinnelig pekte jeg på fakta i referanse til England. At vi betød mer for tenåringer enn Jesus gjorde, eller religion på den tiden. Jeg forsøkte ikke sparke til eller underslå religion. Det eneste jeg sa var et faktum og det mer sant for England enn her. Jeg sa ikke at vi er bedre eller større, eller sammenlignet oss med Jesus Kristus som en person eller Gud som en ting eller hva enn det måtte være. Jeg bare sa hva jeg sa og det var galt. Eller det ble oppfattet galt. Og det er alt hva det var.

Den 9. november 1966, rett etter at Lennon hadde avsluttet en mindre rolle i filmen How I Won the War, besøkte han en kunstutstilling i London med en kvinnelig kunstner fra Japan, Yoko Ono. Han ble imponert av det han så, spesielt av et verk hvor et ord var skrevet i taket med så små bokstaver at han måtte gå opp på en stige og lese det gjennom et forstørrelsesglass. Ordet var «Yes». Lennon uttalte senere at det som tiltrakk ham ved dette arbeidet var at han hadde ventet seg at det ville stå «No» eller «Fuck You» eller noe lignende negativt.

Lennon og Ono gjorde et gjensidig inntrykk på hverandre og de holdt kontakten gjennom hele Sgt. Peppers-perioden. Etter at han kom tilbake fra meditasjonsturen i India i 1968 innledet han et fast forhold til Ono, fortalte det til sin hustru Cynthia som begjærte skilsmisse. Fra da av var Lennon og Ono praktisk talt uadskillige, selv under Beatles-innspillingene. Den ekstra personen skapte gnisninger og en spenning mellom de fire medlemmene under innspillingen av albumet som ble hetende The Beatles i 1968. Media var lite vennlig innstilt overfor Ono, og pressen trykket en serie lite flatterende artikler om henne, én gikk så langt som å kalle henne «stygg». Ono har av mange blitt utpekt som den som var skyldig i at The Beatles gikk i oppløsning, men problemene startet allerede da manageren Brian Epstein døde i 1967. Uten manageren begynte to sterke personligheter som Lennon og McCartney å knives om gruppens retning.

Lennon ble rasende på kritikk av Ono og sa offentlig at det var ingen John og Yoko, men at de var å betrakte som en person; JohnAndYoko. Ifølge Lennon var Yoko like viktig for ham som «Paul og [Bob] Dylan tilsammen». Lennon gikk over til en vegetarisk livsstil i 1966 som han holdt fast ved, til og fra, fram til sin død. På slutten av 1969 opptrådte både Lennon og Ono som Dirty Mac på forestillingen The Rolling Stones’ Rock and Roll Circus, en forstilling som var dårlig forberedt, lite gjennomtenkt og med et svakt resultat.

Samtidig ble Lennons politiske engasjement mer og mer tydelig, kanskje som resultat av påvirkningen fra Ono. Han agiterte sterkt imot den amerikanske krigen i Vietnam og for fred. Han sendte tilbake den orden han hadde mottatt fra dronning Elisabeth II i protest mot Storbritannias bidrag til krigføringen i Vietnam og innblandingen i Biafra i Afrika.

Lennon og Ono giftet seg den 20. mars 1969 i Gibraltar, og tilbrakte hvetebrødsdagene i sengen som en sengeliggende demonstrasjon, en såkalt «bed-in», for fred i Amsterdam. Demonstrasjonen ble gjentatt i Montreal hvor paret spilte inn sangen «Give Peace a Chance». Ikke overraskende ble paret sett på som eksentrikere, men de ga likevel fredsbevegelsen en inspirasjon. Lennon valgte å bytte ut sitt mellomnavn Winston med Ono for ytterligere å understreke sin samhørighet med Yoko. Hele denne prosessen ble beskrevet i sangen «The Ballad of John and Yoko» hvor kun Paul McCartney fra The Beatles deltok i innspillingen. Den ble likevel sluppet som en ny Beatles-singel.

