The Flock (band)
Encyclopedia
The Flock was a Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

-based jazz-rock
Jazz fusion
Jazz fusion is a musical fusion genre that developed from mixing funk and R&B rhythms and the amplification and electronic effects of rock, complex time signatures derived from non-Western music and extended, typically instrumental compositions with a jazz approach to lengthy group improvisations,...

 band that released two records on Columbia records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...

 in 1969 (The Flock) and 1970 (Dinosaur Swamps). The Flock did not achieve the commercial success of other Columbia jazz-rock groups of the era such as Chicago
Chicago (band)
Chicago is an American rock band formed in 1967 in Chicago, Illinois. The self-described "rock and roll band with horns" began as a politically charged, sometimes experimental, rock band and later moved to a predominantly softer sound, becoming famous for producing a number of hit ballads. They had...

 and Blood Sweat & Tears, but were most notable for their inclusion of a prominent violin in their recordings. The violinist, Jerry Goodman
Jerry Goodman
Jerry Goodman is an American violinist best known for playing electric violin in the bands The Flock and the jazz fusion Mahavishnu Orchestra. Goodman actually began his musical career as The Flock's roadie before joining the band on violin. Trained in the conservatory, both of his parents were...

, went on to become a member of Mahavishnu Orchestra and a solo artist.

The members at the time of their 1969 studio recording were Fred Glickstein (guitar, lead vocals), Jerry Goodman
Jerry Goodman
Jerry Goodman is an American violinist best known for playing electric violin in the bands The Flock and the jazz fusion Mahavishnu Orchestra. Goodman actually began his musical career as The Flock's roadie before joining the band on violin. Trained in the conservatory, both of his parents were...

 (violin), Jerry Smith (bass), Ron Karpman (drums), Rick Canoff (saxophone), Tom Webb (saxophone) and Frank Posa (trumpet).

After a highly promising first album that was further "outside," jazz/fusion-wise than either Chicago or BS&T (owing, to a great extent, to the influence of Miles Davis
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...

' Bitches Brew
Bitches Brew
Bitches Brew is a studio double album by jazz musician Miles Davis, released in April 1970 on Columbia Records. The album continued his experimentation with electric instruments previously featured on his critically acclaimed In a Silent Way album...

album, which Webb participated in, but whose performance was not recorded). The first album on Columbia was produced by blues legend John Mayall
John Mayall
John Mayall, OBE is an English blues singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, whose musical career spans over fifty years...

. The band went back into the studio and recorded a second album entitled "Dinosaur Swamps" featuring the hit "Big Bird" The band began work on a third studio album, but Columbia Records' Clive Davis
Clive Davis
Clive Davis is an American record producer and music industry executive. He has won five Grammy Awards and is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a non-performer. From 1967 to 1973 he was the President of Columbia Records. He was the founder and president of Arista Records from 1975...

 raided The Flock, stealing Goodman for the Mahavishnu Orchestra project: apparently jazz violinist Jean-Luc Ponty
Jean-Luc Ponty
Jean-Luc Ponty is a French virtuoso violinist and jazz composer.- Early years:Ponty was born into a family of classical musicians on 29 September 1942 in Avranches, France. His father taught violin, his mother taught piano...

 was guitarist-bandleader Mahavishnu John McLaughlin
John McLaughlin (musician)
John McLaughlin , also known as Mahavishnu John McLaughlin, is an English guitarist, bandleader and composer...

's first choice, but the U.S. government would not grant Ponty a work-permit visa. The effect of taking Goodman out of The Flock was predictably disastrous, the rough equivalent of pulling George Harrison
George Harrison
George Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...

 out of The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...

.

The Flock reunited briefly in 1975 for an album Inside Out
Inside Out (The Flock album)
Inside Out is the third album by The Flock.-Track listing:Side 1#"Music for Our Friends" - 4:26#"Back to You" 8:06#"Metamorphosis" - 5:37Side 2#"Hang on" - 3:15#"My OK today" 7:23#"Straight home" - 6:00- Personnel :...

, and in 2004 a CD was released of a 1973 live concert called Live in Europe
Live in Europe (The Flock album)
The Flock Live in Europe is a 2004 album of a live performance of jazz fusion band The Flock.- Personnel :*Fred Glickstein - Guitars, Lead vocals, Synthesizer*Michael Zydowsky - Violin*Jerry Smith - Bass guitar*Ron Karpman - Drums...

, which features Michael Zydowsky on violin in place of Goodman and includes original members Fred Glickstein, Jerry Smith, and Ron Karpman.

