Happy The Man
Encyclopedia
Happy the Man is an American
progressive rock
band from the 1970s specializing in virtuoso instrumental tracks within complex time signatures.
. Guitarist Stanley Whitaker and bassist Rick Kennell first met in Germany in 1972. Whitaker, whose army officer father had left his native Missouri for Germany four years earlier, had formed Shady Grove, with fellow US expatriate, keyboardist David Bach, while Kennell had just been drafted and was stationed there, beginning a two-year stint in the army. The pair met when Kennell attended a Shady Grove gig in mid-1972, and discovering a shared love of British progressive rock, decided to form a band together. While the soon-to-be-graduate Whitaker was soon to return to the US, Kennell wasn't due back for a while, but he gave Whitaker the contacts of two former members of his teenage band Zelda, back in Fort Wayne, Indiana : drummer Mike Beck and singer/flautist Cliff Fortney, who both agreed to move to Virginia. Now a student at James Madison University, Whitaker met saxophonist/pianist Frank Wyatt in music theory class. Initially, David Bach was the main keyboard player, but sometime in 1973, Kit Watkins
, the son of a JMU piano teacher, replaced him. When in January 1974 Kennell at last returned from Germany, the band, named Happy the Man by Whitaker's brother Ken, inspired by Goethe's Faust, was finally complete.
The band's early repertoire included a number of covers - notably Genesis
’s "Watcher Of The Skies", King Crimson
’s "21st Century Schizoid Man" and Van der Graaf Generator
’s "Man-Erg" - but they were soon outnumbered by original compositions, penned by Whitaker, Watkins, Fortney and Wyatt, with the latter providing the lion's share. In 1990, a compilation of demos from 1974–75, Beginnings, was released by Cuneiform Records
in their Wayside Music Archive Series. It consisted of all previously unreleased compositions, some dating back to the original line-up with Fortney. In 1974, Fortney was replaced by yet another old friend from Indiana, Dan Owen. In 1999, Cuneiform put out a second archive CD, Death's Crown, consisting mostly of the title track, a 40-minute suite penned by Wyatt and recorded in the band's rehearsal room in 1974, when Owen was in the band (the CD also includes an early version of "New York Dream's Suite", also with Owen on vocals).
After Dan Owen left in early 1975, the band chose not to replace him and favor more instrumental material. Later that year they decided to move from Harrisonburg to Washington DC with the help of Dave Knapp. They soon signed a management deal with The Cellar Door
- also a popular venue, where the band would perform many times.
On June 28, 1976, Peter Gabriel
, who was looking for a backing band following his departure from Genesis, came down to the band’s house in Arlington for a try-out session, where he presented the band with some of his newly written material, notably the song "Slowburn", which they rehearsed. Eventually Gabriel decided against hiring HTM, but this high-profile encounter proved instrumental in securing a five-year, multi-album deal with Arista Records
.
(whose groundbreaking work with such luminaries as The Mahavishnu Orchestra
, Supertramp
and David Bowie
had highly impressed them) handling production duties, and appeared in 1977. It remains one of the most important albums in American progressive music. Two long, episodic instrumentals, Watkins' "Mr Mirror's Reflection On Dreams" and Wyatt's "New York Dream's Suite", are the obvious pieces de resistance, but both contribute other gems, such as the opening piece, the spacey/orchestral "Starborne", which immediately establishes the trademark HTM sound, or Watkins' tone poem "Hidden Moods". Whitaker's tunes, such as "Stumpy Meets The Firecracker In Stencil Forest" with its addictive, jagged and bouncy melody line, allowed the band to venture into more rocking territory. The album included only two songs with vocals (with lyrics by Wyatt and singing by Whitaker), but they are among the weaker cuts.
Much of 1977 was spent on the road. HTM’s management put them on tours supporting various artists, including Foreigner
, Renaissance
, Stomu Yamash’ta
and the Jefferson Airplane offshoot Hot Tuna
, with whom they performed to an audience of almost 10,000 at the Field House in Long Island.
