Chapter 36: Live and Let Die (February - November 1973)

February 1973

Paul McCartney performing live with Smile, October 1972.

During the second half of 1972, Paul McCartney and Smile had a small tour across Europe, with the setlist consisting of the songs Smile had previously performed live (some of which were never recorded in the studio) as well as newer material such as "Some Day One Day" and "Modern Times Rock 'n' Roll". Denny Laine's material consisted of some songs he'd performed during his time as part of the Moody Blues, and Paul McCartney's consisted largely of solo material, but nothing by the Beatles save for covering Little Richard's "Long Tall Sally". This would help to refine the band before they went back to the studio to record new material.

PAUL McCARTNEY: "When we first went into the studio at the start of February, I'd noticed that Brian and Roger had brought in someone I'd not met before. He had long dark hair and a prominent overbite. He was born Farrokh Bulsara, but everyone knows him by the name of Freddie Mercury." (2008)

FREDDIE MERCURY: "I was familiar with Tim Staffell from art college and had wanted to join Smile even before Paul had come into the picture, and Roger and I were roommates. When I first entered the studio, Paul was doubtful of my singing ability because of the extra teeth in my mouth, but I wanted to prove to him that I was still a good singer despite this. I went over to the piano, and began to play 'Maybe I'm Amazed' from his solo album. Brian and Roger even began to play along with me, and when I'd finished, Paul just stared in amazement and said, 'Wow.' Nothing else. Just 'wow'." (1992)

Freddie Mercury, 1973.

The twenty-six-year-old British Zoroastrian singer had also penned eleven songs that he wanted to get out to the world on record and that he'd needed a band to help make that possible. Paul, Brian May, Roger Taylor and Denny were all happy to help Freddie Mercury to make that happen.

BRIAN MAY: "We began recording both the Smile album and for Fred's album at the same time. Our co-producer for the projects was Roy Thomas Baker, who was working with fellow Apple band Nazareth and had been previously associated with the Rolling Stones. At first, we wanted to put out a double album with all the material we had, but Roy insisted that we put out individual albums; one by Paul McCartney and Smile, and one by Freddie Mercury. With hindsight, he had the right idea." (1997)

ROGER TAYLOR: "Freddie still provided vocals to Purple Highway, especially with 'Keep Yourself Alive', which was Brian's song. I don't think Paul or Brian could've done that one much justice by themselves. Nor me, for that matter." (1983)

During the sessions for both albums, Mercury recorded a non-album single under the pseudonym of Larry Lurex, which was inspired by glam rock singer Gary Glitter. They were respective covers of the Ronettes' "I Can Hear Music" and Dusty Springfield's "Goin' Back"; the single was released on Apple on September 10, but it failed to chart either in the United States or the United Kingdom. Since then, Mercury has considered the single to be an old shame of his.

1 June 1973

The cast of Live and Let Die, the eighth entry in the James Bond film series. From left: Julius Harris (Tee Hee), Jane Seymour (Solitaire), Geoffrey Holder (Baron Samedi), Roger Moore (James Bond), Yaphet Kotto (Dr. Kananga/Mr. Big) and Earl Jolly Brown (Whisper).

At the time of its release, Smile's second non-album single, "Live and Let Die"/"Son and Daughter", was the most successful James Bond theme song, reaching #2 in the United States and #5 in the United Kingdom. The A-side had been nominated for the Grammy Awards and an Academy Award for Best Original Song. While it lost at the Academy Awards to the theme to The Way We Were by Barbra Streisand, "Live and Let Die" managed to take home a Grammy, credited to Smile and George Martin. To this day, it remains one of Paul McCartney's greatest songs, played at nearly every concert he's ever performed, and people have ranked this as the greatest James Bond theme of all time.

16 September 1973

Paul McCartney & Smile - Purple Highway

Released: 16 September 1973

Recorded: February - August 1973

Producer: Paul McCartney and Roy Thomas Baker

Track listing[1]

Side A

Keep Yourself Alive [w/ Freddie Mercury]
My Love
Some Day One Day
The Loser in the End
Get on the Right Thing

Side B

I Lie Around
Loup (1st Indian on the Moon)
Modern Times Rock 'n' Roll
Only One More Kiss
Single Pigeon
Little Lamb Dragonfly

The first album by Paul McCartney & Smile was released to positive reception from both critics and fans alike. "Paul isn't dead after all," Melody Maker crowed. "Paul finally responds to the Ladders," sang Rolling Stone. The album reached #1 in the United States - knocking the Ladders' Photograph off of the top spot - as did the lead single "My Love", backed with "Keep Yourself Alive". Although the songs crossfaded together on the album, they did not for the single. In the United Kingdom, however, the album reached #4 and the single #7.

PAUL McCARTNEY: "Purple Highway was sort of a transition for me, Denny, Brian, and Roger, as well as Freddie Mercury. It's no Everest or Merseyside, but still, I think it's a great showcase of where we came from when we got together for Smile, and it even gave off hints as to what you'd eventually expect for A Night at the Rock Show and Band on the Run. I've got a soft spot for it, really." (2013, liner notes for the 40th anniversary release)

19 November 1973

Freddie Mercury - The King of Rhye

Released: 19 November 1973

Recorded: February - August 1973

Producer: Paul McCartney, Freddie Mercury and Roy Thomas Baker

Track listing[1]

Side A

Seven Seas of Rhye (Prologue)
Great King Rat
My Fairy King
Liar
Jesus

Side B

Ogre Battle
The Fairy Feller's Master-Stroke
Nevermore
The March of the Black Queen
Funny How Love Is
Seven Seas of Rhye

Freddie Mercury's debut album on Apple Records topped out at #5 in the United Kingdom, but it went below the Top 40 in the United States at #49. The lead single, "Seven Seas of Rhye"/"Mad the Swine" (a non-album B-side), reached #9 in the United Kingdom. Mercury described The King of Rhye as having two ideas on one album:

FREDDIE MERCURY: "The first side contains a prelude to 'Seven Seas,' and after that is the self-contained songs - 'Great King Rat,' 'Jesus,' 'Liar.' The second side has something of a thematic approach like the Beatles did on Merseyside in '67. It's really bombastic and over the top, leading to a great finale that brings the album full circle." (1973, Rolling Stone interview)

With both Purple Highway and The King of Rhye being successful in the United Kingdom, Paul McCartney and Smile went on a European tour with Freddie Mercury as their opening act (with Brian May and Roger Taylor acting as sidemen). The tour was received very positively, further affirming that McCartney seemed to be regaining lost ground. The most common criticism was the lack of Beatles material from Paul, although he would cover "Long Tall Sally" as part of the encore.

