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LEGEND OF THE KINGFISHER

Gygafo

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Gygafo Legend Of The Kingfisher album cover
3.03 | 17 ratings | 3 reviews | 12% 5 stars

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Studio Album, released in 1973

Songs / Tracks Listing

1. Solid Man Song (3:54)
2. A Room With A View (5:35)
3. A. Waiting For The Rain B. Entering Winds Of Long Ago C. Seasons weather (Coming Home) (12:07)
4. And A Time To think (Box 1) (4:43)
5. Today I Am (5:44)
6. The Legend Of The Kingfisher (9:56)
7. What You Don`t Know (8:49)
8. Nineteen Eighty Four (5:18)

Total Time: 56:06

Line-up / Musicians

- John Atkinson / vocals, guitar, mandolin, flute, glockenspiel
- Paul Kent / bass
- Pete Nickson / drums, percussion
- Charlie Speed / lead guitar, backing vocals
- Eddie Stringer / keyboards, backing vocals

With:
- Mike Levon / saxophone, air guitar

Releases information

LP Holyground HG 155 (1989) 120 copies made
CD Background HBG 122/2 (1992)

Thanks to ProgLucky for the addition
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GYGAFO Legend Of The Kingfisher ratings distribution


3.03
(17 ratings)
Essential: a masterpiece of rock music(12%)
12%
Excellent addition to any rock music collection(53%)
53%
Good, but non-essential (29%)
29%
Collectors/fans only (6%)
6%
Poor. Only for completionists (0%)
0%

GYGAFO Legend Of The Kingfisher reviews


Showing all collaborators reviews and last reviews preview | Show all reviews/ratings

Collaborators/Experts Reviews

Review by Carl floyd fan
PROG REVIEWER
3 stars Quite the story behind this band. Apparently a record label executive told them to : "Get Your Gear And F##k Off". GYGAFO. Sounds like the executive was a little harsh. And after hearing this record maybe not the most intelligent in his field as this is actually a pretty good album. It certianlly has its short comings as nothing new is really explored in the album. Even after considering psych in 1967, this is still pretty standard sounding, and barely prog for sure. Its a pretty low key album without to much fire behind it but The Legend Of The Kingfisher is a nice long jam as well as Waiting For The Rain. They remind me a little of Asgard with the folk influences here and there. 3 stars, barely.
Review by ClemofNazareth
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Prog Folk Researcher
2 stars First to dispense with the theme of the record: the kingfisher (really a guy) is a creature named Al Syan the Third who wakes up one morning fed up with society and the bustle of traffic and organized religion, and embarks on a journey of discovery. Not sure why that combination of things are what set the little guy off, but that’s the storyline. So off he goes and encounters some colorful folks and has some immutable truths revealed to him and finds the answer to his question and then embarks on another journey, this one whose purpose is to find fame, fortune and immortality. At this point is becomes sort of apparent the lyrics are referring to the band itself, and also apparent they were either really poor at putting thematic continuity into their writings, or they were stoned. Maybe both.

All that aside, this is a fun CD to listen to today. It was original recorded in 1973, and released to very limited distribution (only a hundred copies or so from what I’ve read). It was reissued as a rather plain- wrappered CD in 1992 as a Background Series recording, but even that is out-of-print today.

Musically these guys have a little of sixties psych left in them, especially on the first few tracks of the album. The trilogy “Waiting for the Rain” followed by “And a Time to Think” demonstrate this best. But at the same time they are clearly experimenting with some progressive arrangements, both on guitar and in some of the song constructions. The second half of the record is the more interesting in my opinion, especially the title track where keyboardist Eddie Stringer works his way through a number of organ transitions that evoke a feeling of traveling on a long journey filled with both adventure and tranquility (which I think is pretty much what they were going for).

This is a very minor recording from a forgotten band that didn’t seem to have a whole lot of talent or career ambition; in fact, I can’t find any information on anything the band or any of its members did following this release. As a curiosity the record may appeal to some avid prog music collectors, but overall it is an average production at best. One has a tendency to overrate these obscure recordings when they surface, but I’ll fight that temptation and mark this down for what it is, a collector piece only. Two stars, but recommended as a CD to add to your collection if you come across if you want to impress your friends with just how eclectic your musical tastes are.

peace

Latest members reviews

4 stars It's not often that you can find a rare CD like that. One of the achievements we have today in the internet era is the ability to find such a band, buy it and now rate it :) I like this band - they were different, It's ver ydifficult to put a label on their music. On times it's a bit symphonic ... (read more)

Report this review (#306663) | Posted by progshachar | Tuesday, October 26, 2010 | Review Permanlink

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