By Jim Rowland
Original vinyl copies of many of the early 1970s releases on the Vertigo ‘spiral’ label sell for pretty huge sums these days, and that’s certainly the case with those from cult British prog band Jade Warrior. Fortunately, if you want to check them out without shelling out hundreds of pounds, you can get these two new re-issues from Cheery Red of Jade Warrior’s 1971 self-titled debut, and their third album from 1972 ‘Last Autumn’s Dream’, both remastered from the original Vertigo master tapes with restored original album artwork and a booklet with new essay.
Released in 1971, ‘Jade Warrior’ established the template for the band’s sound, combining elements of progressive rock with an almost ‘world music’ flavour, partly down to the fact there was no conventional drummer, so various percussion instruments were used instead. On top of that there’s plenty of soft/loud contrast between mellow acoustic guitars and fuzzed up heavy guitar sections. The likes of ‘The Traveller’, ‘Slow Ride’, ‘Sundial Song’ and ‘Mindweaver’ have mellow, delicate, dreamy and psychedelic qualities, with the latter slightly reminiscent of Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac. Flute is prominent, which brings inevitable comparisons to Jethro Tull, which is certainly the case on ‘A Prenormal Day At Brighton’, ‘Masai Morning’ and ‘Dragonfly Day’, with Glyn Havard’s vocals not a million miles away from those of Ian Anderson.
‘Telephone Girl’ is a highlight, combining a funky groove with some very nice, heavy distorted guitar work, with both ‘Petunia’ and ‘Psychiatric Sergeant’ once again echoing early Jethro Tull with a jazzy blues approach. It all adds up to a very good album indeed, albeit very much of its time.
Even better is the band’s third album ‘Last Autumn’s Dream’ from 1972, marking a return to familiar territory after what many at the time considered a wrong turn with the second album ‘Released’. With the addition of a drummer, the sound of the album is bigger and fuller, but still a varied mixture of moods, with far less flute and Jethro Tull comparisons. ‘A Winter’s Tale’, a single at the time, is a wonderful upbeat folky pop tune, with ‘Demon Trucker’ following similar catchy and commercial lines but with a heavier approach. ‘Morning Hymn’ and ‘Lady Of The Lake’ are both strong, dreamy mellow ballads, whilst ‘Dark River’, ‘Obedience’ and ‘Born on the Solar Wind’ are all expansive and atmospheric instrumentals. ‘Snake’, ‘May Queen’ and ‘Joanne’ are the album’s heavy rock belter moments, with fine guitar work throughout.
If you’re into the early British progressive rock and hard rock bands and perhaps these early Jade Warrior albums have not hit your radar yet, these reissues are a wonderful opportunity to expand your prog horizons. Equally, if you’re lucky enough to have one of those vinyl originals, these remastered versions will provide a great companion piece.