Don't try to take me if I can't return
Shagrat (sans Steve Took) recording Quatermass, 1970.
After passing through several bands and working as a session musician, Steve Took finally settled down in Shagrat, first performing in underground concerts and at the Phun City rock festival. The group was signed into Blackhill Records in late 1970, which caused the postponement of recording their first songs. After the early months, Blackhill finally scheduled a short tour across the UK and France, giving attention to the band of the remaining member of Rubber Band.
"The early days were such a mess because we needed to tour, but we had no managers, and my contract with Blackhill was almost expired. This is when I approached Syd and Peter to return to the company with my band instead, which they agreed. But it took quite long to sign another contract, because... of a lot unnecessary bureaucratic bullshit, you know?"
-Steve Took, 1974
Quickly, Blackhill arranged a last-time concert for Shagrat in the Hyde Park Festival of 1971, looking to promote their soon-to-be newest act. "That's what we could do for a moment, as we couldn't afford to arrange any tours for Shagrat at the time due to no contract with them.", Andrew King. The band was first presented to a wider audience at the festival, performing a set comprising their songs and standards.
The group recorded their debut album in-between Abbey Road and Strawberry Studios, with songs written by each member, hiring Dick Taylor as a suggestion from Hawkwind's Dave Brock. The album would be recorded between August and December 1970, when the band left the studios to go on another tour in Europe, and then in the American West Coast.
"In the first moment, there was some lack of consensus of what our next album would be. Would it be folk? Hard rock? or the new wave of prog rock? So Hammond said 'well, why not everything? I'm sure we can work out with all this stuff.', so we pretty much agreed with him as we didn't have another choice."
-John Gustafson
Quatermass was quickly announced, although with no singles. The group received a wider attention from hard rock fans, generally associated with the emerging heavy metal scene with Deep Purple and Black Sabbath. Despite that, Shagrat denied being labeled as another fellow rising heavy metal band, though the group kept in pace with Deep Purple (John Gustafson was a friend of the group and later join the Ian Gillan Band).
Shagrat - Quatermass
Shagrat - Quatermass (1971)
Genre: Hard rock, progressive rock, freak folk
Total: 41:13
Side A - 19:09
1. "Scorpius/Steel Abortion" (Steve Took, Larry Wallis) - 4:30
2. "Up on the Ground" (John Gustafson) - 7:11
3. "Amanda" (Took) - 3:18
4. "Punting" (Gustafson) - 7:10
Side B - 22:04
5. "One Blind Mice" (Gustafson) - 3:10
6. "Seventh Sign" (Took) - 5:37
7. "Make Up Your Mind" (Hammond) - 8:44
8. "Beautiful Deceiver" (Took) - 4:33
Quatermass is the debut album of British rock band Shagrat, being released in 23 February 1971 by Blackhill Records in the United Kingdom and Europe and Capitol Records in the United States and the rest of the world. The album would be produced by Pretty Things member Dick Taylor, becoming the first work of former Rubber Band Steve Took in three years of semi-hiatus.
The album would be noted by the crossover between acid, hard rock, freak folk and progressive, symphonic rock music, labeled by the critics as 'inconsistent, yet powerful'. Shagrat appeared in the list of the most promising bands of 1970 and 1971. Later, the album would establish a cult following of prog-rock enthusiasts, being considered a classic from the first wave of progressive rock.
Despite the hustle towards the record, the numbers in the charts would reveal a great disappointment to the label, reaching number 20 in the UK Album Charts and number 174 in the Billboard 200, falling down quickly, as well as the disastrous West Coast tour that would eventually lead Blackhill to more financial problems in the 1970s.
All things must pass away...
John Lennon and George Harrison recording the guitar parts of Wild Life (if I'm not wrong, lol).
Following the release of Get Back, The Beatles could finally rest for a while, not before renewing their contract with Apple/NEMS and EMI, which I mean by settling their differences aside and marking a new era within the band. The longstanding partnership Lennon-McCartney was disbanded, with both songwriters (mostly Lennon) seeking creative freedom over his lyrics. The Beatles also agreed in releasing their albums in a two-year period, after a successor for their previous album, focusing on their personal lives and projects. In the meantime, Paul and George came into terms regarding George's songs and Epstein's equal share.