Paul McCartney performing live with Smile, 1973.

Paul McCartney & Smile w/ Freddie Mercury - Smiling Over Europe Tour[2] (1973)
4 shows each in France, West Germany, Sweden and The Netherlands, 3 shows in Denmark, 2 shows each in Switzerland and Finalnd, one show each in Norway and Belgium (23 September - 18 November)
Average setlist:
Freddie Mercury
1. Ogre Battle
2. Great King Rat
3. Keep Yourself Alive
4. Liar
5. The Fairy Feller's Master-Stroke
6. Seven Seas of Rhye
Paul McCartney & Smile
1. Soily
2. Blue Moon of Kentucky
3. Son and Daughter
4. 1882
5. Say You Don't Mind (sometimes swapped out for I Would Only Smile)
6. C Moon
7. Modern Times Rock 'n' Roll
8. Live and Let Die
9. Maybe I'm Amazed
10. My Love
11. See What a Fool I've Been
12. Go Now
13. The Mess
14. Hi Hi Hi
Encores: Doing All Right, Long Tall Sally

Now that Paul McCartney had regained the spotlight, the question still remained as to where he could go next, and how he could keep his new band on the run...

Footnotes

1. For both albums, tracks are sourced from Queen and Queen II. For Purple Highway, the McCartney/Laine tracks are sourced from Red Rose Speedway.
2. Some of the tracks were actually performed by Paul McCartney during the Wings Over Europe Tour and 1973 UK Tour, and by Queen during the Queen II Tour.

Author's Comments

A bit shorter than some previous chapters, but at long last, we meet with Freddie Mercury! Much of the bulk of this chapter had originally been written the year before, now with a bit of new material in it, as well as a setlist for a 1973 Freddie Mercury/Paul McCartney & Smile joint tour! There's... not much else to say here, I'm afraid.

Paul McCartney's "Egypt Station" - Double Album Edition

Paul McCartney - Egypt Station (2018)

Double Album Edition

Disc One

Opening Station

I Don't Know

Come On to Me

Get Started

Happy with You

Sixty Second Street

Who Cares

Confidante

Home Tonight

People Want Peace

Hand in Hand

In a Hurry

Disc Two

Nothing for Free

Back in Brazil

Do It Now

Fuh You

Dominoes

Frank Sinatra's Party

Caesar Rock

Get Enough

Despite Repeated Warnings

Station II

Hunt You Down/Naked/C-Link

And now, for something completely different. Today, Paul McCartney has released his latest single, "Home Tonight" and "In a Hurry", both outtakes from the Egypt Station sessions with Greg Kurstin. Since I heard about the single release, I thought, "what if I could place all the bonus tracks along with the official album tracks into a single album?"

Well, you kind of can't. In total, Paul's put out 25 tracks (if you consider "Hunt Me Down/Naked/C-Link" as three individual tracks) in the past couple of years, and even with the album version of "Who Cares", it still won't all fit onto a single disc. And even removing "Opening Station" and "Station II" leaves a noticeable gap.

Instead, it looks as though we'll have to make a double album out of the material available. I went in with the approach to have each disc distinct from each other, with the first disc being more radio-friendly and accessible and the second disc being more experimental, especially as Paul's written three tracks with Ryan Tedder - "Fuh You", "Nothing for Free" and "Get Enough". So here's an expanded edition of Egypt Station that I've therefore dubbed - Egypt Superstation.

For vinyl purposes, both discs split between tracks 6 and 7. (Note that tracks marked in bold were not included on the official album, with one exception.)

For disc one, the commercial half, we begin the same way the official album did with "Opening Station", "I Don't Know", and "Come On to Me". Following that is "Get Started", released as a bonus track on some single disc versions, and then "Happy with You" and "Sixty Second Street", the latter of which was released on the Explorer's Edition of Egypt Station.

Speaking of which, "Who Cares" is the full-length version found on the Explorer's Edition, adding an additional 2:20 to the runtime, and that is followed by "Confidante" and the first track off of the new single, "Home Tonight". Disc one concludes with "People Want Peace", "Hand in Hand" and "In a Hurry", the latter of which is also from the new single. Disc one runs at 41:51, nearly 42 minutes long.

Disc two, the experimental half, kicks off with Paul's cry of "Okay, okay, okay" from "Nothing for Free", the first collaboration with Ryan Tedder that was also released as a bonus track on some single disc versions. This is followed up by "Back in Brazil", "Do It Now", and "Fuh You", the second collaboration with Ryan Tedder. "Dominoes" and "Frank Sinatra's Party" soon follow.

"Caesar Rock" and the final Tedder collaboration (also featuring writing contributions from Zach Skelton), "Get Enough", are next. Whilst "Get Enough" was initially released as a single for New Year's Day, it has since been included on the Explorer's Edition. The double album concludes the same way it did with "Despite Repeated Warnings", "Station II", and the medley "Hunt You Down/Naked/C-Link", the only logical track that could end this superstation. Disc two runs a bit shorter than disc one at 41:35. The overall expanded album runs at 83:26.

Since Egypt Station's release, a lot of people seem to be saying "Why did Paul include that song but not this one?" That was something I thought as well since hearing the bonus tracks for myself, but hopefully this double album version will leave all parties feeling satisfied at being able to have everything in one place. Almost. Unless Paul puts out another track from the sessions we haven't heard before, I'm pleased with the result. In fact, I've even compiled a playlist on YouTube!

