John Barleycorn Must Die

I had their self-titled album generated a few months ago and was surprised I'd never listened to Traffic before because it's the exact type of music I would have loved growing up. That said, this album is less blues rock and has more of a prog rock and jazz fusion thing going on compared to the last one. The flute playing gives them a bit of a Jethro Tull vibe. Overall, I prefer this sound a little more and I can see myself returning to it for sure.

Damn, that was good.

Each member of the band shows off their mastery of their instrument, but also their mastery of whole genres.

It starts strong with a fully instrumental jazz track, which made my 10-months-old daughter dance.

It then evolves into mostly rock, or at least jazz-rock, and full-on folk with the titular song "John Barleycorn", then back to rock.

I really like the fusion, it's an interesting mix of styles that makes the album pretty diverse, despite the fact that it's only 6 songs.

2.67

Great jam album

After listening to this album in the morning, this evening I saw Martha Carthy and friends play the songs of Martin Carthy. One of the songs they played was Iohn Barleycorn Must Die. The generator knows you know.

One of the blind spots in this book is the abscence of English and Celtic folk song. There’s a host of acoustic singer songwriters a few folk rock LPs that draw on these traditions and Bert Jansch’s instrumental lp but no MacColl, Copper Family, Carthy, Shirley Collins.

So despite the disappointment of their self-titled blues rock yomp the title and cover made me hope for more. Also Paper Sun and Hole in my Shoe were good songs - there must be a good Traffic album right?

Well it’s not this one. It’s a series of jazz fusion jams similar to Soft Machine only without the focus or a singer of the quality of Wyatt or Ayers..

Gig was good though.

Much like the other Traffic album I've rated on here, it was kind of bland, a bit too MOR for me, and Steve Winwood seemed to really love the spotlight. Some of the long jams felt like 70s background music, a bit cheesy even. At first, it just seemed like a meh, transitional album, missing the catchy tunes of their earlier stuff.

But, once I gave it a chance, the vibes were, dare I say, was surprisingly cool. They mixed Jazz, Folk, and Rock in a unique way, especially with the flute and organ. Some songs got a little repetitive, but "John Barleycorn" was amazing, a beautiful take on folklore. It's not going to blow anyone's mind, but it's a chill, solid listen if you just let the band's jamming wash over you.

Not for me at all.

I actually liked it less the more the album went on. I'm in a bad mood, so it's getting 2 stars.

A little dad rock-y, but the instrumentals were amazing on this one. Still by the end, it's a strong 3 and not a 4

This was better than I thought it would be. The first song was what I think when I hear Traffic, but the next few songs were suprising. I didn't realize these were british progressive guys and not a part of the yacht rock soft jazz. I don't think its really something I would listen to, but I won't shudder every time I hear this bands name anymore.

This is pretty good you know. Apart from the odd track that goes a bit prog, this has a real cool vibe. I'm liking the instruments and his singing in general. And it's nice and short.

3.5 rounded down.

Pretty much the most standard issue boomer dad rock imaginable. Jazzy blues jams with a ton of organ and piano in the lead paired with lightly fuzzy guitars, swanky horns and, urgh, flute. Loose playful feel and organic arrangements and some funky bass parts give it a warm relaxed vibe. Winwood's vocals have a hoarse timbre and an ambitious range but can be kind of grating - I guess that's why I like some of these (and other Traffic songs) best as covers.

It's not really my kind of prog rock, still sort of impressive though

I imagine this is what Phish sounds like to people who don’t like Phish.

I'd say the first side hit me right away while the second side was a grower - I wasn't as thrilled with it on first listen, but got into it more on subsequent listens (it's a short album and lends itself easily to repeat listens). In particular, the opening track is a great jam - I only knew Steve Winwood from his 80s hits and I had no idea he was such an outstanding musician. The jam at the end of Every Mother's Son also sounded great. Probably the only negative was that John Barleycorn got a little boring on a close listen, but made for good background vibes. Overall, I don't hear a lot of groundbreaking music here, but it was a good listen and I would revisit. Favorite tracks: Glad, Empty Pages, Every Mother's Son.

I really didn't think I was going to like this album after the first song. I get it, it's a great jazz/rock thing, but I'm just not that into the jazz part.

But then the songs with vocals came on, and I liked the album better. A LOT better. By the end, I went back and listened to Glad again, just to see if I was being too harsh (I wasn't, I still don't like it) but the rest of the album is very good.

Pretty nice prog rock with jazzy elements.

Fun! I loved how it felt like a jam session at times!

Decent album. Not terrible, not brilliant.

Traffic was a bit hit or miss for me, but this was a hit....