In late 1977, Beck left the band, who replaced him with Ron Riddle, previously a member of an embryonic incarnation of The Cars
. Riddle appeared on HTM's second (and most acclaimed) album, Crafty Hands, but although he was a full member for the duration of the process, even contributing the album's striking opening track, "Service With A Smile" (co-written with The Cars' keyboard player Greg Hawkes
, in 1973), he left before he had played a single gig with HTM. The compositions and performance on the second effort were even more refined, and many tracks were instant classics - from the atmospheric "Morning Sun" and "Nossuri" to the upbeat "Steaming Pipes" and "I Forgot To Push It", and the more epic "Ibby It Is". Another highlight was "Open Book", an excerpt from the abandoned "Death's Crown" suite. This time only one track, "Wind Up Doll Day Wind", featured any vocals.
and Clearlight
, as a new member in May 1978 and resuming live performances. Towards the end of 1978, new compositions were introduced in the live repertoire, and over the next few months enough material was assembled for a proposed third album to be entitled Labyrinth, which was demoed in February 1979 at the band house in Reston, Virginia. Sadly HTM failed to secure a new contract, and on May 27, 1979 (ironically on the latest line-up's first birthday), Kit Watkins announced his departure to the British band Camel
. After playing a final show at the James Madison University, the band dissolved, with Whitaker and Kennell immediately forming a new band, Vision, with original HTM keyboardist David Bach.
Although the bulk of the new compositions would remain unreleased until 1983, Watkins recorded "Eye Of The Storm" on Camel's I Can See Your House From Here, and two more tracks, "Labyrinth" and "While Crome Yellow Shine", on his 1980 solo album Labyrinth, recorded with the assistance of ex-HTM drummer Coco Roussel. Watkins and Roussel gigged as a duo with backing tapes in 1980-81, and would go on to collaborate on their 1984 duo album In Time and Roussel's 1992 solo CD Reaching Beyond. The 1979 demo was released as 3rd - Better Late... in 1983 on Watkins’ own Azimuth label (the later CD reissue added two extra tracks from the same sessions, "Who's In Charge Here" and "Such A Warm Breeze").
The band continued to be a cult favorite in progressive rock circles even after they broke up, the interest in their music fueled by CD reissues and various archival releases. In 1999, the Arista albums were remastered by Watkins and reissued by One Way Records in the USA and Musea (with a two-part biography of the band) in Europe. Then, following several aborted attempts over the previous decade, the group reformed for NEARfest
in their Crafty Hands line-up minus Watkins, replaced by David Rosenthal
, and they (with new drummer Joe Bergamini
) released a new album in 2004: The Muse Awakens. Whitaker and Wyatt have released another album, Pedal Giant Animals since, and have formed a new band, Oblivion Sun. Although HTM never formally dissolved, they have been inactive for several years.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
band from the 1970s specializing in virtuoso instrumental tracks within complex time signatures.
Early days
The group formed in 1973 in Harrisonburg, VirginiaHarrisonburg, Virginia
Harrisonburg is an independent city in the Shenandoah Valley region of Virginia in the United States. Its population as of 2010 is 48,914, and at the 2000 census, 40,468. Harrisonburg is the county seat of Rockingham County and the core city of the Harrisonburg, Virginia Metropolitan Statistical...
. Guitarist Stanley Whitaker and bassist Rick Kennell first met in Germany in 1972. Whitaker, whose army officer father had left his native Missouri for Germany four years earlier, had formed Shady Grove, with fellow US expatriate, keyboardist David Bach, while Kennell had just been drafted and was stationed there, beginning a two-year stint in the army. The pair met when Kennell attended a Shady Grove gig in mid-1972, and discovering a shared love of British progressive rock, decided to form a band together. While the soon-to-be-graduate Whitaker was soon to return to the US, Kennell wasn't due back for a while, but he gave Whitaker the contacts of two former members of his teenage band Zelda, back in Fort Wayne, Indiana : drummer Mike Beck and singer/flautist Cliff Fortney, who both agreed to move to Virginia. Now a student at James Madison University, Whitaker met saxophonist/pianist Frank Wyatt in music theory class. Initially, David Bach was the main keyboard player, but sometime in 1973, Kit Watkins
Kit Watkins
Kit Watkins is an American progressive-ambient-jazz recording artist based in Brattleboro, Vermont. He was previously a member of the band Happy the Man.-Beginnings:...
, the son of a JMU piano teacher, replaced him. When in January 1974 Kennell at last returned from Germany, the band, named Happy the Man by Whitaker's brother Ken, inspired by Goethe's Faust, was finally complete.