Whilst "Home Tonight" and "In a Hurry" are now available for digital download, "Get Started", "Nothing for Free", "Frank Sinatra's Party", "Sixty Second Street", "Get Enough", and the full-length version of "Who Cares" can all be found on the Explorer's Edition of Egypt Station.

Chapter 35: See My Baby Jive (January - August 1973)

January 20, 1973

Yoko Ono and John Lennon, 1973.

Whilst he was watching the televised inauguration of George McGovern, the 38th President of the United States of America, as well as Vice-President Terry Sanford, John Lennon felt a great sense of relief now that Richard Nixon was no longer in office. Hopefully, the new President would change his focus on other issues in America and dismiss the charges against the Lennons and grant John citizenship. But of course, that was going to be a long process, and Lennon didn't think about leaving America lest he risk being banned from visiting again.

JOHN LENNON: "At the time, the only way I could communicate with Brian [Epstein] was through the speakerphone. He was based in London and I was in New York. We weren't exactly on the best terms with each other since the Ladders and Paul had put out those political statements on record, and it was also why he'd put out those 'best of' compilations. But still, I did kind of miss England greatly, and was hoping I could get dual citizenship between both it and America." (1983)

Two months earlier, on the night of McGovern winning the election, John and Yoko attended a post-election wake that was hosted by Jerry Rubin in his New York home. Among the attendees were Ringo Starr, Keith Moon, Micky Dolenz, David Crosby and journalist Hunter S. Thompson. It was during the party that Lennon got drunk and had sex with a female guest (her identity was not revealed out of respect). Yoko was left depressed following the incident, which inspired her song "Death of Samantha" for her next album, Approximately Infinite Universe, released February 16.

RINGO STARR: "I joined Yoko home after the incident. I felt sorry for her. But I also felt sorry for John; when I next met him, all sobered up, he knew that I knew that he had fucked it all up. It was his second marriage, and he'd been just as unfaithful to Yoko as he'd been to Cynthia. In fact, he was now more into making music with me and George than he was with her." (1998)

GEORGE HARRISON: "In John's defense, he wasn't the only one who was going through a failing marriage. Pattie [Boyd] was now head over heels in love with Eric [Clapton], and Ringo was cheating on Maureen for Nancy Andrews; it didn't help that Ringo was also deep into alcoholism as well. We were utter drunkards in the 1970s and it wouldn't be until the end of the decade that we decided to clean up." (1992)

23 March 1973

George Harrison, 1973.

The Ladders' first release in eight months was the non-album single "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)", a song penned by George Harrison the year previously, coinciding with the height of his devotion to Hindu spirituality. It marked the Ladders' first #1 American hit since the "Bangla Desh/Imagine" double A-side in 1971, although it managed to reach #7 in the United Kingdom, and was hailed as a return to form for Lennon, Harrison and Starr following their political statements the year before.

The choice for the B-side to "Give Me Love" was an ironic one; "Oh Yoko!" had been written as far back as 1968 during the Beatles' trip to India, but it had not been fully completed until the recording sessions for the Ladders' Imagine, although it did not make the cut. With neither John nor Ringo having anything to offer up for the B-side, "Oh Yoko!" ended up being chosen instead, which was better than leaving it gathering dust on a shelf.

Although the song was dedicated to Yoko, it had been released at a time when their marriage was beginning to fall apart. The couple had agreed to separate in order to let John exorcise his demons; this would eventually be dubbed the Ladders' "Lost Weekend", alternating between Los Angeles and New York City, and living the "sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll" way of life. "Paul was really lucky during that time," John would later comment. "His and Linda's relationship seemed to be rock solid." (1990) But in between these drunken antics, there was the matter of work on Mel Brooks' first movie under Apple Films...

Mel Brooks as a Yiddish Indian Chief in Blazing Saddles, 1974.

MEL BROOKS: "I was in a room with Andrew Bergman, Richard Pryor, Norman Steinberg and Al Uger, with Andrew having coming up with the basic story. We practically wrote the story in the middle of a drunken fistfight, yelling loudly for all of our ideas to be put into the film. As director, I had the right to decide what would stay in the movie and what would be left out; I did speak the loudest out of all of us." (2004)

Blazing Saddles originally went by the working title of Tex-X, a play on Malcolm X's name, and was to be directed by Alan Arkin and had James Earl Jones as Sheriff Bart, but this didn't get off the ground. When Mel Brooks took over the project, he had wanted Richard Pryor to play the sheriff, but Pryor's history of drug arrests prevented this, although he still received a writing credit. The role to Sheriff Bart eventually went to Cleavon Little; the film would also cast the likes of Gene Wilder as Jim the "Waco Kid", Harvey Korman as Hedley Lamarr, and Madeline Kahn as Lili von Shtupp the "Teutonic Titwillow".

Brooks got involved with disagreements with executives from Warner Brothers (who would distribute the film; Apple was involved with production) over the content of the script, especially the frequent use of the word "nigger". Despite all the suggestions to make it more family friendly, Brooks refused to make any changes, except for cutting the line, "I hate to disappoint you, ma'am, but you're sucking my arm," said by Sheriff Bart when Lili von Shtupp seduced him.

JOHN LENNON: "When I got a hold of the Blazing Saddles script, I practically roared with laughter for how outrageous and ballsy it was. I did suggest to Mel, of course, that he not show it at all to Brian Epstein, and I told him about what had happened when I tried to release 'Woman is the Nigger of the World' as a single. I even asked him if there was a chance me, George and Ringo could be in the film." (1980)

John Cleese (second to left) with the rest of Monty Python in the episode A Book at Bedtime, 1973.

