WHAT'S IN THE CD PLAYER ...
Most fans in the know remember the Yardbirds for the band's succession of lead guitarists who went on to bigger and better things. But the music still stacks up well four decades down the road.
(A very enjoyable CD, "Birdland," was released two years ago under the Yarbirds' moniker. It features rhythm guitarist Chris Dreja and drummer Jim McCarty from the original band, and Jeff Beck makes a cameo. But the album is more of a footnote than part of the actual Yardbirds canon.)
As the story goes, the Yardbirds originated (with guitarist Anthony "Top" Topham predating Eric "Slowhand" Clapton - there's your trivia answer for the day) as a blues-based band in a similar vein to what the Rolling Stones were performing circa 1963. The teenage Clapton signed on because he really enjoyed the blues motif.
When the Yardbirds (named for Charlie Parker, of course) opted for hit-single territory by recording "For Your Love" (1965), the indignant Mr. Clapton played only on the song's bridge, then bolted for the nothin'-but-the-blues refuge of John Mayall's band. In came Beck, the 20-year-old guitarist for a band called the Tridents, to continue the string of hits with "Heart Full of Soul," "Evil Hearted You," "Shapes of Things" and "Over Under Sideways Down," all of which made the top 10 in the band's native England.
Jeff left around the time the next single, "Happenings Ten Years Time Ago" (1966), failed to crack the U.K. top 40. (It did a bit better over here, and its flip side, "The Nazz Are Blue," lent its name to a Philadelphia band with a guitarist named Todd Rundgren. But that's another story.)
Beck's replacement was already in the band. Jimmy Page had joined to take the spot vacated Paul Samwell-Smith, who moved to record production. But once aboard, Page quickly switched places with Dreja, and for a spell the Yardbirds featured a dual axe attack that has had few parallels. (Just a small number of recordings with that configuration exist: "Happenings" and its B-side, "Psycho Daisies"; a rewrite of "Train Kept a-Rollin'" called "Stroll On," as featured in Michelangelo Antonioni's film "Blow Up"; and "Beck's Bolero," which appeared on Jeff's solo debut album, the top-of-the-shelf "Truth.")
From there, it was all downhill commercially for the Yardbirds. Which is a shame, because that was when the band really started to get interesting.
The way for the "Psychedelic Yardbirds" (at least, that's what I wrote on my mix disc) was paved with the Gregorian chant-like backing vocals that serve as the hook for "Still I'm Sad" (the B-side of "Evil Hearted You," 1965). The band repeated the formula in higher fidelity on "Turn Into Earth," a quality track from its first long-player, alternately titled "The Yardbirds" or "Roger the Engineer" (1966). Another song on the album showed off the band's willingness to experiment: "Hot House of Omagarashid," featuring a catchy "ya-ya" chant over a peppy rhythm that you can kind of dance to. (It was a must-play at parties we hosted in the mid-'80s.)
Page's only full-fledged Yardbirds album was "Little Games" (1967), and some ill-chosen material makes it a difficult overall listen. But there definitely are some keepers, including the acoustic-based "Only the Black Rose" and "White Summer" (Led Zeppelin fans certainly will recognize the latter). And midway through the album is the Yardbirds' full-throttle plunge into psychedelia, the lysergic dirge known as "Glimpses," complete with incomprehensible chatter presented at various speeds and tones. And while it was not included on the LP, the B-side of the title track, "Puzzles," featured some sizzling Page guitar.
The Yardbirds ground to a halt in 1968 following some best-forgotten attempts at singles ("Ha Ha Said the Clown," "Ten Little Indians," "Goodnight Sweet Josephine") and the dreaded "creative differences" within the band. Apparently, Page wanted to pursue the heavier, spacier sounds of the past few years (including "Think About It," the amazing B-side to the pedestrian "Josephine"), and singer Keith Relf preferred a folkier direction. History shows who made the right choice, commercially, at least.
Anyway, before the Yardbirds morphed into the New Yardbirds and then into Led Zeppelin, some tracks were recorded that surfaced years or decades later, showing the band still was capable of producing gems in its waning days.
Of most interest is a song initially called "I'm Confused" when it appeared on a live album released by Epic Records at the height of Zeppelin's popularity, and which Page subsequently had pulled from the shelves. The tune, of course, already was widely known as "Dazed and Confused" from Zeppelin's first album and probably every live show during the band's life span. Interestingly, the Yardbirds' arrangement is very close to Zep's template, complete with Page's bowed solo.
The live album, recorded at New York City's Anderson Theater on March 30, 1968, also features an extended version of Bo Diddley's "I'm a Man" (a big American hit for the Yardbirds a few years previously), with Relf moaning and chanting over some very strange Page-produced sounds. Quite trippy for the blues.
Just before band members went their separate ways in the summer of '68, they recorded some demos that came out a few years ago on a compilation called "Cumular Limit." Among them are they mysteriously titled "Avron Knows," featuring some smoking fretwork by Page, and "Spanish Blood," where he again puts his nimble fingers to the acoustic guitar, with someone (I don't know if it's the late Mr. Relf) quoting a mystical-sounding narrative.
It's doubtful whether such fare would have rescued the Yardbirds with commercial success. But it sure makes for some fascinating listening.
