Terry Reid Seed Of Memory - The Unluckiest Man In Music?

Terry Reid surely must be the unluckiest man in music. This is a man who had a voice so unique that he was first touted to be in Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple before Plant and Gillan made their fortunes; at the time Reid was simply 'too busy'. This is a man with a voice so distinguished that he was nicknamed 'Superlungs' (the title of his brilliant anthology). This is a man with a talent so very rare that many of the greatest names in Rock music, such as Rolling Stone Keith Richards to name just one giant fan, herald him as a complete one-off. And yet it seems that hardly anybody has heard of him?! It's a crying, crying shame. It really is.

Now i am the biggest muso i know, as this blog would probably suggest. I am constantly charting my way through the annals of music searching for something new and exciting to listen to or play in my own band; actually, just when you think you've heard it all, it is amazing to discover that something totally fresh comes along to capture the imagination. Terry Reid, with his 1976 classic album Seed Of Memory, did just that. One of my best mates - for the sake of his staunchly protected privacy I'll call him Walker - is one of only two people on the planet (including my mad mate Glenn) who ever manages to introduce me to music that I have never heard before. They too are gold-diggers in the music sense. Walker is responsible for many fantastic new discoveries for me over the years, including Leonard Cohen, Nick Drake, PJ Harvey, and of course the featured Terry Reid. He will often call me with his latest discovery and encourage me to take a listen, in which I will of course oblige. Sometimes his choices are, to put it bluntly, a complete pile of shite. More often than not they open up a whole new world for me - something for which I am in his debt.

It was during one of these meetings between me and my mate Walker at his former abode in Southport where he first played me some Terry Reid. He claimed to have discovered "the best voice he had ever heard," and preceded to play me Silver White Light; an immense track with an outstanding and unique vocal. Immediately I was hooked. Walker suggested that we go and watch him live since he was doing a one-off show in a tiny venue in Manchester called The Night & Day Cafe - the tickets were something scandalously cheap like £12 - so I snapped his hand off right there and then. Several months later at the back end of 2008, when we arrived at the venue on a cold winter's night already several beers in, it seemed almost astonishing to see an aged and bedraggled Reid stood outside the venue chatting pleasantly to a few fans and having a smoke. When he came back inside he mingled happily, sharing drinks and stories with many people who were keen to talk to him. I heard one woman say to him: "boy, you were so cute in the 70's!" and chuckled to myself, wondering how much that would have actually done for his self-esteem. He seemed to take it in good spirits however, and laughed along regardless.

We must have been at the bar, believe it or not, when Reid snuck off backstage to prepare for his performance, which started very shortly afterwards. He juggled his set between solo acoustic performances, and then formidable interpretations with a full band. Aside from one minor incident in which Terry quite rightly told some rude bastard who was screaming over the top of one of his delicate acoustic numbers to "Fuck Off!" I can honestly say that this gig was one of the most inspirational nights of my entire life. And that is from a guy who has travelled the world to see EVERYBODY it has been possible to see in Rock'n'Roll over the last decade, and I really do mean EVERYBODY. All at once I felt absolute admiration, envy, but also sorrow for this guy in front of me who had the power to hold his audience in the palm of his hand. His voice really was stunning; his songs equally as alluring. This was a talent you just don't come across everyday, and I spent that evening, and many evenings after that, wondering what the hell had happened for him not to have become a massive star. I got my hands on a copy of his album Seed Of Memory that night from the travelling store, shared a drink with the man himself who signed it for me after the show, and left utterly speechless.

I really do believe that this is a record that every music lover should own. From start to finish it is an absolute corker. Provocative, fascinating, enthralling, at times just beautiful, sympathetic, melodic, poetic, symphonic - a total work of art. Written entirely by Reid himself, and produced by another of his superstar fans, Graham Nash, Seed Of Memory has everything. It rocks, it rolls, it shares a groove, has moments of harmonious delicacy, and shows a man at the pinnacle of his creative potency. The opening track, Faith To Arise, is a dazzling opening, with Nash adding his own peerless harmonies to create a real West Coast sound. The title track Seed of Memory is a commanding and righteous gem. How can a man capable of writing a song like remain so anonymous? Brave Awakening is a charming country drawl, whereas To Be Treated Right is a glorious, laid back and heartfelt odyssey. It leaves you considering the irony; if only Terry himself had been treated right by the industry itself he would surely have been as big as any of his contemporaries.

Ooh Baby (Make Me Feel So Young) is quite a funky, sexy jaunt in which the true CSN sound emerges. Nash's production here is majestic. The Way You Walk is also a hustling, groovy blues in which Reid howls his seductive call to the woman in question. The Frame is a cool, casual and sensual number with a delectable horn section drifting through. A great penultimate track before Fooling You, a Fender Rhodes led ballad of colossal stature, which closes the record in overwhelming fashion. There is only one way to get over this album coming to a halt: press REPEAT immediately.

Seed Of Memory, in my opinion, is one of the finest lost treasures in Rock music. If you are into The Eagles, Neil Young, Crosby-Stills-Nash, James Taylor et al then this is right up your street. If this review inspires just one person to be brave enough to part with a few quid to order it off Amazon (or, if you're lucky, pick up the copy sat waiting in Southport's Quicksilver Music, Market St, for just £5!) then I feel my job is done. Music is for sharing. Only recently, having written and recorded my own album, have I realised the immense amount of work and mental turmoil that goes into creating something such as this. For it to be so globally unappreciated is just a terrible, terrible shame. Please, take a chance and get hold of Seed Of Memory, and drop me a line on my blog to let me know what you think. Fortune favours the brave. . . . .