The band's early repertoire included a number of covers - notably Genesis
Genesis (band)
Genesis are an English rock band that formed in 1967. The band currently comprises the longest-tenured members Tony Banks , Mike Rutherford and Phil Collins . Past members Peter Gabriel , Steve Hackett and Anthony Phillips , also played major roles in the band in its early years...
’s "Watcher Of The Skies", King Crimson
King Crimson
King Crimson are a rock band founded in London, England in 1969. Often categorised as a foundational progressive rock group, the band have incorporated diverse influences and instrumentation during their history...
’s "21st Century Schizoid Man" and Van der Graaf Generator
Van der Graaf Generator
Van der Graaf Generator are an English progressive rock band, formed in 1967 in Manchester. They were the first act signed to Charisma Records. The band achieved considerable success in Italy during the 1970s...
’s "Man-Erg" - but they were soon outnumbered by original compositions, penned by Whitaker, Watkins, Fortney and Wyatt, with the latter providing the lion's share. In 1990, a compilation of demos from 1974–75, Beginnings, was released by Cuneiform Records
Cuneiform Records
Cuneiform Records is an independent record label based in Silver Spring, Maryland.The label releases a mixture of musical styles, including progressive jazz, modern fusion music, progressive rock, the Canterbury Scene and electronic music...
in their Wayside Music Archive Series. It consisted of all previously unreleased compositions, some dating back to the original line-up with Fortney. In 1974, Fortney was replaced by yet another old friend from Indiana, Dan Owen. In 1999, Cuneiform put out a second archive CD, Death's Crown, consisting mostly of the title track, a 40-minute suite penned by Wyatt and recorded in the band's rehearsal room in 1974, when Owen was in the band (the CD also includes an early version of "New York Dream's Suite", also with Owen on vocals).
After Dan Owen left in early 1975, the band chose not to replace him and favor more instrumental material. Later that year they decided to move from Harrisonburg to Washington DC with the help of Dave Knapp. They soon signed a management deal with The Cellar Door
The Cellar Door
The Cellar Door was a music club at 34th and M Street NW in Washington, D.C. from 1965 through 1981. It emerged from The Shadows, Georgetown, Washington, D.C. It was one of the premier music spots in Washington and was the genesis as well as a tryout for larger markets...
- also a popular venue, where the band would perform many times.
On June 28, 1976, Peter Gabriel
Peter Gabriel
Peter Brian Gabriel is an English singer, musician, and songwriter who rose to fame as the lead vocalist and flautist of the progressive rock group Genesis. After leaving Genesis, Gabriel went on to a successful solo career...
, who was looking for a backing band following his departure from Genesis, came down to the band’s house in Arlington for a try-out session, where he presented the band with some of his newly written material, notably the song "Slowburn", which they rehearsed. Eventually Gabriel decided against hiring HTM, but this high-profile encounter proved instrumental in securing a five-year, multi-album deal with Arista Records
Arista Records
Arista was an American record label. It was a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment and operated under the RCA Music Group. The label was founded in 1974 by Clive Davis, who formerly worked for CBS Records...
.
The Arista years (1976-78)
Happy the Man's self-titled debut LP was recorded at A&M Studios towards the end of 1976, with Ken ScottKen Scott
Ken Scott is an English record producer and recording engineer.-Career:Scott started at the age of 16 working in the tape library at Abbey Road Studios. He became a recording engineer working with such acts as The Beatles, Jeff Beck, Pink Floyd, The Rolling Stones and Procol Harum...
(whose groundbreaking work with such luminaries as The Mahavishnu Orchestra
The Mahavishnu Orchestra
The Mahavishnu Orchestra was a jazz fusion group, led by John McLaughlin, that debuted in 1971, dissolved in 1976 and reunited from 1984 to 1987.-First Mahavishnu Orchestra:...
, Supertramp
Supertramp
Supertramp are a British rock band formed in 1969 under the name Daddy before renaming to Supertramp in early 1970. Though their music was initially categorised as progressive rock, they have since incorporated a combination of traditional rock and art rock into their music...
and David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
had highly impressed them) handling production duties, and appeared in 1977. It remains one of the most important albums in American progressive music. Two long, episodic instrumentals, Watkins' "Mr Mirror's Reflection On Dreams" and Wyatt's "New York Dream's Suite", are the obvious pieces de resistance, but both contribute other gems, such as the opening piece, the spacey/orchestral "Starborne", which immediately establishes the trademark HTM sound, or Watkins' tone poem "Hidden Moods". Whitaker's tunes, such as "Stumpy Meets The Firecracker In Stencil Forest" with its addictive, jagged and bouncy melody line, allowed the band to venture into more rocking territory. The album included only two songs with vocals (with lyrics by Wyatt and singing by Whitaker), but they are among the weaker cuts.
