Customer Reviews

John Barleycorn Must Die

5 star:		(43)
4 star:		(9)
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Times had changed by 1970 ... Dave Mason was off to a full solo career, Chris Wood had joined Ginger Baker's Airforce, and Capaldi was not so sure what he wanted to do, but had not yet decided to quit the drums and be a singer.
This is how this album begins, with only Stevie Winwood in the studio, having already penned a couple of songs -"Every Mothers Son" and, only included in this remastered version, "Sittin' Here Thinkin' of My Love"- and ready to record a solo album.
Anyway, that was the plan but was not what ended up happening. Instead, whatever the real reason was -several stories are told- soon enough Capaldi and Steve's brother, Chris Wood, joined him and this became Traffic third studio album.
Although Mason was gone -his contribution to Traffic's original sound and the two gems they recorded together can never be acknowledged enough- Winwood had enough music, feeling and ideas to carry the load and make "Barleycorn ..." a classic in its own right.
It can be said that although this is very much a Traffic album, it is more heavily dominated by Winwood's musical vision and playing than its predecessors.
There are two strong musical courses, running through Winwood's veins, coming naturally to a crossroads here, the ever-present Jazz/R&B that Winwood had been feeding off since the Spencer Davis Group's days, and his connection to the English Folk tradition.
Actually, when you think that it was recorded over thirty years ago, it is even a more astounding example of how "ahead-of -its-times" Traffic was and, even more conclusively, what a tremendous composer Winwood had already become at 22.
Traffic, as a whole, and this album in particular are, to this day, one of the beacons of popular music that has ever been recorded, even today.

Traffic had one of the most original (and interesting) sounds in British rock, and not only because of their eclectic musical influences, which embraced psychedelia, folk, jazz, soul, R&B, and even classical. Their unique sound was also the result of their unusual instrumentation. While the group went through a number of personnel changes, its constant core members were Steve Winwood (vocals, keyboards, guitars), Chris Wood (sax, flute, and organ), and Jim Capaldi (drums & percussion). With no regular bass player, Winwood often filled in with the bass pedals on his organ. And, while there is no lack of guitars on most Traffic recordings, the guitar is not emphasized or particularly important to the group's sound. Dave Mason came and went in their early years and, on other recordings, Steve Winwood would switch to guitar, with Chris Wood taking over organ duties. In short, Traffic was anything but your typical guitar-bass-drums rock outfit. And, with "white Ray Charles" prodigy Winwood at the helm, and with their willingness to experiment with virtually any sound or musical style, they cut some of the most distinctive and important records in British rock.

"John Barleycorn Must Die" is the only recording by just the Traffic "core" trio, and it is also one of their strongest. With Dave Mason only a memory, and the Blind Faith experiment with Eric Clapton over, Steve Winwood returned to the studio to record his first solo album, originally titled "Mad Shadows." Needing a little musical support, he soon enlisted Capaldi and Wood, and Traffic was reborn with "John Barleycorn." However, the radio-friendly 3-minute song structures were abandoned, as Winwood & Co. stretched out into extended jazz-rock compositions. The instrumental "Glad," in particular, with Winwood's unforgetable piano riff and Wood's fat sax, may be the finest jazz-rock composition ever put to vinyl. In addition, early Traffic's folk-rock was updated by reaching back to medieval England for the title track. With limited, but extremely talented and complementary, personnel, "John Barleycorn" is probably Traffic's most cohesive and focused artistic statement.

To summarize: buy this record!

Traffic made its debut around 1967 in the U.K. with the album "Heaven is in your Mind" which was later released in the U.S. as "Dear Mr. Fantasy". The band consisted of Steve Winwood (of Spencer Davis Group fame), Jim Capaldi, Chris Wood and Dave Mason. Their second album titled "Traffic" followed shortly after. "John Barleycorn Must Die" was scheduled, apparently to be a solo album by Steve. Traffic members, Jim Capaldi and Chris Wood joined him on John Barleycorn and subsequently went on tour. The title track, John Barleycorn is a traditional English Folk Song richly presented with superb vocal harmonies from Steve and Jim; beautiful acoustic guitar work by Steve, and exquisitely crafted flute accompaniments by Chris Wood. Steve's keyboard work; Chris' sax and flute; and Jim's percussion are tight on Glad; Freedom Rider and Empty Pages. I especially like Steve's electric piano work on Empty Pages. Both "Stranger to Himself" and "Every Mother's Son" strike a deep but meaningful introspective chord in me. I had the good fortune of seeing Steve, Chris and Jim during this tour in the summer of 1970 at the Fillmore East midnight show. It was one of the most memorable concerts I had the good fortune to attend. Whether in the studio or live, these three legendary musicians are totally in sinc with one another and together they produced a rich album with jazz, blues, and folk influences. For me, John Barleycorn Must Die stands out among the several incarnations of Traffic's music.

I purchased this album on vinyl on whim, and boy was I rocked. I immediately went out and purchased the CD as well. Originally meant to be a solo album for Steve Winwood, he couldn't resist bringing in his pals from the then defunct Traffic. What a treat that he did. From the opening of Glad with its upbeat jazz riffs and groovy piano work, to the desperate vocals in Every Mother's Son, this was three great musicians at their best. Unlike the two previous Traffic albums they were willing to take extended solos, and experiment with more jazz flavor than before (half of the songs clock in at more than 6 minutes). Check out Winwood's piano solo in Empty Pages for proof that the equation works. The album simply rocks for all the right reasons, good songwriting, and even better musicianship. Highly recommended!