Til tross for McCartneys solidariske bidrag til sangen nevnt over ble maktkampen innad i The Beatles mer og mer markert og tilspisset. Den ble stilt til offentlig skue i dokumentarfilmen Let It Be på foråret 1969. Filmen var opprinnelig ment å være en dokumentar om gruppens innspilling av et album, men ble isteden en dokumentar om gruppens endelige oppløsning. Resultatet ble så skrøpelig at prosjektet ble lagt på hyllen inntil videre, og isteden samlet gruppen seg om å spille inn et siste album kalt Abbey Road.

Etter at både Lennon og Ono ble skadet sommeren 1969 i bilulykke i Skottland fikk Lennon det arrangert slik at Ono kunne være sammen med ham hele tiden, blant annet ved å få satt inn en seng i studioet mens han jobbet med Abbey Road-albumet.

Kunstnerisk ble likevel Abbey Road et mesterverk og var samtidig styrt av McCartney, men også et kompremiss. Lennon ville ha et klassisk rockealbum i forlengelsen av The Beatles med adskilte sanger, mens McCartney ville lage et konseptalbum i ånden til Sgt. Pepper. Albumet ble derfor delt i to for å gjenspeile begges syn, Lennon preget første side og McCartney andre side på albumet. I ettertid kan man se at kompromisset var heldig for begge parter.

Fortsatt gjensto den uferdige innspillingen fra Let It Be. Maktkampen kulminerte med at Lennon og George Harrison insisterte på at produsenten Phil Spector skulle få fulle rettigheter til å gjennomgå opptakene. De insisterte også på en ny manager, en tøff amerikaner ved navn Alan Klein. Kravene var det samme som å dytte McCartney ufor et stup. Ikke likte han at sangene hans fikk strykere og kor og han kunne slett ikke akseptere Alan Klein. McCartney hadde derfor ikke noe valg, han som var den som mer enn noen annen i The Beatles hadde forsøkt å holde gruppen sammen, ble også den første av dem som gikk offentlig ut og meddele at han hadde brutt med The Beatles. Selv om oppløsningen først ble juridisk gyldig senere hadde det berømte samarbeidet «Lennon & McCartney» kommet til en bitter slutt.

Av de fire tidligere Beatles-medlemmene hadde kanskje John Lennon den mest varierte platekarrieren. Mens han fortsatt var medlem av The Beatles innspilte Lennon og Ono tre album med eksperimentell og vanskelig elektronisk musikk; Unfinished Music No.1: Two Virgins, Unfinished Music No.2: Life with the Lions, og Wedding Album. Hans første soloalbum med normal musikk var den lite minneverdige Live Peace in Toronto 1969, innspilt i 1969 (før The Beatles var oppløst) ved en festival i Toronto med improvisert gruppe kalt The Plastic Ono Band som inkluderte Eric Clapton og Klaus Voorman, en dårlig forberedt konsert med standardnumre, delvis øvd på flyet over Atlanteren. Han spilte også inn tre singler mens han fortsatt var medlem av The Beatles; fredshymnen «Give Peace a Chance»; «Cold Turkey» (om hans anstrengelser for å kom seg fri fra sin heroinavhengighet) og «Instant Karma!».

Etter oppbruddet fra The Beatles i 1970 utga han sitt første reelle soloalbum kalt John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band, et rått og brutalt personlig album, tungt influert av Arthur Janovs primalterapi som Lennon hadde gjennomgått tidligere. Terapiens innflytelse, som består i å bokstavelig skrike ut sin følelsesmessige smerter, er mest åpenbar på sangen «Mother» hvor skriket går innholdsmessig ned i barndommens traumer: Mama don’t go! Daddy come home!

Motsatsen er den alvorlige, men samtidige forsonende «God», som nesten fungerer som en pressemelding. I denne sangen lister han opp alle de ting, de konsepter og de personer som han ikke lenger tror på, inkludert The Beatles, etter å ha slått fast følgende:

God is a concept,

By which we can measure,

Our pain

Det eneste man kan tro på er seg selv: I just believe in me, Yoko and me, And that's reality. The dream is over, What can I say?

