Rest in peace, Randy California. Is there any name more Rock n' Roll than "Randy California"? Thankfully, to the completely streamlined and commodified commercial radio, he can.Upon listening to Spirit's eponymous debut, one wonders how a group with this much talent cold be so overlooked by Classic Rock radio. I look at this now as a good thing, since I really don't ever need to hear Led Z...
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I've posted this before, but I liked this little video post I found on YouTube about the often unrecognized plagiarism of one of the most played songs of all time. Basically Spirits ??Taurus?? came out in 1968. ??Stairway?? wasn't released until 1971. Zeppelin opened for Sprit early on, so they were not oblivious to the songs existence. Watch the video.
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Every now & then I'll dig this out & give it a listen. Still sounds fantastic, 34 years after it's original release."As Spirit evolved from the band who included Mark Andes, John Locke, and Jay Ferguson, becoming rock & roll fragments Ferguson to Jo Jo Gunne, Randy California creating a new persona in Kapt. Kopter (first found on his 1972 solo disc), and the Staehely Brothers joining Locke and...
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1984 by Spirit was my first favorite song. It was banned when it first came out, due to its 'Political Content". In retrospect I find it fitting, although at the time I was just a child, nine or so. Music was a mainstay in my house. I grew up with my dad who played his records everyday, and I was always allowed to play them too. I remember being so small and playing with the turning wheel thing...
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This album is a classic in every sense of the word. There is so much going on musically, due in no small part to the diverse backgrounds of the band members. that it is simply captivating. And given the fact that it was released in 1968 illustrates how ahead of the curve these artists were.From Wiki & Amazon:The original lineup of the group evolved from an earlier Los Angeles band, The Red Roos...
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The original lineup of the group was Randy California (guitars, vocals), Jay Ferguson (vocals, percussion), Mark Andes (bass), California's stepfather Ed Cassidy (drums), and keyboard player John Locke. The band was originally named the Spirits Rebellious (after a book by Khalil Gibran) but was soon shortened simply to Spirit.The group had an eclectic musical style in keeping with the early day...
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After returning west, California and Cassidy formed a band called Spirits Rebellious, after a book by the religious mystic Kahlil Gibran, also featuring pianist John Locke (born September 23, 1943, in Los Angeles, CA), who had played with Cassidy previously in the New Jazz Trio. In the spring of 1967, California and Cassidy ran into Ferguson and Andes, who had continued to work as musicians whi...
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What is widely considered to be their best LP, Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus, as noted previously, was finally released in late 1970. Especially memorable was Randy California's poignant "Nature's Way." Everybody involved felt that they had created a great album. Epic released an early mix of "Animal Zoo" as a single, which made it to #97 on the charts. Time would tell, however, and it is now...
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Randy California was born Randolph Craig Wolfe on February 20, 1951, in Los Angeles, CA. His mother, Bernice Pearl, was the sister of Ed Pearl, who owned the Ash Grove, a nightclub in Hollywood, and California, who began playing guitar as a child, grew up listening carefully to the folk, blues, and jazz musicians who performed there. In early 1965, the Rising Sons, a folk-blues group featuring...
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| Title | Lyrics | Buy |
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| 1 Phoenix (Land of the Rising Sun) [Live] |
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| 2 Stone Free [Live] |
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| 3 Coldy Rainy Night [Live] |
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| 4 Zandu [Live] |
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| 5 1984 [Live] |
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