John Barleycorn Must Die

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.

Through this challenge I have discovered I really like Traffic and Steve Winwood. I am currently going down the rabbit whole of his entire back catelougue.

Todays album is their fourth album John Barleycorn Must Die and this album really is good fun and an easy listen.

I think the sound of this album is quite modern and new for 1970. There are so many sounds on this album from R&B to jazz to a bit of northern soul with heavy use of piano an organ. I like it and I like the instrumentals.

Favourite track: Empty Paiges, stranger to himself and I just want you to know are great songs.
Least favourite track: I think the title track John Barleycorn Must Die is probably the weakest on the album.
Album artwork: Cool cover.

Reminded me of Jethro Tull in terms of style. This was very good and it didn’t expect it to be given my thoughts on Steve Winwood’s solo material. Favorites were Freedom Rider, Empty Pages, and John Barleycorn.

YABA (Yet Another British Album)
Yaaaay more 70s english rock.
This is ok, nothing outstanding.

Pretty nice prog rock with jazzy elements.

I’m at a 5.

Sometimes, you just have “it”, what can I say? At face value, someone else might hear this and recognize it as a wholly competent 70s album that hits on all the right rock tropes at a technical level, but they just can’t vibe with it for one reason or another, and I wouldn’t blame anyone for not being that impressed by this. However, Steve Winwood & friends here absolutely nail it for my tastes.

Admittedly, I didn’t really take many notes of substance for this one; just a lot of timestamps where I’m impressed by certain instruments (piano, flute, drums, guitar, etc) & a LOT of praise for Steve Winwood’s vocals. The man has some pipes. If I could sing like that, you bet I’d be singing anything & everything, including the seemingly “cheesier” stuff people rag on him about. I refuse to accept any slander of “Valerie” though. Lyrically, this album’s pretty straightforward, save for the mildly baffling “Freedom Rider” – the strength of the storytelling entirely comes in the delivery, and it’s most apparent on “John Barleycorn (Must Die)”. The slower, more deliberate approach to match the tone of the original track is really effective, while still giving Steve room to add some power.

Instrumentally, this album shines; not a single dull moment here, and with headphones in, this thing just has a ball of momentum that refuses to stop once it gets going. It’s especially strong on the eclectic closer that is “Every Mother’s Son”. When every instrument hits a sort of fever pitch around the chorus & Steve’s vocals are gliding on them, it’s one of those moments that just sort of elevates an album to a higher point for me.

So, yeah, no complaints at all, only praise here. For 1970, this feels a little ahead of schedule, and I’m just really impressed by it. A very strong 35 minutes that, if nothing else, is really enjoyable to listen to from start to finish. I just caught the momentum of this thing, and I think it’s easily worth a 5, if a bit higher. Not quite a 10, but a highly recommended album regardless.

P.S.: There’s two things I just need to point out; the flute solo on “Freedom Rider” is rad as hell, & someone NEEDS to sample the percussion of “Empty Pages” around the 3 minute mark.

Seiskarit jatkuu. Kiinnostavia sovituksia, mutta kolmoseen jää.

A lot to like here. Some very cool harmonic twists and turns. Blows Jethro Tull out of the water as far as flute-based 70’s rock is concerned.

uistinu jedan od albuma svih vremena

A pretty good prog album. No songs that left me speechless, but pleasant to listen to. 3/5

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

It was decent 70's rock, but the track John Barleycorn itself was dope so I'll bump it up a star.

Help, ik word dus ingehaald door een luistermaatje. Ik moet aan de bak! Maar goed dat we gaan klussen. En dit is een heel mooi plaatje daarbij.

Daar moet ik wel achter komen, want de titel suggereert meuk. Tot mijn verbazing begint het album vrij luchtig en jazzy. Het wordt gevolgd door een mengeling van overgebleven jaren '60 klanken en oudere muziekgenres. Je hoort wat getokkel en wat soul. De titeltrack blijkt de klapper. Er wordt nu gekozen voor een folk-klank, waarmee er een voorloper van Stairway to Heaven lijkt te zijn ontstaan. Dit nummer tilt het album (net) naar de laatste ster!

Decent album. Not terrible, not brilliant.

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

Felt like a jam session that was over before you know it. I like Traffic and I think they've always had nice sound that seemed to blend all the popular styles of their time really well. As a result they don't really stand out of the crowd though. I liked this one quite a bit but I feel as if other Traffic albums are a bit more defined and have a clearer direction.

I was both interested and scared for this album, as I knew it could I either be some folksy prog jazz that would alter my life, or a Steve Winwood-coated snore fest with very little to speak on. It ended up being mostly the latter, with a lot of potential within the walls of the first two tracks, but instead of continuing the Winwood woodwind escapades, it becomes pretty generic rock tunes for a couple tracks only to completely stumble on what could've been a folk-prog masterpiece a la Led Zeppelin III and then end on cheesy rock power ballad. Maybe the horns and flutes stuck around, but I forgot about them as the tepid guitar playing continued and the embodiment of every generic white guy sang through Steve to give a so-so performance. There is a lot of hope within this album, and it starts pretty good, with two solid progressive tracks to keep the baby and soul at least engaged, and when it comes to a six song album that's a decent amount of songs, but the rest is so forgettable I find it hard to say this is worth the check-in when there are so many other acts doing this exact style of album multiple times better. It is alright, but nothing to miss out on here.

I really liked this!

Not what I was expecting at all, but I loved the instrumental opening. Perfect music to just zone out to

4 ⭐️

More Steve Winwood, this time with flutes. My gripe about Winwood's vocals in the last album stands here as well. This is also an annoying stereo mix, with the piano fully in the right ear and guitar fully in the left. Low two; pretty close to 1 territory.

It’s all right. Kinda Mellow rock with alot of organ. Is this considered prog rock? I don’t care for prog rock so maybe that’s why, although I can appreciate the talent, I’m just not feeling this. The music kind of meanders. Prog rock to me is music that goes on for too long without really getting anywhere.