In the following four months, the band entered into a "semi-hiatus", as some of them resumed into recording solo projects, where a few contributions would be set aside to an eventual Beatles record. Despite recording their solo projects, all of the albums would be released only next year, a few months before All Things Must Pass. The band would, inevitably, resume their activities in August 1970, without Paul, as John invited George and Ringo to participate in a session.
"It was more or less like this. John invited George and I to play on some songs he was recording to [John Lennon/]The Dirty Mac, but in reality we were just fooling around the whole session when George said 'oh hey, we are recording for the Beatles right now?'. John answered something like 'I guess?', and this followed for a few days when we called Paul back to the studio."
-Ringo Starr, 1998
The album would turn out to be the last record with songs written during their stay in India, with Junk and Teddy Boy written by Paul, and Look at Me written by John Lennon. All Things Must Pass had an equal share of songs between Paul, John, and George, with It Don't Come Easy being sung by Ringo, earning him a songwriting credit as a parody of the Lennon-McCartney partnership, "Harrison-Starkey". The group also recorded a jam that would evolve to the side closer Wild Life, credited to Paul.
"I believe that All Things Must Pass was the first time in a long time that I felt that my contributions were actually being well used. The process was enjoyable all the way through, no peer-pressure from Get Back or A Doll's House, just a very laid back recording process which I believe we've all benefited from. It personally encouraged me to suggest the idea of the Concert for Bangladesh for the band."
-George Harrison
It's Johnny's Birthday would be featured as a secret track right after Harrison's I Live for You, a song based on Cliff Richard's Congratulations. The song was recorded by the group per request of Yoko Ono to John Lennon's 30th birthday. The idea to include the 49-second track in the album came from John himself as a novelty song, which all of the band agreed to do, even if the album came out seven months later.
The first single to be issued was George's What Is Life, released on February 1971, featuring the prominent use of a stripped-down Wall of Sound becoming a top-ten hit in the United States, the United Kingdom and elsewhere, backed by an instrumental version of Junk in the New World while backed by Teddy Boy in Europe, except for West Germany (backed by Watching Rainbows).
All Things Must Pass would be announced in early April 1971, with the release of the second single, Maybe I'm Amazed, becoming the Beatles' first smash hit of the seventies, backed by Isolation, and eventually a classic and signature song of the Beatles in the 1970s. Later in France and Latin America, Wild Life was released as a single, with Dig a Pony as the backing single.
The Beatles – All Things Must Pass
The Beatles - All Things Must Pass (1971)
Genre: Rock, pop, folk rock
Total: 43:38
Side A - 23:08
1. "Instant Karma! (We All Shine On)" (John Lennon) - 3:18
2. "All Things Must Pass" (George Harrison) - 3:44
3. "Teddy Boy" (Paul McCartney) - 2:22
4. "What Is Life" (Harrison) - 4:22
5. "Isolation" (Lennon) - 2:51
6. "Wild Life" (McCartney) - 6:31
Side B - 20:30
7. "It Don't Come Easy" (Harrison-Richard Starkey) - 3:00
8. "Oh My Love" (Lennon) - 2:44
9. "Maybe I'm Amazed" (McCartney) - 3:53
10. "Look at Me" (Lennon) - 2:53
11. "Junk" (McCartney) - 4:28
12. "I Live for You" (Harrison) - 3:35
13. "It's Johnny's Birthday" (Bill Martin, Phil Coulter) - 0:49
All Things Must Pass is the fourteenth studio album by the British band The Beatles. The album marks the return of the band in the production, with co-writing credits to George Martin and Phil Spector in some tracks, being released in 17 May 1971 by Apple Records, and being distributed by EMI. It is considered the first album from the Seventies era, after the Get Back sessions, of more mature songwriting in a
back-to-the-roots style.
The recording sessions of All Things Must Pass started as solo sessions from each member, reserving a contribution that would feel suitable to a Beatles' album. The group reunited in two occasions in 1970, and the last two months in 1971. In contrast with the sessions of Get Back and Abbey Road, the sessions of All Things Must Pass were considered 'laid-back' and 'inspiring' by the members, who were also working on their solo records.
