The Yardbirds Feature with Vintage Photos & Videos

The Yardbirds may not have been as famous as their British Invasion contemporaries the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and the Who, but the pioneering blues-based combo introduced three of the most famous and influential guitarists of the rock era: Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page. Their innovations — a revved-up instrumental attack, controlled use of feedback, distortion and fuzz; and live, improvisational jams they called "rave ups" — paved the way for psychedelic rock, progressive rock, heavy metal, Southern boogie and even punk.



The earliest version of the band formed in the London suburbs in the early 1960s as The Metropolis Blues Quartet, but by 1963, the Yardbirds line-up had gelled with core members Keith Relf (vocals, harmonica), Chris Dreja (rhythm guitar), Paul Samwell-Smith (bass) and Jim McCarty (drums), in addition to lead guitarist Anthony "Top" Topham. When sixteen-year-old Topham was pressured by his parents to quit, Eric Clapton, who went by the nickname "Slowhand," stepped in.





The band took over the Rolling Stones' residency at the London club Crawdaddy and became a hot item on the city's R&B scene. In late 1963, the Yardbirds — named for the Southern American slang term for "chicken" — served as the backing band for a Crawdaddy performance by American bluesman Sonny Boy Williamson II. The following year, the group signed with Columbia Records and released its U.K. debut album, Five Live Yardbirds, a live set of hard-rocking electric blues and R&B covers including Howlin' Wolf's "Smokestack Lightning," the Isley Brothers' "Respectable" and Bo Diddley's "I'm a Man."





By 1965, the band had developed its own sound, apart from just blues covers, with singles such as "For Your Love," which reached Number Three in the U.K. and Number Six in the United States. Clapton, at the time a blues purist, left the Yardbirds in protest of their move away from the form, and was replaced by experimental rock guitarist Jeff Beck, who took the band to new creative heights. The Yardbirds then released two introductory compilations in the U.S. — For Your Love, including the single of the same name, and Having a Rave Up with the Yardbirds, which includes the singles "Heart Full of Soul" (Number Nine, 1965) and the proto-psychedelic song "Shapes of Things" (Number 11, 1966), as well as a few live tracks from their debut. Rave Up also includes "Stroll On," the group's altered version of the blues standard "Train Kept A-Rollin'," which features both Beck and Page on guitars. The song (and band) appeared in the Michelangelo Antonioni film of 1966, Blow-up.







Around the time of the sessions for the Yardbird's next album — a self-titled set of all-original material — Samwell-Smith left his role as bassist and moved behind the scenes as producer. Page officially joined the band as bassist until Dreja mastered the instrument, after which he and Beck paired up as one of the most influential guitar duos of the period. Future Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones also appeared on some songs, including the experimental "Happenings Ten Years Time Ago," which features a twin-lead guitar attack from Beck and Page that provided a blueprint for subsequent heavy metal bands. The album, popularly known as Roger the Engineer and widely considered the Yardbirds' masterpiece, includes influences of Indian and Middle Eastern music as well as avant-garde techniques; it spawned the singles "Happenings" (Number 30, 1966) and "Over Under Sideways Down" (Number 13, 1966). The latter song was also the title of the U.S. version of the album. In 1966, the band also released its earliest live recordings, with Sonny Boy Williamson, as Sonny Boy Williamson & the Yardbirds.





With both Page and Beck, whom the British music magazine Beat Instrumental voted the Number One lead guitarist of 1966, the Yardbirds' live performances became a huge draw and the band earned a slot opening for the Rolling Stones. The Beck-Page version of the Yardbirds, however, was short-lived, as Beck was fired from the band during a U.S. tour. With Page now the sole lead guitarist, the Yardbirds' sound became heavier than the band's earlier incarnations. Page continued some of the avant-garde tendencies of the Beck-era Yardbirds, such as running a violin bow over the strings of his guitar to produce eerie scraping sounds; he would later employ the technique with Led Zeppelin. The experimentation didn't help the band's chart success; none of the three singles from Little Games, the Yardbirds' final studio album in 1967, charted well. During their 1967 and 1968 concerts, the Yardbirds eschewed their singles in favor of darker, beefier music such as the menacing blues-rock song "Dazed and Confused," which Page would take to Zeppelin.



