Soft Machine Upstage Jimi Hendrix

Room Full of Mirrors (Slight Return)

This is an e-mail I sent to author Charles Cross in 2006 while reading his Room Full of Mirrors: A Biography of Jimi Hendrix:

"This is an interesting book. I picked it up to learn more about Jimi's relationship with Miles Davis, of which there are differing accounts of what actually transpired. In Miles' own autobiography, he never mentions the three-way deal with Jimi and Tony Williams, but only tells how they were due to get together on a project immediately after the Isle of Wight. Of course, I believe Miles may have conveniently omitted the business of wanting $50K from Mike Jeffrey before moving ahead with the Miles-Jimi-Tony project mentioned in your book.

"The Jimi at Cobo Arena (Detroit) concert, sponsored by radio station 'Paul Is Dead' WKNR, apparently took place in November of '68. I had seen the Experience at Detroit's Masonic Auditorium, with Soft Machine (also managed by Jeffrey), nine months prior. Jimi was having one of his off nights, was in a foul mood, and there was no encore, as I recall. I was extremely disappointed in his performance that evening.

"On the other hand, Soft Machine absolutely blew me away, between their music and fabulous light show. In letting "Uncle Russ" Gibb know how much I enjoyed that group during one of my regular calls to him while he was on the air, he invited me down to Keener in Dearborn [MI] to pick up an advance copy of their debut album on a 7" tape reel. This I did, with that story being chronicled at the above-referenced URL [and as an earlier blog entry].

"I haven't yet read the final chapters and the story of Monika Danneman. If you subscribe to Eric Burdon's theory laid out in his memoir, she was a psycho who dosed Jimi with extremely powerful German painkillers in an effort to keep him in her nest. Burdon also had issues with Mike Jeffrey regarding his mob ties, both in the U.S. and U.K."

[Interestingly, I recently learned that Andy Summers, guitarist with the Police, had been both a one-time member of Eric Burdon's New Animals and Soft Machine. Alas, he had been sent packing from Soft Machine before their Hendrix support tour got underway, so I've never had the opportunity to hear him play live.]

Eddie Kramer—From Jimi Hendrix To Woodstock

This August marks the 40th anniversary of Woodstock, the original event spawning two multi-record sets and a feature-length movie (recently restored and expanded). Leading off with Richie Havens (he was the first artist on the scene with an intact band), a few of the other acts included Jefferson Airplane, Crosby, Stills & Nash, a pregnant Joan Baez, Country Joe & the Fish, Santana, Sha Na Na, Sly & the Family Stone, Ten Years After, Janis Joplin, the Who, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Joe Cocker, the Band and the Grateful Dead. What is burned into everyone's consciousness, however, was the show-closing set by Jimi Hendrix (sans Experience) and his interpretation of The Star-Spangled Banner.

What is not widely known is who was in charge of recording the music for all to enjoy long after Max Yasgur's farm had been turned into a sea of mud and debris. Running on adrenalin and vitamin shots for those three mad days was the legendary Eddie Kramer, audio engineer extraordinaire. From the Beatles to Traffic, Led Zeppelin to Kiss, Rolling Stones to Ted Nugent, Kramer was often the guy behind the studio mixing desk, soldiering on to this day.

...I felt intimidated...when the Beatles came to Olympic on
two separate occasions to record All You Need Is Love
and Baby, You’re A Rich Man with George Martin.

Eddie Kramer, on taking rock photographs

By chance it was young Kramer—then a budding engineer with Olympic Studios in London—who was called upon to record the first tracks featuring a sensational guitarist just over from America—none other than Hendrix. The two formed a bond that lasted the duration of the latter's career, with Hendrix following Kramer's lead in the production of the star's albums—including several posthumous releases.

In 1992 John McDermott collaborated with Kramer to write Hendrix: Setting the Record Straight. Not only is this account the most accurate of the many Hendrix tomes, the book features many of Kramer's photos taken during Hendrix recording sessions. Also included are several by the late Linda McCartney.

