Quicksilver Messenger Service
Shady Grove

THE REVIEW

Born in the garages of the more acidic and hallucinated San Francisco, peeking from behind the more pronounced popularity enjoyed by fellow citizens Jefferson Airplane and Grateful Dead, Quicksilver Messenger Service gave birth in 1969 to the third chapter of their recording adventure, this Shady Grove that boldly launched into the record market, after the timid reception given to previous works, namely the debut Quicksilver Messenger Service and its successor Happy Trails; two albums that, despite the low commercial response, remain indestructible manifestos of the group, as well as immortal examples of the highest rank of global psych rock. The greatest merit of these records can be understood by hearing the “guitar riffs” of the duo John Cipollina/Gary Duncan, who, alternating an improvised and intricate style, created masterpieces of incandescent magic like the suite Calvary, included in the immortal predecessor of Shady Grove.

After delivering its highest artistic expression to posterity, the group underwent a painful cut to the lineup, due to Duncan's (temporary) departure. Aware of having to record the new album with one less guitar, the remaining band members chose to downsize the sound by hiring Nicky Hopkins, a pianist who had recently contributed to the creation of historic pieces like Their Satanic Majesties Request and Beggars Banquet by the Rolling Stones. The drafting of new songs therefore involved a wide use of piano and keyboards, inserted into more accessible and melodic structures, as proof of how the group hoped to win the favors of the masses. The mission failed miserably.

Shady Grove is an album that has gained value over time and requires multiple listens to be properly assimilated. It might even disturb those who only know the band's early works, those who expect a guitar-based sound, because this time the keyboards take center stage, with Hopkins showing as the absolute protagonist from the first riff of the album, which opens the galloping country rock of the title track. It's just the beginning: Flute Song is a romantic and poignant ballad where Nick lays down a gentle carpet of notes in a solo phase, while 3 or 4 Feet from Here, Too Far, and Holy Moly are heavily influenced by Nick's recent experiments with the Stones, even though, curiously, the pianist did not sign any of these tracks. Instead, greater personality returns in the second part of the album with a Joseph’s Coat that recovers a thread of acidity in the guitars, and with the choral ballad Flashing Lonesome embodying more pronounced psychedelia. After a Words Can’t Stay that returns to the rock and roll inserts of the central pieces, Edward the Mad Shirt Grinder unfolds, where finally what was actually expected to be heard in more parts of the album happens: an exchange of pleasantries between guitar, piano, and keyboards. Nine minutes of aggressive and sublime phrasings, for an articulated instrumental with a “jam session” aftertaste (this time the author is really Hopkins).

It may have sold little, but Shady Grove remains an artistically successful album that inaugurates the band's melodic shift, which will be further explored by the successor Just for Love, where Duncan will return along with Dino Valenti, the singer/founder of the group, until then detained in prison for drug-related issues.

Federico “Dragonstar” Passarella