May Blitz - May Blitz-The 2nd Of May (1970-71 Vertigo) 2LP

Artist: May Blitz
Albums: May Blitz/The 2nd Of May
Label: Vertigo – 6360 007/037
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album
Country: Canada/UK
Released: 1970/71
Genre: Heavy Progressive Rock
Audio codec: FLAC | lossless

Tracklist:
1970 May Blitz:
A1. Smoking The Day Away
A2. I Don't Know?
A3. Dreaming
B1. Squeet
B2. Tomorrow May Come
B3. Fire Queen
B4. Virgin Waters

1971 The 2nd Of May:
A1. For Mad Men Only
A2. Snakes And Ladders
A3. The 25th Of December 1969
A4. "In Part"
B1. 8 Mad Grim Nits
B2. High Beech
B3. Honey Coloured Time
B4. Just Thinking

Personnel:
James Black - lead guitar, lead vocals
Reid Hudson - bass, vocals
Tony Newman - drums, vibes, bongos, congas

The debut album of the English-Canadian trio. At the end of 1969, the legendary band “Bakerloo” lost its leader and founder Dave “Clem” Clempson. And the other two members of the band, Keith Baker and Terry Poole, decided to leave the idea of ​​their own group and join more famous bands. But at the same time, they met Canadian guitarist Jamie Black, whose virtuoso playing was able to instill in them faith in success. Realizing that the new trio was going far beyond “Bakerloo”, the musicians changed their name to “May Blitz”. The first few months of the new London team were a complete disappointment: from concert to concert, they had to hang around for weeks without doing anything, and they were never able to sign a contract to record an album. Which led to a logical outcome - the founders scattered to their corners (Baker, however, did not lose too much, since he joined “Uriah Heep” and participated in the creation of the epochal “Salisbury”). But Black did not stop there and invited a familiar bass player from Canada, Reid Hudson, as well as a legend of the English scene of the late 60s, Tony Newman (ex- “Jeff Beck Group”). The renewed group immediately fell under the wing of Vertigo. The studio appreciated their heavy, slightly bluesy progressive rock. The first album was released in 1970 and sounded in the spirit of its time, without losing its individual features. Unfortunately, the music remained incomprehensible to most listeners, and the number of records sold left much to be desired.

The recording of the second album was more serious, the sound became better (the appearance of a “free” producer was beneficial), but the style changed. The musicians (especially the Canadians) understood that there might not be a third chance, and it was necessary to create a masterpiece. Perhaps they did not succeed (the style was blurred, the compositions were more of a selection of material than a complete work), but they secured the glory of the first trash-metalists. They expanded the boundaries of rock art to the extreme, jumping above their heads. While many of their contemporaries broke up because they played too old-fashioned music, our heroes played “the music of the future”. The atmosphere of hopelessness and simultaneous sarcasm over their own pessimism - all this is the musical world of “May Blitz”. The record is still considered one of the most valuable and worthy products of Vertigo. In 1971, “May Blitz” broke up. The Canadians return to their homeland, where they still maintain friendly relations, but are interested in music at an amateur level. Tony Newman, on the contrary, continued a successful career as a drummer (“Three Man Army”, “Boxer”, etc.). But he never had to create anything more original than the music of “May Blitz”