Strawbs

In the course of nine years, the Strawbs evolved from an obscure, quirky British bluegrass group into one of the most beloved progressive rock bands in the world. This 150-minute collection covers most of that history, encompassing most (but not all) of the key songs from their nine A&M albums, as well as lost B-sides, songs by ex-members Richard Hudson and John Ford, and a pair of tracks off of Dave Cousins' 1972 solo album Two Weeks Last Summer. The selection of material is inspired, juxtaposing rarities with a good deal of important music from the core of their output. The programming straddles the collectable and the historical/musical significance of the material, so we get early-'70s FM hits such as "The River" and "Down by the Sea" sharing space with material such as "Martin Luther King's Dream" and subsequent extended progressive material like "Ghosts."

Essential: a masterpiece of progressive rock music.
A glimpse of heaven indeed
"From the Witchwood" marked the start of the Strawbs transition in earnest from a primarily acoustic folk based band, to a prog rock orientated band with strong folk influences.

A desperately under rated band which has had many line-ups, all of them led by the brilliant Dave Cousins - guitarist and vocalist. The Strawbs sound is immediately identifiable and includes elements of rock, folk, and classical influences. First and foremost they are brilliant musicians, and this DVD showcases some of their best tracks…

Few bands from the classic rock era that had some commercial success, yet never attained true stardom, have maintained such a steady release schedule in the 21st century as the Strawbs have. About 40 years on from the release of their debut, Dancing to the Devil's Beat finds them still at it, with a lineup in which all but one of the members served with the group back in its heyday. It would be quite unusual for a band with such a long career to be making major stylistic departures at this point, and the record has the kind of bittersweet, somber, narrative songs for which the Strawbs are known, as well as their characteristic mixture of folk and progressive rock. Both wistful regret and muted anger at the vagaries of war and conflict are voiced in the lyrics…

This album, cut live at London's Queen Elizabeth Hall in July of 1970, was the first Strawbs album to be released in the United States. It didn't do much in the U.S., but it did chart in England, and the original concert also got Rick Wakeman his first front-page coverage in the British music press, owing to his bravura performance on the solo piano spot, "Temperament for a Mind." The group is trying really hard here to make the jump from folk to folk-rock…

`Deep Cuts' is a mixed bag of styles and genres arranged in an accessible and easy to listen format, a collection of shorter and more concise pieces with slight progressive elements throughout. It's full of the usual charm and character of their previous albums, with rich and detailed lyrics and a feeling of sweet sentimentality. It's sophisticated and elegant pop/prog/folk with the expected country leanings and some rockier moments too, with a great balance of acoustic and electric guitar playing…