The first progressive rock band (and they had a great bass player)

[arielk]

Hey all,

My father recently introduced me to a band called Touch, they recorded one (eponymous) album in 1968 which was a blend of prog, psychedelia, boogie/blues, classical and jazz...pretty amazing stuff. Anyway, this band, Touch, apparently had among its fans Mick Jagger, Grace Slick and a very impressed Jimi Hendrix. Unfortunately they've been pretty forgotten since then. Check out their music at the myspace page dedicated to them (which the members of Touch are evidently aware of and glad for), at http://www.myspace.com/seventyfivemusic

Also, the All Music Guide at allmusic.com has a really illuminating and fascinating write-up on them (Allmusic gives their album 4 and a half stars!): http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p...1:gnfixq8jldhe

There's also a short wikipedia page on them if anyone's interested: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Touch_(60s_band))

I suppose I feel as though I should let people know about this amazing band, since they are due great recognition...

Let me know what you think

Ariel K.

[f'nar f'nar]

Wow! I really dig it, Down at Circe's Place is great!

[DoomandHeavy]

This is awesome, reminds me of Mahavishnu Orchestra.

[arielk]

Yeah, I really, really love Down at Circe's Place.

Aren't these guys great? You guys should help me spread the word about them, to the world music community...I'm serious...they deserve it.

[arielk]

Incidentally, I edited the link the wikipedia entry - had mis-copied the link.

And yeah, I defo. hear early Mahavishnu in there too...

[gweimer]

Well, right on the heels of Touch, were The Flock. They were another early prog band. And you'll DEFINITELY hear a little Mahavishnu there. Jerry Goodman came out of The Flock and went to Mahavishnu.

Here's the one song I always remember by them:
Clown - The Flock


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Flock_(band)

[IconBasser]

whoa, that was AWESOME!!!

is their music available in itunes or amazon or anything?

[gweimer]

Originally Posted by IconBasser

whoa, that was AWESOME!!!

is their music available in itunes or amazon or anything?

Touch, or The Flock? You can find a compilation CD of the two Flock albums on Amazon.

[Dosed_Mind]

That Touch stuff is very nice! A bit of a sad story though, they where actually TOO FAR ahead of their time

[MonetBass]

Here was their death-knell. Take heed, all:
"But when the record company suggested that Touch take their spiritual quest on the road, Gallucci bluntly refused, insisting that it would have been impossible to re-create the music's complexities live."

And somehow, bands like Yes, Pink Floyd, Genesis, et al managed to recreate their sound live just fine. Not to discount Touch's music at all, because it sounds great and had some commercial potential, but it seems Gallucci was a bit short-sighted.

[Dosed_Mind]

But didnt The Beatles state the same as being part of why they stopped touring? But i do agree that Touch perhaps should have done something, like simplified versions of their songs or whatever, too keep them going.

[arielk]

Originally Posted by IconBasser

whoa, that was AWESOME!!!

is their music available in itunes or amazon or anything?

If you're referring to Touch, I doubt it. But most of the album they released is on their myspace, and I suspect it might change tracklisting (on the myspace) from time to time. It's definitely possible to find the whole album, my father (who showed the band to me) managed to download it all from online. Oh, and check Amazon for used copies, there was a reissue of the album in '03 so it's possible you can find some.

Good luck.

"That Touch stuff is very nice! A bit of a sad story though, they where actually TOO FAR ahead of their time "

Yeah, that's what I think, too. For one thing, it was so early on for prog that people weren't aware that that kind of music COULD be reproduced live...

Not to mention, Touch's music was even crazier than most prog has been - probably more than any prog I've heard. I'm not THAT surprised that Gallucci thought it couldn't be reproduced live - but yeah, stupidest band decision ever.

Essentially, if Touch had come out a couple years later, when prog existed in a bigger way, they would have become a bigger deal, IMO.

[Kink Rimson]

Great stuff! Some of it sounds alot like early Styx.

[DreadRaver]

Thanks for passing this along, much appreciated!

I found this, a slightly abridged version of Seventy-Five, on Youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EXkusSEQm3E

Weird to learn that this same Don Gallucci was the much maligned (by Iggy, at least,) producer of The Stooges Fun House:
Touch: The Ultimate Psychedelia
and
The Stooges, Fun House, and Don Gallucci

[chanson]

Love it.

[brianrost]

Same Don Gallucci who produced "Fun House" for the Stooges?

That song "Miss Teach" sounds like a Spirit ripoff.

[megadan]

Thanks for pointing them out. I really want to hear this album.

[JimK]

Is this it?
http://www.amazon.com/Touch/dp/B0001...7741212&sr=1-5

If you want it, you're gonna need some IMPORT $.

[arielk]

Originally Posted by JimK

Is this it?
http://www.amazon.com/Touch/dp/B0001...7741212&sr=1-5

If you want it, you're gonna need some IMPORT $.

Yes, that's it. Probably worth buying, regardless, IMO.

Dreadraver - Found this, too:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXnWx...eature=related

Anyway, I'm really thrilled that this thread has really taken off, thanks for the comments y'all. If I lived in Los Angeles still, I would go and try to get a haircut from Jeff Hawks, myself :-P

Seriously.

[arielk]

Incidentally, I've never heard the Stooges; was Fun House poorly produced, according to y'all?