John, George and Ringo soon found themselves cast as extras in the film; John got the role of Boris, the head of Hanging House, and George (Howard Johnson) and Ringo (Gabby Johnson) were a pair of Rock Ridge townsfolk.[1] Klaus Voormann also appeared in a cameo role as a third townsfolk member, as did Billy Preston as the pianist of a big band Sheriff Bart meets in the desert on his way to Rock Ridge. Mel Brooks would later lament that he didn't have Paul McCartney in the film. "I could've had the complete set [The Beatles]," he said in a 1999 interview for Blazing Saddles' 25th anniversary, "but given how John, George and Ringo - mostly the first two - were feeling towards him at the time, I get why that couldn't happen."

Near the end of the film, there was a resulting brawl that would result in a literal fourth wall break crashing onto a neighboring set of a Busby Berkeley-style top-hat-and-tails musical number, but Brooks was stuck on deciding who should play the role of the director. The role was intended for Peter Sellers, but George Harrison, a Monty Python fan, suggested that one of the members could fulfill the role.[2]

JOHN CLEESE: "At the time, Flying Circus had completed its third series and I'd very much left the show. But then a got a call from this Jewish-American bloke, Mel Brooks, asking if any of us would be interested in starring in his newest film. I ended up drawing the short straw and flew over to Burbank, California where they were filming the climax for Blazing Saddles. Fantastic film, by the way, and it fit Monty Python's sense of humor like a pair of trousers." (2006)

Madeline Kahn as Trixie Delight in Paper Moon, 1973.

During the filming of Blazing Saddles, the three former Beatles obtained friendships with Gene Wilder, Harvey Korman, Mel Brooks and John Cleese (the latter was even particularly interested in teaming up with them again in the future). But if there was anyone John Lennon had gotten very close to during that time, it was a young actress of thirty by the name of Madeline Kahn, having previously starred in What's Up, Doc? and Paper Moon, in 1972 and 1973, respectively.

MADELINE KAHN: "I don't know what it was that drew me to John. He was heavily outspoken and brash, and I was very shy and reserved. The first time we met when not acting, he asked me what my childhood was like, and I told him about my father leaving me when I was a baby. Surprised, John said that he was separated from his father as well, having left England for New Zealand. He grew up to be a wild, edgy kid that everyone wanted to be like, whilst I grew up a fairly uneventful childhood. We were soon friends after a few days, and at the time, I didn't know anything about his time with the Beatles, nor about his rivalry with Paul in the early 70s." (1992)

GENE WILDER: "I noticed that when John was around Madeline, he was quite a different person. Whenever he was in a music studio, he was sometimes a bit of a clown, but around Madeline, he was a lot gentler and more sensitive. I mentioned this to Ringo and George, who were surprised by this development, especially given that he was already married." (1987)

April 6, 1973

The Passions - Holland

Released: April 6, 1973

Recorded: November 4, 1972 - March 3, 1973

Producer: Dennis and Carl Wilson

Track listing[3]

Side A

Sail On, Sailor
Here She Comes
Big Sur
The Beaks of Eagles
We Got Love

Side B

Hold On Dear Brother
The Trader
Leaving This Town
Only with You
Student Demonstration Time

The Passions' fourth album was the first with Mike Love as a full-time member, the first without Bruce Johnston, and the first with South African guitarist Blondie Chaplin and drummer Ricky Fataar. Despite the return of Love to the music scene and the presence of fresh blood to the lineup, Holland only managed to hit #36 and #20 in the United States and the United Kingdom, respectively. It was the lowest charting album that Dennis and Carl Wilson had performed on since the Beach Boys' debut album Surfin' Safari in 1962 in America (#32).

Despite the underwhelming chart performance, critical reception was fairly positive, although some like Robert Christgau felt that it had strayed too far from what the Beach Boys were known for in the 1960s. Elvis Costello cited Holland as one of his favorite records of all time, and Tom Petty described the album as "beautiful" in 2000.

DENNIS WILSON: "I didn't want to admit it at the time, but I felt that the Passions were dying out. Bruce leaving the band following So Tough was a warning sign, but the under-performance of Holland seemed to solidify it. It didn't really matter if we were the Beach Boys or the Passions; we were falling out of favor with popular music tastes during the early to mid-1970s, and I was left wondering what would become of us within five years, let alone the rest of the 20th century." (2004)

Fortunately, Dennis Wilson found a new calling when the Ladders went into the studio to record their next album. Following the success of "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)" back in March, a follow-up album to Bloody Sunday seemed the next logical choice. John, George and Ringo entered the studio with the general mindset of straying far away from their political and religious material, but they didn't know how the next album would sound.

Dennis Wilson performing live with the Passions, 1973.

GEORGE HARRISON: "The break following the release of Bloody Sunday did us some good; it gave us time to write up new material. Even Ringo had a few contributions of his own, but after Phil Spector broke down, we needed a new producer. By sheer luck, John had come across Dennis Wilson during the filming of Blazing Saddles." (1976)

DENNIS WILSON: "John and I talked a lot together in a pub in Burbank, exchanging jokes and stories. He even promised me that he'd ask Mel Brooks to invite me to the premiere of Blazing Saddles, which wouldn't be out until February next year. Eventually, John asked if I could help him, George and Ringo in producing the next Ladders album. Producing for someone outside of familiar company? I loved a challenge, so I took the job." (2004)

That June, the Ladders entered the studio with Wilson in the producers' chair. The sessions were much like the days of the Beatles and the Beach Boys; laid back, productive, and overall fun. At least twenty songs were recorded during the sessions, but only twelve would end up on the final album. Among the songs recorded were Lennon's "Mind Games", "Rock and Roll People", "One Day (At a Time)", "Tight A$", "You Are Here", and "I'm the Greatest", which he would give to Ringo to sing. Harrison's contributions included "Living in the Material World", "Don't Let Me Wait Too Long", "So Sad", "Dark Horse", "The Light That Has Lighted the World", and three songs for Ringo; "Sunshine Life for Me", "You and Me (Babe)", and "Photograph". Starr would even write a few songs himself; "Step Lightly", "Oh My My" and "Devil Woman", the latter two of which were written with Dennis Wilson.

