Majic Ship (1970)



Majic Ship - to amerykańsko-kanadyjski zespół powstały - jak to zwykle na tym blogu bywa - pod koniec lat 60-tych. Powstał z inicjatywy wokalisty Mike'a Garrigana i gitarzysty Tommy'ego Nickosey'a. Grupa "uprawiała" wszechobecne wówczas gatunki jak - psychodelię, county and western czy jazz. W 1970 roku zespół nagrał dla wytwórni Bel-Ami swój bardzo dojrzały, zadziwiający album. Zawierał on m.in. znakomitą wersję utworu Neila Younga "Down By The River". Zespół rozpadł się kilka miesięcy po nagraniu zniesmaczony małym zainteresowaniem. Jedyny longplay tej grupy w wersji winylowej osiąga na rynku kolekcjonerskim spore sumki. W 1985 roku wytwórnia Heyoka zrobiła reedycję, ale i to wydanie jest sporo warte.

Mike Garrigan - vocal
Tommy Nikosey - guitar
Phil Polimeni - guitar
Cosmo Riozzi - bass, organ, vocal
Rob Buckman - drums



While on their early singles Majic Ship was a solid pop band who mostly devoted themselves to imaginative interpretations of covers, by the time they cut their first LP in 1970 they'd shifted gears and become a hard rock act with an undertow of pastoral psychedelia, and their self-titled album (the only full-length release from the original band) is an interesting artifact of its era. Lead guitarist Phil Polimeni embraced a warm but fuzzy sound that suggests the influence of Jimi Hendrix and Pete Townsend without the aggressive histrionics of either artist, and vocalist Mike Garrigan was a more than capable blue-eyed soul singer with an admirable sense of restraint on moodier numbers such as "We Gotta Live On" and "Wednesday Morning Dew." When the band turns up the volume on stuff like "Where Are We Going" and "Sioux City Blues," the results are a bit less immediately impressive, since a number of bands were following a similar path at the time, but Majic Ship still has plenty to offer when they rock out. The performances here sound warm and organic, and sway with an easy but impassioned groove, while Garrigan, bassist Gus Riozzi, and rhythm guitarist Tommy Nikosey deliver impressive harmonies. While the 11-minute medley of "Down by the River" and "For What It's Worth" goes on a bit too long and doesn't bear comparison to the originals, Polimeni's guitar work holds it own and the band is able to bring its own personality to the tunes, no small thing. It's probably a mistake to regard Majic Ship as a lost classic from the era when psychedelia was giving way to hard rock, but it's a solid and enjoyable record from a band who had genuine talent and some fine songs; it's not hard to imagine these guys could have become major stars if their luck had been a bit better back in the day. ~ Mark Deming

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3 komentarze:

  1. Ależ świetna płyta! Chłopaki grają tak jak lubię. Muzyka podobna do Candida Pax (mój drugi numer jeden).
    Uwielbiam te gitarowe riffy, przeplatane słodyczą ogniskowych zaśpiewów. Kiedyś wiedziano jak się nagrywa płyty.

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  2. Anonimowy14/4/11

    Great album!
    Thank you very much!

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