The Who - A Quick One (1966)

"A Quick One, While He's Away" by The Who


John's Children had a paucity of talent and their manager knew it.  Instead of pressing for the improvement of the band's technical chops (he saw their lack of talent as part of their attraction), he focused on improving the songwriting (the addition of Marc Bolan) and encouraging the band members' stage antics.  Even the release of the faux-live album whose release was banned/delayed because of its name had the texture of an outrageous publicity stunt rather than a bothered-about album release.

The band's stage antics were like The Who's own, so it was a natural fit for them to tour Germany together with John's Children opening.  But the match didn't work out because the Children were just too "loud and violent" according to Townshend.  They upstaged The Who with their theatrics and destruction and one time caused a riot before the headliners even took the stage.  John's Children were good at something, if not music.  The band was fired mid-tour. (Note: The drummer, Chris Townson, was probably the most skilled member of the band (outside of late-joiner Bolan) and was asked by The Who to sub for an injured Keith Moon.)

The Who (previously visited) released their second album A Quick One in 1966 on Polydor Records.  They released an American version of the album re-titled Happy Jack in 1967 on Decca records with a slightly different track listing.

Here is the discography surrounding The Who's second album:

Ready Steady Who (1966 EP)
Happy Jack (1966 single)
A Quick One
Pictures of Lily (1967 single)
Whiskey Man (1967 single)
Happy Jack (1967 American album)

"Cobwebs and Strange" by The Who


Pete Townshend Talks About A Quick One


The Who Live July 9, 1966 at Westminster Technical College


Pass the Headphones!!

John's Children - Orgasm (1970)

"Desdemona" by John's Children


Before he was the primary artist and songwriter for Tyrannosaurus Rex, Marc Bolan had dreams of great stardom but hadn't much traction.  Through gall and talent, he hooked a manager in Simon Napier-Bell who most famously worked for The Yardbirds.  Originally, Napier-Bell mulled over adding Bolan to The Yardbirds lineup. Instead, he decided to add him to another one of his bands, John's Children.  Bolan brought to the outfit a catalog of ready-to-go songs which quickly became singles, but he was unhappy with the artistic direction of the band and left it after four months.  Before Bolan even joined, the four-piece had already recorded a couple singles and an album, Orgasm, which was scheduled to release in 1967.  The name of the album was a bit of a hang up, though, and delayed its release in the United States until 1970, well after the band had dissolved.

Here is the discography surrounding John's Children's debut album:

The Love I Thought I'd Found (1966 single)
Smashed! Blocked! (1966 single)
Just What You Want - Just What You'll Get (1967 single)
Desdemona (1967 single)
Live at the BBC (1967 radio session)
Midsummer Night's Scene (1967 single)
Come and Play With Me in the Garden (1967 single)
Come and Play With Me in the Garden (1967 EP)
Go-Go Girl (1967 single)
It's Been a Long Time (1967 single by Andy Ellison)
Fool from Upper Eden (1968 demo by Andy Ellison)
You Can't Do That (1968 single by Andy Ellison)
Orgasm
A Midsummer Night's Scene (1989 compilation album)
Playing With Themselves (1990 compilation album)
Playing With Themselves (Vol. II) (1991 compilation album)
A Strange Affair (The Sixties Recordings) (2013 compilation album)

"Smashed! Blocked!" by John's Children


Pass the Headphones!!

Tyrannosaurus Rex - My People Were Fair and Had Sky in Their Hair... But Now They're Content to Wear Stars on Their Brows (1968)

"Hot Rod Mama" by Tyrannosaurus Rex


Yes recorded their second album at Advision Studios in London.  Advision was a top recording studio in the late sixties and seventies and one of the first with an eight-track machine.  An artist that took an early crack at the eight-track was the psych-folk band Tyrannosaurus Rex.  The duo released their debut album My People Were Fair and Had Sky in Their Hair... But Now They're Content to Wear Stars on Their Brows in 1968 on Regal Zonophone Records.

Here is the discography surrounding Tyrannosaurus Rex's debut album:

The Road I'm On (Gloria) (1964 single as Toby Tyler)
All at Once (1964 song as Mark Feld)
The Wizard (1965 single as Marc Bolan)
Reality (1965 single as Marc Bolan)
Hippy Gumbo (1966 single as Marc Bolan)
The Third Degree (1966 single as Marc Bolan)
Debora(h) (1968 single)
My People Were Fair and Had Sky in Their Hair... But Now They're Content to Wear Stars on Their Brows
The Beginning of Doves (1974 compilation album as Marc Bolan)
The Maximum Sound Session (1993 compilation as Toby Tyler)
The Beginning of Doves (2004 compilation album as Marc Bolan)

"Debora(h)" by Tyrannosaurus Rex


"Sarah Crazy Child" by Tyrannosaurus Rex


Pass the Headphones!!

