Going back to California
So many good things around
Don’t wanna leave California
The sun seems to never go down
Some people may treat you ugly
Some treat you beautiful too
That’s the way life is all over
So look for the good things for you
California, there is a good place to be California, that’s where I’m feeling so free
California that’s where I’m feeling so free
California there is a good place to be California, that is a good place for home
California, I’ll be back that be for long
In a way, this LP, with its "minimalist" aesthetic, may represent John Mayall's greatest artistic achievement...
...no minor assertion, given what he'd done before this, and what he would do after it.
What you're hearing, live, in one of the most legendary Rock Concert Halls of all time, are four musicians:
Mayall, vocals and harp;
Almond, sax and flute;
Mark, "classical" guitar (I put it in quotes as it describes the instrument, not the way he's playing it);
Thompson, electric bass.
Conspicuous by its absence: DRUMS.
This is one of the most facile, and understated vocal performances I have ever heard from Mayall...
...and the way the band goes from '3' to '4,' and then back to '3,' is seamless.
1969 was an amazing year:
Miles Davis played that same venue that same year with his "Bitches Brew" band, and, between the two of them, Mayall and Davis invented "Fusion..."
...although Mayall was the first to actually call it that, on an LP he released in 1972.
I was 17 and had hitchhiked/freight trained it from S Ontario to Edmonton Alberta Canada. No dope, no money but Edmonton Public Library had this album. Took out membership and listened to this album over and over again with provided headphones. Thank you Edmonton! I still owe you!
I started listening to John Mayall during the period of Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page, but when "The Turning Point" album came out in '69 I moved from liking it to being absorbed into the music. Fantastic music!
This is my fave Mayall song ever, have had this album in vinyl, cassette & CD. Have seen him 4 or 5 times stretching from the 70s thru about a yr ago, still going strong in his early 80s!
J. Mahal, J. Mark , and J. Almond are like nitro and glycerine. Together they are explosive. Their music is so good and is as good today as it was in 1969. I have all their albums [...33's for the old timers] and still listen to them in a small room at the back of my house with a half filled glass of Henry T. Lee bourbon. Good times...!!
I love this one, but So Hard to Share is a masterpiece, so much emotion put into sax playing, not the cheesy one, just raw, painful feelings. Timeless.
HAVE ORIGINAL " MARK ALMOND" & " TURNING POINT"ALBUM): SHOUT OUT TO " JON MARK & JOHN ALMOND", THESE FORGOTTEN " MAESTRO'S" WERE AHEAD OF THEIR TIME; W/JOHN MAYALL, THE CREATED "GENRE SHATTERING BLUES SOUND", W/OUT DRUMS; CAUGHT " PAUL BUTTERFIELD BLUES BAND(SIMILAR SOUND); MISSED THIS "MAYALL BAND". ONE OF THE ALL TIME "GREATS".
It's been 33 years since I've been to California and I've missed it so much. I want to go back there and end my days looking out at the Pacific Ocean. This song is an inspiration to my aspirations. I love it. Johnny Almond's sax just says it all. "I'll be back there before long."
