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| Discography - Albums | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Although mostly known for their 1968 anthem of psychedelia "San Francisco girls (return of the native)", Fever Tree recorded some of the most interesting psychedelic rock albums of the late 60's. Formed in Houston, Texas from the ashes of the band Bostwick Vine by Dennis Keller (vocals), Rob Landes (keyboards, flute and more), E.E.Wolfe lll (bass), Michael Knust (guitar) and John Tuttle (drums. After releasing two unremarkable singles in 1967 that both flopped, they enlisted producers/songwriters Scott and Vivian Holtzman. With them they recorded their legendary debut album, which included the near-hit (no.91) single San Francisco girls. Their unique brand of psychedelic rock filled with classical experiments was recieved well, and two similar albums followed in 1968 and 1970. Major sucess still eluding them, most of the bandmembers threw in the towel. In 1970 they recorded a fourth and last album, For sale. Largely played by session men (inc. Kevin Kelley ex-Byrds) the abum was a disappointing and predictable mainstream pop album, and a commercial disaster. The band officially called it quits after that, later to be reformed for a short while by Michael Knust backed by a brand new line-up. Their first three albums are still considered by many sixties fanatics some of the best and most overloked of that genre, managing to combine the psychedelic sound of the San Francisco bands like Jefferson Airplane with symphonic experiments and hard rockin guitars . |
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| Fever Tree (1968) - Their debut album was a strong psychedelic affair, and included their legendary San Francisco girls along with a smorgasbord of similar gems. Starting with Bach's Toccata in fugue and minor, this album is a feast of psychedelic experimentation, with strong songs, and strangely seductive distorted guitars. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Another time, another place (1968) - Continuing in the same vein as the first album, this is a similar sounding record, although the musicianship had gotten better. For me the best moment is the almost Iron Butterfly-ish reworking of "Man who paints the pictures". A very strong follow up, it's a mistery why this album didn't chart higher than it did (no. 83). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Creation (1970) - A lot less imaginative record than the previous two, this is still a fairly strong effort. Less San Francisco influenced than before, the band belted out a collection of pre-progressive rock tunes. This album also featured a guest appearance from guitarist Billy Gibbons, later of ZZ Top fame. Although commercially it failed miserably, it's still a decent album, with a few great tunes among some rather mediocre ones. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| For sale (1970) - A rather mainstream combination of re-workings of older material, cover songs and mediocre originals, this album proved to be their swan song. Miles away from the experimentation and originality of their older records, this album still produced one of their finest moments, the single "She comes in colors". | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| San Francisco girls, The best of (1986) - A good 16 track compilation capturing most of their finest moments. gathered mostly from their first two albums. This CD serves as a great introduction to the band, with well chosen material, and exceptionally good liner notes. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Filigree and shadow (2002) - A compilation album of sorts, this is mostly tracks from their debut album, plus some choice rarities and live cuts. Not as good as the 1986 best of as far as compilations go, but the unreleased tracks make it a worthwhile investment. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Fever Tree / Another time, another place (1993) - Their first two albums together on one CD, this is a great option for anyone wanting to replace their old vinyl copies, or a great introduction to the band to any newcomers. Including all their best moments, this has to be one of the strongest 2 on 1 CD I have come across yet. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Creation / For sale - Their third and fourth album together on one . Not nearly as good as the above one, this collection still has it's moments of brilliance. Until just recently this was out of print and rather hard to find, but that issue seems to have been solved | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Live at Lake Charles 1978 (1998) - A live recording from a re-formed version of the band, featuring orginal guitarist Michael Knust with a new line-up. A strange but interesting mixture of new material and re-arranged versions of their classics. Nothing amazing here though, and hardly of interest to anyone except hardcore fans and/or collectors of sixties/psychedelia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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