Zephyr
Zephyr

Zephyr!

Ranked among the top in terms of least recognized bands and albums in the history of Rock. Not even the nobility of debaserian reviews has talked about it.

And to think that, at least when an artist dies, their career is discussed, revisited, and reassessed; it's done for the ones who had bad luck, imagine for those who were tough. But instead, nothing or almost nothing. And to think that, in this specific case, two are gone: Tommy Bolin and Candy Givens. But nothing or almost nothing.

Tommy is a talent that comes around every so many years but will be remembered by most as "the one who replaced Blackmore and then died of an overdose." What a damn fate. In 1975, Tommy, not yet twenty-four, is called in for an audition to replace the Man in Black of Purple. The guy already has quite a reputation in the field for his past work; James Gang (Walsh himself recommended him as his successor) and collaborations with Cobham and Alphonse Mouzon among the most recent. Coverdale is spellbound by that guitarist listening to that masterpiece "Spectrum," and at the audition two days later, he "conquers" the old guard Lord-Paice (even if he shows up with multicolored hair and claims to have only heard Smoke On The Water and Hush; charisma and boldness not to be laughed at, young man). The spot is his. But bad luck lurks. And, when everything should be going well because now you're part of one of the most famous rock bands on the planet, this situation turns against you. That year Tommy writes more than 30 songs. Yes, because he had begun working on his first solo album and because, just having joined, Purple needed to record a new album. "Come Taste The Band" and "Teaser" are released almost simultaneously, but the "solo" work is kept in warehouses (it's said to be very beautiful and cannot compete with CTTB). What bad luck. The world tour starts off great in Oceania but then Tommy, while shooting up, ruins his arm and, unfortunately (somewhat self-inflicted but it doesn't happen to others, huh), the rest of the tour drags between one good night and two off. Every date is an anecdote between tragic and grotesque. At the end of the tour, the band can't take it anymore (oh well, they were already falling apart before he joined); the story of Deep Purple comes to an end. Tommy is good, generous, naive, starts becoming famous and having money; the perfect person to squeeze and exploit for all the crooks who hang around. The last year has been very tough; too many commitments, too much heroin, unpleasant situations (like Blackmore's fans who told him off at every little opportunity and every performance) and everyone trying to take advantage of him. Even Bonham is the protagonist of a scene gone down in history: in the middle of a concert at the Nassau Coliseum in Long Island, Bonzo, drunk and high as a kite, shows up backstage and goes on stage in the middle of the performance; takes a microphone (everyone had stopped playing dumbfounded) and shouts "I’m John Bonham from Led Zeppelin and I want to announce we have a new album coming out; it’s called "Presence" and, damn, it’s fantastic," then turns to the guitarist and gratuitously insults him "And as for Tommy Bolin, he can't play shit." You were an asshole that time John Henry; but you were one of Blackmore's few friends and drunk off your face... certainly bad luck though, even this.

Then on December 3, 1976 at the first night of the tour with the new album "Private Eyes" in Miami (opening for Jeff Beck), he returns to his hotel and never leaves the room alive again. At the after-concert party with friends, he feels ill. It would be too simple and obvious to call for help but instead they wait for him to recover, heaven forbid; "let's avoid negative publicity." Too bad that morning he is declared dead. Perfect I'd say, an incredible talent, open to a wide variety of genres, who drops dead at the prime. What bad luck.

Legend has it that he is buried with a ring on his finger given by Hendrix.

In 1984, Candy also dies in absolute anonymity; a stunning voice that makes you wonder how it’s possible she didn’t have a great career, but it’s like that; titled “the bad luck of the Zephyr.”

Probably they weren't explained well what was needed to sell one's soul to the devil or they mistook any old priest for Satan.

But at the beginning of it all, there is this kid, Thomas Richard Bolin, who at 14 starts putting together bands until the age of 17 when, together with Candy and David Givens, Robbie Chamberlain and John Faris forms the Zephyr. The band produces three albums in four years; two with Bolin and another one, without him, in 1972. The band for three years plays everywhere in the States; at gatherings and along with the best groups of the period. They will play more than once with Led Zeppelin; indeed, they are together on December 26, 1968, on the night of the airship’s debut on American soil in Denver (it seems that neither of them was even on the bill, Led for sure). They are good, and their performances arouse a lot of interest; but nothing evolves. Many stories from this period are told; one tells us that, at their first television appearance where they had to lip-sync, Candy messes up everything, doesn’t sync with the music, and the group bursts into hearty laughter live on TV; it’s in, it’s fun, certainly doesn’t help the career. What bad luck.

And we come to the albums and more precisely to the first of the "not given a crap about": "Zephyr."

Beautiful album! Many more celebrated records would take a beating without a doubt.

The album is primarily a rock-blues record, but with Tommy is Candy you can’t dismiss it like that. Tommy offers a first taste of his phenomenal and, above all, varied guitar skills. Candy has a voice that makes you drop dead with how beautiful it is; practically a Janis a bit less pissed but more set. The record, I was saying, oozes blues, engaging as few. The one-two punch of "Sail On"/Sun's a Risin' leaves you wobbling and "Somebody Listen" floors you. The blues is contaminated, sometimes with a bit of psychedelia, other times with moments of fusion-funky-jazzrock jam (Bolin’s love for Coltrane and Wes Montgomery will be his trademark in the years to come) as in "Cross The River," or with real hard-rock blues. In this sense, the final track "Hard Chargin' Woman" almost touches masterpiece level; powerful, heavy, beautiful; a real ride which, they write, live became epic. And then there’s the gem of a splendid version of the traditional "St. James Infirmary Blues" with a stunning vocal performance by Candy that tears your heart out.

In summary: beautiful and strong tracks, a wonderful guitar, a unique voice (Candy also plays the harmonica well), an impeccable rhythm section and keyboards with their typical sound of the period to complete it. If any of these pieces had been included on the contemporary "Led Zeppelin I" or on some Rory Gallagher album a few years later, it would have fit in just fine, to understand each other.

After the follow-up "Going Black To Colorado" (good) Tommy leaves the band for new experiences and above all to broaden his musical horizons. Plus, he was the one who had received the most recognition from critics and the public, and the situation with the others became difficult.

Unfortunately, after another album, I don't know any more specific details about the Zephyr. They should have continued to play until Candy’s death in 1984, they should have...

The only one who gave them attention was our Imasoulman. The Zephyr have entered his splendid "list". Imasoulman, no doubt, not just any nobody spouting nonsense!

Bye Candy, bye Tommy and thank you.

Listen to the Zephyr, trust me.

For Tommy, in addition to his known works, I recommend "This Time Around: Live in Tokyo" the cursed tour with the Purple (but how he played when he didn't have problems!) and a gem released in 2000 of the "audition" jam to join the band "Days May Come And May Go."

Happy listening.