– Blodwyn Pig in session – 1970 – BBC Radio 1 –
The name may not ring too many bells, unless you were a longtime follower of Jethro Tull, and then it would all make sense. Blodwyn Pig was founded by Guitarist Mick Abrahams who, if fans remember, was a founding member of Jethro Tull. Abrahams would leave shortly after This Was came out and went on to a solo career. One of those stop-offs was by way of Blodwyn Pig, who had two albums out and were, during their tenure, a staple of many Underground FM stations here in the States. Their big hit was Dear Jill, a ballad that just hit the right chords with listeners and was their most memorable hit.
With Abrahams and Lancaster in the lead, Blodwyn Pig recorded two albums, Ahead Rings Out in 1969 and Getting to This in 1970. Both reached the Top Ten of the UK Albums Chart and charted in the United States; Ahead Rings Out displayed a jazzier turn on the heavy blues–rock that formed the band’s core rooted in the British 1960s rhythm and blues scene from which sprang groups like The Yardbirds, Free and eventually Led Zeppelin. Saxophonist–singer Lancaster (who often played two horns at once, like his idol Rahsaan Roland Kirk) was at least as prominent in the mix as Abrahams; some critics thought this contrast bumped the band toward a freer, more experimental sound on the second album.
The single “Summer Day” failed to chart, but the quartet became something of a favorite on the underground concert circuit.
Abrahams left the band and later developed another band or worked solo. Ex-Yes and future Flash guitarist Peter Banks became one of several guitarists to succeed Abrahams after he left.
Largely due to Abrahams’s disillusionment with the business side of music, Blodwyn Pig eventually became an on-again, off-again concern; Lancaster at one point became a record producer, and Pyle eventually joined Savoy Brown. Over the years since their original formation, Blodwyn Pig reformed several times, usually with Abrahams and Lancaster leading the group, and recorded two more albums in the 1990s.
After Blodwyn Pig’s demise, Mick Abrahams continued his solo career with various lineups of bands. But this short-lived band was remembered fondly by a lot of people.
As a reminder, here is a session the band did in 1970 for John Peel which features mostly material from their Ahead Rings Out album.
Crank it up and enjoy.