Kramer continues to consult with Experience Hendrix; a recent project involved updating original VH1 footage to produce an enhanced At Last...The Beginning: The Making of Electric Ladyland DVD. Notable album "session musicians" interviewed for the video include the likes of Dave Mason, Steve Winwood and Jack Casady, the latter with whom Hendrix had jammed backstage at the '67 Monterey Pop Festival.

Bassist Noel Redding having walked out on the Experience at that point, here Kramer discusses All Along the Watchtower in this video segment:

Ryan Sparks, writing for Classic Rock Revisited, recently interviewed Eddie Kramer about how he came to be chosen to record the '69 Woodstock Festival and what that experience was like. A portion of that interview is presented here (by permission of the author).

[Sparks] Woodstock was a truly unique, one [of] a kind festival. How did you become involved?

[Kramer] I knew that Jimi was going to be playing up there and the film company called me and said, “Hey, you record Jimi, why don’t you come up and record the whole thing?”

Continued...
[Sparks] After you surveyed the scene, did you think you’d have enough time to get everything in order to be fully prepared for when things started?

[Kramer] No way. I had doubts that we were ever going to get anything, but…[the] crew was tremendous and they pulled it together. We got going and three days of drugs and hell became part of American history.

[Sparks] Tell me about your recording setup.

[Kramer] [We had] two eight tracks, a twelve channel board and some little Shure mixers. [To call it] primitive [would be] a mild understatement.

[Sparks] You and your crew had to stay awake for three days straight. Was it just Lee Osborne and you?

[Kramer] Yeah... The stage crew…were the ones who we were trying to communicate with, which was rather difficult. We had vitamin B12 shots to keep us all going [and] slept on the floor of the truck for a few hours. [We] rolled tape all the time, whereas the poor film guys they were struggling with five cameras trying to keep it all going.

[Sparks] You’re not only a legendary producer/engineer, but you’ve also captured some great images of some of rock’s greatest musicians with your camera…In addition to Jimi, did you manage to shoot anyone else at the festival while they were performing?

[Kramer] No…Once the recording had settled down on Jimi I said ‘OK, guys, watch the meters, watch the machines, I’m going to run out for like ten seconds.’ I ran out with my camera and shot about two or three pictures of Jimi and then ran back to the truck.

[Sparks] [Did] any of [the groups] pose any kind of challenge?

[Kramer] Every artist presented his own peculiar set of challenges. You’re dealing with battlefield recordings here; these are not for the faint of heart [laughs]. You had to figure out where each microphone was, which band was coming out, what they were going to be playing, who’s playing, what’s playing. You know that old Abbott and Costello routine, "Who’s On First?" It was just like that.

[Sparks] With such an impressive and extensive back catalogue of work, where does Woodstock rank on your list of achievements?

[Kramer] Woodstock has to stand out; [pauses] how does one even begin?

[Sparks] You’ve captured some of rock’s most iconic live albums; how would you compare it to some of those?

[Kramer] It was the most difficult, but it also yielded some of the great performances of our time. It certainly stands out in my memory....It continues to influence subsequent generations, which I’m very pleased about.

[Sparks] [In] that moment, did you think you were capturing something magical that people would still be talking about forty years later?

[Kramer] No. I was only too concerned about getting the…stuff to record and making sure it appeared on tape; that was my main concern. Who cared about history then!

Hendrix In Detroit: Voodoo Child Rocks F1 Garage

Cuz I'm a Voodoo Chile...

I was blessed—or so you may think—to be one of those who heard/saw Jimi play live. It was back in—what, 1968?—at Detroit's Masonic Temple. I'm indifferent about having heard Jimi that particular evening, though, for two reasons.

First, Soft Machine, playing a warm-up role to Hendrix, completely stole the evening, between an incomparable light show and music that matched. If you've never heard Slightly All the Time from their Third release, reading this blog just paid off for you in spades. For me, this is one of those "desert island" recordings. Need I say any more? CONDITIONS: You should not be interrupted nor distracted in any way while listening to this piece for the first time, so maybe "lay back 'n groove on a (sunny) day" with this on your MP3 player, away from the Frisbee players, or wait until you know you have the house/apartment/yurt to yourself.