The themes of the album are considered a response to the hard times that the group had during the previous years, particularly the title track, relating to George's, and ultimately, the band's point of view. Besides that, love, existential and social themes are also common throughout the record, avoiding politics and religion, which the band was widely associated at the time. Wild Life is the third-longest Beatles song by length, after I Want You (She's So Heavy) and Hey Jude.
Initially, the album received negative reviews by the critics, who've characterized the mixing and production as 'lo-fi' and 'unfinished'. Nevertheless, All Things Must Pass was a big success as always, topping and alternating the top spot of Billboard 200 with Carole King's Tapestry, and later, the Beach Boys' Landlocked. In the United Kingdom, the same case happened with the Rolling Stones' Sticky Fingers. Four singles were released, and the most successful of them was Maybe I'm Amazed, becoming a classic Beatles tune.
In general, All Things Must Pass remains as a favorite record between the members, but mostly John Lennon, in an interview with Playboy in 1981, and Ringo Starr, who reverenced the equal share of tracks between the Beatles (Lennon and McCartney contributed four songs each, George contributed with three songs plus one in a partnership with Ringo).
The Beach Boys Go Dark
The Beach Boys (sans Brian) performing at the Central Park, 1971.
Despite having gone a long way, The Beach Boys seemed shaken up in the last few years, even with the success of Smile and Wild Honey, the disappointment of the last two records, plus the mental condition of the main songwriter Brian Wilson, made the band hire Jack Rieley as their manager. The move was instigated by the band themselves as a way to revitalize their public image along the turning of the decade
First measures were appointing Carl Wilson as the band's leader and spokesman, as well as ending the group's practice of wearing matching stage uniforms. Rieley also encouraged the band to record more socially conscious lyrics, as well as lyrics more centered on their actual feelings, instead of the sunny and happy themes that covered the band's prior catalog.
"Jack really helped us a lot to modernize our image, to stop making us looking like douchebags, stuck in the sixties. We needed that bump, to talk about more serious themes and be in touch with not only our audience, but our generation in general. I don't wanna sing about a happy day without thinking about Vietnam. That's the thing."
-Dennis Wilson
The policy of Jack Rieley to the band's first album under his management was to synthesize their feelings to music, relieving their frustrations. Most of them, unsurprisingly, about war, love, existentialism, hope and nostalgia. The major opponent of the idea was Mike Love, who argued that most of the lyrics weren't about the standard Beach Boys, being rebutted as that the album was a way to the group to reinvent themselves and keep in pace with their generation.
Mike's presence in the album was widely diminished, despite his presence in the sessions, with Dennis being favored as a potential songwriter. Love's major contributions in the album were Sound of Free (co-written with Dennis), Don't Go Near the Water (with Al Jardine), and the excluded Student Demonstration Time (an altered version of "Riot in Cell Block Number 9"). He also influenced in the decision to make "Won't You Tell Me" as the final track, as a bittersweet ending to the record.
"I'll be honest, it's a good record, but the sessions had some troublesome moments. Mike and Bruce kind of regretted the decision of having Jack as a manager, Brian was rock bottom, no treatments at the time, while Dennis was emerging and starting a feud with Bruce, and I had to maintain the order. It was good to me because I needed to grow some balls and be a leader who would guide the band to deliver the best product as possible in the end."
-Carl Wilson
The first experiences with Landlocked were written in Music Maker's report "Hold the Waves! 'Surf' is definitely 'Up' to the Beach Boys!", following an interview with Carl, Al Jardine, and manager Jack Rieley. Landlocked was controversially promoted with the magazine claiming that the band abandoned the 'saccharine music reminiscent from the Carpenters' towards a more progressive and conscious sound.
"I really was surprised of how Landlocked had such a hype across the people. That album made me willing to be more open to new experiences, helped me a lot to see that the audience wasn't the main way to see what the people was really listening to. Yet, I still feel a little uncomfortable with a lot of the lyrics and all the comparisons at the time. But I have learned my lesson, haha."
-Mike Love
Long Promised Road was issued as a promotional single reaching number 2 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and UK Singles Charts, backed by Student Demonstration Time. The song was well-received, becoming a song generally associated with hope during hard times, similar to the situation the band and the world was at the time. The album was announced as "Landlocked.", as the band seemed to ditch once for all the previous surf sound from the sixties.