The version of the Yardbirds with the core membership of Relf, McCarty and Dreja performed its last show on July 7, 1968. Page, with outstanding touring obligations for the Yardbirds, assembled a new line-up: his old bassist friend John Paul Jones, singer Robert Plant and drummer John Bonham. The New Yardbirds, of course, would become Led Zeppelin, one of the most successful bands in the history of rock, pioneering the dark and heavy blues sound and fanciful lyrics that constitute the basis of heavy metal. After Zeppelin proved itself a powerhouse with its first three albums, Clive Davis of Epic Records twice released a 1968 Yardbirds performance as Live Yardbirds: Featuring Jimmy Page. The set, which Page's lawyers forced out of circulation both times, includes an embryonic version "Dazed and Confused" and remains a much-sought-after rarity.




The other Yardbirds took different paths. Dreja became a professional photographer. Relf, McCarty and producer Samwell-Smith formed the progressive rock band Renaissance, although they left after the band's second album, and Renaissance continued producing music throughout into the Eighties. Samwell-Smith wound up producing Cat Stevens' successful career, and the other two moved from one folk-prog band to the next during the early Seventies. Relf died in an electrical accident in 1976. In the 1980s, the core Yardbirds — McCarty, Dreja and Samwell-Smith — reunited as Box of Frogs, with Page or Beck sitting in from time to time.



In 1992, the Yardbirds were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. All surviving musicians, including Clapton, Beck and Page, appeared the ceremony. Around that time, McCarty and Dreja reformed the Yardbirds with singer and bassist John Idan. The band has continued to tour as the Yardbirds with a revolving-door cast of lead guitarists. In 2003, the group released a new Yardbirds album, Birdland, with guest appearances from a string of guitar players including Slash, Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Brian May and even Beck on the song "My Blind Life." The group released a performance album four years later, Live At B.B. King Blues Club.



Various Yardbirds members through the years

Keith Relf (vocals, harmonica)
Paul Samwell-Smith (lead guitar, bass)
Jim McCarty (drums)
Laurie Gains (rhythm guitar)
Chris Dreja (rhythm guitar)
Tony Topham (lead guitar)
Eric Clapton (lead guitar)
Jeff Beck (lead guitar)
Jimmy Page (lead guitar, bass)



After The Split

After the Yardbirds' split, Paul Samwell-Smith became a reputed producer who worked for artists such as Cat Stevens, Renaissance, Claire Hamill, and Amazing Blondel.

Chris Dreja became a professional photographer after turning away the offer to join Jimmy Page's Led Zeppelin . He actually photographed the band for the back cover of their debut album.

Keith Relf formed the reputed folk rock band Renaissance in 1969, recording several studio albums, including "Renaissance" (69), "Illusion" (71), "Prologue" (72), "Ashes Are Burning" (73), "Turn of the Cards" (74), "Scheherazade and Other Stories" (75). Renaissance played at the Marquee club between 1969 and 1972 and in fact in 1969 they had a Monday residence at the club. In 1975, after having worked with Medicine Head, Relf formed the band Armageddon, featuring Martin Pugh (guitar), Bobby Caldwell (drums, vocals) and Louis Cennamo (bass) and releasing their debut album that same year. Sadly, Keith Relf, who had a poor health and suffered from emphysema, he died a few months after quitting the band in May 14, 1976 when he was electrocuted at his home studio in London while playing guitar during the sessions for Jim McCarty's new band, Illusion.



Jim McCarty was founding member of Renaissance in 1969. He has also worked with the bands Stairway in 1988 and Illusion in 1990. In 1994 he released the solo album "Out of the Dark".