I ettertid er det opplagt at dette albumet hadde en betydelig innflytelse på den senere hardrocken og pønkemusikken. I kjølvannet av utgivelsen av albumet fortsatte han sine anstrengelser på å demytologisere The Beatles med et langt og konfronterende intervju som ble trykket i det innflytelsesrike magasinet Rolling Stone. Deretter fulgte hans kanskje mest viktige album noensinne, Imagine i 1971, som alternerte mellom drømmer og raseri. På den ene siden hadde albumet den store og gripende fredshymnen «Imagine» (som betyr å forestille seg) og som har blant annet blitt spilt på konserter for Nobels fredspris i Oslo flere ganger, og på den andre siden hadde albumet kanskje rockehistoriens mest infame og ondskapsfulle hatsang rettet mot Paul McCartney i «How Do You Sleep?».

The sound you make is muzak to my ears

You must have learned something all those years

How do you sleep?

Ah how do you sleep at night?

Denne perioden i Lennons utvikling ble også tilpasset hans såkalte hvite periode; hvite klær, hvitt piano, hvite rom, m.m. og sannsynligvis enda en formgivning preget av Yoko Ono.

Kanskje som en reaksjon, hans neste album, Some Times in New York City, var høy og rusten, og absolutt venstreradikal utgivelse med sanger om fengselopprør, om raseforhold og seksualpolitikk, Englands rolle i konflikten i Nord-Irland, og hans egne problemer med å få oppholdstillatelse i USA. Albumet var konsertopptak fra den 30. august 1972 hvor Lennon og hans musikere, Elephant’s Memory gjorde to konserter i Madison Square Garden i New York, som også skulle bli hans siste komplette konsert, skjønt han var senere på scenen som gjest hos andre musikanter, blant annet for Elton John.

 

 

Konsertalbumet er ikke uten lytteverdige sanger, og av atskillig større verdi enn den skranglete konserten i Toronto i 1969, men mange mener likevel at det representerer et bunnivå i hans musikalske karriere med enkle sanger med overtydig og slagordpregete budskap. Lennon hadde orientert seg mot venstresiden siden slutten på 1960-tallet og hadde muligens også gitt økonomisk støtte til en engelske troskistgruppe. Det var på denne tiden at hans forbindelse til denne gruppen var på sitt tetteste og hvor FBI for alvor begynte å fylle en egen mappe om ham.

I 1972 utga Lennon en antisexistisk sang, «Woman Is the Nigger of the World», som påpekte at om svarte mennesker ble diskriminert i noen land, så ble kvinner det globalt. Amerikanske radiostasjoner nektet å spille sangen, og den ble bannlyst stort over alt, unntatt i det vestlige Europa, men han fikk spilt sangen for et amerikansk publikum under sin andre opptreden hos Dick Cavetts TV-show.

Lennon slo tilbake i 1973 med Mind Games som hadde en sterk tittelsang og noen vage hentydninger til et ‘Nutopia’, som drev satire med hans pågående sak for å bli i USA. Det samme året falt også livet hans sammen da Yoko Ono sparket ham ut av huset. Ono ga May Pang, deres personlige assistent på denne tiden, et høyst originalt tilbud. Ono mente at May Pang kunne være «en ideell ledsager» for Lennon og spurte om hun kunne «være sammen med John og hjelpe ham og se til at han fikk hva enn han ønsket». I praksis betød det at Ono flyttet ut av ektesengen og May Pang flyttet inn, utpekt av Ono selv.

 

 

Lennon og Pang dro til Los Angeles og ble der til i begynnelsen av 1975, en tid som er blitt beskrevet som «den tapte helga». I løpet av deres tid sammen oppmuntret Pang Lennon til å tilbringe tid med sin sønn Julian, oppkalt etter hans mor, og samtidig bli venner igjen med sin første hustru, Cynthia. Selv om Lennons offentlige fyllekule i denne tiden ble brettet ut i tabloidpressen i hele 1974, har Pang skrevet i sin bok om deres forhold at han var stort sett edru i den tiden han var sammen med henne og at han var kreativ og skrev mye musikk.

