QUICKSILVER MESSENGER SERVICE
''WHAT ABOUT ME''
DECEMBER 1970
45:25
1 What About Me 06:41
2 Local Color (John Cipollina) 02:55
3 Baby Baby 04:40
4 Won't Kill Me (David Freiberg) 02:29
5 Long Haired Lady 05:51
6 Subway (Gary Duncan, Oris Farrow) 04:24
7 Spindrifter (Nicky Hopkins) 04:34
8 Good Old Rock & Roll 02:28
9 All In My Mind (Gary Duncan, Oris Farrow) 03:45
10 Call On Me 07:33
Tracks By Jesse Oris Farrow, Except 2, 4, 6, 7, 9
Dino Valenti – guitar, vocals, flute, percussion
Gary Duncan – guitar, vocals, bass, percussion, organ
John Cipollina – guitar, percussion
Nicky Hopkins – keyboards, piano
David Freiberg – bass, vocals, guitar
Greg Elmore – drums, percussion
Additional musicians:
Martin Fierro - flute, alto sax, tenor sax, winds
Frank Morin - saxophone, tenor sax
Mark Naftalin - piano
Pat O'Hara - trombone
Jose Reyes - percussion, conga, vocals
Ron Taormina - saxophone, baritone sax, soprano sax
ABOUT THE ALBUM/WIKIPEDIA
What About Me is the fifth album by American psychedelic rock band Quicksilver Messenger Service. Released in December 1970 and recorded partly at the same sessions that produced Just for Love, the album is the last to feature pianist Nicky Hopkins and the last pre-reunion effort to feature founding members David Freiberg and John Cipollina.
REVIEW/AMG
by Lindsay Planer
Musically, there is little to delineate the fifth long-player from Quicksilver Messenger Service, What About Me, from their previous effort, Just for Love. Not surprisingly, material for both was initiated during a prolific two-month retreat to the Opaelua Lodge in Haleiwa, HI, during May and June of 1970. The quartet version of Quicksilver Messenger Service -- which had yielded the band's first two LPs -- expanded once again to include Dino Valenti (aka Chester A. Powers, Chet Powers, and most notably on this album, Jesse Oris Farrow) as well as British session keyboardist Nicky Hopkins. The additional talents of Mark Naftalin (keyboards) were incorporated when Hopkins was unavailable. This began his short stint with Quicksilver Messenger Service, which lasted through their sixth LP, Quicksilver (1972). The most apparent change in Quicksilver Messenger Service's sound can be directly attributed to the return of Valenti. The group has departed the long, free-flowing improvisations that prevailed on both their self-titled debut and follow-up, Happy Trails. The songs are now shorter and more notably structured, with an added emphasis on Valenti's compositions. The title track, "What About Me," became an ethical and sociological anthem with challenging and direct lyrical references to the political and social instability of the early '70s. Valenti, whose songwriting credits on this disc are both numerous and attributed to his Farrow persona, also comes up with some passable introspective love songs, such as "Baby Baby" and "Long Haired Lady," as well as a couple of interesting collaborations with Gary Duncan (bass/vocals). The psychedelic samba "All in My Mind" also highlights the often overlooked percussive contributions from Jose Reyes. Two of the more distinguished entries on What About Me are John Cipollina's raunchy blues instrumental "Local Color" -- replete with a driving backbeat reminiscent of their take on the Robert Johnson standard "Walkin' Blues" -- as well as Nicky Hopkins' emotive "Spindrifter."
BIOGRAPHY/AMG
by William Ruhlmann
The band that became Quicksilver Messenger Service originally was conceived as a rock vehicle for folk singer/songwriter Dino Valente (b. Nov. 7, 1943, d. Nov 16, 1994), author of "Get Together." Living in San Francisco, Valente had found guitarist John Cipollina (b. Aug. 24, 1943, d. May 29, 1989) and singer Jim Murray. Valente's friend David Freiberg (b. Aug. 24, 1938) joined on bass, and the group was completed by the addition of drummer Greg Elmore (b. Sep. 4, 1946) and guitarist Gary Duncan (b. Sep 4, 1946). As the band was being put together, Valente was imprisoned on a drug charge and he didn't rejoin Quicksilver until later.
Happy Trails
They debuted at the end of 1965 and played around the Bay Area and then the West Coast for the next two years, building up a large following but resisting offers to record that had been taken up by such San Francisco acid rock colleagues as Jefferson Airplane and the Grateful Dead. Quicksilver finally signed to Capitol toward the end of 1967 and recorded their self-titled debut album in 1968 (by this time, Murray had left). Happy Trails, the 1969 follow-up, was recorded live. After its release, Duncan left the band and was replaced for Shady Grove (1970) by British session pianist Nicky Hopkins. By the time of its release, however, Duncan had returned, along with Valente, making the group a sextet.
Just for Love
This version of Quicksilver, prominently featuring Valente's songs and lead vocals, lasted only a year, during which two albums, Just for Love and What About Me, were recorded. Cipollina, Freiberg, and Hopkins then left, and the remaining trio of Valente, Duncan, and Elmore hired replacements and cut another couple of albums before disbanding. There was a reunion in 1975, resulting in a new album and a tour, and in 1986 Duncan revived the Quicksilver name for an album that also featured Freiberg on background vocals.