There was a lot of leftover material when the sessions ended in July, with plans to use that material for another album release next year.

24 August 1973

The Ladders - Photograph

Released: 24 August 1973

Recorded: June - July 1973

Producer: The Ladders and Dennis Wilson

Track listing[4]

Side A

I'm the Greatest
Living in the Material World
Mind Games
Photograph
One Day (At a Time)
Be Here Now

Side B

Bring on the Lucie (Freda Peeple)
The Light That Has Lighted the World
Step Lightly
Out the Blue
Don't Let Me Wait Too Long
You and Me (Babe)

Photograph was hailed as a return to form for the Ladders following the poor reception to Bloody Sunday. It hit #1 in both the United States and the United Kingdom, with critics praising Dennis Wilson's production touches and the vocal performances by Ringo Starr, for the first time having equal vocal contributions alongside John and George. The title track was released alongside the album with Lennon's "Meat City" as the B-side, and also hit #1 in America, but topped out at #3 in the United Kingdom.

CARL WILSON: "It's almost like the former Beach Boys and the former Beatles have become allies in a sense; Paul co-produced an album by former Beach Boys, and Dennis co-produced an album by former Beatles." (1973)

Lennon's "Mind Games", a track tracing back to the Get Back sessions in 1969, would later be released as a single in November with a Shine One leftover, a cover of Bob Dylan's "If Not for You". It would chart at #5 and #8 in the United States and the United Kingdom. Whilst John, George and Ringo were enjoying the success they'd managed to claw back, unbeknownst to them, Paul McCartney would soon strike back...

Footnotes

1. The role of Boris the hangman went to Robert Ridgely, Howard Johnson to John Hillerman, and Gabby Johnson the prospector to Jack Starrett.
2. Dom DeLuise portrayed Buddy Bizarre instead of John Cleese.
3. Tracks are sourced from Surf's Up, Carl and the Passions - "So Tough" and Holland. "We Got Love" is a bonus track from the 2015 remaster of Holland on iTunes.
4. Tracks are sourced from Ringo, Living in the Material World and Mind Games.

Author's Comments

For the last three chapters, we've been jumping around between 1972 and 1973. For this chapter and the next two, we're gonna be stuck in 1973 full time. This chapter wasn't easy to write up, to say the least. I didn't know when Blazing Saddles was being filmed, so I had to guess by pure instinct. If I was right or wrong, hopefully this won't affect the flow of the story too much.

And finally, we reveal the identity of "Maddy Lennon" - Madeline Kahn herself! I don't know why I chose to have her and John together; I just thought the idea was pretty interesting. Sometimes, things don't plan out the way you originally intended, and that's a good thing. And since John's got a certain Tricky Dicky off of his back, anything could happen to him during the Lost Weekend, and that was a direction I decided to take with him. The prologue I posted back in January may be changed slightly given how things are changing up; heck, John's second kid may not even be named Sean! But we'll see what comes up in the future...

This will also not be the last we hear from Monty Python in the story, but sadly, Holland is likely to be the last Passions album because I feel that if I tried to compile material for an album for 1974 or later, I'd be scraping the bottom of the barrel, especially since the Beach Boys' material between 1976 and 1996 ranged from forgettable to outright unlistenable. Though they did make a comeback with That's Why God Made the Radio in 2012. But fear not! We'll see more from Dennis in the future.

Also, we've officially reached the midway point of Phase Two! The overall length for it will be thirty chapters total compared to twenty chapters in Phase One. Yep, we'll soon be reaching fifty chapters for the story, and that will happen in mid-March at the earliest. If I'm ambitious enough, Phase Three could range from forty to fifty chapters in length, though I doubt I'd be able to make it to a hundred by the time we hit Live Aid in 1985. But we'll see where this goes!

Chapter 34: Smoke on the Water (November 1972 - October 1973)

November 1972 - January 1973

David Bowie as Aladdin Sane, 1973.

After completing the work for Hunky Dory's Melting Pottery duology, David Bowie could now turn his attention to his next project with the Rolling Stones. Their recording location was at Dynamic Sound Studios in Kingston, Jamaica. Bowie's initial idea for the title was Love Aladdin Vein, which he later revised to Aladdin Sane, a pun on the term "A Lad Insane". The character of Aladdin Sane was to be a development of the Ziggy Stardust character Bowie had created last year, and the next album would essentially be "Ziggy goes to America".

DAVID BOWIE: "By that time, the Stones had practically won this little battle of the bands against the Who. They didn't put out an album in '72, but we did. I was practically the Stones' secret weapon in their victory. *laughs*" (2003)

MICK JAGGER: "Unlike Ziggy, there was no story going on with Aladdin. I think there was beneath the music, expressing how simultaneously disgusted and fascinated David was with America at the time." (1994)

KEITH RICHARDS: "David seemed to be going through a sort of identity crisis when it came to his characters. I mean, in '69, he had Major Tom, and then in '71, there was Ziggy. Now, come '73, he introduced Aladdin Sane. It was hard to tell at times, especially when performing, if the characters were a part of David, or if he were a part of them." (2017)

Keith Richards and Mick Jagger, 1973.

With the exception of Keith Richards, all members of the Rolling Stones found themselves back in France to deal with an investigation there regarding drug suspicions. Fortunately, they were cleared of charges and were soon back in the Jamaican studio. Unfortunately, however, heroin and drug possession charges were laid upon Richards and his girlfriend Anita Pallenberg, and both found themselves undergoing heroin withdrawal when their supplies ran out. Another recording interruption had taken place two days before Christmas when Mick and Bianca Jagger flew to Mangua, Nicaragua following an earthquake there; to their relief, the latter's mother had survived the event.

Shortly after the recording sessions had ended, the Rolling Stones performed a benefit concert for the earthquake victims at the Los Angeles Forum with local band Santana and and comedy duo Cheech & Chong as the opening acts. Afterwards, they flew to Hawaii to begin their tour in Australia and Asia.