Jeff Beck formed the Jeff Beck Group in 1967, featuring Rod Stewart, Ron Wood, Mick Waller and Nicky Hopkins, producing the albums "Truth" (68) and "Beck-Ola" (69) and performing at the Marquee several times between 1967 and 1969. In 1972, Beck formed the power trio Beck, Bogert, and Appice, featuring Carmine Appice on drums and Tim Bogert on bass. He later developed a reputed solo career as one of the most talented guitarist in rock music and has released more than 10 studio albums, including "Rough and Ready" (1971), "Blow By Blow" (75), "Wired" (76), "There and Back" (80), "Beckology" (91), and "Jeff" (2003). He has also worked with artists such as Jan Hammer, Rod Stewart, Les Paul and Cindy Lauper. He has also won four Grammy Awards throughout his career.

Jimmy Page became one of the most legendary and influential guitarists in the history of rock music with Led Zeppelin , recording eight legendary studio albums with the band. In 1981 he was part of a project called XYZ with ex-Yes members Chris Squire and Alan White, which never saw the light. In 1985 Page took part of Paul Rodgers' band, the Firm. Jimmy Page has also worked with artists such as Graham Nash, the Rolling Stones, Box of Frogs, David Coverdale, and the Black Crowes . With Robert Plant he has recorded the albums "No Quarter" (94) and "Walking Into Clarksdale" (98) and collaborated with Plant as the Honeydrippers.

Eric Clapton is considered today as one of the top guitarists in the world. After quitting the Yardbirds, he debuted with his legendary band Cream at the Marquee club in June 1966. He later formed the supergroup Blind Faith, featuring Ginger Baker, Steve Winwood and Rick Grech. Clapton later started a legendary solo career. In 1970 he formed the band Derek and the Dominoes to record the celebrated album "Layla and Other Love Songs". He has collaborated with uncountable artists, including the Beatles, John Lennon, Howlin' Wolf, Stevie Ray, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Jimmy Page, Robert Plant and Stephen Stills.

Various Videos Of The Yardbirds

The Yardbirds - I'm A Man on Hullabaloo



The Yardbirds - For Your Love (1965)



The Yardbirds - Shapes of things Live Video with Jimmy Page



The Yardbirds - Dazed And Confused (1968) Live Video with Jimmy Page



Wiki info can be found here --> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Yardbirds

Yardbirds offical website can be found here --> http://www.theyardbirds.com/

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Feb 2 - Today In Rock Music History

Happy Birthday Graham!



No. 1

1963 Cliff Richard: Summer Holiday UK LP
1974 Carpenters: The Singles 69-73 UK LP
1974 Barbra Streisand: The Way We Were US 45
1980 Specials: Live EP UK 45
1985 Foreigner: I Want to Know What Love Is US 45
1991 Sting : The Soul Cages : UK LP
1991 KLF: 3 am Eternal UK 45
1998 Aqua : Doctor Jones : UK single

Births

1889 Lonnie Johnson (pioneer of 'bending-string' type of guitar playing)
1934 Skip Battin (Byrds)
1942 Graham Nash (Hollies, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young)
1948 Alan McKay (Earth Wind and Fire)

Deaths

1979 Sid Vicious (Sex Pistols)

Various

1956 Atlantic Records sign Coasters

1957 Fats Domino appears on The Perry Como Show (singing Blue Monday and Blueberry Hill).

1959 Coasters' Charlie Brown single is released.

1959 Buddy Holly plays his last show, at the Surf Ballroom, Clear Lake, Iowa.

1960 Gary Glitter (under his previous stage name of Paul Raven) makes his first TV appearance on Cool For Cats single Alone in the Night.

1961 Ben E. King debuts on UK chart with First Taste of Love.

1963 Craig Douglas advertises a new kind of jukebox, the 'Scopitone' which has a short colour film to accompany each disc. The idea flops and they are all withdrawn.

