Several years ago, before I moved away from my home of 30 years (California), for the less congested, more breathable Illinois, I thought a good thing to do would be to go way back in time, and listen to bands I’ve ignored or otherwise didn’t have the cash in my younger years to explore further. One of them was a lesser known progressive band, Greenslade. I had promised myself to immerse myself fully becoming accustomed to not only their official releases but also their live sets, and any thing else that might have come out from the band, or had the band in them. I found it to be a fun exercise.
Greenslade was the child of Dave Greenslade, and Tony Reeves. Greenslade drew interesting comparisons to progressive bands of the ’70s, bands like Yes. They released their first album, the self-titled Greenslade back in 1973, following it up shortly with Bedside Manners Are Extra, also a 1973 set. Since they were not a band that everyone heard about or knew, they did not get a lot of press. If you heard them, it was because some savvy DJ at an independent or “cool” radio station wanted to play them. And right they were to play them. Greenslade were the real deal. They were a band that should have enjoyed more success than they did. In their music, they incorporated the sound of two keyboards creating expansive and rich tapestries of sound that were unique in each. Together they became a hallmark of Greenslade.
On December 17, fans can import four Greenslade albums on SHM CD from Warner Brothers Japan (a translating trip to Amazon Japan can help you here). The album titles include Greenslade (1973), Bedside Manners Are Extra (1973), Spyglass Guest (1974), and Time and Tide (1975). Each album is remastered, and are presented as mini LP CDs with paper sleeves replicating the original artwork.
When I checked the CD Japan site, they are calling these reissued, not remastered, in a 7 inch LP replica with SHM mastering. So I am thinking that they are using the remasters from a previous time. Worth being sure unless you want the packaging. For me, Bedside Manners are Extra stands head and shoulders over all their other releases if you wanted to gamble on one.
And if you like what you hear with Greenslade, check out another great under appreciated keyboard band (also featuring Greenslade’s drummer Andy McCullough), FIELDS. If you have a good set of speakers, their one and only album will shake the foundations of your house. And their music compares very favorably with ELP.