Back to the concert. Hendrix not only came on stage very late, but proceeded to put on one of the worst shows of his brief career with the Experience. In either Charles Cross' Room Full of Mirrors: A Biography of Jimi Hendrix or Kramer and McDermott's Hendrix: Setting the Record Straight (I don't remember which, but both are great reads), the author(s) point to Jimi's Cherokee blood vis a vis his reaction to alcohol as the culprit. Some 39 years later (!), I surmise this probably accounted for the exhibit we saw at Masonic that evening.

But I'm still very much a fan. So if you've got a moment, I'd like to relate another Hendrix, uh, "experience." The scene again is downtown Detroit, this time hosting its first Formula 1 Grand Prix event, with the Renaissance Center garage being given over to the likes of Team Lotus, Renault, McLaren, Ferrari, and the like. After checking out some decent bands playing in Hart Plaza and hoisting a few, fellow F1 fanatic Dave Collie (RIP) and I started indiscriminately yanking on RenCen garage doors until, voila, our "Open, Sezme" command was magically acknowledged!

Strutting in like we belonged, what was that we heard? Getting louder as we approached Team Lotus? You betcha...those famous opening bass lines to Voodoo Child eminating from a pair of very sizeable speakers. It was fabulous. And LOUD—reverberating off of that massive concrete structure where another "Jimmy"—he of the Teamsters—is reported to be forever entombed. (A Pillar of Esteemed Citizenship?) Anyway, I don't think I've ever heard that track (no pun intended) sound so good. And yes, a rubber frog hung from the ceiling of the Renault garage.

What I didn't know—until last year—is who was responsible for those fabulous bass lines. I just assumed it was Noel Redding and let it go at that. But then I rented Classic Albums: Jimi Hendrix: Electric Ladyland from Netflix. You should, too. For the Hendrix fan, the DVD is so interesting, and so well produced, it very well may end up as a purchase for my library. Heck...it's an EXPERIENCE!

So who is our mythical bass player? I'm not going to tell you, but you may click here if you'd like to spoil the surprise with a hint.

The Spirit of Randy California

In the Company of Jimi Hendrix

The date was late July, 1969. We've been flashing back to the Grande Ballroom, where Spirit topped a bill that included one-hit wonders Fever Tree (San Francisco Girls (Return of the Native)). Led by guitar whiz Randy California, Spirit had debuted their first album that past January, with one track, Fresh Garbage, in regular rotation on Detroit's underground rock stations.

Free! Listen to Topanga Windows
in its entirety. Download it here (99¢).

Alas, it being the '60s we don't remember too much about this concert, other than being enthralled to hear such an iconic rock group at that magical venue. With Jay Ferguson, Mark Andes and John Locke joining California and his stepfather, Ed Cassidy, Spirit's music was an inventive mix of fusion of jazz, rock, folk and blues, liberally sprinkled with psychedelia.

The Doors were all right—but for many rock fans in the
late 60s, the band that really mattered was Spirit.

Critic Jim Washburn, Los Angeles Times

Just two years before this concert date, guitarist Randy Wolfe had moved to New York with his mother and jazz drummer Ed Cassidy, the elder having at one time played with Dexter Gordon, Cannonball Adderley, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Les McCann, Gerry Mulligan, Mason Williams, Taj Mahal and Ry Cooder. Already a prodigious guitar player at 16, it was at Manny's Music in Manhattan that Wolfe met Jimi Hendrix, subsequently joining the latter's Jimmy James & the Blue Flames in 1966. There being another Randy—a Texan—in the band, it was Jimi who rechristened Wolfe "Randy California," apparently to help the band leader distinguish between the two. And when Hendrix was called to London by Chas Chandler to ultimately form the Experience, California's parents made him forego that fork in the road so he could finish high school stateside.

In '68 Spirit was backed on tour by Led Zeppelin. Many accounts cite that, in creating Stairway To Heaven, the Zep's Jimmy Page borrowed the key riff from Spirit's Taurus—charges that Page denies. California ultimately penned all of Spirit's hits, including I Got A Line On You, 1984 and Nature's Way.

A month after Spirit's '69 appearance at the Grande, Hendrix was scheduled to play Woodstock. Not forgetting his old friend, California was asked if his group would like to appear before him. The idea was nixed by the Spirit's manager, Lou Adler (co-producer of the Monterey Pop Festival two years earlier), with this short-sightedness ultimately preventing the band from achieving the level of success it should have easily attained.