1963 Beatles begin touring with Helen Shapiro at the Bradford Gaumont, following their debut appearance on Thank Your Lucky Stars.

1968 The first Genesis single, The Silent Sun,, is released in UK.

1981 Duran Duran release first single Planet Earth.

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The Pretty Things Feature with Vintage Photos & Videos

Though never widely known in the United States, The Pretty Things have achieved legendary status in their native Britain after more than 30 years of existence. Through sheer tenacity the band has survived numerous career missteps and line-up changes to enjoy a creative upswing in the late 1990s. Initially notorious for their raw R&B sound and wild off-stage antics, The Pretty Things went on to record an impressive, if often overlooked, body of work that compares favorably with that of their British Invasion rock peers. Among other things, they are credited with inspiring the raw garage rock sound of the mid-sixties and with releasing the first ever rock opera on LP.



The Pretty Things trace their origins back to Sidcup Art College in Kent, England, where singer Phil May and guitarist Dick Taylor took part in lunchtime jam sessions. Another participant was guitarist Keith Richards, who recruited Taylor as a member of Little Boy Blue & the Blue Boys, an early version of the Rolling Stones. Rather than stick with the Stones, Taylor decided to form his own group in 1963 with May, recruiting rhythm guitarist Brian Pendleton, bassist John Stax and drummer Vivian Prince to complete the line-up. Taking their name from R&B pioneer Bo Diddley's song "Pretty Thing," the group took its place beside the Stones, the Animals, the Yardbirds and other young R&B-inspired British combos of the era.



The Pretty Things began to play venues around London and quickly attracted attention. Besides their raucous sound, the band became notorious for their unruly behavior and unkempt appearance. From the start, the band's music was more raw and aggressive than that of their peers. "What we wanted was something for a new generation, some musical identity," said May in a 1999 interview with Discoveries. "We'd found the music, and when we started playing it at the art school, that became our music. We weren't trying to be disrespectful to it, just do it our way. It was almost like thrash R&B. It was faster, but it had to be faster."



Signing a recording contract with Fontana Records, The Pretty Things released their debut single "Rosalyn" in June 1964. This hard-charging tune reached number 41 on the British singles charts. That single paved the way for the band's follow-up release, "Don't Bring Me Down," a number ten hit later that year. Their debut album, The Pretty Things, was released in 1965 and rose to number six on the British album charts.



Controversy surrounded The Pretty Things, even as they performed to ecstatic audiences in Britain and continental Europe. The band's fondness for wrecking hotels and smashing equipment led to their being blacklisted from numerous venues even being barred from entering Australia and New Zealand. Perhaps the most outrageous member was drummer Prince, who left the band in 1965 after a fight aboard an airplane in Australia resulted in bad publicity.



Get The Picture, the band's second album, was released in late 1965. Featuring more original material than their debut album, the album veered away from R&B and towards a more acoustic rock sound. Though it contained the British hit "Midnight To Six Man," the album was not successful. Line-up changes followed, with Wally Allen replacing Stax on bass and John Povey added on keyboards. The Pretty Things tried again in 1967 with Emotions, a more mature effort that emphasized acoustic guitar and vocal harmonies. Unfortunately, the band felt that the album was marred by string arrangements added without their approval. The album failed to generate much interest, and the Pretty Things parted ways with Fontana soon after its release.



The Pretty Things' next album, S.F. Sorrow, appeared on the Harvest label in Britain in late 1968. Based on a short story by May and recorded over a 18-month period, the album is considered to be the first true rock opera. Held together by narration, the interrelated songs featured psychedelic effects that were a far cry from the band's R&B roots. Bad luck plagued the band once again, however. By the time S.F. Sorrow was released in the United States on the Motown distributed Rare Earth label in 1969, The Who had already released their own rock opera Tommy. As a result The Pretty Things were regarded as imitators rather than innovators, and S.F. Sorrow died in the marketplace.



