Traffic - 1994-08-03 - Giant's Stadium, East Rutherford, NJ

Traffic
1994-08-03
Giants Stadium, East Rutherford NJ
Soundboard recording, very good quality
Mp3 @ 320kbps

Steve Winwood, after re-connecting with former Traffic bandmate Jim Capaldi on some songs for his Refugees of the Heart (1990) solo album, when he began working on his next album asked Capaldi to help him out on it. The resulting songwriting collaborations eventually became designated a new Traffic album, Far From Home (1994), even though only Winwood and Capaldi were involved (with Steve playing all the instruments except drums, and Jim adding some drum, percussion, and backing vocals). So, it wasn't exactly a reunion album as much as Steve and Jim just hanging out and working together on some songs. Nonetheless, it was labelled a new Traffic album, what would be their last, and it garnered much success. For the accompanying world tour, former bassist Rosko Gee joined in, and veteran multi-instrumentalist Randall Bramblett (Sea Level, and much session work) was added on flute. sax, and keyboards, along with Mike McEvoy (keyboards) and Wlfredo Reyes (drums), making a strong touring band. For part of their tour, they opened for the Grateful Dead, upon a request from Bob Weir based on a fan suggestion. The tour was a big success, but did not lead to any further recording or touring from Traffic. Many years later, in 2005, a double live album from this 1994 tour was released as The Last Traffic Jam, and it was dedicated to Jim Capaldi, who had died of stomach cancer that year. Here is a fine show from that 1994 tour, one of the dates where they opened for The Dead, and which featured Jerry Garcia joining the band on 'Dear Mr. Fantasy'. Although the setlist was a bit shorter on these opening sets than for their headlining shows on this tour, it's still a great show, and nice to hear Jerry Garcia jamming with Traffic.

Tracklist:
01. Riding High
02. Some Kinda Woman
03. Medicated Goo
04. Mozambique
05. Rock And Roll Show
06. Rainmaker
07. Empty Pages
08. Low Spark Of High Heeled boys
09. Light Up Or Leave Me Alone
10. John Barleycorn
11. Dear Mr. Fantasy*

Steve Winwood - Guitar, Piano, Vocals
Randall Bramblett - Flute, Saxophone, Keyboards
Mike McEvoy - Keyboards
Rosko Gee - Bass
Wilfredo Reyes, Jr. - Drums, Percussion
Jim Capaldi - Drums, Vocals

with special guest
*Jerry Garcia - Guitar (Track 11 Only)

Traffic_1994-08-03_EastRutherfordNJ_mp3.rar

Traffic - 1972-02-21 - Santa Monica Civic Center, Santa Monica, CA

Traffic
February 21, 1972
Santa Monica Civic Center, Santa Monica, CASoundboard recording, excellent quality
Plus Bonus tracks from 1973-04-12 - Rainbow Theatre, London
Available in both Lossless (FLAC) and Mp3 (320 kbps) versions

Here's more from Traffic. Following Dave Mason's third and last departure from the band in 1970, Traffic, with their expanded lineup (trio of Winwood, Capaldi, and Wood supplemented with Ric Grech on bass, Jim Gordon on drums, and percussionist Rebop Kwaku Baah) started work on and released what would become their most successful album, The Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys (1971), which contained probably their best blend of jazz, rock, folk, and blues in a landmark album. However, personnel issues persisted, with Grech and Gordon leaving shortly after the album was released. They were replaced by David Hood (bass) and Roger Hawkins (drums) for the subsequent tour, which was a big success. This lineup continued on with the next album, Shootout at the Fantasy Factory (1973), but although the album had some great moments, the slow, sprawling, improvisational style often seemed somewhat lackluster relative to the previous albums. A big world tour followed, which was a major success, and resulted in the double live album On The Road (1973). Unfortunately, more trouble followed, with Hood, Hawkins, and Kwaku Baah all leaving at the end of the tour, Winwood was plagued by recurrent peritonitis issues, and Wood's drug use was becoming worse. Another new album was released in 1974, When The Eagle Flies, but was not up to previous standards, and the band essentially ended when Winwood walked off the stage and left the band in the middle of a show in Chicago in 1974. Both Capaldi and Winwood went on to successful solo careers. Chris Wood died in 1983. The remaining members reunited in 1994 for a one-off tour with the Grateful Dead, but then Winwood and Capaldi continued to work together, releasing a new Traffic album, Far From Home (1994), followed by a tour, which eventually resulted in another live album, The Last Great Traffic Jam (2005). The band and its 4 original members were inducted in to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004.
Here I have a great show from the 1972 Low Spark Tour, a great soundboard recording from the Santa Monica show, which was filmed and recorded (complete show is available to watch on Youtube. I have supplemented the Santa Monica show with some additional songs from a 1973 London show, which features tracks from the subsequent Shootout at the Fantasy Factory album. So, here is Traffic, once again, and probably at their peak here, but unfortunately they would not last much longer.    