Spirit's The Family That Plays Together was an impressive follow-up to the group's debut recording, but it was their fourth album, The Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus, that ranks highly on many "Best of the Era" lists. With good reason, too: it's one of those rare recordings that is consistently great from start to finish. The band continued to languish, however, causing Ferguson and Andes to soon cast their fate with Jo-Jo Gunne (the band's name lifted from a Chuck Berry song).

Various Spirit incarnations came and went over the next several years, Cass being the only original member to remain. After several solo projects, ultimately his step-son rejoined. Recorded at Milwaukee's Summerfest festival, the Spirit In Concert DVD has Scott Monahan (keyboards and vocals) and Walter Egan (bass and vocals) joining co-founders Cass and California. The audio recording quality is sub-par, but this DVD clearly displays the exuberant showmanship of California and the Thor-like power of Cass on the drums. Floydian Slips recommends renting this video for its "feel good" entertainment value alone.

Like the Beatles and Pink Floyd, don't hold out for a Spirit reunion featuring the original lineup. John Locke passed away in 2006 and California drowned in Hawaii while rescuing his son from a riptide in 1997. Thankfully this one video exists of California in his prime, and the Spirit back catalog continues to be available.

Site Index - 52 Posts and Counting

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Andy Summers Reveals Police Memorial

Anita O'Day: Jazz On a Summer's Day

Another Brick In the Wall: DVD Review

(Digital) Audio Editing: From Razor Blades To Cut 'n' Paste

Audio Gear: Internet-Ready Receiver For Home Theater

"Broadcast" Media From PC To Stereo and TV

Concerts: Johnny Rivers Meets the Beatles

David Gilmour Live In Gdansk

Detroit Rock: Dick Wagner, Alice Cooper, Iggy Pop & Friends

Dylan Goes Electric: Hats Off To Mike Bloomfield

Eddie Kramer: From Jimi Hendrix To Woodstock

Eric Clapton & Steve Winwood Play Madison Square Garden

Flashback: The Summer of Love

Fleetwood Mac: Blues In Chicago, Chess Records Style

Freeform Radio Master: Dave Dixon On WABX

Hendrix In Detroit: Voodoo Child Rocks F1 Garage

Hot Tuna—Acoustic & Electric Celestial Blues

Increase Your Remote Control Range With Infrared

It Might Get Loud: Jimmy Page, The Edge & Jack White

Jazz: From Dave Brubeck To Miles Davis

Led Zeppelin & the Who: Tom Wright's "Roadwork" Visits the Grande Ballroom

Leon Russell, Frank Zappa, Iggy Pop & Friends

Maximizing (Non-iPod) MP3 Player Capability

Napster vs. Metallica—Music Industry Redefined

Neko Case & Robin Trower: DVD Concert Reviews

Of Two Johns: Lennon & Sinclair

Oliver Sacks: Musical Minds Airs On PBS' NOVA (Until July 7 Only!)

On the Road With Cassady, Kesey & the Merry Pranksters

"Paul Is Dead" During Magical Mystery Tour

Pharoah Sanders Quartet In Concert At Yoshi's

Pink Floyd—Interlude For a Moon Landing In D#, Opus 34

Radio Paradise: Eclectic Internet Radio At Its Best

Rocking At the RedDog: the Psychedelic Age Begins

Rock Stars, Cars, and Guitars at Henry Ford Museum

"Sir Charles" & the Florence Karaoke Experience

Soft Machine Upstages Jimi Hendrix In Detroit

Soundstage Presents Steve Winwood

Steve Khan Plays Jazz Guitar With Distinction

Syd Barrett's (Pink Floyd) Psychedelic London, Part I

Syd Barrett's (Pink Floyd) Psychedelic London, Part II

The Ash Grove: Mick Jagger Gets the Blues

The Grande Ballroom Story - Louder Than Love

The Making of Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band

There Is No Dark Side of the Moon, Really

The Spirit of Randy California

Tim Buckley & the Grande: The Motor City's Burnin'

From "Toots" Thielemans to the Beatles: Why the Byrds Chose Rickenbacker Guitars

"Uncle" Russ Revisits the Grande Ballroom

Use Your PC To Stream Concerts & Films To Your TV

Wrecking Crew Charts More AM Hits Than the Beatles

Your Own Touchscreen MP3 Jukebox

Rock Stars, Cars and Guitars

Ever since baby boomers go their wheels, music and cars have been inextricably mixed. One needs to look no further than the popular film, American Graffiti, to get a feel for how it was back in the early ’60s.

