"If I had one wish, I'd bring my dear friend Jimi back. We'd reminisce about days gone by. Tears of joy we would not cry & one good thing about it is...
we'd start all over again."
from 'Jimi's Back" by Randy Wolfe
Did you ever wonder what would have happened if after Jimmy James & the Blue Flames, Randy (from California) had gone along with Jimi to England? Well, I have. The Hendrix - California Experience (Jimi Hendrix, Randy California, Noel Redding, & Mitch Mitchell).
So Randy didn't write tunes as great as Jimi (well, we all know the "Taurus" / “Stairway” thing, right?), but "boy, could he play guitar". The thirteen plus minute "All Along the Watchtower" brings tears to my eyes every time. Or the seven-plus "Red House". Come on. But most of all, he would have always been there for Jimi. We know he would have given his own life to save Jimi from the rip-tide of notoriety & drugs that pulled him down just as he did in the rip-tide of the Pacific to save his son.
Enough of that, though. Spirit was an equally legendary band. When I first saw them at the Fox Theater in San Jose I was hooked. Then Sardonicus came out. ..hell, yeah...
Here are a couple live sets & one post-Randy double discs of greatness...
all decryption codes in comments
Sweet Stella Baby
1984
Country Echo
Jealous
All the Same
Fresh Garbage
It Shall Be
Nothing to Hide (no Prelude)
Ice
Mr. Skin
Animal Zoo
I'm Truckin'
So Little Time to Fly
Fog
Dark Eyed Woman
Uncle Jack
Nature's Way
bonus cuts -
Mechanical World (live, Boston Tea Party, October 11, 1969)
Walking on My Feet
When I Touch You
Street Worm (live backing track)
Love Has Found a Way (backing track)
Disc One -
Soldier
Mike & Bob's Party
Rapture in the Chambers
Love Tonight
Tent of Miracles
All Along the Watchtower
Ship of Fools
Golden Jam
Dark Eyed Woman
I Got a Line on You
Jam Free
Downer
Disc Two -
Future in My Hands
Victim of Society
Holy Man
Love from Here
Fresh Garbage
Taurus
Darlin' If
Burning Love
Logical Answers
Blues for a Nation
Old Black Magic
Animal Zoo
Deep in this Land
Zandu
Turn to the Right
Working in New York
Disc One -
Gonna Need Somebody on Your Bond
Wagon of Wood
Tell Me (Didn't Mean No Harm to You)
Key to the Highway
When You're Smilin'
Pawnshop Blues
Ever Since You Left Me
Kansas City
Fixing to Die (Shake My Ego Down)
Pick a Bale of Cotton
Run Sinner Run
Cosmic Smile (aka the Other Song)
Charlie James / Miss this Train
Jimi's Back
Red House
Kokomo
Devine Love
When the Saints Go Marchin' In
Like a Dog
Lord I'll Be with You Always
I had a Dream
Disc Two -
The Letter
Ain't Superstitious
Ever Since You Left Me (Maui Wowie)
Poor Boy
Cold Rainy Night
California Blues
Sugar Mama
Charlie James
Shattered Dreams
Kokocass Jam
Dreamy Eyes
Miss this Train
Down & Dirty Blues
Last Night I had the Strangest Dream
Enjoy,
NØ
Sorry for troubles, but the link to 'Spirit - Blues from the Soul 2xCD' / >> CD 01 only brings up first track (01 Introduction)
ReplyDelete(and i thought as a Spirit nerd i had been complete on all official releases... default lesson of life learned, 'there's always more to come, than you thought there was')
No trouble whatsoever. Glad you let me know. I had posted the wrong link & code. I have fixed it & the new list should be accurate.
DeleteGlad I could share something that you might need.
Thank you so much.
DeleteAlso, i shared the photo in a Facebook Randy California group (without naming any source), checkout the results, lol, a majority of everybody was pleased though
Nelson Duffle
I don’t think that’s Randy in this photo, is it? 🤔
Steven Roberts
Nelson Duffle I don’t think so either.
Author(me)
third hit Google comes up with
Elad Lending
Nelson Duffle I actually think that the person in the middle smoking a cigarette could very well be a 15-year-old Randy!
Bill Haines
Elad Lending nope. That is definitely not Randy.
Gerry Karr
Dare I say the kids on the photo look totally waspy and Randy was a Jew, and bore no resemblance to these fine kids, whoever they are.