In late 1969, Taylor exited the band, leaving May as the remaining original member. With Victor Unitt brought in on guitar, the Pretty Things released Parachute in 1970. Continuing the band's experimental streak, this sonically diverse work was named Record of the Year by Rolling Stone. Sales of Parachute were disappointing, and the band's fortunes seemed to be at a low ebb. In June, 1970 they broke up, only to reform not long after wards with May at the helm once again. This new line-up released Freeway Madness on Warner Brothers in 1972, again to limited response.



Matters began to improve when heavy metal superstars Led Zeppelin took an interest in the Band. Signing with Zeppelin's Swan Song label the band ventured into a more commercially viable hard rock sound. Released in 1974, Silk Torpedo reflected this direction. Such songs as "Joey" and "Singapore Silk Torpedo" gained FM airplay, while lengthy U.S. tour helped to raise their profile further. But their next Swan Song release, 1976's Savage Eye, failed to perform as well as its predecessor. Distention within the band's ranks led May to quit later that year, which brought The Pretty Things to an end for the second time. May went on to lead a band called the Fallen Angels, while the remaining members continued on as Metropolis. Neither project attracted much interest.



In 1980, May and Taylor rejoined forces to launch The Pretty Things yet again. The no-frills sound and jittery rhythms of new wave rock influenced the resulting Warner Brothers album, Cross Talk. "With Cross Talk, we just wanted to make a record that we could stand up and play, so there was no clever production," May told Discoveries. "So it was slimmed-down, just a straightforward bunch of songs." Despite this attempt to keep up with the times, the album didn't find a large audience. However, the renewed partnership of May and Taylor held together throughout the 1980s, resulting in sporadic live shows and a number of recordings with a changing roster of band mates.

With the help of manager and sometime drummer Mark St. John, The Pretty Things worked to acquire legal rights to their old recordings. By the late 1990s, they had regained ownership of their first five albums, which were reissued through the British label Snapper. At the same time, the 1966 edition of the group May, Taylor, John Povey, Skip Allen and Wally Waller had re-formed and was actively recording and performing. One highpoint was a performance of S.F. Sorrow in its entirety at Abbey Road Studios in September, 1998, broadcast live over the World Wide Web and later released on CD as Resurrection.



All of this activity served as a lead up to the March 1999 release of ...Rage Before Beauty, a CD of new recordings that was praised by critics as a strong return to form. In reviewing the album for Rolling Stone, critic David Fricke noted that "the [Pretty Things] revisit the Bo Diddley beat and recount old war stories the same way they lived 'em with pride, without apology."



Members include Skip Alan, (joined, 1965), drummer; John "Twink" Alder, (joined, 1968), bass player; Wally Allen, bass player; Stuart Brooks, (joined, 1971), bass player; Gordon Edwards, (joined 1971),guitar player; keyboard player; Frankie Ford, (joined, 1998), guitar player; Phil May, vocalist; Brian Pendleton, guitar player; John Povey, keyboard player; Vivian Prince, (joined, 1964),drummer; John Stax, bass player; Dick Taylor, guitar player, vocalist; Peter Tolson, (joined, 1970), guitar player; Victor Unitt, guitar player.

Various Live Videos of The Pretty Things

Pretty Things - Blokker Festival Holland Live Video 1965



The Pretty Things - Midnight to Six Man Live Video (1966)



The Pretty Things - Raining in my Heart Live Video (1966)



The Pretty Things - LSD Live Video (1966)




Wiki info can be found here --> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pretty_Things


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Feb 1 - Today In Rock Music History

No. 1

1964 Beatles: I Want to Hold Your Hand US 45
1975 Pilot January UK 45
1975 Neil Sedaka: Laughter in the Rain US 45
1992 George Michael/Elton John : Dont Let The Sun Go Down On Me : US single

Births

1934 Bob Shane (Kingston Trio)
1937 Don Everly (Everly Brothers)
1937 Ray Sawyer (Dr. Hook)
1938 Jimmy Carl Black (Mothers of Invention)
1944 Tommy Duffy (Echoes)
1948 Rick James
1968 Lisa Marie Presley (only child of Elvis)

Deaths

1986 Dick James (music publisher)

Various

1949 RCA unveils the first 45-rpm record-playing system. It is the first time a record and record changer are made for each other.

