For a moment in time, The Strawbs were an important and influential progressive folk rock band, touching angel wings with future icons like keyboard wizard Rick Wakeman and legendary singer-songwriter Sandy Denny. Beginning in English folk traditions and morphing into progressive rock territory by the 1970s, The Strawbs have left behind a wealth of lovely and often incredible music.
A new 5CD/1 Blu-ray boxed set captures Strawbs’ rise and evolution through a deep archive of BBC Radio and television performances. A Glimpse Of Heaven: Radio & TV Sessions 1966-1984 offers an incredible snapshot of this band, which began as contemporaries of The Beatles playing as a duo, The Strawberry Hill Boys, in 1963. In the copious liner notes for this set, it is revealed that the duo’s first BBC performance was in fact alongside the Fab Four who were also just coming up through the ranks at that time.
Overall the sound quality on A Glimpse Of Heaven: Radio & TV Sessions 1966-1984 is remarkably good, which isn’t always the case on archival sets like this. According to official materials from publishers Cherry Red Records, “this remastered box set gathers all the surviving BBC radio and TV sessions by the band, along with several tracks recorded for other broadcasters, notably including three complete BBC Radio In Concert shows, appearances on The Old Grey Whistle Test and Top Of The Pops, and a reunion performance by Strawbs at the 1983 Cambridge Folk Festival.”
It is fascinating and rewarding following the band’s evolution in real time while listening to these live recordings. And the leaps in growth are often significant, such as between the 1973 and 1974 incarnations of the group — almost like night and day how much better the band was sounding. As their production and confidence on stage grew — driven by founder and lead vocalist Dave Cousins — the musicians changed and performances blossomed accordingly.
Some favorites for me thus far include several rocking versions of “Sheep” in which the band begins to flex its prog rock muscles. Of course it’s always a joy to hear their hits “Part of the Union” and “Lay Down.” It is also cool to hear an early virtuosic tune titled “R.M.W.” by Rick Wakeman (who also pulls off a brilliant madcap moment on the video playing his organ with a paint roller!).
The Blu-ray Disc compiles performance clips from as early as 1971 on Top of the Pops and The Old Gray Whistle Test. Overall picture quality is excellent and the simple vintage sound very enjoyable.
Perhaps my only disappointment is that there is no video of the band performing their incredible prog-rock anthem medley “The River / Down By The Sea.” Fortunately, there are audio recordings of this pairing on the CDs which are great, especially the later incarnations of the band.
Overall, A Glimpse Of Heaven: Radio & TV Sessions 1966-1984 is a great way to connect the dots on better appreciating this band. If you like late 60s David Bowie, Pink Floyd, early Genesis, Procol Harum and Fairport Convention, you’ll probably enjoy The Strawbs.
Our Ratings
★★★★★★★★★★ Sound Quality (some of it is mono as I remember, but overall the fidelity is good and clear)
★★★★★★★★★★ Music (some great and rare performances)
★★★★★★★★★★ Packaging/Design (it’s a good quality clamshell box but the cover image is kinda lame)
★★★★★★★★★★ Value (less than $10 a disc including one Blu-ray feels like a fair deal)
Where to buy?
You can get the Strawbs’ five CD and Blu-ray box set for $57.99 at Amazon.
Mark Smotroff is a deep music enthusiast / collector who has also worked in entertainment oriented marketing communications for decades supporting the likes of DTS, Sega and many others. He reviews vinyl for Analog Planet and has written for Audiophile Review, Sound+Vision, Mix, EQ, etc. You can learn more about him at LinkedIn.
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