A Blast from the Past – Traffic Jam
Last week’s musical flashback generated a comment from a reader to the effect that they’d not previously heard of the featured group (Traffic). That may be the case for other regular readers as well.
If you haven’t, you’ve missed out; they were excellent. Here’s a sampler that IMO hits some of the highlights from their career as a group (1967-1974; the also group briefly re-formed circa 1994). The musical style ranges from psychedelic rock to jazz/rock to traditional English folk.
Enjoy.
Have a great holiday weekend, everyone.
Category: Pointless blather, Who knows
Feelin Alright?
Great Saturday morning breakfast music.
No “All Join In?” “40,000 Headmen”?
Motown had Stevie Wonder as its child star… the Brits had Stevie Winwood. He was only 15 when he joined the Spencer Davis Group (Gimme Some Lovin’, a song whose opening driving beat and screaming keyboards everyone alive then knew) and then went on to co-found Traffic. After Traffic he played in one of the first super-groups, Blind Faith. All of this before he was 25. Done a ton of quality solo stuff since, too.
I considered those along with “Shanghai Noodle Factory.” But I was trying for a representative sample of Traffic’s best from across their career which also illustrated most of their musical styles. I also wanted the playlist to be of reasonable length, time-wise.
I thought “Dear Mr. Fantasy” best represented their psychedelic rock style, so I left out “40,000 Headmen” and “Shanghai Noodle Factory”. And I thought “Feelin’ Alright?” represented Traffic’s folk/rock style best, so I omitted “All Join In” as well.
Trivia point: Blind Faith was actually the second time Winwood recorded with Clapton as part of a group. For a while in 1966, Winwood recorded with a group called “Eric Clapton and the Powerhouse”. They apparently recorded at least 4 tunes in March of that year, 3 of which were released on a Elektra Records sampler named “What’s Shakin'”. Because of contractual issues (probably having to do with the fact that Winwood was under contract to another record company at the time since he was still a member of the Spencer Davis Group), he was credited as “Steve Anglo”.
“Sea of Joy”
https://youtu.be/FZQXvUeHmjQ?t=2
More Blind Faith
“In the Presense of the Lord”
https://youtu.be/g69EWScWE0U?t=2
Where’s Wolfman Jack or Dr. Demento when you need them, these times are a changing…
As I’ve commented before, another Classic example of why Gen ZYWQLGB hates us Boomers. Even 50+ years later our music still rocks the world! Their phony baloney crap?…Not so much/not at all.
I have made many a flagon of John Barleycorn die. There has been many a time that I thought that John Barleycorn was gonna cause me to die.
Tanks for the Flashbacks Hondo. This post emphasizes the need to read each and every posted thread on TAH. Be surprised what you might learn. Helps to read the comments and the linkys provided too. Just saying.
AHEM….
“Paper Sun”
Also considered but omitted for brevity. See my comment to David above for rationale.
Small Faces.
No tie ins with Traffic as far as I can find, but another underappreciated 60s group that might be mentioned here by Hondo (ALL HAIL THE HONDO).
On this weekend in History, 50 years ago, 1970, myself and thousands of my closest friends crashed the gate to this Pop Festival in Byron Georgia. I had spent all that Friday, cooking and peddling the Colonel’s original recipe KFC to thousands of them stank azz hippies that were rolling down US Highway 41 (pre I-75 days). Rode my 1953 Harley with the saddlebags full of fried chicken to use for party favor trade goods. Main thing I remember was watching Jimi Hendrix playing the Star Spangled Banner during the fireworks show at 0God00hrs in the morning with a newly met frisky Ms Thang. Good Times…I think?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlanta_International_Pop_Festival_%281970%29
Yeah, I know, a bunch of y’all was already or still in the Viet of the Nam. I enlisted 3 days after I graduated in June of 71.