This is the opening set of a marathon show, with Quicksilver sharing the bill with Jefferson Airplane and the Grateful Dead.
This set captures QMS heading in a new direction, with Dino Valenti now fronting the band, shortly after the release of their Just for Love LP, which contained their only charting hit: the anthem "Fresh Air." British piano virtuoso Nicky…entire summary
Dino Valenti - guitar, vocals
John Cipollina - guitar, vocals
Gary Duncan - guitar, vocals
David Freiberg - bass, vocals
Nicky Hopkins - piano
Greg Elmore - drums
This is the opening set of a marathon show, with Quicksilver sharing the bill with Jefferson Airplane and the Grateful Dead.
This set captures QMS heading in a new direction, with Dino Valenti now fronting the band, shortly after the release of their Just for Love LP, which contained their only charting hit: the anthem "Fresh Air." British piano virtuoso Nicky Hopkins had also become a full time member and his inventive playing compliments the intertwining guitar leads of Duncan and Cipollina quite well.
The classic older Quicksilver sound could still be heard on choice material like "Mona," "Pride Of Man" and "Who Do You Love," but a new impulse had begun to surface that centered around Dino Valenti's unique vocals and songwriting, as evinced on songs like "Subway," "Too Far, "Mojo" and slower singer-songwriter fare like "Warm Red Wine" and "Long Haired Lady."
Hopkins also gets a chance to lead the group with his signature song, the captivating instrumental arrangement "Edward the Mad Shirt Grinder." It's is a great piece of music that never received much commercial recognition, although it enjoyed a long and fruitful life during live performances.
The peak of this set is unquestionably the 24-minute uncut and completely intact improvisational jam sandwiched inside a half hour version of "Who Do You Love?"
For unvarnished fervidness, few bands could match QMS - whatever the lineup. It goes with out saying that a set like this would have provided more than enough fuel to ignite both artist and audience member alike, on what was sure to become a memorable San Francisco night.
Read more about Quicksilver Messenger Service in Crawdaddy!:
Read "Alexander "Skip" Spence: Oar" in Crawdaddy!
Read "The Golden Road: A Report on San Francisco" in Crawdaddy!
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