The music acts like a Greek chorus to
comment on the events taking place.

Walter Murch, sound artist

Top 40 music buffs recall some of that era’s songs which centered on cars: Little GTO by Ronny and the Daytonas, Mustang Sally from Wilson Pickett, Hey Little Cobra by the Rip Cords, and Little Deuce Coupe, offered up by the Beach Boys. Who doesn’t know what the Little Old Lady From Pasadena drove, that “she’s real fine, my 409,” what happened at Dead Man’s Curve, or that Chuck Berry got his kicks on Route 66 (when he wasn’t holding a seat belt vendetta)? You’ll recall that the Beatles told us that their baby could drive their car and even Geronimo had a Cadillac.

On Woodward Avenue, the world’s longest eight-lane urban highway, John DeLorean and Bunky Knudsen were surreptitiously sending out Detroit’s factory muscle cars to go head-to-head. Hurst shifters aside, one also had to be quick on the radio punch buttons when an ad interrupted the soundtrack of our lives (unless it was Ray Charles’ What’d I Say promoting Connie "The Bounty Hunter" Kalitta going wheel-to-wheel with Don “Swamp Rat” Garlits at Detroit Dragway).

Since 1995, August’s Woodward Dream Cruise is the world's largest one-day celebration of classic car culture that attracts over 1 million visitors, and more than 40,000 muscle cars, street rods, custom, collector and special interest vehicles.

Over at Motown, hits were mixed to sound best when played back through the single cheap speaker mounted face up on the dashboard.

Leading us into the psychedelic era, Steppenwolf went looking for adventure by heading out on the highway, the Doobies were rockin’ down it, Deep Purple had a Highway Star, and Canned Heat was On the Road Again. George Thoroughgood spent Six Days On the Road, but Jeff Beck was stuck in a Freeway Jam and poor ol’ Jimi was frustrated with Crosstown Traffic (at least he wasn’t Running On Empty like Jackson Browne).

Now through Sept. 7 at Dearborn’s Henry Ford Museum—Get ready for a second dose of rock—more than 20 eye-popping cars and 50 iconic guitars from rock's greatest legends, and a dizzying array of rock memorabilia. Click here to download a compilation of musical hits by artists featured in the exhibit.

We all know the color of Prince’s Corvette and that Golden Earring had a strange radar fetish. Steve Miller had the Mercury Blues, the Eagles an Ol’ 55 and lived Life In the Fast Lane, while Sammy Hagar couldn’t drive 55. War cruised around in a decked-out Low Rider, Janis wanted a Benz, Broooose a Pink Cadillac, and all the while Commander Cody warned that he was going to be driven to drinkin’ if we didn’t stop driving that hot…..rod…..Lincoln!

Neko Case & Robin Trower ~ DVD Concert Revue

Last night I watched a couple of disparate Netflix concert videos—disparate in the sense of musical genres visited. Both sounded terrific on the surround system, what with the subwoofer pumping up the bass through the sofa where I was seated.

The first DVD is an Austin City Limits performance by alt-country performer, Neko Case. If you haven't heard Neko, she has a range I haven't heard from many others, most notably on Deep Red Bells from her Blacklisted CD. She covers the song—an absolute favorite around here—well enough on this DVD, though it just isn't the same as the studio version with the latter's added vocal effects. Nevertheless, she puts on an awesome display during this performance—nervousness and all. Backed by Tom V. Ray on standup bass and Jon Rauhouse on banjo and Hawaiian slide guitar, Neko belts out tune after tune, each one impressive indeed. Sadly, Kelly Hogan falls way short as backup vocalist, but at least she doesn't get in the way.