Til tross for all festingen med dårlige venner fikk Lennon skrapt sammen et ganske godt mottatt album, Walls and Bridges, som hadde blant et samarbeid med Elton John på den temporaske sangen Whatever Gets You Thru the Night. En annen listetopp var den Beatles-lignende sangen No. 9 Dream. Stort sett alle sangene på dette albumet hadde en kvalitet på et høyt nivå. Lennon avsluttet året med overraskende gjesteopptreden på en Elton John-konsert i Madison Square Garden hvor de framførte Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, Whatever Gets You Thru the Night og I Saw Her Standing There sammen i det som skulle bli hans aller siste konsertopptreden noensinne.

I 1975 utga Lennon sitt Rock 'n' Roll-album med innspillinger av gamle 50-talls rockemelodier fra hans ungdom. Prosjektet ble fullført av Phil Spector som produsent og etter flere juridiske slag, men resultatet ble overraskende negativt mottatt av anmelderne, skjønt albumet hadde iallfall en kraftfull utgave av Stand By Me.

Samtidig kom Ono sammen med Lennon igjen og fikk skjøvet May Pang ut bakvegen. Ono ble gravid med deres første barn, og Lennon, som aldri fikk oppleve det å være far sitt første barn, trakk seg tilbake fra sin musikalske karriere for å bli hjemmeværende far. Det ble enklere i 1976 da han endelig fikk lov til å bli i USA på permanent basis etter en lang strid som hadde begynt da Nixon-administrasjonen lot FBI starte en etterforskning på ham som betydde overvåkning, telefonavlytting og agenter som fulgte etter ham hvor enn han gikk. Lennon erklærte at overvåkningen var politisk motivert.

Samme året fikk David Bowie sin første listetopp i USA med sangen Fame som ble skrevet sammen med John Lennon og Carlos Alomar. Lennon koret også på sangen.

Lennons pensjonisttilværelse, som begynte med fødselen av sønn Sean i 1976 og varte til 1980 hvor Lennon første gang på fem år plukket opp gitaren igjen. I begynnelsen var han bare nysgjerrig om han fortsatt kunne skrive musikk, deretter følte han ideene boble over og skrev en imponerende mengde sanger under et ferieopphold i Caribien og begynte å tenke på et nytt album. For sitt comeback produserte han og Ono albumet Double Fantasy med sanger som handlet om forholdet deres. Navnet kom fra en blomst så ved en utstilling, og som han så som perfekt beskrivelse av deres ekteskap.

Albumet hadde en sang fra hver av ekteparet, som ble spilt hver andre gang. Tilhengere av Lennon er sjelden like begeistret for Yoko Ono, men svelget irritasjonen i gleden over å få en uforfalsket Lennon tilbake igjen. Den første sangen fra albumet, (Just Like) Starting Over, steg på platelistene og Lennon begynte å tenke på en ny verdensturne. Han begynte også arbeidet på sitt neste album, Milk and Honey, som han aldri fikk fullført.

Mot slutten av livet uttrykte Lennon misnøye med den knappe kreditt han fikk av George Harrison i hans biografiske notatsamling I Me Mine (bok)I Me Mine. I følge Yoko Ono var han ikke fornøyd med at Paul McCartneys Beatles-sanger som Yesterday, Hey Jude og Let It Be var mer populære enn hans egne bidrag.

Om kvelden den 8. desember 1980 vendte Lennon og Ono tilbake til leiligheten i Dakota-bygningen i New York etter å ha arbeidet på innspillingene av Onos sang Walking On Thin Ice til deres neste album. Ono kom ut av bilen først, fulgt av Lennon. Da Ono gikk inn i bygningen kastet Lennon et blikk på en mann som han hadde gitt autografen sin til tidligere, og gikk deretter inn i bygningen. Da Lennon passerte mannen, en sinnsforvirret fan ved navn Mark David Chapman, ropte han brått mot musikeren: «Mr. Lennon!» Da Lennon snudde seg skjøt Chapman fem skudd mot ham. Ett bommet mens fire gikk inn i ryggen og skulderen. Yoko Ono som sto rett ved siden av ble ikke truffet. Lennon klarte å snuble framover og opp seks trappetrinn før han kollapset, gispende «jeg er skutt, jeg er skutt.»

