Fresh Garbage a Spirit thread

[Tony Pusey]

Sad news from the Sundazed site, John Locke the keyboard player that gave the early Spirit its jazzy edge has died recently.

I really liked the band Spirit up till Doctor Sardonicus, a great bunch of musicians especially Cass Strange Drums, Ed Cassidy who suposedly was previously a jazz musician, anybody know anything about his previous carrier?

And any love for the band out there?

[kenny weir]

And any love for the band out there?

Oh yes, but mostly Sardonicus and after - especially Spirit of 76 (the only one I actually still own). Best version EVER of Like A Rolling Stone. What the hell's wrong with you? I also liked Son Of Spirit.

I actually saw them at the Rainbow in about 1978. The show became a live album. It was pretty disappointing - basically a heavy metal show!

And of course Mark Andes went on to Firefall, along with Rick Roberts (whose stuff with the Burritos I liked) and Michael Clarke of the Byrds. Less than the sum of its parts, really.

Edited August 12, 2006 by kenny weir

[J.A.W.]

I prefer Spirit (their first album) and The Family That Plays Together. Two of my favorite albums from the late 1960s!

[J.A.W.]

Spirit

The Family That Plays Together

[Tony Pusey]

Yeah Kenny, I was also at the Rainbow that time-wasnt it the debut gig of Stings Police as support band? I seem to remember them all dressed up in boiler suits! And it wasnt really Spirit actually a Randy California/ Kapt Kopter gig, trading on the Spirit name and reputation. A couple of years earlier I saw the whole band at Waltham Forrest College!

I think that the Family that plays together was thir best album.

[felser]

I think that The Family that plays together was thir best album.

I agree that one is their best, like all of the first four a lot, also the Model Shop stuff that was recorded during that period. A lot of their other stuff was good, but never measured up to the first four. I even like Feedback OK, even though it doesn't have Jay Ferguson or Randy California. But they lost something that they never regained when Ferguson left - the combination of him and California seemed to give them the magic. I have a real good concert DVD of them from the mid-80's (commercially available and inexpensive) which has Walter Egan ("Magnet and Steel") of all people playing bass, and doing a good job. Cass takes a great solo on "It's All The Same". The DVD is much too short, no extras, but excellent performance, good enough sound, and excellent picture. Legend has it that Cass had played with Thelonious Monk in the past, but I don't know anything about that for sure, and have never seen him in any jazz credits. He was in the Rising Sons with Taj Mahal and Ry Cooder just prior to Spirit. He was Randy California's stepfather, I believe. Mr. Clean - great appearance with that shaved head! They were truly one of the five or ten greatest groups of the sixties (which for me means of all of rock history).

http://www.cduniverse.com/productinfo.asp?...377452175&BAB=E

Edited August 13, 2006 by felser

[kenny weir]

Yeah Kenny, I was also at the Rainbow that time-wasnt it the debut gig of Stings Police as support band?

Yep, that's the one. Hey, I think you and I have discussed this before. Arghhhh. Our minds are rotting. Condemned to reliving long lost days of hippy bands. Over and over again. And again. And again.

[B. Clugston]

Not sure if this has been mentioned elsewhere on the forum, but Ed Cassidy died Dec. 6. He was 89.

[mjzee]

No! Loved his drumming. RIP.

[BFrank]

Ed Cassidy, Drummer for Jazz-Rock Band Spirit, Dies at 89

[chewy-chew-chew-bean-benitez]

i will be in shock about this, forever. RIP