Colossal Coliseum = Colosseum

Although only partly interesting for the proghead, this album is a stunning debut, definitely groundbreaking but not really jazz-rock in the form of Miles Davis or Nucleus but more in the sense of Brass rock (without the brass section, though) like Chicago Transit Authority, The Flock or If.

Does one brass/woodwind player in a band constitute a brass rock outfit??? John Mayall's Bluesbreakers with DH-S , Henry Lowther and others (e.g. on Bare Wires is closer to the real thing? DEBATE .

But then is When A Old Cricketeer by Roy Harper, (with Bill Bruford, Chris Spedding and a notable works brass band)  'brass folk rock'..............?

COLOSSEUM – Valentyne Suite

Second article in series of five.

Second album from this groundbreaking quintet that had offered us much of a thrill with their debut. Again here, if you are looking for the vinyl, please be aware that this album came out with a very close-looking version in America, but a completely different track list and is titled, The Grass Is Greener 5BTW, I distinctly remember a first version of Lost Angeles on this version of the album). Again here I will review the Cd version as to not complicate things uselessly. What one must realize is that this album was the first released by progressive label Vertigo and the first vinyl to have that superb spiral spinning around the vortex of the record. A real delight to watch it spinning especially while listening to the second side of the vinyl. As if that label and that track were made for each other.

Starting in the same fashion as their debut on an incredibly positive, joyously-communicative (bordering on the epidemic contagion ;-), with Litherland stealing the show both with his superb voice and his wild guitar wailings, James "Butty" is reaching his moment of glory in this RnB-infested rock track. A real gas even if you are not that much in RnB music. Elegy has absolutely nothing to envy its predecessor both in happiness but here DH-S’s sax takes the centre-stage and the group is accompanied by a superb string section, which at times draws chills in your back. As you might have guessed, the next track is a rather slow blues with an infectious organ groove and heavy brass section, and Butty Litherland unleashing his heart onto an unsuspecting microphone and your disbelieving here. Orgasmic. Closing of the A-side is a much-more Sacrifice-Demanding Machine, which confirms the progressive qualities detected in the debut album, even if the tracks is also starting as a blues, but this time much more oppressive than previous tracks and it has mid-track fade out (well this is not yet the 70’s, so one can forgive the less successful experimentations such as this one. The track ends in a total chaos, which still shows that ideas were there, but not always perfectly laid out on wax.

But all you progheads are giving a hoot about is my coming down to describing the chef d’oeuvre that is coming out and filling (and fulfilling you) the B-side. Starting out a bit like BRubeck’s Blue Rondo a La Turc (or more like The Nice’s version of it), the track soon diverges from it as Greeenslade’s delicious vibraphone descending lines reach directly into your heart, blocks the main vein and all you have to do is wait for the vibes to return before the strokes gets to you. But Dave is a gentleman and happily obliges some more life-saving orgasmic vibes lines. Clearly, this track is Greenslade’s "Heure De Gloire", the track he will forever remembered for and as the first movement ends with him having switched to piano (McCoy Tyner-influenced) with DH-S approaching the feel of this writer’s ultimate musician, John Coltrane during A Love Supreme!!!!!! Needless to say that Hiseman was playing along as if he was Elvin Jones. 30 years down the road this passage still nails me to the floor with tears of joy flowing out uncontrollably. The main Berstein-inspired theme then takes over again with Greenslade now taking more liberties with the harmonies, while the track is only made possible by Hiseman’s wild drumming. As the track is again calming down, Butty Litherland comes in along with the others for some superb angelic vocalizing superbly underlined by D H-S’s sax lines. To say that much of this track was written on the day that mankind walked on the moon (although only 6 at the time, I remember that day vividly) is simply so telling, July 21, 69!!! The third part is letting more part to the guitar, but Greenslade is dominating the debate again, and there are some incredibly delightful exchanges between the two but DHS is never far away either. Clearly, TVS is taking off where The Ides Of March had left it on the debut album. But as orgasmic this track is, there is also a feel that the many influences it draws from, even if well-digested are a bit too obvious and this might just be the ultimate reason why Colosseum will never break the big leagues like Yes or Crimson.

Unfortunately for him Litherland was to be sacked because he was mostly a blues player, and Hiseman being the boss he was (the group’s official name is John Hiseman’s Closseum), and having the opportunity to snatch Clempson from Bakerloo. Tony Reeves left also on musical grounds but of his own. So Clempson will bring in Mark Clarke into the band also. This second album while still not completely progressive, is certainly as historically important as The Nice’s debut or Crimson’s ITCOTCK and just for that merits the fifth star. Awesome!!!

A further thought for exploration, is the chronology of musical development of UK jazz rock and associated album releases. So put the following early jazz rock or related albums in two orders: first, recording date and second, release date:

John McLaughlin: Extrapolation

John Surman: Way Back When

John Surman/John McLaughlin: Where Fortune Smiles

Mike Westbrook: Marching Songs

Soft Machine:  Volume 2, Third

Colosseum: Those About To Die

Ten Years After: Undead

Miles Davis: Bitches Brew

Tony William's Lifetime: Emergency, Turn It Over

Jack Bruce: Things We Like, Songs For A Tailor

John Mayall: Bare Wires

Johnny Almond's Music Machine

Circus

Tasavallan Presidentti's first 4 albums

Nucleus's first album

Mike Gibb's  first couple of albums, as arranger

(Should Igginbottom's Wrench be here??)