Etter skytingen ble Chapman stående inntil revolveren ble slått ut av hendene hans og sparket unna av forbipasserende ved navn Jose Perdomo som forskrekket spør: «Hva har du gjort? Hva har du gjort?» Chapman svarer: «Jeg har akkurat skutt John Lennon.» Deretter tar han rolig av seg jakka, legger den ned ved føttene og tar fram en bok, J.D. Salingers roman Hver tar sin så vi andre får ingen (The Catcher in the Rye), og leser i den til han blir plukket opp av politiet noen minutter senere.

Lennon ble kjørt til Roosevelt Hospital, han har mistet 80% av blodet og dør av sjokk i en alder av 40 år. En forskrekket verden ble informert om dødsfallet av Dr. Stephen Lynn som kort tid før hadde gitt den nedslående nyheten til Yoko Ono.

En gruppe mennesker samlet seg utenfor bygningen natten etter Lennons død. Ono ga beskjed at syngingen deres holdt henne våken og ba dem samles i Central Park den kommende søndag for ti minutters stillhet. Hennes bønn for en stille stund ble æret den 14. desember 1980 over hele verden. Et minnesmerke for Lennon ble oppført på samme sted med navnet Strawberry Fields Memorial.

Den 9. desember 1980 hadde Bruce Springsteen konsert i Spectrum i Philadelphia og uttalte at «Det er en tung kveld å komme ut og spille, men det er ikke noe annet du kan gjøre.»

En egen minneutgave av musikkmagasinet Rolling Stone ble utgitt kort etter drapet. Forsiden var et bilde tatt samme morgen som drapet fant sted av Annie Leibovitz. Bilde viste en naken, sammenrullet Lennon som klamrer seg til en fullt påkledd Ono.

Elton Johns album Jump Up! hadde en hyllest til Lennon i sangen Empty Garden (Hey Hey Johnny). I 1982 ga Paul McCartney sin egen hyllest med den sentimentale Here Today på sitt kritikerroste album Tug of War. Det samme året ga Queen ut Hot Space som hadde sangen Life Is Real, også en hyllest til Lennon.

I mars 2002 navnga hans hjemby Liverpool sin flyplass Liverpool John Lennon Airport og adopterende dens motto fra en linje i sangen Imagine: Above us only sky - Over oss er kun himmelen.

I 2002 kom Lennon inn på topp ti-listen over de 100 største briter i en avstemning i regi av BBC.

John Lennon Park med statue ble bygget på Cuba som et minnesmerke for musikeren. I oktober 2000 ble John Lennon Museum åpnet i Onos hjemby Saitama i Japan for bevare kunnskapen om hans liv og musikk. Han har fått en stjerne på Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Lennons første sønn Julian Lennon har hatt en mindre karriere innenfor musikk, men hans likhet med faren har ikke vært til hans fordel. Også Sean Lennon, Lennons sønn med Ono, har forsøkt seg uten større suksess.

 

Julio Presas

 

 

Amaneciendo En La Cruz Del Sur

 

 Headphones on and reclining in my chair for the first listen through to this album from Julio Presas, I was pleasantly enamoured by the delicate and meandering sound, which soon soothed away the frustrations of a long and arduous day, so much so that I was inclined to play the CD again. A recent release from Viajero Inmovil Records based in Argentina and this time reading through the notes that accompanied the music within the packaging. These notes confirmed a couple of interesting points about the album, which coincided with some of my early impressions about the music - more of this later. The core musicians on Amaneciendo en la cruz del sur are Julio Presas on guitars, bass, percussion & voice; Carlos Cutaia on teclados(?) & synths; Carlos Riganti on drums & percussion, and Alicia Presas on voice. Additional credits go to Marcelo Vitale (synths), Mono Fontana (drums & percussion) and Carlos Cutaia (bass, synths & piano).

So, on to my early thoughts and my original perception was that the music bore all the trade marks of material that might have been written some twenty five years previously. The sleeve notes confirmed that in fact the recordings were made in 1978. Considering the age of the material the sonic quality is very good, and again the sleeve notes make note that Julio Presas had worked in his early career as a studio technician. What was fascinating was that tracks from the album are not in fact re-released but are receiving their first airing. I quote - "The music remained dormant in a drawer at his house for many years". Presas became aware that the tapes may be deteriorating and transferred them to another medium. This was in fact the case and "it is due to his own re-mastering efforts that an excellent piece of work finally emerges to the surface and sees the light of day".