30 March 1973

The Yardbirds - Houses of the Holy

Released: 30 March 1973

Recorded: December 1971 - August 1972

Producer: Jimmy Page

Track listing[1]

Side A

The Song Remains the Same
Black Country Woman
Over the Hills and Far Away

Side B
Houses of the Holy
The Rain Song
The Crunge

Side C

Dancing Days
Walter's Walk
No Quarter

Side D
D'yer Mak'er
The Rover
The Ocean

By the end of 1972, the Yardbirds were enjoying their revived commercial success from their studio albums and live performances. However, there were the inevitable debates as to whether or not the pre-1969 albums could still hold up compared to the releases from Going Down Like a Lead Zeppelin onwards. Indeed, the albums prior to Dazed and Confused ran at less than forty minutes overall, and their most recent album, Stairway to Heaven, had breached the 50 minute limit that vinyl records would allow, with the first side running at less than a minute longer than the second side.

JIMMY PAGE: "I wanted to see how far we could push vinyl records at the time. We'd managed to put out Stairway which ran at 51 minutes total. But could we squeeze an hour's worth of material onto a single record? I believed we could, but I had severely overestimated their capabilities. If compact discs had existed back then, this wouldn't have been a problem." (1997)[2]

The sessions for the Yardbirds' tenth album had begun back in December 1971 and stretched all the way to August 1972. The recording had taken place using the Rolling Stones Mobile Studio, the same studio used to record Fight the Horde and Stairway to Heaven, as well as the Rolling Stones' Life on Mars, the Who's Lifehouse, and Deep Purple's Machine Head. Twelve songs were recorded during that time, including potential hit singles "Over the Hills and Far Away" and "D'yer Mak'er".

The Yardbirds performing live, 1972. On John Bonham's drumkit, instead of the Yardbirds' name, three intersecting circles are used on the front of the bass drum as the new symbol for the band.

Instead of the blues rock distortion found on Going Down Like a Lead Zeppelin, Whole Lotta Love, Fight the Horde, and Stairway to Heaven, Houses of the Holy went for a clean, expansive rock sound, becoming the Yardbirds' most eclectic album musically. Despite the intention to put up to thirty minutes' worth of music per side, Houses ended up becoming a double album with each side running close to fifteen minutes each. However, some single album copies were still released and have since become collectors' items among the Yardbirds fanbase.

ROBERT PLANT: "We recorded way more than we really should've at the time; with hindsight, we probably could've cut one or two songs and still have a single album." (2004)

But becoming a double album did not keep Houses of the Holy from reaching #1 in both the United States and the United Kingdom. It was one of the greatest musical left turns of the 1970s, with critics complaining about the off-beat nature of the tracks "The Crunge" and "D'yer Mak'er" and saying that they had digressed into a watered down heavy metal act. Because of this, neither of the singles ("D'yer Mak'er", "Over the Hills and Far Away") reached the Top 10. Later reception proved kinder towards the album, with Rolling Stone ranking it #148 on "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" in 2003.

29 June 1973

The Rolling Stones - Aladdin Sane

Released: 29 June 1973

Recorded: November 1972 - January 1973

Producer: The Rolling Stones and Jimmy Miller

Track listing[3]

Side A

Watch That Man
100 Years Ago
Aladdin Sane (1913-1938-197?)
Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)
Angie
Cracked Actor

Side B

The Prettiest Star
Winter
The Jean Genie
Lady Grinning Soul
Waiting on a Friend

CHARLIE WATTS: "Aladdin Sane was the last album we did with Jimmy Miller. Keith describes Jim as going in a lion and coming out a lamb. After David came into the picture, we practically wore Jimmy down to the ground. He was a great producer, but the more successful he became, the more he started to act like Brian, such as carving swastikas into the wooden console at Island Studios in London, where we did the final mixing for Aladdin. Meanwhile, it was up to Mick, Keith and David to finish up the album." (1985)

Despite it being the Rolling Stones' final collaboration with Jimmy Miller, Aladdin Sane managed to reach #1 in both the United States and the United Kingdom, as did the lead single released in July, "Angie"/"The Jean Genie", although it stalled at #2 in the latter country. Critical reception for Aladdin Sane was largely positive, although more so in the United States.

Shortly after the release of the album, David Bowie recorded his third solo album, which was to be a collection of covers he called Pin Ups. Among the tracks he recorded for said album were Pink Floyd's "See Emily Play", the Kinks' "Where Have All the Good Times Gone", and the Who's "I Can't Explain". Hunky Dory members Syd Barrett and Lou Reed served as guest musicians for Pin Ups, released 19 October and reaching #1 in the United Kingdom.

19 October 1973

The Who - Rock Is Dead - Long Live Rock

Released: 19 October 1973

Recorded: May - June 1972, May - September 1973

Producer: The Who

Track listing[4]

Side A

Relay
5:15
Is It In My Head?
Long Live Rock
Drowned
Join Together

Side B

The Real Me
Dirty Jobs
Cut My Hair
I'm One
Doctor Jimmy
Love, Reign O'er Me

After being mostly inactive throughout 1972, with the members pursuing solo projects, the Who were now in their new recording studio, Ramport Studios, which they had modeled out of an old church. Pete Townshend still held onto the concept for Rock is Dead - Long Live Rock, and he had also written up new material such as "Quadrophenia" (a play on schizophrenia), "5:15", and "Helpless Dancer". However, not all the material could be put out on a single album.

PETE TOWNSHEND: "We'd put out Lifehouse a couple of years before, and it was a complete monster of an album running at over seventy minutes. We had to put out something that was a bit more small scale in comparison." (1998)

ROGER DALTREY: "It was a very simple agreement we came up with; put out Rock is Dead this year [1973], and anything that wasn't on the album could come out next year." (1975)

The Who performing live, 1973.

