Clear Light
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Clear Light was a psychedelic rock band that formed in Los Angeles in 1966. They were very much in the mold of fellow Elektra artists Love, Tim Buckley, and especially the Doors.
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[edit] History
Formed in 1966 as the Brain Train and managed by Sunset Strip hipster Bud Mathis, Clear Light were signed up by Elektra, and Doors' producer Paul A. Rothchild took over management of the band.
The group included future actor Cliff De Young on vocals and drummer Dallas Taylor (who had played previously with John Sebastian and later with Crosby, Stills and Nash). Rounding out the lineup were Robbie "the Werewolf" Robison, guitar (later replaced by Ralph Schuckett, organ); Bob Seal, guitar and vocals; occasional Doors sideman Doug Lubahn, bass; and Michael Ney, on, most unusually, another set of drums.
What has been considered the band's finest hour came when drunken customers in a Park Avenue club heckled them so brutally that Ralph Schuckett, the usually gentle organist, hurled a few choice words back at them. They then walked off the stage, retired to the Albert Hotel, and woke up in the morning to find that they had become underground heroes.
The big hit off their only album, Clear Light, was "Mr. Blue," a psychedelic folk song written by Tom Paxton. Lasting over six minutes, the rather sinister, psychedelic song is considered a classic of the genre. Its lyrics, which alternate between spoken word and song, include verses opening with such lines as, "Good morning, Mister Blue, we've got our eye on you," "Step softly, Mister Blue, we know what's best for you," and "Be careful, Mister Blue, this phase you're going through ...."
The album also included some of guitarist Bob Seal's best psychedelic folk-rock songs, namely "With All in Mind" and "They Who Have Nothing." It had some success in England, but less in the U.S. The group disbanded in 1968.
Clear Light was featured in the 1967 motion picture The President's Analyst.
[edit] Album
| Clear Light | ||
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| ep by Clear Light | ||
| Released | September, 1967 | |
| Recorded | Summer, 1967 | |
| Genre | Rock | |
| Length | 31:59 | |
| Label | Elektra | |
| Producer(s) | Paul A. Rothchild | |
| Professional reviews | ||
|---|---|---|
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Clear Light was released in September 1967. It combined elements of folk, rock, psychedelic, and classical music. It has been considered by some critics as one of the important psychedelic albums to own and is an AMG music pick.
[edit] Track listing
- Black Roses (Clear Light, Dios), 2:09
- Sand (Lubahn), 2:38
- A Child's Smile (Clear Light, Ney), 1:37
- Street Singer (Copeland, Noonan), 3:17
- The Ballad of Freddie & Larry (DeYoung, Schuckett), 1:56
- With All in Mind (Seal), 2:58
- She's Ready to Be Free (Robeson), 2:26 (Bonus track not included on the original album release. The B side of their first 45.)
- Mr. Blue (Paxton), 6:25
- Think Again (Clear Light, Lubahn), 1:58
- They Who Have Nothing (Seal), 1:37
- How Many Days Have Passed (Seal), 2:34
- Night Sounds Loud (Lubahn), 2:24
[edit] Singles
- Black Roses/She’s Ready To Be Free, Elektra EK45622, 1967
- Black Roses/She's Ready To Be Free, Elektra EKSN45019, 1967(UK)
- They Who Have Nothing/Ballad Of Freddie and Larry, Elektra 45626, 1967
- Night Sounds Loud/How Many Days Have Passed, Elektra EKSN45027, 1968 (UK only)
[edit] Notes
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- ↑ Rock Encyclopedia, Lillian Roxon, 1969, Grosset & Dunlap, p. 112
- ↑ Clear Light
- ↑ Rock Encyclopedia, Lillian Roxon, 1969, Grosset & Dunlap, p. 112
- ↑ Lyrics
- ↑ Clear Light
- ↑ Clear Light
- ↑ Rock Encyclopedia, Lillian Roxon, 1969, Grosset & Dunlap, p. 112