It is not always the case that helpful comparisons to other artists can be readily defined, however here the pointers were fairly clear. Many of the tracks had an early Mike Oldfield flavour to them, created in the main by the interplay between the guitar parts. The combination of the simple, but effective melodies played with a semi-clean guitar sound, over multi-layered and picked guitar chordal structuring and accompanied by light keyboards sounds, being most reminiscent of his style. Ronda al fin best captured this and soon became my favourite tune from the album. Other fine examples would be the opening tune and Siempre dependemos de la escula. To the above comparison it maybe possible to add Gordon Giltrap as a guide, albeit without the flamboyance.

I am wary not to give the impression that this is merely a guitar album, far from it, as the keyboards, drums and other instrumentation feature strongly throughout Amaneciendo en la cruz del sur. The opening track and title piece, being predominately keyboard and synths, with the guitar providing only accompaniment. The album has gentle and delicate feel throughout and even in the up-tempo numbers such as La reunion, this is still sustained. Alicia Presas voice textures, although not used as much as I might have liked, add much to the tracks they appear in - particularly evocative during Otono de soledad. Although Julio Presas is from Argentina and the album does incorporate latin rhythms occasionally, the music has a distinct Englishness about it, which I must admit I found appealing. In the main this is an instrumental offering, Julio sings only on Tristeza Vienesa, and Alicia Presas' voice is used as described above.

I feel much credit must go to Felipe Surkan for his efforts to promote these independent releases, primarily from his own country, but also from around the world. Without his efforts gems like this album from Julio Presas may have been lost forever, and this would have been a great shame. Julio Presas is still active and can be found working not only as a producer, but also in a musical capacity. This album deserved to be released and contains many pieces well worth listening too. It is a shame that, at present, there are no audio files for this album? The best I can offer as an incentive to check out this album, is if Mike Oldfield features prominently in your album collection, then this would sit nicely alongside.

Tracklist: Amaneciendo en la cruz del sur (4:01), Ronda al fin (3:24), La reunion (4:07), Siempre dependemos de la escula (4:10), Porque perdimos pasion? (3:21), Desconcertado estas (2:56), Otono de soledad (5:40), Tristeza Vienesa (2:06), Las suaves palabras (3:34), En un mar de silencio (4.22)
Bonus Tracks: Lo que pudo ser (0:50), Apertura (1:00), Cierre (1:05)

 

Janison Edge

 

 

The Services Of Mary Goode

 

Janison Edge started as a project by Mike Varty, known for his keyboard-work with Shadowland, and female singer Sue Element. Skilled musicians like Landmarq's Dave Wagstaffe on drums, Arena's Ian Salmon on guitars and Paul Brown of Medicine Man on bass complete the line-up. Last year, their first album The Services Of Mary Goode was released, which reviewed here.

The opening track on the album is A Twist in the Tale of Earth History. The sound of Janison Edge is very recognizable as neo-progressive. Sweeping guitars, bombastic organs and on top of that a typical synth-solo. Sue Elements female voice is something different than 'ordinary' and it's nice to see another female-singer entering the prog-circle. The sound of her voice is very accessible and nice to hear, although she hasn't the power of e.g. Tracy Hitchings.

Oldman, the second song, is a gentle ballad, where Mike Varty accompanies Sue Element's lovely vocals on piano. Together they were responsible for all the material. Oldman leads into Beneath The Boy, which starts as a mid-tempo song, but changes in the middle into a threatening bombastic piece, 'starring' Ian Salmon on guitars, followed by a great and fast keyboardsolo.

The title track is divided into four parts. The first two of them are The Services of Mary Goode and The Birth of Mary Goode. The former is an atmospheric song, mainly as a result of the use of organs, much reverb on the guitars and military drums. The latter is longer song, with several rhythm-changes and returning choruses. At moments it reminds me of some Shadowland compositions. Although it's a longer track, it's not very clear where it's going, which is a pity.

