Rare Bird was a late 1960’s/early 1970’s UK progressive rock band that lived up to their name by recording their first two albums without a guitarist, led instead by two keyboard players. This would change, with the band including lead guitar on their final three LP’s before calling it a day in 1975.
Esoteric Recordings has gathered together all five studio albums, supplemented by all extant single sides, and included a previously unreleased live performance from 1974 in their new six disc box set named for a track from their self-titled 1969 debut long player.
CD One: 1969 - Rare Bird (00:45:01)
01. Iceberg (6:58)
02. Times (3:26)
03. You Went Away (4:40)
04. Melanie (3:30)
05. Beautiful Scarlet (5:44)
06. Sympathy (2:46)
07. Natures Fruit (2:38)
08. Bird On A Wing (4:19)
09. God Of War (5:35)
Bonus Tracks (1970):
10. Devil’s High Concern (2:50)
11. Sympathy (mono single version) (2:37)
Graham Field - organ
David Kaffinetti - electric piano
Steve Gould - bass guitar, lead vocals
Mark Ashton - drums, tympani, backing vocals
CD Two: 1970 - As Your Mind Flies By (00:48:07)
01. What You Want To Know (6:00)
02. Down on the Floor (2:41)
03. Hammerhead (3:34)
04. I’m Thinking (5:41)
05. Flight (19:44)
I. AsYour Mind Flies By
II. Vacuum
III. New Yorker
IV. Central Park
Bonus Tracks 1970:
06. What You Want to Know (mono single version) (3:35)
07. Hammerhead (mono single version) (3:24)
08. Red Man (1971 version) (3:30)
Graham Field - organ, assorted keyboards
David Kaffinetti - electric piano, assorted keyboards
Steve Gould - bass guitar, lead vocals
Mark Ashton - drums, backing vocals
CD Three: 1972 - Epic Forest (01:03:57)
01. Baby Listen (3:25)
02. Hey Man (5:53)
03. House in the City (4:24)
04. Epic Forest (9:14)
05. Turning the Lights Out (4:40)
06. Her Darkest Hour (3:36)
07. Fears of the Night (3:20)
08. Turn it All Around (4:45)
09. Title No. 1 Again (Birdman) (6:10)
Bonus Tracks:
10. Roadside Welcome (4:28)
11. Four Grey Walls (3:54)
12. You're Lost (10:08)
Tracks 10-12 included on limited edition 7-inch single given with first edition of the album
Steve Gould - Vocals, Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar
Dave Kaffinetti - Electric Piano, Hammond, Organ, Farfisa Organ, Piano
Ced Curtis - Lead Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Vocals
Paul Karas - Bass Guitar, Vocals
Fred Kelly - Drums
Nic Potter - Percussion on “Turning the Lights Out”
CD Four: 1973 - Somebody's Watching (00:45:40)
01. Somebody’s Watching (S. Gould, F. Kelly, D. Kaffinetti & A. Curtis) (5:27)
02. Third Time Around (S. Gould, F. Kelly, D. Kaffinetti & A. Curtis) (4:56)
03. Turn Your Head (S. Gould, F. Kelly, D. Kaffinetti & A. Curtis) (4:40)
04. More and More (S. Gould, F. Kelly, D. Kaffinetti & A. Curtis) (4:06)
05. Hard Time (Blondie Chaplin & Ricky Fataar) (3:07)
06. Who is the Hero (Kevin Lamb) (3:40)
07. High in the Morning (Paul Korda) (3:32)
08. Dollars (S. Gould, F. Kelly, D. Kaffinetti & A. Curtis) (0:32)
09. A Few Dollars More (Ennio Moricone) (8:12)
Bonus Tracks:
10. Virginia (S. Gould, F. Kelly, D. Kaffinetti & A. Curtis) (3:11)
11. Lonely Street (S. Gould, F. Kelly, D. Kaffinetti & A. Curtis) (4:18)
Steve Gould - lead vocals, guitar; bass (track 6)
Dave Kaffinetti - pianos, clavinet, organ
Andy Curtis - guitar
Nic Potter - bass guitar (tracks 1-5, 7-8)
Fred Kelly - drums, Northern percussion
Paul Korda, Nicky James & Kevin Lamb assisted with vocals at various points throughout the album.
Al Matthews, Sammi Abu and Paul Holland played Congas and Percussion on “Dollars”
John Wetton played Bass Guitar on “Dollars”
CD Five: 1974 - Born Again (00:48:00)
01. Body and Soul (Camm, Gould) (3:10)
02. Live for Each Other (Ashton) (2:56)
03. Diamonds (Gould, Kaffinetti, Kelly) (4:08)
04. Reaching You (Gould, Kaffinetti, Kelly) (3:32)
05. All That I Need (Gould, Kaffinetti, Kelly) (3:58)
06. Redman (Gould, Kaffinetti, Kelly, Curtis, Hall) (3:42)
07. Peace of Mind (Gould, Kaffinetti, Kelly) (5:25)
08. Harlem (Gould, Kaffinetti, Kelly, Camm) (3:23)
09. Lonely Street (Gould, Kaffinetti, Kelly, Camm) (3:13)
10. Last Tango in Beulah (Gould, Kaffinetti, Kelly) (6:27)
Bonus Tracks:
11. Don’t Be Afraid (Gould, Kaffinetti) (3:38)
12. Passin’Through (Gould, Kaffinetti) (4:29)
Steve Gould - lead vocals, guitars, bass guitar; electric piano (track 10)
Fred Kelly - drums, harmony vocals, percussion
Dave Kaffinetti - acoustic and electric pianos, harmony vocals, Hammond organ, Korg synthesizer
Andy Rae - Fender bass guitar
Kevin Lamb - harmony vocals (tracks 7,9)
CD Six: 2020 - Live At The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, 30th June 1974 (00:45:01)
01. Somebody’s Watching (Gould, Kaffinetti, Kelly, Curtis) (7:18)
02. Third Time Around (Gould, Kaffinetti, Kelly, Curtis) (5:15)
03. HardTm (Chaplin, Fataar) (5:14)
04. All That I Need (Gould, Kaffinetti, Kelly) (4:20)
05. Lonely Street (Gould, Kaffinetti, Kelly, Camm) (5:33)
06. Live for Each Other (Ashton) (4:15)
07. Last Tango in Beulah (Gould, Kaffinetti, Kelly) (7:02)
08. Dollars (Gould, Kaffinetti, Kelly, Curtis) (6:04)
Steve Gould - Vocals, Guitar
Dave Kaffinetti - Keyboards, Vocals
Andy Rae - Bass Guitar
Fred Kelly - Drums, Percussion, Vocals