For something completely different, the next performance, Living Out of Time, is by Robin Trower—he of the Jimi Hendrix School of Audiology. One has to be a wah-wah guitar fan to appreciate Trower's music, but hey! Celebrating his 60th birthday, he's in phenomenal shape here, after 40 years on the road and massive amounts of, uh, performance-enhancing substances. (The Tour de France officials should check his samples!) Played LOUD, the band plays a few tracks off recent releases, polished off by solid performances of classic rock staples such as Bridge of Sighs. The topper, though, was a perfect rendition of Daydream from his first release, Twice Removed From Yesterday. If there's any disappointment, it's that no material from In City Dreams or Caravan To Midnight is included, but the concert is only so long, right?

Flashback: The Summer of Love

Waxing Nostalgic -or- Johnny Comes Lately

I recently journeyed to San Francisco to interview for a position at eWeek, published by Ziff-Davis Media. eWeek...sister publication to PC Magazine and formerly titled PC Week—which used to quote me when I was a PC reseller during those heady days of Windows 3.0. And sister publication to Windows Sources, for which I had a one-time cover story credit and was the Windows tips editor for a few months.

Now to be here..in San Francisco...interviewing at the Ziff-Davis. It definitely felt like I was coming full circle, regardless of the outcome.

Years ago San Francisco was only something I read about in Rolling Stone, or maybe even Life magazine, should one George Harrison decide to drop in on the Summer of Love. And long before I came to appreciate Tony Bennett leaving his heart there (one of three palatable songs on The Blue Room jukebox, the others being The Kingston Trio's Scotch & Soda and Dolly Parton's Jolene), it was Scott McKenzie imploring us to "be sure to wear flowers in your hair" and Eric Burdon alluring us with "old angels young angels feel alright, on a warm San Franciscan night."

Jimi Hendrix, baby believe me, set the world on fire, yeah!

Early for my appointment and it being the noon hour, I took a quick survey of the block and immediately sensed something was missing: honking taxis. That's right—the city had all the vibrancy of the Big Apple, including its own well-appointed Frederick Law Olmsted park, but no demonic honking taxis.

His majesty, Prince Jones, smiled as he moved among the crowd...

The crowd. Not a crowd, per se, but lots of people. Interesting-looking people, all with stories to tell and songs to sing—regardless of their ethnicity, dress, age, gender, or physique. And here's my epiphany: every last one of 'em looked just like R. Crumb's depictions. Or is it "despictions?" Although we may feel a sense of shame about them in flipping the pages of a Zap! Comix, here there is nothing about which to be ashamed—they're just common ordinary people. Right outta dem pages of Zap!, fer cryin' out loud! Why, there's Jumpin' Jimmy Jiz...over there's a sewer snoid... No, man... dey's people, just like you............

Continued...
Giving numerous restaurants the cursory evaluation, I ultimately settled upon The Toaster Oven Sandwich Shop for a bit o' nosh. It looked low-key, no hassle, probably a tasty sandie and—if all goes well—maybe even a table outside. Entering the queue, and feeling somewhat the outsider in my Mr. Bidnessman Suit, I was immediately swept away by the music:

"I can walk down the street and there's no one there,
though the pavement's a one huge crowd...
I can drive down the road; my eyes don't see,
Though my mind wants to cry out loud.
Though my mind wants to cry out loud."

It was I Feel Free from Cream's debut Fresh Cream release. Suddenly it was 19-freakin'-67 all over again ("Sherman, set the Wayback Machine...") and I was at the Grande Ballroom—where my life changed forever—the Grande being but Detroit's knock-off of Bill Graham's original Fillmore Auditorium. And here I was.

Standing in line, I wanted to strip open my Oxford shirt to reveal—what? That "I'm one of you?'" Or maybe slip on my bandana headband and play Frisbee in the park? Certainly a job interview was not where my head was at, though the prospect of Ziff-Davis was enticing...

I'm gonna wave my freak flag high, high!