Much of 1977 was spent on the road. HTM’s management put them on tours supporting various artists, including Foreigner
Foreigner (band)
Foreigner is a British-American rock band, originally formed in 1976 by veteran English musicians Mick Jones and ex-King Crimson member Ian McDonald along with American vocalist Lou Gramm...
, Renaissance
Renaissance (band)
Renaissance are an English progressive rock band, most notable for their 1978 UK top 10 hit "Northern Lights" and progressive rock classics like "Carpet of the Sun", "Mother Russia" and "Ashes Are Burning".-Original incarnation :...
, Stomu Yamash’ta
Stomu Yamashta
Stomu Yamashta Stomu Yamashta Stomu Yamashta (born is a Japanese percussionist, keyboardist and composer. He is sometimes credited as Stomu Yamash'ta. His father was the band director Kiyoharu Yamashita (1907–1991)....
and the Jefferson Airplane offshoot Hot Tuna
Hot Tuna
Hot Tuna is an American blues-rock band formed by bassist Jack Casady and guitarist Jorma Kaukonen as a spin-off of Jefferson Airplane. It plays acoustic and electric versions of original and traditional blues songs.- Jefferson Airplane side project :...
, with whom they performed to an audience of almost 10,000 at the Field House in Long Island.
In late 1977, Beck left the band, who replaced him with Ron Riddle, previously a member of an embryonic incarnation of The Cars
The Cars
The Cars are an American rock band that emerged from the early New Wave music scene in the late 1970s. The band consisted of lead singer and rhythm guitarist Ric Ocasek, lead singer and bassist Benjamin Orr, guitarist Elliot Easton, keyboardist Greg Hawkes and drummer David Robinson...
. Riddle appeared on HTM's second (and most acclaimed) album, Crafty Hands, but although he was a full member for the duration of the process, even contributing the album's striking opening track, "Service With A Smile" (co-written with The Cars' keyboard player Greg Hawkes
Greg Hawkes
Greg Hawkes is a musician best known as the keyboardist for the Rock band The Cars.Hawkes, a native of Fulton, Maryland, attended Atholton High School where he played in a band called Teeth. He then attended Berklee College of Music for two years, majoring in composition and flute...
, in 1973), he left before he had played a single gig with HTM. The compositions and performance on the second effort were even more refined, and many tracks were instant classics - from the atmospheric "Morning Sun" and "Nossuri" to the upbeat "Steaming Pipes" and "I Forgot To Push It", and the more epic "Ibby It Is". Another highlight was "Open Book", an excerpt from the abandoned "Death's Crown" suite. This time only one track, "Wind Up Doll Day Wind", featured any vocals.
Split and rebirth
The contract with Arista Records was dissolved after Crafty Hands failed to make any significant commercial impact. Undeterred, the band soldiered on, enlisting French drummer Coco Roussel, formerly of HeldonHeldon
Heldon is a French electronic rock band created in 1974. The name of the band was taken from the 1972 novel The Iron Dream by Norman Spinrad....
and Clearlight
Clearlight (French band)
Clearlight are a French progressive rock band from the 1970s, although their best known work was produced in England, and released by a major British record company...
, as a new member in May 1978 and resuming live performances. Towards the end of 1978, new compositions were introduced in the live repertoire, and over the next few months enough material was assembled for a proposed third album to be entitled Labyrinth, which was demoed in February 1979 at the band house in Reston, Virginia. Sadly HTM failed to secure a new contract, and on May 27, 1979 (ironically on the latest line-up's first birthday), Kit Watkins announced his departure to the British band Camel
Camel (band)
Camel are an English progressive rock band formed in 1971. An important group in the Canterbury scene, they have been releasing studio and live recordings steadily, with considerable success, since their formation.-1970s:...