 The third part of 'Mary Goode' is Mary Goode and The Dwarf Of Dreams. This part is introduced by mystical synth- and wind sounds. Piano and acoustic guitars accompany Sue Element in the first part of the track. This is a very gentle song, which is a sort-of cross-over between Kate Bush and Madonna (can you imagine that?).

Joker is a very typical song, which I really like. It has a very strange rhythm, several breaks and nice sound-effects. One of the more adventurous and, as a result, more original songs. Towards the end it speeds up in a great way. Lovely track!Julie Lies is a lovely ballad, with lots of mellotron, a lovely piano and nice acoustic guitars. Element has a very fragile and soft voice here, which is really nice. Julie Lies gradually builds on and on and becomes more powerful towards the end.

The Day That I Fell is the last part of the title-track and the longest song on the album. Like the other longer tracks, The Day That I fell certainly has beautiful parts, but as a whole these longer tracks lack a bit of direction. Salmon's rhythm-guitar doesn't sound very inspired at moments -'though the solos are great!- and some keyboard-parts are a bit unoriginal -'though I love the sound!-. However, this doesn't make The Day That I Fell less interesting, because a lot is happening in these 11 minutes. Heavy and soft parts, fragile and bombastic pieces, it's all there. So there's much too discover and enjoy in this finale-track.

 All in all, I think Janison Edge have made a fine album with some lovely songs (Dwarf Of Dream, Joker) and great keyboardstuff (Beneath The Boy) on it. The longer, more traditional neo-progressive tracks have much to enjoy, but sometimes lack a bit of originality and direction. Overall, however, The Services Of Mary Goode is a nice and interesting debut-album, packed in some lovely artwork and certainly worth a try.

Tracklist: A Twist in the Tale of Earth History (9:29), "OLDMAN" (2:02), Beneath the Boy (8:29), The Services of Mary Goode (5:40), The Birth of Mary Goode (9:34), Mary Goode and the Dwarf of Dreams (4:09), Joker (5:49), Julie Lies (7:18), The Day That I Fell (11:36)

 

Jeremy & Progressor

 

 

 

The Pearl Of Great Price

 

 I knew I was going to like this CD within ten seconds of my first hearing. I wondered fleetingly if I’d forgotten to eject one of my all-time favourite progressive-lite albums, The Alan Parsons Project’s I, Robot, from the CD player when I heard Desert Winds, the first track on Jeremy & Progressor’s nicely named CD The Pearl of Great Price. And, with exceptions I’ll note here, you won’t go far wrong in imagining this disc’s sound if you think of the first three or four Alan Parsons albums.

 Even the production, and even the sounds of some of the instruments (notably Jeremy Morris’s lead guitar, often a ringer for Ian Bairnson’s) will remind you of some of the great songs from Tales of Mystery and Imagination, I, Robot, and Pyromania. I won’t leave out the synthesizers, which (especially in Spiral Vortex and Battle Zone) sound as though they were borrowed from a studio that had been shut and locked since 1978. That’s all to the good, in my opinion. Although I like Parsons’ latest effort, A Valid Path, it ain’t no I, Robot; and it’s not as though Jeremy & Progressor have simply cloned or ripped off Parsons, because that’s not the case.

Let’s begin with the artists’ slightly odd name. “This is the first joint effort between Jeremy Morris (solo) and Vitaly Menshikov (X Religion),” we’re told in the promo letter. I suppose the two artists wanted to use their own names or nicknames (Menshikov will of course be known to many as editor in chief of Uzbekistan's excellent Progressor ezine) instead of a new group name. Still, I’m put in mind of the Sixties pop-vocal duo “Chad & Jeremy” when I see this name, and the association couldn’t be more off-base. In any case, this isn’t a vanity project by the two; it’s a solid album that features – in addition to Morris’s work on guitar, bass, drums, mellotron, and piano and Meshnikov’s on keyboards, synthesizer, bass, and percussion – Brian Hirsch on synthesizers, keyboards [yes, there are lots of keyboards on this album!], and drums, and a guest guitarist, Rob Wessel, on one song, Spiral Vortex.

