The ELECTRIC FLAG "A Long Time Comin'" LP NM/VG+ 2 Eye Stereo 360 Sound 1B/ B

$

20

Information:

AllMusic Review by Joe Viglione  [-]

Writer Jeff Tamarkin says "ex Butterfield Band guitarist Mike Bloomfield, drummer Buddy Miles, and others put this soul-rock band together in 1967. This debut is a testament to their ability to catch fire and keep on burnin'." That The Electric Flag do so well -- they appeared at the Monterey International Pop Festival with the Blues Project, Paul Butterfield, and Janis Joplin, and all these groups had some musical connection to each other beyond that pivotal festival. A Long Time Comin' is the "new soul" described appropriately enough by the late critic Lillian Roxon, and tunes like "She Should Have Just" and "Over-Lovin' You" lean more towards the soul side than the pop so many radio listeners were attuned to back then. Nick Gravenites was too much of a purist to ride his blues on the Top 40 the way Felix Cavaliere gave us "Groovin'," so Janis Joplin's eventual replacement in Big Brother & the Holding Company, Gravenites, and this crew pour out "Groovin' Is Easy" on this disc. It's a classy production, intellectual ideas with lots of musical changes, a subdued version of what Joplin herself would give us on I Got Dem Ole Kozmic Blues Again, Mama two years later, with some of that album written by vocalist Gravenites. Though launched after Al Kooper's the Blues Project, A Long Time Comin' itself influenced bands who would go on to sell more records. In the traditional "Wine," it is proclaimed "you know Janis Joplin, she'll tell you all about that wine, baby." As good as the album is, though, the material is pretty much composed by Mike Bloomfield and Barry Goldberg, when they're not covering Howlin' Wolf's "Killing Floor" and adding spoken-word news broadcasts to the mix. More contributions by Buddy Miles and Gravenites in the songwriting department would have been welcome here. The extended CD version has four additional tracks, Bobby Hebb's "Sunny" and "Mystery," both which appear on the self-titled Electric Flag outing which followed this LP, as well as other material which shows up on Old Glory: The Best of Electric Flag, released in 2000. "Sittin' in Circles" opens like the Doors' "Riders on the Storm," the keyboards as well as the sound effects, and a hook of "hey little girl" which would resurface as the title of a Nick Gravenites tune on the aforementioned follow-up disc, where Gravenites and Miles did pick up the songwriting slack, Bloomfield having wandered off to Super Session with the Blues Project's Al Kooper. Amazing stuff all in all, which could eventually comprise a boxed set of experimental blues rock from the mid- to late sixties. Either version of this recording, original vinyl or extended CD, is fun listening and a revelation.

The Electric Flag ?– A Long Time Comin'

Label:

Columbia ?– CS 9597

Format:

Vinyl, LP, Album 

Country:

US

Released:

1968

Genre:

Jazz, Rock, Funk / Soul, Blues

Style:

Blues Rock, Jazz-Rock, Rhythm & Blues

TracklistHide Credits

A1 Killing Floor

Written-By – C. Burnett*

4:11

A2 Groovin' Is Easy

Written-By – R. Polte*

3:05

A3 Over-Lovin' You

Written-By – B. Goldberg*, M. Bloomfield*

2:10

A4 She Should Have Just

Written-By – Ron Pulte*

5:04

A5 Wine

Arranged By, Adapted By – M. Bloomfield*

Written-By – Trad.*

3:15

B1 Texas

Written-By – B. Miles*, M. Bloomfield*

4:48

B2 Sittin' In Circles

Written-By – B. Goldberg*

3:53

B3 You Don't Realize

Written-By – M. Bloomfield*

4:58

B4 Another Country

Written-By – R. Polte*

8:46

B5 Easy Rider

Written-By – M. Bloomfield*

0:50

Companies, etc.

Mastered At – Customatrix

Pressed By – Columbia Records Pressing Plant, Pitman

Manufactured By – Columbia Records

Manufactured By – CBS Inc.

Credits

Backing Vocals – Courts*, Bloomfields*

Baritone Saxophone – Herbie Rich

Bass – Harvey Brooks

Drums – Buddy Miles

Engineer – Roy Segal

Guitar – Harvey Brooks, Michael Bloomfield*, Sivuca

Keyboards – Barry Goldberg, Herbie Rich, Mike Fonfara*

Liner Notes – Michael Bloomfield*

Percussion – Buddy Miles, Harvey Brooks, Joe Church (2), John Court, Marcus Doubleday, Michael Bloomfield*, Nick Gravenites, Richie Havens, Sivuca

Photography By [Back Cover] – Jim Marshall (3)

Photography By [Cover] – John Berg, John Vidol, Todd Cazaux

Producer – John Court

Sitar – Richie Havens

Soloist, Violin – Bob Notkoff*

Strings – Charles McCracken, George Brown (8), Julius Held, Leo Daruczek

Synthesizer [Moog] – Paul Beaver

Tenor Saxophone – Herbie Rich, Peter Strazza

Trumpet – Marcus Doubleday

GOLDMINE GRADING

MINT ---- It should appear to be perfect. No scuffs or scratches, blotches or stains, labels or writing, tears or splits. Mint means perfect.

NEAR MINT ---- Otherwise mint but has one or two tiny inconsequential flaws that do not affect play. Covers should be close to perfect with minor signs of wear or age just becoming evident: slight ring-wear, minor denting to a corner, or writing on the cover should all be noted properly.

VERY GOOD PLUS ---- The record has been handled and played infrequently or very carefully. Not too far from perfect. On a disc, there may be light paper scuffs from sliding in and out of a sleeve or the vinyl or some of the original luster may be lost. A slight scratch that did not affect play would be acceptably VG+ for most collectors.

VERY GOOD ---- Record displays visible signs of handling and playing, such as loss of vinyl luster, light surface scratches, groove wear and spindle trails. Some audible surface noise, but should not overwhelm the musical experience. Usually a cover is VG when one or two of these problems are evident: ring wear, seam splits, bent corners, loss of gloss, stains, etc.

GOOD ---- Well played with little luster and significant surface noise. Despite defects, record should still play all the way through without skipping. Several cover flaws will be apparent, but should not obliterate the artwork.

POOR ---- Any record or cover that does not qualify for the above "Good" grading should be seen as Poor. Several cover flaws.