Gracious! — The Recordings 1970-1971
The Recordings is a four-disc set bringing together all of the 70s output from Gracious!, a Surrey prog rock band, who had an adventurous/ dramatic sound that blended blues, rock, classical, symphonic, and beyond. The set brings together three CDs and a DVD, which features the band's short set at the 1970s Isle of Wight Festival
The four discs- each in its own card sleeve- come presented in an off white glossy flipside box, which on its front cover features a giant exclamation mark. Also featured is a twenty-page inlay booklet- it takes in a seven-page write-up about the band/ material featured here, a good selection of poster art/ flyers/ band pictures, as well as a reproduction of one of the album's abstract gatefolds.
Gracious! where formed in the year 1967 by Esher, Surrey school friends Paul 'Sandy' Davis- vocals/drummer, Alan Cowderoy-guitarist, Martin Kitcat- electric piano, and Mark Laird- bass. They were initially influenced by Cream and the UK’s Blues Rock movement, but in time, their sound would expand. The band initially existed between 1968 and 1971, though Tim Wheatley and Robert Lipson regrouped in 1995 to release another album. So their studio discography took in the Gracious! (1970), This is...Gracious!! (1971), and Echo (1996).
So first up on disc number one, we have the 1970s self-titled- this features five tracks in all. We go from the just over eight minutes of “Heaven”, which moves from choral organ and bass flow, onto rising/ softly baying lead work, through to a groovy blues rock workout with layered vocalising asking ‘Do you have a clean mind'. Onto “Fugue In 'D' Minor” with its jaunting/ layered classical guitar playing/ bounding bass work. Finishing with the epic nearing “The Dream” which shifts from wailing/ bounding rock, ornate classical piano workout, lushly bounding blends of bass tone/ keys/harmonies, baying/ slight angular prog rock riffing, blues rock work outs, trippy reverbed vocals/ jam freak out, and beyond. This is a great debut album that is both surprisingly varied & consistent throughout.
On the next disc, we have 1971’s This Is….Gracious!- It’s a five-track album, and really saw the band pushing their genre-shifting sound even more. We open with the epic/ original side-long “Super Nova”, which clocks in at just shy of the twenty-five-minute mark. It moves from Tangerine Dream-like spaced-out keyboards/electronics/ guitar jamming. Onto urgent organ/ guitar, slightly jazz rock-tinged grooving. Onto building symphonic rock with layered vocal dynamics, meet mournful wailing lead vocals. Though strumming along singer-songwriter fare, and beyond. In the album's second half, we go from lifting prog/ pop rock tones of “Once On A Windy Day”. The album is finished off with the gunning blues rock of “Hold Me Down” which features a wailing male lead vocal and the Beatles-like harmonising. Again, another This Is….Gracious!- is another excellent album, with so many rewarding shifts and unexpected turns.
On the last two discs in the box set, we have the band's 1970s Isle of Wight Festival performance; disc three is the CD and disc four is the DVD. The set runs for around twenty-six minutes or so, and rather surprisingly/ daringly, they decide to open up with the epic track “Super Nova”- most of it is played, though unfortunately, something goes wrong with their mellotron, so they have to switch to the prog rock pop of “Once On A Windy Day”- so the it’s just a two track set. It’s nice that we get the addition of the DVD, as it is largely well filmed, and it shows the band playing very well together for their nighttime performance.
Before this set, I had no idea who Gracious!- and I must say they are one of the lesser-known jewels of the early 70’s prog genre. It’s a great pity they never recorded anything beyond what’s here, as clearly they were starting to go somewhere, having been asked to play the Isle of Wight Festival. If you enjoy your prog rock genre mixed, with some rewarding shifts-then this box set will most certainly be for you.