1956 The Rock and Roll Ice Revue, billed as 'the hottest production ever staged on ice', opens at the New York Roxy.

1964 Kingsmen's Louie Louie banned in Indiana following speculation that some of the almost unintelligible lyrics are obscene. Subsequently publisher Max Firetag offers $1000 to anyone who could find an obscene lyric in the song, which was originally recorded by Richard Berry and the Pharoahs in the late 1950s.

1965 P.J. Proby banned by the UK ABC theatre chain after his trousers split for the third time on stage.

1967 Beatles record title song for Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band LP.

1969 Tommy Roe hits US chart with original version of Dizzy on his way to No. 1.

1974 Health problems force guitarist Eric Bell to leave Thin Lizzy.

1978 Bob Dylan film Renaldo and Clara premieres in Los Angeles.

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Nick Drake Feature with Vintage Photos & Videos

Described by his mother Molly as being tall, very tall, about six foot three. His shoulders were broad and his hips were extremely thin, what gave him an extremely elegant look, a very masculine body. But he always walked with his shoulders hunched up and always wore too small shoes. His clothes were also old and shabby, like he had slept with them. And he hated being tall and being so broad-shouldered. A friend once described him as being very charming and handsome, for devastating effects. This is Nicholas Rodney Drake, that was born in June 19th, 1948 in Ragoon, Burma. The reason for the exotic place is that his father, Rodney, was working for a british lumber firm and had been sent there after Gabrielle - Nick's sister, four years older - was born. In India he met Mary - or Molly - that was also there for working reasons, and they got married in the begining of the 40's. In 1952 the Drakes moved to Tanworth-In-Arden, a hamlet near Birmigham, in England. There they lived in a big brick house called Far Leys, which was a bit out of the downtown. That was the Drakes home for more than forty years.





Son of a rich family, Nick studied on the best schools of England. At the age of eight he was sent to Eagle House School, staying there until 1961, when he went to Malrborough, one of the most respected schools of that country. At this time he started studying music, learning the clarinet, the alto sax, the piano and the acoustic guitar. The latter a friend taught him playing it. He said that in six months Nick was better than him and could even teach him some things. At this time Nick was standing out as an athlete and his strong personality and his fine voice made him being the eminence of the school's choir. Although he has now the image of an unhappy and depressed young man, at this time he didn't show the depression signs that later would appear. His friends said that he was shy, but very happy and very pleasant. Nick stayed in Marlborough until 1966, when he started a trip with some friends to France and Morocco. This was a special time in Nick's life. He started writing songs and experimenting drugs such as marijuana and LSD. The legend says that they met The Rolling Stone in Morocco, being confounded with them. Returning to England, Nick lived for a while with his sister in London before going to Cambridge.






In October, 1967 Nick went to Cambridge to study English for three years. He had already composed a good material and sometimes played it to his friends, that got astonished with the songs' quality. In an anti-war festival in London, in the spring of 1968, Nick was discovered by Ashley Hutchings, bassist of Fairport Convention, that recomended him to Joe Boyd, producer who worked with the best english folk artists. Nick signed contract with Island Records and a year and a half later was released his first album, Five Leaves Left. In the summer of 1969 Nick decided to end his studies on Cambridge - against his father's will - to concentrate his attentions on his musical career. He went living in London, without a certain home. He was always living in different places and his friends described these places as not being a home. It was something temporary, without furniture and with old cartons of milk on the ground.