...and when my mind is wandering there I will go... Next up was the Guess Who's Laughing, followed by a familiar Santana song for which I forgot to write down the title. Maybe it was too familiar, as Santana can sometimes be (Oye como va...mi ritmo...bueno pa gosar...mulata). Dunno what kind of sandie I got; some sorta meat sub with sweet peppers and a street view. I opted out of dining al fresco, though, settling for a window view of the passersby and:

Shoefly, dragonfly, get back to your mother.
Pick up a flat rock, skip it across green river.
We...lllllll!

Then I think there was a forgettable Stevie Wonder song, followed by the inimitable Al Green—Love & Happiness—with its defining opening guitar riff.

Funny, but if you sit in one place long enough, the people walking by start to become repetitive....like you're on a Lionel train set passing the same plastic diner with the same townsfolk stenciled on the windows. But it was way too sunny to be...The Twilight Zone, and the music was way too cool:

That spoon, that spoon, that spoonful.
That spoon, that spoon, that spoonful.

I was straining to identify the next one. What was that? Ah, yes... Woo hoo, witchy woman, she got the moon in her eye, followed immediately by Neil Young's Harvest Moon.

Too many people, too many songs, too little time, and ultimately 1968 had to once again become 2007.

Andy Summers Reveals Police Memorial

There was much more substance to the Police than Sting, the superstar artist. Without guitarist Andy Summers and drummer Stewart Copeland to help arrange the music, Sting's Roxanne may possibly have been recorded by someone else as a bossa nova track and the fledgling group might never have become stadium rockers.

Reading from his critically-acclaimed memoir, One Train Later, here Summers tells how the Police collectively developed their Outlandos d'Amour megahit and, in so doing, also defined the group's distinctive sound:

Andy Summers reads from One Train Later

From One Train Later one learns that Summers is a few years older than those who became his eventual bandmates, and that he was no stranger to London's early rock scene. A fixture on the circuit, he jammed with recent arrival, Jimi Hendrix, and sold Eric Clapton his '59 Gibson Les Paul guitar after EC's matching model was stolen.

Eric records Fresh Cream with my Les Paul [and] the terms Les Paul and Clapton become synonymous...before it was regarded as a weird failure...But possibly because of our little interchange, it becomes a Stradivarius of rock guitars.

Together with keyboard player and vocalist Zoot Money, Summers founded Dantalian's Chariot, soon a local headliner. In '67 they found themselves on London concert bills with the likes of Pink Floyd, Soft Machine and the Crazy World of Arthur Brown. (Also achieving notoriety in Paris, Dantalian's Chariot disbanded after a series of foibles in Northern Scotland that resulted in a hospital stay for Summers.)

Soon Money and Summers found it more lucrative to play sidemen to Eric Burdon in the New Animals. Life was good until Burdon decided to go in a different direction during a U.S. tour. After floundering awhile, Summers joined the Soft Machine but was dismissed just before they were to tour the states as a supporting act to Hendrix's Experience. A serendipitous, career-saving stint with Neil Sedaka (who was big in the U.K.) followed, and when the Rolling Stones went looking for a replacement for departing guitarist Mick Taylor, Summers was on their short list.

Other accounts like these take the reader half-way through the book. The remainder details the history of the Police, culminating in their historic Shea Stadium appearance. Many more fastinating anecdotes await you, including a wild chance encounter with John Belushi while vacationing in Bali!

Captured shortly after the release of his memoir, below is Summers being interviewed on the BBC's Later... With Jools Holland. This segment includes some brief footage of the Police as they approach the pinnacle of their career:

What's not well-known is how accomplished a guitarist Summers is and the numerous styles he can readily play, including jazz and classical music. Since the Police, he has recorded numerous albums as a leader or in collaboration with others, including (old friend) Robert Fripp, Ginger Baker, Brian Auger, Herbie Hancock and Brazilian jazz pianist, arranger, vocalist and songwriter, Elaine Elias. Listen to two tracks from Summers' World Gone Strange:

World Gone Strange

Oudu Kanjaira

Other post-Police recordings by Andy Summers may be heard in their entirety at his MySpace page. A more recent compilation, including a pairing with Deborah Harry, may be sampled here. And guitar players/collectors may be interested in learning more about Fender's Andy Summers Tribute Telecaster®, used by Summers to provide the Police with their unique guitar sound.