In this thread, I would like to develop on Colosseum (considered as one of the developpers of jazz rock, but also how the British Rhythm'n Blues scene of the mid-60's actually produced us some superb progressive moments as the decade closed and opened up a whole new alley to explore!!

JOHN HISEMEN'S COLOSSEUM

  here above is the second line-up (not to be confused with the Coloseum II group) consisting of:

- Chris Farlowe / vocals
- Dave Greenslade / organ, keyboards, vibraphone
- Mark Clarke / bass, vocals
- Dave "Clem" Clempson / guitar, vocals
- Dick Heckstall-Smith / saxophone, sax (Soprano), sax (Tenor)
- Jon Hiseman / drums, producer

________________________________________________________

In this first post, I shall discuss the debut album, but pleas, if yoiu are North American and you have the original vinyl, you might just get confused over this as the first two albums came with fairly similar artwork, but the tracks were completely different.

COLOSSEUM – Those Who Are About To Die Salute You

First article in series of five

Coming from the British RnB (via the Graham Bond Organization), the blues boon (John Mayall And The Bluesbreakers), the general countercultures via Beat poets (Pete Brown of Cream lyrics fame), came to be this amalgam of musicians but the group was clearly lead by drummer John Hiseman (a self-confessed control freak) and his partner in music Dick Heckstall-Smith. Joining the group was ex-Thunderbirds (Chris Farlowe’s backing band) Greenslade with his astounding organ playing and Reeves, and finally young blues singer/guitarist James Litherland. Saxman Dick Heckstall-Smith (DH-S for sort) is also known for his ability to play two wind instruments at a time, in this respect equalling VDGG’s Dave Jackson, but both being strongly influenced jazzman Roland “Rashaan” Kirk (who will also greatly influenced Tull’s Ian Anderson) actually managing three wind instruments at a time. While the brass was an important part of the Colosseum sound, over the years, critics and writer have tended to over-emphasise this aspect and some even claiming that they had invented Brass Rock, something that I would like to dispel a bit here in these reviews. Sure Colosseum had a jazzy sound (Hiseman although quite a rock drummer was also jazz-inspired and lead the group like many jazz band leaders were drummers), but jazz influences + wind instruments does not make brass rock like Chicago or B,S&T.

With such a RnB-rooted line-up most would not expect a very progressive group, but the chemistry that came out from those five was such that their music, that seems to flow so effortlessly, quickly became groundbreaking, while staying amazingly accessible.  Their debut record on Fontana came out and sold in good quantities and good management got them countless gigs, so these guys had an excellent chemistry plainly heard on this album. It should be noted that this album and the next came out across the Atlantic with fairly similar artwork, but with titles and track list completely shambled. The debut album in the US holds Valentyne Suite. We now will review the Cd rather than the vinyls to avoid the confusion.  Whatever the version of the vinyl, both artworks were slightly different but stunning gatefold sleeves and its title a citation of gladiators saluting the Roman emperor in the Coliseum. 

Lead-off track Walking in the Park (a cover from Graham Bond) is the band’s signature tracks with its exhilarating good moods, but so proud of its RnB roots and its very brassy feel (DH-S gets some help from a buddy). Plain-bluesy Plenty Hard Luck is a great showcase of Litherland’s vocals and Greenslade’s organs. With Mandarin, we now reach a definitely more serious level of composing with bassist Reeves showing us the way to enlightenment and the path to many rhythm changes and time sigs, this instrumental track is the first sign that this group had something really special and culminating in an unrefined (as in unpolished) guitar solo. Following tracks called debut is according to them, the first thing they played, and is again quite happily-communicative and it does sound like the ideal training ground for a band to get their stuff and tricks together.

Ides of March is one of the first musical crime that they commit and clearly it was a first draft of the Valentyne Suite to come in the next album. Based on the same Bach chord sequence than Procol’s Whiter Shade of pale, the tracks evolves into a harpsichord and searing bluesy guitar wailings while D H-S is wailing freely on his reeds (like a lover;-). Poly-rhythms dictate a fairly paced and atmospheric track, while remaining very swingy as the piano takes over in boogie constrasting strongly with the wordless vocals scattings. Slow blues is again showing where Litherland’s strengths were but ultimately, this would also prove his own undoing in the band as well. For a proghead, this track overstays a bit too much its welcome, but in its own genre this track is a killer. Title track closing off the album is a very up-tempoed jazzy-laced RnB with plenty of rhythm and sigs, Hiseman driving his musos like footsoldiers through marshes and swamp alike as the Roman emperor would if he was out to conquer new grounds. RnB does not really get much better than this baby, guys.

Although only partly interesting for the proghead, this album is a stunning debut, definitely groundbreaking but not really jazz-rock in the form of Miles Davis or Nucleus but more in the sense of Brass rock (without the brass section, though) like Chicago Transit Authority, The Flock or If.