in·im·i·ta·ble i'nimit'b'l/Submit adjective 1. so good or unusual as to be impossible to copy; unique. "the inimitable ambience of Hawaii" synonyms: incomparable, unparalleled, unrivaled, peerless, matchless, unequaled, unsurpassable, superlative, supreme, perfect, beyond compare, second to none, in
a class of one's own; That's right. This LA band was in a class of its own. People like to talk about how Miles Davis invented jazz-fusion... Sometimes they talk about Miles getting fusion from Charles Lloyd... and that's all well and good, I am a HUGE Miles Davis fan (112 Miles discs in my library), but credit where credit is due, Spirit was there before either of those guys. With the possible exception of Frank Zappa, Spirit was the first band that wove serious jazz chords, scales and rhythms into rock and made it work. I loved this band when I was young and while Ed Cassidy and Randy California kept the Spirit name alive, it was never really the same after the original band split. This package is great value, you get Spirit The Family That Plays Together Clear (the most under-rated of the lot) 12 Dreams of Dr Sardonicus Feedback (the "almost" Spirit album that has been long out of print) A hallmark of great music is that it never sounds dated. None of these Spirit releases sound dated. This was an incredible ensemble. I don't really count Feedback as a Spirit album. That doesn't mean it isn't good but there's definitely a vibe that was do distinctly Spirit that is missing. All 5 CDs come in mini-Lp sleeves with the original artwork; note that Dr Sardonicus, Family That Plays Together and Feedback are not gatefolds like the original Lps. There are no liner notes and the Website that Sony points us to for liner notes is no longer active. But that's ok! Who needs liner notes when the music speaks for itself. Spirit was a one of a kind band. Nobody else could get a blend of Rock, folk, jazz, classical and Beach-Boy like harmonies. Seriously, this was a great great band, innovative much like the original King Crimson but with a feeling of light rather than darkness. Nothing to do with the review but a fun little story about Spirit: I ran into Ed Cassidy in a service corridor at a hotel in Denver. The reformed original line-up, sans Jay Ferguson, was playing at Ebbets Field night club. There was a coffee shop next door and I was going to the late set. The coffee shop shared a restroom with Ebbets in the service corridor. I came out of the Gents and ran smack into Ed Cassidy. I gushed with delight. Spirit had just finished the early set and the other guys were several feet away. Ed called them over and introduced me to Randy, John and Mark and we talked for about 10 minutes. They asked me what I wanted to hear in the late set and they played those tunes! What a bunch of nice guys. I saw Spirit again later in the week, Mark Andes recognized me and said "hey" from the little stage there in Ebbets. He knew I was playing bass at the time and chatted about his '57 Precision Bass with me. How cool is that. And now years later I have my very own music release that is inspired by the great bands of the late 60's Sunset & Vine LA Sound ESPECIALLY SPIRIT. A little jazz wrapped up in rock with poetic visions. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01EK95UQA?ie=UTF8&keywords=timeslip%20better%20late%20than%20never&qid=1462557295&ref_=sr_1_1&sr=8-1
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