The final Rock is Dead - Long Live Rock was a middle ground between the Who's goofier, looser albums (A Quick One, Magic Bus, 7ft. Wide Car, 6ft. Wide Garage) and their more serious, ambitious projects (Who's Lily, Tommy, Lifehouse) - an ideal showcase as to what made the six albums before it great. The album was preceded in September by the single "5:15"/"Long Live Rock", which reached #20 in the United Kingdom. The United States single, "Love, Reign O'er Me"/"The Punk and the Godfather", only managed to reach #76 there.

Rock is Dead - Long Live Rock hit #2 in the United Kingdom and the United States, being kept off of the top spot by David Bowie's Pin Ups and Elton John's Goodbye Yellow Brick Road in the respective countries. Finding a copy for the Who's eighth album was difficult due to the shortage of vinyl caused by the OPEC oil embargo at the time despite the high charting position, but even then, the album was met with positive reception, being labeled as the Who's greatest masterwork.

On the second side - the rock opera half - the six songs formed a story about adolescence. The mini opera concerns a teenager by the name of Jimmy working a dead-end job and he gets mocked by his elders for his appearance regarding his hair and clothing. He later laments his self-destructive nature but soon comes to an epiphany that only love can reign over his problems. Along with some of the then-unreleased material from the sessions of Rock is Dead - Long Live Rock, the story would serve as the basis for a film in 1979 called Quadrophenia.

Footnotes

1. All tracks from Houses of the Holy are included. "Black Country Woman", "Houses of the Holy" and "The Rover" are all sourced from Physical Graffiti, and "Walter's Walk" is from Coda.
2. It is technically possible to include up to thirty minutes of music per side, but the sound quality isn't expected to be the greatest compared to compact discs.
3. Tracks are sourced from Aladdin Sane and Goats Head Soup, except for "Waiting on a Friend", sourced from Tattoo You.
4. Tracks are sourced from The Who Hits 50! ("Relay", the single edit of "5:15", "Join Together"), Odds & Sods ("Long Live Rock") and Quadrophenia. For the latter, "Is It In My Head" and "Drowned" are edited to fade out earlier on Side A, and for Side B, all tracks were initially re-edited to form a single track before be re-edited into individual tracks with new transitions.

Author's Comments

Has it really been eight chapters since we last saw the Yardbirds? Wow! It seems like yesterday when I put out Stairway to Heaven. Of course, there's not much I can really change with the Yardbirds/Led Zeppelin in the 1970s, save for the shifting in the tracklistings, but what can I do with them after I post the equivalent to In Through the Out Door (1979, during Phase Three)? 1980 was a crucial moment in their history as it's the year John Bonham died choking on his vomit and they broke up because of it. Either they still break up or they replace Bonzo; that I've yet to fully decide, especially if I can find good enough material from Robert Plant and/or Jimmy Page in the 80s.

Also, while the Rolling Stones' story will continue through Phases Two and Three, this is the second to last time in a while we will hear from the Who in Strawberry Peppers. There will be an album featuring the remaining material from Quadrophenia for 1974, but after that, I don't think I can do much justice to The Who by Numbers (1975) or Who Are You (1978) - though for the former, I'd swap "However Much I Booze" and "They Are All in Love" around so both sides are of roughly equal length. But as for the latter, I wonder if I can rearrange the tracks to serve as a sequel to Lifehouse.

Album cover for Rock is Dead - Long Live Rock was made by IdesignAlbumCovers on Tumblr.

Chapter 33: No Matter What (June 1972 - March 1973)

2 June 1972

Pink Floyd - Obscured by Clouds

Released: 2 June 1972

Recorded: 23-29 February and 23 March - 6 April 1972

Producer: Pink Floyd

Track listing[1]

Side A

Obscured by Clouds
When You're In
Burning Bridges
Dominoes
The Gold It's in the...
Wot's... Uh the Deal?

Side B

Childhood's End
Free Four
Stay
Wolfpack
Absolutely Curtains

Pink Floyd's seventh album was originally recorded to serve as a soundtrack to Barbet Schroeder's La Vallée (Obscured by Clouds in French), and the sessions took place in France in the midst of touring. Upon release, it reached #6 in the United Kingdom but did not reach the Top 40 in the United States (#46). The lead single, "Free Four", also failed to chart in America.

Still, Obscured by Clouds was, according to the band, made as a stop gap before they could put out their next album, which Roger Waters said was based around things that made people go mad, but still unified in a single concept. Such subjects would include time, money, and mental health, and production had begun as early as January 1972 with the music being performed live. The performances were a great success, but recording for The Dark Side of the Moon was put on hold whilst Pink Floyd worked on Obscured by Clouds.

However, all was not well in Pink Floyd, and once again, the problem related to a certain Mr. Roger Keith Barrett, known to his bandmates as "Syd".

Syd Barrett, 1972.

SYD BARRETT: "I felt like I was practically a liability to Pink Floyd by the time Roger got to work on The Dark Side of the Moon. An albatross, if you will. They were off playing live, and I was staying at home with my own tunes, doing nothing much else. It was just after we finished the sessions for Obscured by Clouds that I told the guys I wanted to leave the band and carve my own path." (1976)

ROGER WATERS: "I was initially shocked when Syd said to us that he wanted out of the Floyd. But after he gave us a speech as to why he wanted to leave, I spoke first and said, 'It's alright, Syd. Our artistic visions are diverging apart, and it's for the best that you leave before we say things we'll regret down the road.' The others were mixed about the whole thing." (1990)

When the announcement was made public, Barrett admitted to being crazy, but he added that he was, and always will be, the "crazy diamond" of Pink Floyd. To this day, it remains debatable as to what Barrett meant by the term crazy diamond, with Rick Wright suggesting that "since diamonds shine, and that because [Syd] was crazy, he shined because of it," even going so far as to calling it "poetic". (1973)

July - October 1972

David Bowie, Iggy Pop and Lou Reed, 1972.

