Posts Tagged ‘David Freiberg. Greg Elmore’

QUICKSILVER MESSENGER SERVICE – ” Shady Grove “

Posted: January 28, 2018 in MUSIC
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Quicksilver Messenger Service Find A ‘Shady Grove’

The late 1960s and early ‘70s were golden years in the history of San Francisco rock bands Quicksilver Messenger Service. On January 24th, 1970, they entered the American charts with the follow-up to the album that would, much later, be certified as their one gold disc there, “Happy Trails”. They did so with a record that would continue their run of four US top 30 placings in a row with a US chart debut, “Shady Grove”.

Quicksilver’s personnel was enhanced by the arrival of one of the most in-demand keyboard players of his generation, the late Stones alumnus Nicky Hopkins. His presence, which also included work on harpsichord, cello and celeste, was an admirable addition to QMS’ existing sound, based on the guitar and vocals of John Cipollina and the viola, bass, guitar and joint vocals of David Freiberg. Greg Elmore added percussive inspiration.

The band had debuted with a self-titled album in 1968 that complemented the experimental rock milieu of the day, Their first top 30 album showing came with that Happy Trails follow-up. Shady Grove and with a remarkably consistent run, the band released “What About Me” and “Just For Love” all four releases inside a two-year span.

“Shady Grove” was, again, the work of a band confident that their audience would make an adventurous sonic journey with them, even if they were in the process of moving from their psychedelic beginnings into a more pop-oriented sound.

Quicksilver Messenger Service

QUICKSILVER MESSENGER SERVICE – ” Live At Winterland ” 1973

Posted: January 27, 2018 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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You can find plenty of other live recordings on the band’s streaming catalogue, but among the most potent was one cut, Live At Winterland 1973, which captures a special night. Cipollina left the band back in 1970 but he reunited with them for this show (as well as some later incarnations). It’s a very different sound for Quicksilver by this point, a fatter, harder style, which the two star guitarists made the most of. Some of their toughest, and tightest, work can be found on this live recording.

Quicksilver’s distinctive guitar player, John Cipollina, had left three years earlier to form Copperhead. But since that band was to open for Quicksilver on this bill, Cipollina agreed to play with the mother group as well. Quicksilver’s original bassist and singer, David Freiberg, also came back for the ride.

The lineup re-created the band’s best, and initial, configuration, with the addition of Dino Valenti. He was supposed to be the band’s singer from the start, but a drug bust put that off for four years. The Winterland show went so well, it led to a formal studio reunion for the band on the 1975 album “Solid Silver.”

The opening track Losing Hand  gives both axe men plenty of room to blow. With an added Latin percussionist and a surging organ, Quicksilver inches closer to the style of another great psych-San Francisco band, Santana. Their near nine-minute run at the classic Bo Diddley “Who Do You Love”  featured more dense and frantic solos from the two guitarists than the ’69 take, reproving, along the way, the equal power of the players.

The show highlights a band that never got its due, performing in a configuration that allowed it to sound better than it did on any other recording. It’s an air-guitar player’s dream come true, as well as a reminder of what a live band can sound like when everyone’s in ideal sync.