In late 1976, Fred Glickstein & Ron Karpman recruited bassist/cellist Thom Blecka from Chicago (formerly of T.S Henry Webb Group featuring Frank Posa) - Corky Siegel
Corky Siegel
Mark Paul "Corky" Siegel is an American musician, singer-songwriter, and composer. He plays harmonica and piano. He plays and writes blues and blues-rock music, and has also worked extensively on combining blues and classical music...

 w/Sam Lay, Albert King, Joe Jammer Johnny Ross
Johnny Ross
Johnny Ross was a multi instrumentalist, singer songwriter and founding member of Baby Huey & the Babysitters who died in 2006 as a result of appendicitis. He also hosted his own cable television show.-Biography:...

 & The Babysitters
Baby Huey & the Babysitters
Baby Huey & the Babysitters were a soul band hailing from Gary, Indiana and founded in 1963 by organist / trumpeter Melvyn "Deacon" Jones and guitarist Johnny Ross. James Ramey became their front man and adopted the stage name of Baby Huey which was after the Baby Huey duck character...

 & others) and formed a power trio that chose the title of: "FLOCK 3". The new outfit featured a handful of older, established Flock compositions, but yet emphasized new material, co-written by Glickstein & Karpman with some arrangement contributions by Blecka. The new hornless, violin-free, rock-oriented/ fusion trio `tore up` a few local gigs- opening for Cheap Trick
Cheap Trick
Cheap Trick is an American rock band from Rockford, Illinois, formed in 1973. The band consists of members Robin Zander , Rick Nielsen , Tom Petersson , and Bun E...

, The Cryan' Shames
The Cryan' Shames
The Cryan' Shames is an American garage rock group from Hinsdale, Illinois. They originally formed as The Travelers, with founding members Tom Doody , Gerry Stone , Dave Purple of The Prowlers, Denny Conroy and Jim Fairs from The Roosters, Jim Pilster , and Bill Hughes...

 - and standing on their own, occasionally joined onstage by original Flock alumnus T. S. Henry Webb (sax/vocal) and also friends: Dennis Tiger (blues harp/vocal)& Jeff Gates (keyboards). Unfortunately, the band's live performances were never captured on tape and any attempts at studio recording fell by the wayside due to personal issues amongst the band.
The Flock had 3 early singles on Destination Records and one on the USA Records label, recorded in 1966 and 1967 (Jerry Goodman the violinist was not in this line-up, but he did work as a roadie with the band). These were local Chicago labels. All 4 singles are now available on CD. These singles were "Can't You See", "Are You The Kind", "Take Me Back" and "What Would You Do If The Sun Died?"

Toad Hall, a music store in Rockford, IL. had a test pressing of "Dinosaur Swamps" on an acetate, but the mix does not differ to the final vinyl release.

There is film footage of the big-band version of the Flock (the Dinosaur Swamps version of the group) playing the song "big Bird (Fly)" at a rock festival in Holland about 1970. Violinist Jerry Goodman is prominently featured in the video, but all members of the group , including the horn section are shown.

Discography

  • The Flock
    The Flock (album)
    The Flock is the self-titled debut album by The Flock.-Track listing:#"Introduction" – 4:50#"Clown" – 7:42#"I Am The Tall Tree" – 5:37#"Tired of Waiting" – 4:35#"Store Bought - Store Thought" – 7:00#"Truth" - 15:25- Personnel :...

    (1969)
  • Dinosaur Swamps
    Dinosaur Swamps
    Dinosaur Swamps is the second album by The Flock.-Track listing:#"Green Slice" – 2:02#"Big Bird" – 5:50#"Hornschmeyer's Island" – 7:25#"Lighthouse" – 5:19#"Crabfoot" – 8:14#"Mermaid" - 4:53#"Uranian Sircus" - 7:11- Personnel :...

    (1970)
  • Inside Out
    Inside Out (The Flock album)
    Inside Out is the third album by The Flock.-Track listing:Side 1#"Music for Our Friends" - 4:26#"Back to You" 8:06#"Metamorphosis" - 5:37Side 2#"Hang on" - 3:15#"My OK today" 7:23#"Straight home" - 6:00- Personnel :...

    (1975)
  • Live in Europe
    Live in Europe (The Flock album)
    The Flock Live in Europe is a 2004 album of a live performance of jazz fusion band The Flock.- Personnel :*Fred Glickstein - Guitars, Lead vocals, Synthesizer*Michael Zydowsky - Violin*Jerry Smith - Bass guitar*Ron Karpman - Drums...

    (2004)
  • Flock Rock - The Best Of The Flock
    Flock Rock - The Best Of The Flock
    Flock Rock: Best of the Flock is a "best of" album by The Flock. It includes songs from their first and second albums, as well as other previously unreleased songs.-Track listing:#"Introduction" - 4:53#"Clown" - 7:44#"I Am The Tall Tree" - 5:3...

    (2008)
  • 2131 South Michigan Ave (2009)

External links

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