Tracklist:
01. Low Spark Of High Heeled Boys
02. Light Up Or Leave Me Alone
03. John Barleycorn
04. Rainmaker
05. Percussion Solo
06. Glad
07. Freedom Rider
08. Forty Thousand Headmen
09. Dear Mr Fantasy
Bonus Tracks (1973-04-12-Rainbow Theatre, London)
10. Shootout at the Fantasy Factory
11. Rock n' Roll Stew
12. Evening Blue
13. Tragic Magic
14. Sometimes I Feel So Uninspired

band members:
Steve Winwood – vocals, guitar, keyboards, bass
Jim Capaldi – drums, percussion, vocals
Chris Wood – flute, saxophone, keyboards
Rebop Kwaku Baah – percussion
Roger Hawkins – drums
David Hood – bass

FLAC - Traffic_1972-02-21_Santa Monica_FLAC.rar

mp3 - Traffic_1972-02-21_Santa Monica_mp3.rar

Traffic - 1970-11-18 - Fillmore East, New York, NY

Traffic
November 18, 1970
Fillmore East, New York, NYSoundboard recording, excellent quality
Available in both Lossless (FLAC) and mp3 (320 kbps) versions

Here's more from Traffic. As mentioned in the last post, Traffic briefly disbanded in early 1969 when Steve Winwood abruptly left the band to join Eric Clapton in his new supergroup Blind Faith. But because Blind Faith turned out being so short-lived, Winwood was back recording with Chris Wood and Jim Capaldi before the end of the year. Those sessions, which were at first intended to be Winwood's first solo album ended up being turned into the next full-fledged Traffic album, and one of their best, John Barleycorn Must Die (1970). Although the album was made with just the core trio, for the subsequent 1970 tour Blind Faith bandmate Ric Grech joined the band on bass, and then stayed on. Following that tour the band expanded further, adding drummer Jim Gordon and percussionist Rebop Kwaku Baah, as well as the final brief return of Dave Mason for one more Live album, Welcome to the Canteen (1971). The larger band (minus Mason) would stay on for their next album foray, Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys (1971). Presented here is an excellent show and recording from the latter part of the 1970 tour. Some of the earlier shows included some different songs, so I've added some additional songs from an audience recording of a July Fillmore West show (as bonus tracks) that includes a rare Traffic performance of Blind Faith's 'Can't Find My Way Back Home'. All around excellent show and performance giving a great demonstration of the artistry of Traffic at this time.

Tracklist:
01. Introduction by Bill Graham
02. Medicated Goo
03. Pearly Queen
04. Empty Pages
05. Heaven Is In Your Mind
06. Forty Thousand Headmen
07. John Barleycorn Must Die
08. Who Knows What Tomorrow May Bring
09. Every Mother's Son
10. Glad/>Freedom Rider*
11. Means To The End
12. Dear Mr. Fantasy
* - some minor glitches from master reel

Bonus tracks (1970-07-02 - Fillmore West, San Francisco)
13. Stranger to Himself
14. Can't Find My Way back Home
15. No Time to Live
16. Feelin' Good

Steve Winwood (guitar, organ, vocals)
Jim Capaldi (drums)
Chris Wood (piano, sax, flute)
Ric Grech (bass)

FLAC - Traffic_1970-11-18_Fillmore East_NYC_FLAC.rar

mp3 - Traffic_1970-11-18_Fillmore East_NYC_mp3.rar

Traffic - 1967-1968 Live Compilation - Paper Rain

Traffic
1967-1968 live compilation
"Paper Rain"
1967-09-12, Stockholm Sweden performance plus other recordings from 1967-1968
Liberated Colosseum bootleg remastered by Pink Robert
Soundboard recording, very good quality (at least for this period)
Available in both Lossless (FLAC) and Mp3 (320 kbps) versions

Here's a classic band that I have been meaning to feature at some point, but just haven't gotten around to it. Traffic, a unique band that started as a somewhat psychedelic rock group that kept experimenting into various forms of blues, folk, and jazz improvisation, becoming a force in the progressive rock movement. Formed in Birmingham, UK, 1967, shortly after keyboardist-guitarist-vocalist Steve Winwood left the Spencer Davis Group, Winwood was joined by guitarist Dave Mason, drummer Jim Capaldi, and woodwinds player Chris Wood. Their first album, Mr. Fantasy (1967), did well in the UK, but was largely ignored elsewhere. Although Mason left the band shortly after the first album, he would return in 1968 for long enough to contribute on half the songs on their 2nd album, Traffic (1968), and then returned briefly again in 1971. In 1968, with the loss of Mason, Traffic toured as a trio, and were moving toward a more folk/blues groove, followed by the release of Last Exit (1969), a part live, part studio album. But then the band was dissolved in early 1969 when Winwood abruptly left to form supergroup Blind Faith with Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker, and Ric Grech, which famously didn't last long, and Winwood was back recording with Capaldi and Wood before the end of the year. Originally intended to be a Winwood solo album, the resulting sessions became Traffic's fourth album, and most successful to date, John Barleycorn Must Die (1970). The group expanded in 1970-71, bringing in Blind Faith bandmate Grech, drummer Jim Gordon, and the last brief return of Dave Mason, resulting in the freewheeling live album, Welcome to the Canteen (1971). Presented here are some early live recordings by the band. The Stockholm show was one of their earliest, after only releasing a couple singles, even before their first album. The 1968 shows were without Mason.
 
Tracklist:
1. Giving To You
2. Smiling Phases
3. Coloured Rain
4. Hole In My Shoe
5. Feelin' Good
6. Paper Sun
7. Dear Mr. Fantasy
8. Coloured Rain
9. Feelin' Alright
10. You Can All Join In
11. Dear Mr. Fantasy
12. No Face, No Name, No Number
13. Hope They Never Find Me Here
14. Just For You
15. Little Woman

Tracks 1-7: Konserthuset, Stockholm, Sweden, September 12, 1967
Tracks 8 & 12: Fillmore West, San Francisco, March 14, 1968
Tracks 9-11: Grona Lund, Copenhagen, Denmark, August 5, 1968
Track 13: Basing Street Studios, 1967
Tracks 14-15: Dave Mason solo single, 1968

Steve Winwood - organ, guitar, vocals
Dave Mason - guitar, vocals
Jim Capaldi - drums, vocals
Chris Wood - sax, flute

FLAC - Traffic_1967-68_Paper Rain_FLAC.rar

Mp3 - Traffic_1967-68_Paper Rain_mp3.rar
Link updated 08/18/23