Traffic: The Low Spark Of High Heeled Boys (1971)
Buy This CD!In 1969, around the release of Last Exit (which was mainly live leftovers, that is performance of songs found on none of their other albums, and collections of non-album singles, more of an idea thought of by Island Records than by the band), Traffic broke up. Steve Winwood teamed up with Eric Clapton (no explanation needed: ex-Cream, ex-John Mayall, ex- Yardbirds), Richard Grech (ex-Family) and Ginger Baker (ex-Cream, obviously). The band was able to hang around long enough to get an album out, producing controversy (mainly for the cover, a nude girl, although rumors stating it was Ginger Baker’s daughter, apparently it wasn’t), going on tour, then breaking up. Dave Mason was starting on a solo career and released the album Alone Together, as well as many others (but only able to score the occasional hit, like “Only You Know and I Know” in 1970 off the Alone Together album and “We Just Disagree” from 1977 off Let It Flow).
In 1970, Steve Winwood intended to record a solo album called Mad Shadows, but he quickly got help from Traffic members, Jim Capaldi and Chris Wood, and he realized it would be better released as a Traffic album, so it was an unintentional reunion, and the resulting album, John Barlecorn Must Die was hailed by many as their finest album (the band concentrated less on short pop-oriented songs this time around, and more on extended jams with a more progressive slant).
By 1971, the band acquired three new musicians: drummer Jim Gordon (largely a session musician who have played for the likes of the Byrds and Frank Zappa and many others, but most famously for Derek & the Dominoes), bassist Richard Grech (ex-Blind Faith and Family) and Nigerian-born percussionist Reebop Kwaku Baah. Somewhere during this time Dave Mason temporarlily rejoined in time to perform some live shows that made up the Welcome to the Canteen album. Mason left (this time for good, concentrating on a solo career), and the rest of the band got to work with The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys.
At the point, Island Records finally get a liscence to operate in the United States, so the album got released there as well (American pressings of previous albums were on United Artists, and if you have any American Island pressings of any pre-Low Spark albums, those are later pressings). How does the band followup something like John Barleycorn Must Die? With another fantastic album that does not disappoint. Six songs, once again, this time lengthier, but not boring at all. “Hidden Treasure” is a great opening piece with nice flute work from Chris Wood, and a great acoustic folk feel. To hear Steve Winwood sing something like this, it’s a real shame he sold-out big time in the 1980s (I find it really difficult for me to stomach stuff like “Higher Love” and “Roll With It”). Unlike “John Barleycorn” from their previous album, this is not a cover of a traditional English folk song, but a Traffic original. Next comes the title track, at over 12 minutes, this was a perfect song for the old days of progressive free form FM radio in the early ’70s. Has a nice jazzy feel, extended us of piano, and some strange sounds (an electric sax probably). Jim Capaldi’s “Light Up Or Leave Me Alone” is a bit different, for one thing, it was Jim singing this piece (this was the first Traffic album since the departure of Dave Mason that someone other than Steve was handling the vocals). It was much more rock-oriented with electric piano, electric guitar, and (at the end) and extended jam. Ric Grech and Jim Gordon did “Rock and Roll Stew”, with vocals by Capaldi, a rock-oriented number about life on the road. “Many a Mile To Freedom” finds Steve handling the vocals again, a more gentle number dominated by electric piano and Chris Wood’s flute. Then comes the final piece, “Rainmaker”, which is a nice folk-y number, with some rather creative passages and flute work, before the piece ends with an extended sax solo with nice drumming that fades into nothing.
No doubt about it, The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys found Traffic at the top of the game, and this album is full of some of their finest songs ever. They were a great example of how a ’60s band was able to enter the early ’70s and still make great music. If you’re new to Traffic, there is no better place to start than here!