Most fans in the know remember the Yardbirds for the band's succession of lead guitarists who went on to bigger and better things. But the music still stacks up well four decades down the road.
(A very enjoyable CD, "Birdland," was released two years ago under the Yarbirds' moniker. It features rhythm guitarist Chris Dreja and drummer Jim McCarty from the original band, and Jeff Beck makes a cameo. But the album is more of a footnote than part of the actual Yardbirds canon.)
As the story goes, the Yardbirds originated (with guitarist Anthony "Top" Topham predating Eric "Slowhand" Clapton - there's your trivia answer for the day) as a blues-based band in a similar vein to what the Rolling Stones were performing circa 1963. The teenage Clapton signed on because he really enjoyed the blues motif.
When the Yardbirds (named for Charlie Parker, of course) opted for hit-single territory by recording "For Your Love" (1965), the indignant Mr. Clapton played only on the song's bridge, then bolted for the nothin'-but-the-blues refuge of John Mayall's band. In came Beck, the 20-year-old guitarist for a band called the Tridents, to continue the string of hits with "Heart Full of Soul," "Evil Hearted You," "Shapes of Things" and "Over Under Sideways Down," all of which made the top 10 in the band's native England.
Jeff left around the time the next single, "Happenings Ten Years Time Ago" (1966), failed to crack the U.K. top 40. (It did a bit better over here, and its flip side, "The Nazz Are Blue," lent its name to a Philadelphia band with a guitarist named Todd Rundgren. But that's another story.)
Beck's replacement was already in the band. Jimmy Page had joined to take the spot vacated Paul Samwell-Smith, who moved to record production. But once aboard, Page quickly switched places with Dreja, and for a spell the Yardbirds featured a dual axe attack that has had few parallels. (Just a small number of recordings with that configuration exist: "Happenings" and its B-side, "Psycho Daisies"; a rewrite of "Train Kept a-Rollin'" called "Stroll On," as featured in Michelangelo Antonioni's film "Blow Up"; and "Beck's Bolero," which appeared on Jeff's solo debut album, the top-of-the-shelf "Truth.")
From there, it was all downhill commercially for the Yardbirds. Which is a shame, because that was when the band really started to get interesting.
The way for the "Psychedelic Yardbirds" (at least, that's what I wrote on my mix disc) was paved with the Gregorian chant-like backing vocals that serve as the hook for "Still I'm Sad" (the B-side of "Evil Hearted You," 1965). The band repeated the formula in higher fidelity on "Turn Into Earth," a quality track from its first long-player, alternately titled "The Yardbirds" or "Roger the Engineer" (1966). Another song on the album showed off the band's willingness to experiment: "Hot House of Omagarashid," featuring a catchy "ya-ya" chant over a peppy rhythm that you can kind of dance to. (It was a must-play at parties we hosted in the mid-'80s.)
Page's only full-fledged Yardbirds album was "Little Games" (1967), and some ill-chosen material makes it a difficult overall listen. But there definitely are some keepers, including the acoustic-based "Only the Black Rose" and "White Summer" (Led Zeppelin fans certainly will recognize the latter). And midway through the album is the Yardbirds' full-throttle plunge into psychedelia, the lysergic dirge known as "Glimpses," complete with incomprehensible chatter presented at various speeds and tones. And while it was not included on the LP, the B-side of the title track, "Puzzles," featured some sizzling Page guitar.
The Yardbirds ground to a halt in 1968 following some best-forgotten attempts at singles ("Ha Ha Said the Clown," "Ten Little Indians," "Goodnight Sweet Josephine") and the dreaded "creative differences" within the band. Apparently, Page wanted to pursue the heavier, spacier sounds of the past few years (including "Think About It," the amazing B-side to the pedestrian "Josephine"), and singer Keith Relf preferred a folkier direction. History shows who made the right choice, commercially, at least.
Anyway, before the Yardbirds morphed into the New Yardbirds and then into Led Zeppelin, some tracks were recorded that surfaced years or decades later, showing the band still was capable of producing gems in its waning days.
Of most interest is a song initially called "I'm Confused" when it appeared on a live album released by Epic Records at the height of Zeppelin's popularity, and which Page subsequently had pulled from the shelves. The tune, of course, already was widely known as "Dazed and Confused" from Zeppelin's first album and probably every live show during the band's life span. Interestingly, the Yardbirds' arrangement is very close to Zep's template, complete with Page's bowed solo.
The live album, recorded at New York City's Anderson Theater on March 30, 1968, also features an extended version of Bo Diddley's "I'm a Man" (a big American hit for the Yardbirds a few years previously), with Relf moaning and chanting over some very strange Page-produced sounds. Quite trippy for the blues.
Just before band members went their separate ways in the summer of '68, they recorded some demos that came out a few years ago on a compilation called "Cumular Limit." Among them are they mysteriously titled "Avron Knows," featuring some smoking fretwork by Page, and "Spanish Blood," where he again puts his nimble fingers to the acoustic guitar, with someone (I don't know if it's the late Mr. Relf) quoting a mystical-sounding narrative.
It's doubtful whether such fare would have rescued the Yardbirds with commercial success. But it sure makes for some fascinating listening.
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home