Genre: progressive
Rating: ***** (5 stars)
Title: Spring
Company: Neon
Catalog: NE 6
Year: 1971
Country/State: Leicester, UK
Grade (cover/record): VG / VG+
Comments: three panel gatefold sleeve; name 'D. LisPouee Spet 72 (26)' in small blue ink on back cover; small '26' in a circle on cover; small sticker tear top right corner front cover
Available: 1
Catalog ID: not listed yet
Price: $350.00
Cost: $156.00
In the States, outside of collector circles this short lived Leichester-based quintet is virtually unknown. If anyone's ever heard of them, it's probably due to the fact Dire Straits drummer Pick Withers was a member. That said, among collectors Spring are held in high regard, making their sole LP a sought after collectable.
With a line up of keyboardist Kips Brown, bassist Adrian Maloney, lead guitarist Ray Martinez, singer Pat Moran, and drummer Pique (Pick) Withers managed to survive for about two years, during which time they tour the UK as an opening act for the Velvet Underground and released one LP for the RCA affiliated Neon label.
With Martinez serving as the notional front man, the band apparently found some local success and managed to even get some work in Welsh clubs. If you believe the story, the group's initial break came when their touring van broke down on the way from a gig in Cardiff, Wales. By odd coincidence they managed to flag down Kingsley Ward who was co-owner of Rockfield Recording Studios and had been searching for new talent to record. Impressed by the band Ward rushed them into his studio, signing them to RCA's newly formed Neon label.
Slapped with the dread 'progressive' label, beloved by scores of mellotron fans, and surrounded by an impressive blanket of hype, I have to admit to being fairly jaded the first couple of times I listened to 1971's "Spring". To be honest initially the collection simply didn't make much of an impression on me one way or the other. I remember disliking Moran's voice, wondering what the hell he was singing about on half of the songs and walking away with the general impression these guys were little more than third rate Moody Blues wannabes. So much for the concept of first impressions. Produced by Gus Dudgeon, the album featured eight group-penned originals and while there were some obvious Moodies influences, these guys were very much their own band. (Geez, the Moodies had one mellotron player while Spring boasted three in Brown, Martinez and Moran !) So what about the music? Well, it may have fallen under the progressive banner, but it was certainly at the less complex and avant garde end of the spectrum. Musically this was a uniquely British album. Critics readily use the adjective pastoral in reviews though it's seldom an accurate descriptor. In this case it's a perfect word to describe the album. Tracks like 'The Prisoner (Eight By Ten)', 'Grail' and 'Boats' (the latter sporting a tasty little jazzy segment) boasted easy going, beautiful melodies, keen playing (Martinez's guitar and Williams' martial beats were particularly impressive), and thoughtful lyrics which frequently seem to have an anti-war theme (tying in nicely with the stunning dead soldier three panel cover art.). The combination was guaranteed to drop your blood pressure by a couple of points. I'll even admit to liking Moran's occasionally slurred vocals. Elsewhere while not exactly heavy metal, propelled by Martinez's tasty lead guitar (and the mellotrons), 'Boats' and 'Golden Fleece' aptly demonstrated the band could handle more up tempo numbers. Maybe a little short of being a masterpiece, but unique in that it lived up to the hype, this is one of the few LPs I own that I've bothered to put of a CD-R for personal use.
'Spring" track listing:
(side 1)
1.) The Prisoner (Eight By Ten)
(Kips Brown - Adrian Maloney - Ray Martinez - Pat Moran - Pique Withers) -
5:35
2.) Grail ( Kips Brown - Adrian Maloney - Ray
Martinez - Pat Moran - Pique Withers) - 6:45
3.) Boats ( Kips Brown - Adrian Maloney - Ray
Martinez - Pat Moran - Pique Withers) - 2:00
4.) Shipwrecked Soldier ( Kips Brown - Adrian Maloney - Ray
Martinez - Pat Moran - Pique Withers) - 5:24
(side
2)
1.) Golden Fleece ( Kips Brown - Adrian Maloney - Ray
Martinez - Pat Moran - Pique Withers) - 7:00
2.) Inside Out ( Kips Brown - Adrian Maloney - Ray
Martinez - Pat Moran - Pique Withers) - 4:49
3.) Song to Absent Friends (The Island)
( Kips Brown - Adrian Maloney - Ray Martinez - Pat Moran - Pique Withers)
- 2:47
4.) Gazing ( Kips Brown - Adrian
Maloney - Ray Martinez - Pat Moran - Pique Withers)
- 5:54
Couple of other band tidbits. Peter Decindis (replaced Adrian Maloney during sessions for a planned follow-on album.
The stunning tri-panel cover showing a dead British soldier bleeding into a stream was simply credited to 'Keef'.
In case anyone cared, Martinez appeared in the band Airwaves, followed by stints in Gypsy (not to be confused with the American outfit), Showaddywaddy, and The Teddys. Moran focused his efforts on production, including working with the likes of Hawkwind and Van Der Graff Generation. Withers went on to worldwide success as a member of Dire Straits.
In 1994 the Repertoire label released the album in CD format (Repetoire catalog number REP 4472-WP) with three additional tracks apparently intended for an unreleased sophomore album ('Fool's Gold', 'Hendre Mews' and 'A Word Full of Whispers'). Lasers Edge reissued it in CD format in the States. The Eclipse label reissued the album in vinyl format in 1999.
There's also a Japanese-only release of the band's planned sophomore release "Spring 2". I've never been able to track down a copy, let alone heard it, but there's at least one on line blog site that claims it's every bit as good as the debut. (If anyone out there has a clue how to get a copy, let me know.)
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