Mark A TaylorTop contributor
On a hunch I looked for photos of Jimi hanging out with Moving Sidewalks a group that included young Billy Gibbons. There are other photos of Moving Sidewalks with Jimi and this photo is associated with the others when you google “Jimi Hendrix & Moving Sidewalks”
I’m guessing that’s Billy and another Sidewalk member in the photo. Moving Sidewalks opened at least once for Jimi on his first headliner tour of North America.
Billy Gibbons has made a point of letting the world know he opened for Jimi who gifted him a pink Stratocaster.
That is a pic of Hendrix late 66/early 67..probably in England..neither of the other two guys is Randy California.
Paul Diamond
Not Randy, of course.
Lorne Rall
Not Randy in that pic.
Pat Hale
Definitely NOT Randy.
Sorta funny, not?
I was going to just delete this as I could really give a fuck about a bunch of experts from Facebook Randy California page. I'm no expert & just relied on a picture I found in Google images (which I realized lends no veracity to the actuality). However, I went on the Facebook page & looked through photos. There is a picture of "Jimmie James & the Blue Flames" with a shirtless leather vested Randy looking just like this same "waspy" kid.
DeleteI'll remove the photo if you really have an issue with it. anonymous.
I just ran facial recognition on the Randy (left) & the Spirit fotos. They are definitely the same person. Neither one is Randy Wolfe. (now that's funny.)
Deleteno need to delete anything, at least not for my inner peace, lol, that very group has become weird, new co- admins, being picky as it gets, but allowing spammers selling fake t- shirts, all without me noticing, been absent for a year or longer, only this sweet Jimi quote made me consider sharing it over there, ungrateful naggers, haha, let them post 'Nature's Way for a 1000th time.....
DeleteMark Andes is member, too, but not seen in a while and Rick Roberts, too.
Astounding!
ReplyDeleteThanks, brother.
DeleteLive at the Fillmore West
ReplyDeleter4oVdRIzZU8AgUSXOhjlEmza4BL3X_wi3bSqRZ0ilR8
Live from the Time Coast CD1
JKHtJrdBCatfem9zRrSOclvpLZ6v42grbJhNhZBwrnk
Live from the Time Coast CD2
A1v3EgaygG3SOxYiosEdRGkHSPg6ZmSqZGZEp7BG5YM
Blues from the Soul CD1
7EvX9j8nwxXHNuUfaHtrGYcRmAD_gepUm13kXX9dMS8
Blues from the Soul CD2
YCaawf5rxkU6_EdHqn5_JZgb8JMLoHvPl8KNsx7d_9A
Hey Nathan
ReplyDeleteI was introduced to Spirit by This Mortal Coil's cover of Nature's Way.
Not the only wonder I discovered through TMC.
It may look pretentious to some but those records were gateways to older groups that otherwise postpunkie youths like meself might never dive into at the time.
Thanks to Ivo Watts Russell many of my generation started appreciating bands like this or Big Star or Rain Parade.
Just a footnote.
I'll check the live stuf, thanks very much dear Man.
Diego
Cosmic entanglement everywhere today. I was just working on The Hope Blister's ...smile's OK for a future post. A late addition to Ivo W-R's catalogue of greats. I was just the opposite of you. Being an old fart, I was well aware of the "older groups" but 4AD led me to much great at the time "new" music.
DeleteHope you enjoy some of the live Spirit. May be kinda completist stuff, I never know.
As a piece of trivia the TMC name came from Spirit's "Dream within a dream", not a direct Shakespearian reference.
DeleteThe book "Facing the other way" (a 4AD bio of sorts) contains a lot of
interesting data for all those interested.
Cheers
Diego
Didn't know Mortal's name came from Spirit. Very Kool. I'm going searching for Facing the Other Way right now. Thanks for the info, brother.
DeleteMan, while I was looking for a cheap copy of the book I saw on discogs that there is a 2xCD 44 track release musical companion. Now I on a search for that as well. See what you've started.
DeleteCurrently listening to the "Song of the siren/ Sixteen days" 7 " first pressing I kept after selling my vinyls in dire times.
ReplyDeleteMay be the only one that made it to my country, who knows...
Tonight it's being played in a 20 people settlement in Patagonian cordillera
Maybe it was meant for this occasion.
One of those things money can't buy even with some scratches here and there.
A surprise to know there was a compilation attached to the actual book,
Anyway the label provided so many different sounding groups that everyone of us may have a different "best of" selection.
That was the best concept after all.
Cheers
Diego
.
Thanks for keeping the Spirit alive.
DeleteThanks N0!
ReplyDeleteYou're most welcome, MrDave.
Delete