ON THIS DATE (46 YEARS AGO) January 3, 1969 - Fleetwood Mac: Albatross b/w Jigsaw Puzzle Blues (Epic 5-10436) 45 single is released in the US. Albatross is a guitar-based instrumental by Fleetwood Mac, released as a single in 1969, later featuring on the compilation albums The Pious Bird of Good Omen (UK) and English Rose (USA). The piece was composed by Peter Green. Green had been working on the piece for some time before the addition to the band of 18-year-old guitarist Danny Kirwan. Slide guitarist Jeremy Spencer was not generally inclined to work with Green, who had felt unable to realise the overall effect that he wanted. With Kirwans input, Green completed the piece and it was recorded just two months after Kirwan joined, without Spencer present. Kirwans instrumental Jigsaw Puzzle Blues was chosen for the B-side in most territories. Albatross has been re-released many times as a single in various countries, with many different B-sides. It has been suggested that the piece is associated with the metaphorical use of the word albatross to mean a wearisome burden. The use of the word Albatross to mean an encumbrance around somebodys neck is an allusion to Coleridges poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (1798). It is unclear whether Fleetwood Mac intended the title to invoke this meaning or if it refers to the bird; but the title of the UK compilation album it appears on, The Pious Bird of Good Omen, alludes to and quotes from the Coleridge poem. This composition is one of only a few tracks by the original lineup of Fleetwood Mac that is included on their later greatest hits and best of compilations. Many of their compilations only focus on hits from the 1970s and 1980s. However, other compositions from that period have gone on to become classic recordings in the hands of other performers - Black Magic Woman as recorded by Santana for example. Another example, Oh, Well has gone on to become a classic rock standard. Albatross is the only Fleetwood Mac composition with the distinction of having inspired a Beatles song, Sun King from 1969s Abbey Road.
Posted on: Sat, 03 Jan 2015 19:35:47 +0000
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