Besides the good things the press said, Five Leaves Left didn't sell well and the fact that Nick wasn't doing concerts helped in not increasing the numbers. Nick really did some gigs, but he didn't like doing that, he never felt confortable on stage. He was very shy and couldn't be atractive to the audience. And there was his songs, which were too complex to be played with a simple arragement. So he stopped doing gigs in the end of 1970. Besides Five Leaves Left didn't have sold well, Nick's potencial was enormous and so him and Joe Boyd bet everything on the next record, Bryter Layter, which took nine months to be prepared, because of his sofistication. Master-piece, it also was well-recieved by the press and also didn't sell well. This failure affected Nick, that started showing signs of depression.



In 1971 Nick went seeing a psychiatrist and he pescribed Tryptizol, an anti-depresssant. But he didn't show signs of a betterment. So Chris Blackwell, Island Records' boss, lent him his house in Spain. Nick stayed there for some weeks and returned feeling better, thinking in recording a new album. In the end of 1971 Nick contacted John Wood, sound engineer who worked on his two other albuns - and maybe the one who better knew Nick - and they entered the studio. In February 1972, Pink Moon was released. It was recorded only in two days. At the same time Nick decided to return living with his parents in Tanworth-In-Arden and gave up his musical career, saying that he wanted to write songs for other artists. There's not much accounts about his last days. It's known that he went to London when he was feeling better. But he was really bad, he stayed six weeks on a hospital because of depression, that made him stay without walking and even speaking. He also tried to enter in the army and work as a computer programmer, but both intentions failured. The end of his days seemed being a bit better, as long as in the begining of 1974 he worked on what could have been his fourth album. In this year he lived in Paris for a few months on a house-boat with some friends.




In November 25th, 1974, a monday, Molly was worried because was midday and Nick haven't wake up yet. She went to his room to know what was happening and discovered that her son was dead. If it was an accident or suicide, it's not known. The ones who believe in the accident say that, as an insomniac, Nick used to take an extra-dose of Tryptisol to get some sleep, and died because of a heart failure. The ones who believe in the suicide, say that he was depressed, so he killed himself. Besides his family and friends say that he would never do this and that he was cheerful the time right before his death, the coroner said that it was suicide. Other questions about him also stay without an answer: if he was or not schizophrenic, if he was or not gay, if he had or not an affair with the french chanteuse Françoise Hardy. What's known is that his music is getting more and more fans all over the world through the years because, even had died almost unknown, Nick was a genius and couldn't be unkown forever.



A Skin Too Few - A Nick Drake Documentary on Video

Nick Drake Documentary - A Skin Too Few - Part 1



Nick Drake Documentary - A Skin Too Few - Part 2



Nick Drake Documentary - A Skin Too Few - Part 3



Nick Drake Documentary - A Skin Too Few - Part 4



Nick Drake Documentary - A Skin Too Few - Part 5



Nick Drake Discography

A Treasury 2004
Made To Love Magic 2004
Way To Blue: An Introduction To Nick Drake 1994
Time Of No Reply 1979
Pink Moon 1972
Bryter Layter 1970
Five Leaves Left 1969

Wiki info can be found here --> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nick_Drake

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Roky Erickson Feature with Vintage Photos & Videos

Born: July 15, 1947 in Dallas, Texas, United States

Like Syd Barrett, a common point of reference, Roky Erickson rose to cult-hero status as much for his music as for his tragic personal life; in light of his legendary bouts with madness and mythic drug abuse, the influence exerted by his garage-bred psychedelia was often lost in the shuffle. Born Roger Kynard Erickson on July 15, 1947, in Dallas, TX, he began playing the piano at age five; by age 12, he had also taken up the guitar. The child of an architect and would-be opera singer, Erickson dropped out of high school to become a professional musician. In 1965, he penned his most famous composition, "You're Gonna Miss Me," which he first recorded with a group called the Spades. The song and his high, swooping tenor brought him to the attention of another area band, the psychedelia-influenced 13th Floor Elevators, whose lyricist and jug player Tommy Hall invited Erickson to join; the Elevators soon cut their own version of "You're Gonna Miss Me," and took the single to number 56 on the pop charts in 1966.









