Forgotten heavy bands from late 60's to early 70's
Have been a fan of hard rock/metal since high school. Always liked the heavy/physcadelic bands equally to the metal bands I grew up with Ozzy-Maiden and Scorpions ect. Recently on Youtube I discovered some heavy/physcadelic bands I was unaware of. 13th Floor Elevators-Five Day Rain-Probe Direction-The Hook and Vahalla. Are these bands albums worth persuing? Feel free to mention any other band that deserves to be heard. Look forward to your responses.
Roky Erickson (13th floor elevators) is IMHO one of the great, quirky artists to emerge at that time. I really love the way that he's rooted in the blues and how that lends substance to his music. There's a 2 disc compilation that covers a lot of the good stuff..otherwise you can pick up the individual releases and live with the bad as well as the good.
Moby Grape is the other name that immediately comes to mind, but their stuff, while good, never IMHO rises to the level of Roky's best work. You could also look at Iron Butterfly, Strawberry Alarm Clock, and a bunch of others that each have their own charm.
Here's some (on the more obscure side) heavy LP's I'd recommend you to check out for starters...from memory so hopefully correct...
Blue Cheer - Outside Inside (1968) Bloodrock - same (1971) Lucifers Friend - same (1970) Pulse - same (1968) Highway Robbery - same (1972) Demian - same (1972) Bolder Damn - Mourning (1971) Night Sun - Mournin (1972) Sir Lord Baltimore - Kingdom Come and same (1971-72)
...and if you dig this - also check Masters Of Reality - same (1988 i think)...
Some more familiar names from the early 70's: Uriah Heep Try Live, Demons and Wizards, the Magician's Birthday Wishbone Ash Try Argus and live Dates. While not as acid drenched as 13th floor elevators, these two are definately very heavy. Uriah Heep Live is an all time classic and Wishbone Ash was one of the first bands to use a dual lead guitar approach which definately inspired Iron Maiden, Priest, etc.
Not a Heavy Metal band but a Heavy Classic Rock band, Spooky Tooth made a classic album, "Spooky Two", great album. That's the only one I can recommend. They put out others you might want to explore if you like Spooky Two.
-Stongly second the 1st Sir Lord Baltimore. -1st Trettioariga Kriget (genius brain melting stuff) -John McLaughlin - Devotion -Patto 1st -High Tide - Sea Shanties -Budgie - 1st or Squawk -Steamhammer - Speech, (also check out Armageddon) -Captain Beyond -Skid Row (w/ Gary Moore) -Guru Guru - UFO -Groundhogs - Split -Pink Fairies - Never Neverland -Deviants 3 -Ursa Major - Ursa Major (Dick Wagner before R&R Animal) Fortunately there are lots of others... have fun hunting em' down!
Pehare - It goes to show that the song is the key to great music. Take away the great songs and all you get is bad music played well. Reminds me of Rush.
Some Detroit area bands to seek out for that time frame: Iggy and the Stooges "The Stooges" "Fun House" "Raw Power", MC5 "Kick out the Jams", Frigid Pink "Frigid Pink".
Atomic Rooster, "Atomic Rooster" and "Death Walks Behind You" ... killer stuff. Also check out Jade Warrior, though perhaps more avant garde than heavy. Also check out Man, "Live at the Padget Rooms, Penarth", "Christmas at the Patti", and "Maximum Darkness".
The name will not shock anyone, but Deep Purple. I only mention this because I dusted off/played their Shades of Deep Purple album last night. This is their lineup w/Nick Simper on bass, and Rod Evans on vocals. Although Jon's keyboards are easily distinguishable, it is very different than the mk. II lineup. I found this to be an interesting listen. They do a version of I'm So Glad, which of course makes one think of CREAM. It's actually a Skip James tune, which I learned while reading the album cover. I really have to be in the mood for Made in Japan..., but Shades less so.
Iron Butterfly put out an album later in the 70's called Metamorphosis. This album was a sea change for them, different music than from their Inna-Gadda-Da-Vida days. Three of the four original members remained but they added two guitarists, one of whom played slide guitar. It retains the heavy sound but branches out in style and playing. The album has a picture of mountains with two coffins on one of the mountains.
I wouldn't call them forgotten (maybe not so well known in the US), but I have to mention Hawkwind. Space Ritual is the ultimate heavy psychedelic album.
Thanx for the many great selections. Sir Lord Baltimore-Boulder Damn and Night Sun are great bands that I was unfamiliar with. Also discovered Armageddon-st-1975. If your familiar with Armageddon is it worth the effort and cost to obtain an import pressing?
Sir Lord Baltimore - Currently I'm re-reading Bill Graham's autobiography (No, not THAT Bill Graham!). A tremendous book that, without trying to, explains very clearly much of what's wrong with the American music industry today, but I digress. Here's a tale about Sir Lord Baltimore I just read last night: "Dee Anthony had a group called SLB booked into the Fillmore East. They were so awful. As we were moving their equipment, we found a book on how to play guitar on the gtr players amplifier. For the rest of the weekend, we kept asking him what page he was on".
Armageddon was a supergroup of sorts, albeit very short-lived.
The band was formed by bassist Louis Cennamo of Renaissance/Illusion fame, Bobby Caldwell on drums, from Johnny Winter and Captain Beyond, Martin Pugh, guitar, from Steamhammer and Keith Relf from The Yardbirds and Renaissance on vocals and harp.
Their only album came out in 1975, and it's one of the better hard rock albums of the seventies. A buddy turned me on to them back in my life in the barracks USAF days.
There used to be an early 1970’s Metal Band from Columbus, Ohio called ’The Godz’. They were very good but not all that prolific, so they supported a lot of main acts like ’Kiss’.
Though not Metal, I saw Canned Heat at an outdoor festival a few years after ’Blind Owl’ Alan Wilson died. Bob ’The Bear’ Hite was a huge presence. That was a total biker event.
One of the best in the field hasn’t been mentioned. Nor are they in The R&R Hall of fame despite their selling out Shay stadium faster than the Beatles. Led Zeppelin refused to play after they opened. That band Grand Funk Railroad
BTW, I like CTS immensely But they are not heavy but progressive and way ahead of their time.
I also saw Iron Butterfly do the entire Metamorphosis album at a nightclub in Ocean City MD back in the mid 70’s. It cost $3 a head. Probably the best $3 I’ve spent. Well worth seeing/hearing
@artemus_5 IMO Grand Funk Railroad is not a Forgotten band but a very polarizing band. Since I was in Elementary school during there peak I have only recently(last 10 years) discovered(listened/studied) there discography. "E Plurbis Funk" is possibly there best recording but is it great? Vocals and skill set are well below the best bands of that period but the blue collar image of giving "it all" on stage made them fan favorites.
I’ve listened to them since they first came on the scene in the mid - late 60’s and never have heard about them being polarizing. And I certainly disagree with you about their talent. I’ve played in enough 3 piece bands to know that you have to be very talented to do it, much less be successful. But everyone is allowed their opinion.
That debut by Blue Cheer was the first album I heard that had a "heavy" sound, Zeppelin's the second. The former contained the worst "music" I had yet heard at the time of its release (1968), but then in 1970 Black Sabbath's debut appeared.
Everyone considers Spinal Tap funny, right? But not Blue Cheer and Black Sabbath?!.Unintentionally, but still.....
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