The Beach Boys – Landlocked.
The Beach Boys - Landlocked. (1971)
Genre: Progressive pop
Total: 38:23
Side A - 19:48
1. "Sound of Free" (Dennis Wilson, Mike Love) - 2:23
2. "Don't Go Near the Water" (Love, Al Jardine) - 2:39
3. "Lady (Fallin' in Love)" (D. Wilson) - 3:11
4. "Feel Flows" (Carl Wilson, Jack Rieley) - 4:44
5. "Fourth of July" (D. Wilson, Rieley) - 2:44
6. "Disney Girls (1957)" (Bruce Johnston) - 4:07
Side B - 18:35
7. "Long Promised Road" (C. Wilson, Rieley) - 3:30
8. "Lookin' At Tomorrow (A Welfare Song)" (Jardine, Gary Winfrey) - 1:55
9. "A Day in the Life of a Tree" (Brian Wilson, Rieley) - 3:07
10. "(Wouldn't It Be Nice to) Live Again?" (D. Wilson) - 4:38
11. "'Til I Die" (B. Wilson) - 2:31
12. "Won't You Tell Me" (B. Wilson, Murray Wilson) - 2:54
Landlocked (stylized Land Locked.) is the sixteenth studio album by the American band The Beach Boys, released on 30 August 1971 by Brother and distributed by Island Records. It was the first album of the Beach Boys under the management of Jack Rieley, that would become known later as the Rieley Trilogy. The cover and artwork was widely based on James Earle Fraser's sculpture "End of the Trail", becoming one of the most remarkable album covers of all-time.
With personal problems, such as Brian Wilson's conditions, and the poor response for Add Some Music for Your Day, Jack Rieley was hired as the band's manager. As a therapeutic exercise, Rieley suggested the group to make a record to relieve their frustrations, also encouraging the group to approach more socially conscious lyrics, as many groups at the time. The idea was accepted among the band, except for Mike Love and Bruce Johnston, who emphasized the themes of 'summer and love', thus becoming the album with the least Mike Love contributions.
Ironically, Landlocked remains as one of the Beach Boys' best-selling records. At the time, it ultimately became a smash hit by the band, making it their first release since Beach Boys Concert to top the Billboard 200, and the UK Album Charts. Won't You Tell Me and Long Promised Road were released as singles, with the latter being the most successful, although Sound of Free had a fair share of success.
The album addressed topics that were previously never addressed by the group such as environmental, social and psychological issues, adding to the repertory of love and nostalgia, becoming considered The Beach Boys' darkest record to date, according to NME's article 'The Beach Boys Go Dark'. The bittersweet tracks like Long Promised Road and (Wouldn't It Be Nice) To Live Again? are considered the greatest definition of the album as a whole. It is also considered the album that consolidates Dennis Wilson's emergence as a songwriting power in the band.
In the end, Landlocked remains a crucial piece and a quintessential record that defines Progressive pop as a genre, influencing the Neo-psychedelic movement, shoegaze, synth-pop and the alternative music scenes. The band was nominated to the 1972 Grammy Awards in three of the four major awards, with Carl Wilson's Long Promised Road winning the category of Song of the Year in a controversial victory over Carole King and James Taylor's You've Got a Friend.
Author's notes:
Hey everybody, hope you're doing well. Sorry for the sudden absence, my computer broke a while ago, but now I'm back and I'll resume with the blog. The cover design of Landlocked is originally from
soniclovenoize's version. The Beatles' All Things Must Pass was made by
andrewskyDE.
Sources:
- Shagrat - Quatermass
- Quatermass - s/t
- Steve Peregrin Took - The Missing Link To Tyrannosaurus Rex
- Shagrat - Lone Star
- Shagrat - Pink Jackets Required
- The Beatles - All Things Must Pass
- George Harrison - All Things Must Pass
- Paul McCartney - McCartney
- Wings - Wild Life
- John Lennon - John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band
- John Lennon - The John Lennon Collection
- Ringo Starr - Blast from Your Past
- The Beach Boys - Landlocked.
- The Beach Boys - Surf's Up
- The Beach Boys - Feel Flows: The Sunflower & Surf's Up Sessions 1969–1971