Yes - Time and a Word (1970)

"The Prophet" by Yes


It took a while for Steve Howe to find a lasting band of which to be apart.  Yes (previously visited) had the privilege of recruiting him after their founding guitarist Peter Banks left the band due to creative differences.  Yes released their second album Time and a Word in 1970 on Atlantic Records.  Although Howe joined the band around this time and was pictured on the back of the album, he did not actually play on it.  Banks did.

Here is the discography surrounding Yes's second album:

Every Little Thing (1970 live album)
Sweet Dreams (1970 single)
Time and a Word
Time and a Word (1970 single)
Something's Coming: The BBC Recordings 1969-1970 (compilation album)

Belgian TV Special about Yes


Pass the Headphones!!

Bodast - Bodast (1969)

"Nether Street" by Bodast


Steve Howe had several offers to play lead guitar in a couple established bands after the breakdown of Tomorrow.  Instead, he stuck with an upstart group of veteran musicians in a band they named after themselves (Bobby Clarke, Dave Curtiss, Steve Howe.... Clive Skinner).  Bodast had a record deal with Tetragrammaton Records but the company (and they) folded before their debut album's scheduled release.  They only held a handful of recording sessions and the products from those sessions finally saw the light of day in 1981 thanks to the guitar hero cult that surrounds Steve Howe.

The "1969 album Bodast" is a hypothetical album reconstructed from the extant recordings.  More than a what-might-have-been alternate history, this tour stop is a record of how a group of musicians were transitioning as they and the larger musical landscape moved from psychedelic rock to progressive and hard rock.

Here is Bodast's complete discography:

Bodast
The Bodast Tapes (1981 compilation album)
The Early Years (1990 compilation album)
Spectral Nether Street (2000 compilation album)
Towards Utopia (2017 compilation album)

"I Want You" by Bodast


Pass the Headphones!!

Tomorrow - Tomorrow (1968)

"My White Bicycle" by Tomorrow


Davy O'List quit The Nice in the middle of production on Ars Longa Vita Brevis.  The remaining three members of the band started a search for a replacement guitarist but decided against having one at all.  One of the guitarists they tried out was Steve Howe, a virtuoso and graduate of the UK underground rock scene.  His first album appearance was with the psychedelic rock band Tomorrow, a group most notable for its live act and underground cultural cache.  They released their only album Tomorrow in 1968 shortly before breaking up.

Here is Tomorrow's complete discography:

Maybellene (1964 single by The Syndicats)
Don't Think Twice, It's Alright (1964 single by The Fairies)
Howlin' for My Baby (1965 single by The Syndicats)
On the Horizon (1965 single by The Syndicats)
Leave My Kitty Alone (1965 single by The Syndicats)
Don't Mind (1965 single by The Fairies)
Get Yourself Home (1965 single by The Fairies)
Time Is on My Side (1965 single as Four + One)
Stop! Wait a Minute (1965 single as The In Crowd)
That's How Strong My Love Is (1965 single as The In Crowd)
Finger Poppin' (1965 song as The In Crowd)
Why Must They Criticise (1965 single as The In Crowd)
Sha-La-La-La-Lee (1966 single as The In Crowd)
Am I Glad to See You (1966 single as The In Crowd)
My White Bicycle (1967 single)
Revolution (1967 single)
Christmas on Earth Continued (1967 live album)
Tomorrow
10,000 Words in a Cardboard Box (1968 single as The Aquarian Age)
50 Minute Technicolour Dream (1998 compilation album)
Live & Unreleased 1967 (2001 compilation album)

"Now Your Time Has Come" by Tomorrow


Live Set on The Beat Club in 1964 by The Syndicats (a pre-Tomorrow Steve Howe band)


Pass the Headphones!!

The Nice - Ars Longa Vita Brevis (1968)

"Little Arabella" by The Nice


When Bryan Ferry was forming Roxy Music, he put out several adds in music magazines to recruit musicians.  In response to the advertisement for "Perfect Guitarist," approximately 20 such Perfect Guitarists applied including Davy O'List and Phil Manzanera.  The most Perfect Guitarist, however, was O'List who had previously been a member of the pioneering progressive rock band The Nice.  Manzanera was liked well enough in his rehearsal that he was offered a job as a roadie, which he took.

O'List, however, quit Roxy Music soon after joining (replaced by the ready Manzanera) in a bit of history that echoes his departure from The Nice.  When he left then, The Nice were in the middle of recording their second album Ars Longa Vita Brevis which saw release in 1968 on the Immediate label.

Here is the discography surrounding The Nice's second album:

Ars Longa Vita Brevis
Brandenburger (1968 single)

"Ars Longa Vita Brevis" by The Nice


Pass the Headphones!!