Which is THE Strawbs Epic?

 So that`s two of us then 

I don't know that I think of one of my favorite bands as having "epic" songs, and they have too many albums that I love dearly.

Just great music, but I'm not sure that DC can come up with something longer than his nice words and poems, that could be enlarged by the music as is the case in a couple of examples ... but they were always good and I wish they had better luck and a better chance ... DC and the group, deserve it for the fine amount of music right from the start.

My only sad comment? That DC had to quit music to work in the development of the FM radio in England, and apparently got known really well for his proposals to add a station in various places. So he had an effect, in terms of adding something ... but none of that is reflected too well in the albums, although I have not done a listing side by side of dates for the albums and the rest of his life.

For all the good he did on the radio thing, he did not push his own band, at least as far as his words are concerned in the book, and I think he should have done it a couple more times, but with the BBC and other folks with knives and guns in their had, I think he played it safe to not hurt any investors, Something like that, although my understanding of radio "history" in England is nothing compared to the one in America, that I was very close to!

M27Barney wrote: Ok. I've done farts longer than all those tracks...epics? Suppose to the popsters everything over three minutes is an epic boring prog dinosaur noodle fest....😎

Barney,

Stop being a twit and a tw@t!!

does it get more epic than this??

Hi,

His book is not clear in a lot of things ... the ending of the band in 1978, seems to coincide with the chance to make some money back at where he came from in radio which he had been involved with even in the earlier days with STRAWBS, and he might have stopped because STRAWBS was not bringing in enough money ... and I think his bills were mounting for house, child, etc ... 

His book is a bit strange for me, because his divided attentions, seems to make a case that the band just did not cut it to make things easier for him, even if/when the music was excellent all around, which at least in Santa Barbara, all the albums from 1974 to when I left in 1982 ... were all played senseless by Guy Guden on his shows regularly ... but I have a feeling that the American sales is what hurt the most ... they probably did not generate numbers that helped, and were too close to breaking even or losing some money.

I can't even decide how to do a review of the book, and I have read it twice.

right, Strawbs tended to the epic side of things during what is generally regarded as their peak period, but even the backsliding years had epics like "Beside the Rio Grande", "Burning for me" or "Words of Wisdom".  Beginning with "The Broken Hearted Bride" in 2008, they returned to the epic ideal with force.  BHB had 2 distinct epics ("A Call to Action" and "Through Aphrodite's Eyes"), "Dancing to the Devil's Beat" had one major one ("pro Patria Suite") and a smaller one ("When Silent Shadows Fall"), and the latest has 1-3 as we discussed.

TBH (and I think you agree Steve), the title cut to "Ferryman's Curse" doesn't quite do it for me. Lyrically yes, and at times musically as well, but the meter and melody are just meh for me,. especially when compared to its prequel "The Vision of the Lady of the Lake".  If that track could have lived up to its billing, it would be a 5 star album, but it costs the album a star and a bit for me unfortunately