spirit

Spirit poured their mind bending mix of hard rock, folk, world, and jazz into a progressive psychedelic stew for their eclectic experimental eponymous debut.  Randy California (born Randolph Craig Wolfe) grew up around his uncle's nightclub the Ash Grove in Hollywood.  Ed Cassidy played there with the Rising Suns where he met Wolfe's recently divorced mother and the two got married.  Wolfe met Jay Ferguson and Mark Andes at a folk music camp and they formed a band called the Red Roosters. The band broke up when Cassidy took the family to New York.  It was there that Randy met Jimi Hendrix, who invited him to join his band Jimmy James & the Blue Flames.  Since there were two Randy's in the band, Hendrix gave them nicknames based on their home states with bassist Randy Palmer becoming "Randy Texas" while Wolfe became "Randy California".  When Hendrix was discovered by Chas Chandler, he asked California to come with him to England; but since he was only fifteen, it was not to be.  Instead, the family moved back west where California and Cassidy started another band Spirits Rebellious with John Locke.  They reconnected with Ferguson and Andes and the band shortened their name to Spirit.  They recorded a demo tape with Barry Hansen (Dr. Demento) and got signed to Ode Records by Lou Adler, who produced their first album with Mark Andes on bass and vocals; Randy California on bass, guitar, and vocals; Ed Cassidy on percussion and drums; Jay Ferguson on percussion, keyboards, and vocals; and John Locke on keyboards.  'Spirit' went to number thirty-one on the US album chart.  






randycaliforniaandspirit.com













All songs writtten by Jay Ferguson except where noted.


1. "Fresh-Garbage"   3:11
2. "Uncle Jack"   2:44
3. "Mechanical World"   Mark Andes, Ferguson 5:15
4. "Taurus"   Randy California 2:37
5. "Girl in Your Eye"   3:15
6. "Straight Arrow"   2:50
7. "Topanga Windows"   3:36
8. "Gramophone Man"   Andes, California, Ed Cassidy, Ferguson, John Locke 3:49
9. "Water Woman"   2:11
10. "The Great Canyon Fire in General"   2:46
11. "Elijah"   Locke 10:42


bonus tracks
12. "Veruska"   California 2:50
13. "Free Spirit"   Locke 4:27
14. "If I Had a Woman"   California 3:11
15. "Elijah" (Alternate Take) Locke 9:42