Photo: Heinrich Klaffs, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Traffic
Traffic grew out of Birmingham's mid-60s scene, where Steve Winwood was already a star at a young age as the singer of the Spencer Davis Group before leaving to start the band in 1967. Their early records mixed psychedelia, folk, and jazz in a way few rock bands were doing, and by John Barleycorn Must Die and The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys they had settled into the loose, improvised classic rock sound that made them one of the era's most respected groups. Winwood's singing and keyboard work stayed at the centre throughout, even as the band broke up, re-formed, and shifted line-ups.
Start here
Mr. Fantasy (1967). Their debut captures the band at its most inventive, with Winwood's soulful voice leading the way. It's got "Dear Mr. Fantasy," "Heaven Is in Your Mind," and "Paper Sun" all on one record.
Biography
Traffic were an English rock band formed in Birmingham in April 1967 by Steve Winwood (formerly of the Spencer Davis Group), Jim Capaldi, Chris Wood and Dave Mason. They began as a psychedelic rock group and diversified their sound through the use of instruments such as keyboards (the Mellotron and harpsichord), sitar, and various reed instruments, and by incorporating jazz and improvisational techniques in their music.
The band had early success in the UK with their debut album Mr. Fantasy and non-album singles "Paper Sun", "Hole in My Shoe", and "Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush". Their follow-up self-titled 1968 album was their most successful in Britain and featured one of their most popular songs, the widely covered "Feelin' Alright?". Mason left the band shortly after the album's release, moving on to a solo career that produced a few minor hit songs in the 1970s. Traffic disbanded at the beginning of 1969, when Winwood co-formed the supergroup Blind Faith. An album compiled from studio and live recordings, Last Exit, was released that May.
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Studio albums
Discography
Official studio albums and EPs.
- 1994Far From HomeAlbum
- 1974When the Eagle FliesAlbum
- 1973Shoot Out at the Fantasy FactoryAlbum
- 1971The Low Spark of High Heeled BoysAlbum
- 1970John Barleycorn Must DieAlbum
- 1969Last ExitAlbum
- 1968TrafficAlbum
- 1967Here We Go Round the Mulberry BushEP
- 1967Mr. FantasyAlbum
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