The record's success earned the 13th Floor Elevators a deal with International Artists, but as their fame grew, so did their notoriety with local law enforcement officials, who took exception to the group's heavy experimentation with (and public support of) marijuana and LSD. The Elevators became the subject of considerable police harassment, and after Erickson was arrested for the possession of one lone joint in 1969, he pleaded insanity to avoid a prison term. A three-and-a-half year stint in the state's Hospital for the Criminally Insane followed; Erickson was diagnosed as a schizophrenic, and subjected to extensive electroshock therapy, Thorazine, and other psychoactive treatments.








Though released from the hospital in 1973, Erickson was never the same person; he returned to performing with a new band, the Aliens, but his songs -- a series of horror film-influenced records including "Red Temple Prayer (Two-Headed Dog)," "Don't Shake Me Lucifer," and "I Walked With a Zombie" -- found little success. He did retain a devoted cult following, however, but his popularity was fully exploited by managers who took advantage of his instability to draw the singer into a series of unfair publishing contracts that resulted in a steady stream of unauthorized releases from which Erickson earned not a cent. In 1982 he signed a legal affidavit declaring that a Martian had taken residence in his body, and gradually disappeared from music as the decade wore on.







By the 1990s, Erickson was struggling to survive on a $200 monthly Social Security stipend; after an arrest on mail theft charges (later dropped), he was re-institutionalized. In 1990, however, artists like R.E.M., ZZ Top, John Wesley Harding, and the Jesus and Mary Chain recorded his songs for the album Where the Pyramid Meets the Eye: A Tribute to Roky Erickson, which brought his work to a wider audience than ever before. In 1993, Erickson performed publicly for the first time in many years at the Austin Music Awards; a few months later, he returned to the studio with guitarists Charlie Sexton and the Butthole Surfers' Paul Leary to record a number of new songs. In 1995, Leary's bandmate King Coffey released Erickson's All That May Do My Rhyme on his Trance Syndicate label; four years later, Trance issued Never Say Goodbye, a collection of rare private recordings or unreleased Erickson compositions. (Coffey claims Erickson told him he was the first person to ever give him a royalty check for his music.)





In 2001, Sumner Erickson, Roky's brother and a successful classical musician, obtained custody of Roky, who had fallen into poor health. Under Sumner's watch, Roky began receiving proper medical and dental care for the first time in years, as well as more effective treatment for his psychological problems. Sumner also set up a charitable trust to help finance his brother's care, and with the help of sympathetic lawyers attempted to sort out the legal red tape that prevented Roky from being paid for his music. A fit and relatively lucid Roky Erickson began making occasional public appearances in Austin, Texas, and in March 2005 Roky spoke as part of a panel discussion on the 13th Floor Elevators at the South by Southwest Music Conference. Roky also made a brief musical appearance with a reunited lineup of the Explosives, and a documentary on Erickson, You're Gonna Miss Me, premiered at the affiliated South by Southwest Film Festival. This burst of activity coincided with the release of I Have Always Been Here Before: The Roky Erickson Anthology, a two-disc career overview compilation. Halloween, a set of live recordings from 79-81 with the Explosives was released in early 2008. by Jason Ankeny



Various Videos Of Roky Erickson

13th Floor Elevators - Your Gonna Miss Me Live Video



Roky Erickson - Creature with the Atom Brain Live Video 1980



Roky Erickson - Two Headed Dog Live Video - 1980



Roky Erickson - Philosophy, Religion and Music Live Video



Rock On Music Lovers!!

-Stereo

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