Spirit (Spirit album)

Spirit is the debut album by rock band Spirit, first released on January 22, 1968 by Ode Records. The experimental album was commercially successful, spending more than six months on the Billboard album charts,[4] peaking at #31. It was voted number 658 in Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums 3rd Edition (2000).

Spirit
Studio album by
Spirit
ReleasedJanuary 22, 1968 (1968-01-22)
RecordedAugust 31–November 17, 1967
Genre
Length41:55
LabelOde
ProducerLou Adler
Spirit chronology
Spirit
(1968)		 The Family That Plays Together
(1968)
Singles from Spirit
  1. "Mechanical World"
    Released: 1968
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Rolling Stone(favorable)[2]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[3]

Music

The guitar part of "Taurus" is said to have influenced Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page in writing "Stairway to Heaven".[5] Led Zeppelin opened for Spirit on an American tour in 1968, and also borrowed from "Fresh Garbage" in live performances of the song 'As Long as I Have You'.[6] However, it more likely that Stairway to Heaven comes from the arrangement of Cry Me a River (Arthur Hamilton song) from Davey Graham, who's influence on Jimmy Page can be heard on numerous numbers, also making it a source of inspiration for Taurus.

Release history

In 1973, Epic released a two-disc LP repackage of Spirit and Clear simply entitled Spirit.

The album was first issued on compact disc in 1996 by Sony. The original 1968 stereo mixes were not available for this release, so the album was remixed in stereo from the original multitrack tapes. This edition also includes four previously unreleased bonus tracks.

In 2017, Audio Fidelity reissued the album as a numbered limited edition hybrid SACD. This edition was remastered from the original 1968 stereo master tapes, which had not been commercially available since the LP release was discontinued in the 1970s. The 2017 edition also includes bonus tracks in the same mixes as those on the 1996 reissue.

Track listing
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Fresh-Garbage"Jay Ferguson3:11
2."Uncle Jack"Ferguson2:44
3."Mechanical World"
5:15
4."Taurus"Randy California2:37
5."Girl in Your Eye"Ferguson3:15
6."Straight Arrow"Ferguson2:50
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
7."Topanga Windows"Ferguson3:36
8."Gramophone Man"
3:49
9."Water Woman"Ferguson2:11
10."The Great Canyon Fire in General"Ferguson2:46
11."Elijah"Locke10:42
1996 reissue bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
12."Veruska"California2:50
13."Free Spirit"Locke4:27
14."If I Had a Woman"California3:11
15."Elijah" (Alternate Take)Locke9:42

Personnel

Spirit

Production
  • Lou Adler – producer
  • Marty Paich – string & horn arrangements
  • Eirik Wangberg, Armin Steiner & Mike Leitz – engineers
  • Corporate Head – album design
  • Tom Wilkes – art direction
  • Guy Webster – cover photo
  • Jay Thompson – back cover photo
  • Terry Clements, Marshall Blonstein, Doug Wallack – assistance
  • Vic Anesini – mastering, mixing
  • Nicholas Bennett – packaging manager
  • Adam Block – project director, project coordinator
  • Bob Irwin – producer, compilation producer
  • Jeff Smith – package design
  • Jay Thompson – photography, insert photography
  • Douglas Wallack – road manager

Charts

Album

Year Chart Position
1968 Billboard 200 31
1973 Billboard 200 191

See also

References
  1. Allmusic review
  2. Hansen, Barret (14 September 1968). "Recorsd". Rolling Stone. San Francisco: Rolling Stone.
  3. Larkin, Colin (2011). Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0857125958.
  4. https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/spirit/id489737#fullText
  5. "Whammy Bar" Guitar World April 1997: 19 "But California's most enduring legacy may well be the fingerpicked acoustic theme of the song "Taurus," which Jimmy Page lifted virtually note for note for the introduction to "Stairway to Heaven."
  6. Sleeve notes to 1996 reissue of Spirit's debut album, booklet included with CD EPC 485175
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