Mighty Baby
- For the 2002 Hong Kong film, see Mighty Baby (film).
| Mighty Baby | |
|---|---|
| Origin | London, England |
| Genres | Psychedelic rock, folk rock |
| Years active | 1968–1971[1] |
| Labels | Head Records, Blue Horizon, Castle Music |
| Associated acts | The Action |
| Website | actionmightybaby.co.uk |
| Past members |
Alan 'Bam' King Martin Stone Ian Whiteman Mike Evans Roger Powell |
Mighty Baby were formed in 1968 from the ashes of The Action.[1] They released two albums, Mighty Baby (which appeared in December 1969, but had been recorded a year earlier) and A Jug of Love (October 1971).
History
Their debut, a collection of psychedelic rock songs, appeared on the tiny Head record label in the UK, and on Chess in the United States. Over the course of 1970 several members of the band became Muslims (adherents of the Sufi order), and their second album reflected the spiritual journey they had embarked on, sounding little like its predecessor. They were the closing act on the first day of the Isle of Wight Festival 1970. It has been said that it was a meeting between Richard Thompson and the band that introduced Richard and Linda Thompson to the Sufi order.[2] It has notable guitar parts from Martin Stone.
As well as gigging regularly, the band also played many sessions for others, including Robin Scott (Woman From the Warm Grass), Andy Roberts, Keith Christmas (Stimulus and Fable Of The Wings), Shelagh McDonald, Sandy Denny, Gary Farr (Take Something with You, Strange Fruit).
A live concert, recorded at Malvern Winter Gardens in 1970, was released on the Sunbeam label during early 2010. These are from tapes held by Ian Whiteman given to him after the concert. A hitherto unreleased recording from the Glastonbury Fayre 1971 has been included in this document. It has been retrieved from the Radio Geronimo archive.
Mike 'Ace' Evans died on 15 January 2010 in London. He was buried at Woodland Burial Park near Beaconsfield.
Discography
- Action Speak Louder Than ... (1968 recordings of The Action already in Mighty Baby line-up, released in 1985)
- Mighty Baby (album, Head Records, 1969)
- Egyptian tomb / I'm from the country (Single Philips France 1969)
- "Devil's Whisper" b/w "Virgin Spring" (single, Blue Horizon 2096-003, October 1971)
- A Jug of Love (album, Blue Horizon 2931-001, October 1971)
- Glastonbury Fayre - various artists: one song: "A Blanket In My Muesli" (Revelation 1/2/3, triple album, April 1972, live recordings from Glastonbury 1971)
- Live In The Attic (Rolled Gold Productions, December 2000)
- Tasting The Life - Live 1971 (double album, Sunbeam Records, 2010)
With Reg King
- Reg King (album, United Artists Records 29157, 1971)
Band members
- Alan 'Bam' King - vocals, guitar (born 18 September 1945, Muswell Hill, North London).
- Martin Stone - guitar (born 11 December 1946, Woking, Surrey).
- Ian Whiteman - piano (born 18 May 1945, Saffron Walden, Essex).
- Mike 'Ace' Evans - bass guitar (born Michael Evans, 10 July 1945, Henley, Berkshire).
- Roger Powell - drums (born 4 July 1944, Camden Town, North West London).
References
- 1 2 Bruce Eder. "Mighty Baby". Allmusic. Retrieved 27 December 2011.
- ↑ essay by Leslie Berman included in Watching the Dark - The History of Richard Thompson