. After playing a final show at the James Madison University, the band dissolved, with Whitaker and Kennell immediately forming a new band, Vision, with original HTM keyboardist David Bach.
Although the bulk of the new compositions would remain unreleased until 1983, Watkins recorded "Eye Of The Storm" on Camel's I Can See Your House From Here, and two more tracks, "Labyrinth" and "While Crome Yellow Shine", on his 1980 solo album Labyrinth, recorded with the assistance of ex-HTM drummer Coco Roussel. Watkins and Roussel gigged as a duo with backing tapes in 1980-81, and would go on to collaborate on their 1984 duo album In Time and Roussel's 1992 solo CD Reaching Beyond. The 1979 demo was released as 3rd - Better Late... in 1983 on Watkins’ own Azimuth label (the later CD reissue added two extra tracks from the same sessions, "Who's In Charge Here" and "Such A Warm Breeze").
The band continued to be a cult favorite in progressive rock circles even after they broke up, the interest in their music fueled by CD reissues and various archival releases. In 1999, the Arista albums were remastered by Watkins and reissued by One Way Records in the USA and Musea (with a two-part biography of the band) in Europe. Then, following several aborted attempts over the previous decade, the group reformed for NEARfest
NEARfest
The North East Art Rock Festival, or NEARfest for short, is a multi-day event celebrating the resurgence of progressive and eclectic music in the United States and around the world. The event is held annually in early summer in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, approximately one hour north of Philadelphia...
in their Crafty Hands line-up minus Watkins, replaced by David Rosenthal
David Rosenthal (musician)
David Rosenthal is an American keyboardist, music producer, and songwriter mostly known for working with the English hard rock band Rainbow and Billy Joel...
, and they (with new drummer Joe Bergamini
Joe Bergamini
Joe Bergamini is a drummer from New Jersey in the United States. He is the front man of the jazz fusion band 4 Front. Since 2000 Bergamini has been playing in the progressive rock band Happy the Man in its reunion, and appears on their 2005 album, The Muse Awakens...
) released a new album in 2004: The Muse Awakens. Whitaker and Wyatt have released another album, Pedal Giant Animals since, and have formed a new band, Oblivion Sun. Although HTM never formally dissolved, they have been inactive for several years.
Personnel
- Stanley Whitaker (guitars, vocals 1972-)
- Rick Kennell (bass guitar 1972-)
- Frank Wyatt (keyboards, saxophones, flute 1972-)
- Mike Beck (drums 1972-1977)
- David Bach (keyboards 1972-1973)
- Cliff Fortney (vocals, flute 1973-1974)
- Kit WatkinsKit WatkinsKit Watkins is an American progressive-ambient-jazz recording artist based in Brattleboro, Vermont. He was previously a member of the band Happy the Man.-Beginnings:...
(keyboards 1973-1979) - Dan Owen (vocals 1974-1975)
- Ron Riddle (drums 1978, 2000)
- Coco Roussel (drums 1978-79)
- David RosenthalDavid Rosenthal (musician)David Rosenthal is an American keyboardist, music producer, and songwriter mostly known for working with the English hard rock band Rainbow and Billy Joel...
(keyboards 2000-) - Joe BergaminiJoe BergaminiJoe Bergamini is a drummer from New Jersey in the United States. He is the front man of the jazz fusion band 4 Front. Since 2000 Bergamini has been playing in the progressive rock band Happy the Man in its reunion, and appears on their 2005 album, The Muse Awakens...
(drums 2002-)
Discography
- 1977 Happy the ManHappy the Man (Self-Titled)Happy the Man is the debut album by the progressive rock band Happy the Man, released in 1977.-Track listing:#"Starborne" – 4:22#"Stumpy Meets The Firecracker In Stencil Forest" – 4:16...
- 1978 Crafty HandsCrafty HandsCrafty Hands is an album by the progressive rock band Happy the Man, released in 1978. Only one track, "Wind Up Doll Day Wind," contains vocals.-Track listing:#"Service with a Smile" – 2:44#"Morning Sun" – 4:05...
- 1983 3rd - Better Late... (recorded in 1979, released in 1983)
- 1989 Retrospective (compilation spanning 1977 to 1979, released in 1989 by East Side Digital)
- 1990 Beginnings (unreleased material from before 1977)
- 1999 Death's Crown (unreleased material from 1974 and 1976)
- 2004 The Muse Awakens