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''WHAT ABOUT ME''
DECEMBER 1970
45:25
1 What About Me 06:41
2 Local Color (John Cipollina) 02:55
3 Baby Baby 04:40
4 Won't Kill Me (David Freiberg) 02:29
5 Long Haired Lady 05:51
6 Subway (Gary Duncan, Oris Farrow) 04:24
7 Spindrifter (Nicky Hopkins) 04:34
8 Good Old Rock & Roll 02:28
9 All In My Mind (Gary Duncan, Oris Farrow) 03:45
10 Call On Me 07:33
Tracks By Jesse Oris Farrow, Except 2, 4, 6, 7, 9
Dino Valenti – guitar, vocals, flute, percussion
Gary Duncan – guitar, vocals, bass, percussion, organ
John Cipollina – guitar, percussion
Nicky Hopkins – keyboards, piano
David Freiberg – bass, vocals, guitar
Greg Elmore – drums, percussion
Additional musicians:
Martin Fierro - flute, alto sax, tenor sax, winds
Frank Morin - saxophone, tenor sax
Mark Naftalin - piano
Pat O'Hara - trombone
Jose Reyes - percussion, conga, vocals
Ron Taormina - saxophone, baritone sax, soprano sax
ABOUT THE ALBUM/WIKIPEDIA
What About Me is the fifth album by American psychedelic rock band Quicksilver Messenger Service. Released in December 1970 and recorded partly at the same sessions that produced Just for Love, the album is the last to feature pianist Nicky Hopkins and the last pre-reunion effort to feature founding members David Freiberg and John Cipollina.
REVIEW/AMG
by Lindsay Planer
Musically, there is little to delineate the fifth long-player from Quicksilver Messenger Service, What About Me, from their previous effort, Just for Love. Not surprisingly, material for both was initiated during a prolific two-month retreat to the Opaelua Lodge in Haleiwa, HI, during May and June of 1970. The quartet version of Quicksilver Messenger Service -- which had yielded the band's first two LPs -- expanded once again to include Dino Valenti (aka Chester A. Powers, Chet Powers, and most notably on this album, Jesse Oris Farrow) as well as British session keyboardist Nicky Hopkins. The additional talents of Mark Naftalin (keyboards) were incorporated when Hopkins was unavailable. This began his short stint with Quicksilver Messenger Service, which lasted through their sixth LP, Quicksilver (1972). The most apparent change in Quicksilver Messenger Service's sound can be directly attributed to the return of Valenti. The group has departed the long, free-flowing improvisations that prevailed on both their self-titled debut and follow-up, Happy Trails. The songs are now shorter and more notably structured, with an added emphasis on Valenti's compositions. The title track, "What About Me," became an ethical and sociological anthem with challenging and direct lyrical references to the political and social instability of the early '70s. Valenti, whose songwriting credits on this disc are both numerous and attributed to his Farrow persona, also comes up with some passable introspective love songs, such as "Baby Baby" and "Long Haired Lady," as well as a couple of interesting collaborations with Gary Duncan (bass/vocals). The psychedelic samba "All in My Mind" also highlights the often overlooked percussive contributions from Jose Reyes. Two of the more distinguished entries on What About Me are John Cipollina's raunchy blues instrumental "Local Color" -- replete with a driving backbeat reminiscent of their take on the Robert Johnson standard "Walkin' Blues" -- as well as Nicky Hopkins' emotive "Spindrifter."
BIOGRAPHY/AMG
by William Ruhlmann
The band that became Quicksilver Messenger Service originally was conceived as a rock vehicle for folk singer/songwriter Dino Valente (b. Nov. 7, 1943, d. Nov 16, 1994), author of "Get Together." Living in San Francisco, Valente had found guitarist John Cipollina (b. Aug. 24, 1943, d. May 29, 1989) and singer Jim Murray. Valente's friend David Freiberg (b. Aug. 24, 1938) joined on bass, and the group was completed by the addition of drummer Greg Elmore (b. Sep. 4, 1946) and guitarist Gary Duncan (b. Sep 4, 1946). As the band was being put together, Valente was imprisoned on a drug charge and he didn't rejoin Quicksilver until later.
Happy Trails
They debuted at the end of 1965 and played around the Bay Area and then the West Coast for the next two years, building up a large following but resisting offers to record that had been taken up by such San Francisco acid rock colleagues as Jefferson Airplane and the Grateful Dead. Quicksilver finally signed to Capitol toward the end of 1967 and recorded their self-titled debut album in 1968 (by this time, Murray had left). Happy Trails, the 1969 follow-up, was recorded live. After its release, Duncan left the band and was replaced for Shady Grove (1970) by British session pianist Nicky Hopkins. By the time of its release, however, Duncan had returned, along with Valente, making the group a sextet.
Just for Love
This version of Quicksilver, prominently featuring Valente's songs and lead vocals, lasted only a year, during which two albums, Just for Love and What About Me, were recorded. Cipollina, Freiberg, and Hopkins then left, and the remaining trio of Valente, Duncan, and Elmore hired replacements and cut another couple of albums before disbanding. There was a reunion in 1975, resulting in a new album and a tour, and in 1986 Duncan revived the Quicksilver name for an album that also featured Freiberg on background vocals.
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