This review is for that hard-corps Traffic fan who doesn't know whether two additional songs is worth buying the album again. I debated, having owned "John Barleycorn" for so long and finding it hard to picture new songs entering arguably their best album. However, how could anyone settle for an incomplete collection?! "I Just Want you to Know" elaborates on the theme from Empty Pages, and breaks down into a really groovy jam with harmonizing vocals. "Sittin' Here" is a bit indulgent of Winwood's softer side, but adds a new finish to the album that is refreshing. Of course, it makes it wonder whether there were just these two songs worthy of being added, or are they dragging out this remastered phase.

This is a truly a masterpiece, and the re-mastered tracks sound great. But one star off for the bonus tracks, especially for the one stuck in the middle. I'm not a big fan of bonus tracks in general; they rarely add to the experience, but at least stick em at the end where they can be properly ignored. The liner notes for the re-issue give a clue to their cluelessness: "Along with Fairport Conventions Liege and Leif, John Barleycorn Must Die stands as a pivotal statement in late 60's/early 70's British folk rock music". Huh? Did the person who wrote that even listen to anything besides the title track???

This along with the live Welcome to the Canteen are my favorite Traffic CD's. Barleycorn is one Traffic jazzy blues rock jam after another and has a momentum and overall feel that is perfect for summer days.Its accentuated by the Barleycorn ballad and the thoughtful and irresistable Empty Pages. The first two Traffic albums garner a lot of deserved attention. They are good and contain great moments but both CD's high points have an almost equal amount of low points, mundane period trapped stuff, psychedelic throwaways. Barleycorn on the other hand is not psychedlic and thus doesn't feel dated at all. Those first two also have a sequestered in the studio feel and are self-consciously competing with Beatle studio mastery. Barleycorn is a CD made for the open air and its freed up format lets all that creative energy (and this band had talent to burn) stretch out and fully come alive. And anyone who has seen them live knows Traffic finds its true form as a jam band. If you love sixties psychedelic pop albums stick with those first two but if you love to hear a band play get the blues-jazz-rock jam laden Barleycorn.Like many bands Traffic also went through different phases, Barleycorn I believe is Traffic at its most listenable and enduring. And if you can find it also get Welcome to the Canteen(containing live Dear Mr. Fantasy, Dave Mason's Sad and Deep as You, Medicated Goo, Gimme Some Lovin etc...) which along with Barleycorn will give you an afternoons worth of great music.

As a fan of every Traffic lineup and release "John Barleycorn Must Die" is their finest moment. Every song is beautifully arranged and performed. Winwood's voice is spectacular and every song is memorable. This is a top ten desert island disc. A masterpiece from beginning to end. The two short bonus tracks are a nice extra for those of us purchasing this album for the third time(vinyl, CD, CD remaster)

YOU MIGHT WANT TO GET THE "IMPORT" VERSION INSTEAD

There have been several different versions of this CD. This latest version has remastered sound and two bonus tracks. You might want to get the "Import" version instead. It has two more tracks that were originally supposed to be on a live album.

The two bonus tracks here are studio leftovers. They are not very good songs and certainly not up to the par with the original album. Worse still, the horrible "I Just Want You To Know" is stuck in the middle of the original material, instead of tacked on to the end.

As a group, Traffic broke up after every album, and then reunited for the next one. John Barleycorn Must Die is different in that it originally started out as a Steve Winwood solo album. He even had two songs recorded, before bringing in Chris Wood and Jim Capaldi.

The sound on this album is very different than any other Traffic album. It is more accoustic sounding. It is very atmospheric, and muted, taking full advantage of Winwood's soulful vocals. (Adding in that bonus track in the middle really upset the atmosphere).

This is their fourth album and much better than the first three. Those have a dated, British sixties, psychodelic sound to them. But, there are still some great tracks on those albums.

The albums that follow, Low Spark and Shoot Out have a sound similar to John Barleycorn, only with a brighter and heavier rock sound.

Chris Wood died in the eighties and Capaldi died last year.

This was probably Traffic's most consistently good recording, a half dozen songs, longer than the pop standard 3 minutes, but not over extended, as even Low Spark's title song might be considered. Fans of Phish or Dave Matthews Band would probably enjoy it for its funky grooves, Dead-like jamming, and boho perspective. Winwood's playing excells of course, but the pairing of his voice and Chris Wood's flute, particularly on the title track, is what make the sound unique. (Capaldi's more pedestrian voice grounds the mix.) Although the roots are British folk on that number, it fits well with the more R&B (at times jazzy, but not really jazz) influence on the other tracks.

The negatives are relatively minor, but real. As noted elsewhere regarding the import, the flow of the album is broken by the fragment "I just want you to know," inserted midway through the CD (the end of "side 1?") and the end (of "side 2") is marred by the inclusion of "Sittin' Here Thinkin' Of My Love." (Ironically, the insert says the album "flows like a seamless whole"--not any more!) Both tracks sound a little half-baked. Their lyrics, to the extent there are any, are more inane than usual (not Winwood's department, but his delivery fails to rescue the pieces as one comes to expect) and there isn't much development musically of either piece. Better to have omitted them entirely from the reissue or to have set both off at the end of the CD with a substantial time lapse after "Every Mothers Son," for all but the completists to hit the stop button. The remastering sounds fine to my nonaudiophile ears. I would, however, like to have seen a little more info and a picture or two in the "booklet" which is really just two paragraphs.

In short, if you like Traffic (or think you might), you'll want to have this CD, but you might have hoped for a better package overall. Let's hope they don't mess too badly with "Low Spark."

ps: The single disk Traffic compilation has 4 of the 6 original tracks from this record, so you might skip this if you're on a budget (who isn't), but the other 2 original tracks here are at least as good if not better than all but the title track. Personally, I recommend getting this and "Low Spark," and leaving the compilation and (the more dated) other albums off your shopping list.