As for the music, once you’ve taken your bearings with my Alan Parsons comparison, you’ll find lots of instrumental treasures on this album – because it does indeed consist of sixty-eight minutes of instrumentals. The song titles suggest that this is a concept album, or at the least that the songs are meant, taken together, to tell a story; but although the album is very much of a piece and the sequence of the songs is pleasing, I don’t think I’d have known, without the song titles’ guidance, that they were meant as any kind of narrative. To take one instance of a match between titles and sound, however, Final Victory concludes with some synthesized snare drums in a marching beat, underlining a happy, "victorious" - sounding guitar line – so there you go: final victory. Then there’s The Journey Home, which is actually divided into five parts (Transparent Darkness, Total Lucidity, Nellysea, Borderland, and Flying) but which, clocking in at twenty minutes, is a bit too long to sustain interest for the repeated listenings that would be necessary for one to perceive the demarcations between sections and assess each section’s success in communicating the intention declared by its title.

 I’ve just used a phrase that I will now repeat to make my only real adverse criticism of this otherwise very fine instrumental album: Too long. Too long, too long, too long. I’m not accusing only Jeremy & Progressor of this fault, of course. Ever since CDs became the primary medium for commercial recorded music, some artists have assumed that because the technology permits them to cram more than an hour’s worth of music on to a disc, they must do so. I disagree. An hour is a long time out of one’s life (especially as one gets older), and few bands command the talent to make more than an hour spent in their company at one sitting a fully rewarding one. And, as much as I genuinely enjoy this album, I’m pretty sure I’d have enjoyed it more (and more often!) had it been half an hour shorter: say, oh, I don’t know, forty-one minutes long – like I, Robot.

Tracklist: Desert Winds (10:02), Spiral Vortex (10:04), Alien Nation (6:10), Pearl of Great Price (4:43), Battle Zone (5:31), Final Victory (10:28), The Journey Home (20:42)

 

Jøder i harnisk!

 

 

 Microsoft kan ha gjort en tabbe da de døpte sin nye mp3-spiller Zune. Navnet er nemlig noe snuskete - i alle fall på hebraisk.

Uttalen av ordet «Zune» ligner nemlig veldig på uttalen av det hebraiske ordet «zi-yun», som er slang for samleie.

Kritikken fra den jødiske verden har ikke latt vente på seg og Microsoft forsøker nå å dempe gemyttene.

- Vi ser at det er likheter i uttalen med «zi-yun», men betydningen er jo en helt annen, sier en talsmann for Microsoft.

Hebraisk-kyndige har forståelse for reaksjonen

- Jeg forstår reaksjonen fra den jødiske verden. Ordet har slangkarakter og forbindes med sex fo sexens skyld. Ordet fører tankene til en pornoside og ikke et seriøst selskap, sier Nava Bergman, hebraisklærer ved universitetet i Göteborg, til IDG.se

Større selskaper pleier alltid å hyre inn språkkonsulenter når de skal gi navn til nye produkter. Det er grunnen til at Honda Fitta heter Jazz i Norden, men hvorfor Hennes & Mauritz valgte å kalle jeans for «slick fit» kan man jo lure på.

 

Jon Anderson

 

 

After more than 20 years of anticipation from fans around the world, Jon Anderson's renowned album, Animation, is officially available on CD.

Originally released in mid-1983, Animation boasts some of Jon's most stunning and hauntingly beautiful solo works, including Olympia, Animation, Surrender, and All in a Matter of Time. In addition to the original nine Animation tracks, this re-issue contains two bonus tracks: Spider, which was the B-side of the original Surrender single; and the never-before-released track, The Spell, which was an outtake from the Animation recording sessions. All of Animation's music has been meticulously re-mastered and has never sounded more vibrant, full of energy, alive, or fresh.

Also included as part of this very special re-issue are the complete lyrics to the nine original Animation tracks, as well as short stories and anecdotes from Jon Anderson himself, talking about Animation and most of its tracks. It's a rare glimpse into Jon's thinking at the time, as well as his thoughts on Animation, and what the album means to him.

So at long last Jon Anderson fans can now add "Animation" to their CD library. Best of all, act today and you can order an autographed copy personally signed by Jon. Only 500 autographed copies are available, so don't delay.

 

 

Jack Yello