VA - High In The Morning: The British Progressive Pop Sounds Of 1973 (2022)

WEB VERSION

• Latest instalment of Grapefruit’s popular year-by-year overviews of the more melodic end of the early 70s UK progressive rock scene.

• A four-hour compilation featuring big hits, key album tracks, cult classics and rarities from 1973.

1973 was another significant year in British pop, with the recent arrival of glam – including the Bryan Ferry-led Roxy Music, who proved that “avant rock” could be a commercial proposition – inspiring many underground bands to adopt a more streamlined sound.

That more song-based approach helped give the 1973 singles chart a new energy, with memorable 45s from Mott The Hoople, Manfred Mann’s Earthband, Faces, Status Quo, Medicine Head and Nazareth.

Though they fell short of the charts, some of the era’s more idiosyncratic singer-songwriter talents – Kevin Ayers, Al Stewart, Kevin Coyne – also issued much-loved, radio-friendly singles.

On the live circuit, the UK free festival scene was dominated by a new hippie/glam/space rock convergence, with brand leaders Hawkwind joined by the likes of The Pink Fairies and Arthur Brown’s Kingdom Come.

Featuring all of the above names as well as Thin Lizzy, The Kinks, Sensational Alex Harvey Band, Caravan, Procol Harum, Stealers Wheel, Roy Wood, Rare Bird, Badfinger, Free, Family and many others, ‘High In The Morning’ is a fascinating three-CD, four-hour appraisal of the 1973 British rock and pop scene.

Housed in a clamshell box that features a classic crowd shot from that year’s Windsor free festival, ‘High In The Morning’ includes a 48-page booklet that’s packed with rare photos, quotes and biographical information.

CD1
[3:52] 1. Rococo - Wildfire
[5:32] 2. Dr Marigold's - Medusa
[3:43] 3. Bachdenkel - An (Other) Appointment With The Master
[3:34] 4. Joe Soap - Birdman
[3:09] 5. Paul Brett - Mr. Custer
[4:10] 6. Ducks Deluxe - Too Hot To Handle (Early Mix)
[3:12] 7. Patto - Pick Up The Phone

CD2
[3:37] 1. Martin Briley - Pale Green Vauxhall Driving Man
[2:36] 2. Duffy - Running Away
[2:28] 3. England's Glory - Showdown
[3:05] 4. Ithaca - Dreams (Story Of Our Time - Beneath This Sky)
[3:12] 5. Libido - Hold on to Your Fire
[3:41] 6. Family - Sweet Desiree
[2:20] 7. The Spencer Davis Group - Legal Eagle Shuffle
[3:57] 8. Arthur Brown's Kingdom Come - Slow Rock (2021 Remaster)
[4:08] 9. Streak - Dirty Dick
[6:56] 10. The Writing On The Wall - Buffalo (Version 1)

CD3
[4:25] 1. Silverhead - 16 And Savaged
[3:28] 2. Fairfield Ski - Man From Galilee
[2:32] 3. Liverpool Echo - Girl Said To Me
[2:03] 4. The Big Three - Always
[2:42] 5. Hemlock - Fool's Gold
[4:34] 6. Tucky Buzzard - Gold Medallions
[1:40] 7. Curved Air - World (2018 Remaster)
[3:21] 8. Complex - Moving Moor (Alternative Version 2)
[4:26] 9. Jade Warrior - English Morning
[3:00] 10. Shape Of The Rain - I Don't Need Nobody
[3:07] 11. Fler - Not Fade Away
[4:08] 12. Byzantium - I'll Always Be Your Friend
[3:21] 13. Patrick Campbell- Lyons - Out on the Road
[4:43] 14. Brett Marvin & the Thunderbolts - Bank Holiday
[2:59] 15. Reform - I'm Gonna Get You