DAVID BOWIE: "I was pretty active at the start of the 70s, and not just because of my work with the Rolling Stones. At the time, I was planning out what became Aladdin Sane, and soon I found myself tied into working on solo projects by Lou Reed and Iggy Pop. They're great musicians, and I figured we might've done a group project together despite being tied to different labels.[2] We do have Syd to thank for making this crazy idea a reality." (1997)

By 1972, the Velvet Underground and the Stooges, the respective bands of Lou Reed and Iggy Pop, had both collapsed, leaving the two frontmen to start up their own solo careers at Reed's label RCA Records.[3] Pop's song-writing partner was guitarist James Williamson, who was a member of the Stooges by the time they had broken up and stayed on with Pop.

SYD BARRETT: "I went into Trident Studios where I saw David and Lou working on some songs together. They seemed to be struggling with the lyrics to one of Lou's songs - I can't recall which - when, from out of nowhere, I made a suggestion to what they could be said. David was pretty taken aback by my presence; he and Lou must not have heard me come in." (1974)

LOU REED: "David was a bit nervous in the presence of Syd; he considered Syd his hero. But soon, all of us were talking and laughing together. Then David introduced the both of us to Iggy." (1986)

IGGY POP: "Lou and I had all this material we wanted to put down on tape, and David Bowie was going to help produce our albums before Syd Barrett turned up. He was a strange fellow, but still a good person all the same. He'd even suggested that instead of solo albums, we form a supergroup and put out an album together." (1982)

Kevin Ayers, early 1970s.

The original idea for the supergroup's name was the Crazy Diamonds, per Barrett's suggestion, but they soon settled on a name that David Bowie had originally intended for the Rolling Stones' Life on Mars, Hunky Dory. On the day that the sessions were to begin, 11 August, Barrett had entered the studio with a pair of surprise guests; Kevin Ayers and Robert Wyatt, former members of Soft Machine.

SYD BARRETT: "Well, we need a bassist and a drummer, don't we?" (1972)

KEVIN AYERS: "Robert and I knew Syd when he played guest guitar for one of my solo singles ["Singing a Song in the Morning"] back in 1969. He called me up on the phone one day in the summer of '72, and told me about some supergroup project he was doing with Bowie, Pop and Reed. He asked if I wanted to take part, and I asked, 'Can we bring Robert along as well?' And the rest is history." (1993)

ROBERT WYATT: "Kevin had songs and I didn't, but I was still happy to provide backing vocals and drums for the sessions." (2007)

23 February 1973

Hunky Dory - Melting Pottery I

Released: 23 February 1973

Recorded: August-October 1972

Producer: Hunky Dory and Ken Scott

Track listing[4]

Side A

Baby Lemonade
Oh! You Pretty Things
Your Pretty Face is Going to Hell
Interview
Walk on the Wild Side
Velvet Goldmine

Side B

Vicious
Oh! Wot a Dream
No Good Trying
Song for Bob Dylan
Shake Appeal
Milky Way
Wagon Wheel

Hunky Dory - Melting Pottery II

Released: 23 February 1973

Recorded: August-October 1972

Producer: Hunky Dory and Ken Scott

Track listing[4]

Side A

Don't Let It Get You Down (For Rachel)
Gimme Danger
Eight Line Poem
Perfect Day
Love You
Hymn

Side B

Penetration
Shouting in a Bucket of Blues
Queen Bitch
Long Gone
I'm So Free
Death Trip

The supergroup Hunky Dory consisted of Iggy Pop (The Stooges) on guitar, David Bowie (The Rolling Stones) on keyboards and piano, Kevin Ayers (Soft Machine) on bass, Lou Reed (The Velvet Underground) on rhythm guitar, Syd Barrett (Pink Floyd) on guitar, and Robert Wyatt (Soft Machine) on drums and percussion. The sessions lasting from August to October were so productive that the band decided to put out two albums under the same banner, Melting Pottery, under RCA Records. Although initially released as two albums, they were eventually paired together as a double album, I & II.

Both albums reached #3 in the United Kingdom and #40 in the United States, with some fans buying both to even out the sales. No singles were released, although many believed that Bowie's "Velvet Goldmine" should've been released as a single. Melting Pottery was a heavy blending of art pop, glam, punk, psychedelic, and folk rock, with every member contributing something different across every track.

Rock music critics were bemused at the unusual blending of various genres, but did admit that Hunky Dory never sat still for very long. John Lennon spoke very highly about the supergroup, calling them "a melting pot of everything great about music at the time." (1994) Axl Rose said that he loved listening to both albums as a teenager and was even said to have been impressed with the concept of putting out two studio albums at the same time from the same sessions. Kurt Cobain even wrote in his journals that both Melting Pottery albums were his all-time favorites. Johnny Marr, Steve Jones, Henry Rollins and Nikki Sixx also cite the albums has being influential to their sound.

2 March 1973

The cover to Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon, released March 1973.

But what of Syd Barrett's former band, Pink Floyd? Well, the recording sessions for The Dark Side of the Moon were finished in January 1973, their first album without Barrett. When it first came out in March, The Dark Side of the Moon reached #1 in America, Pink Floyd's first album to do so, but stalled at #2 in the United Kingdom. The album received critical acclaim from critics and fans alike, and many considered it to be Pink Floyd's magnum opus. It currently remains one of the best-selling albums of all time and ranked at #43 of Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Albums of All Time".

Footnotes

1. All tracks are sourced from Obscured by Clouds, excluding "Dominoes" and "Wolfpack", both taken from Syd Barrett's Barrett.
2. In OTL, at the time, Lou Reed and David Bowie were both contracted to RCA Records, and Iggy Pop to Columbia Records. In addition, Kevin Ayers was contracted to Harvest Records in the United Kingdom, and neither Syd Barrett nor Robert Wyatt were contracted to a label - Barrett had left the music scene back then.
3. The Velvet Underground's Squeeze never gets recorded ITTL. Although not stated, the Lou Red era of the Velvet Underground lasted slightly longer than it did in OTL.
4. For both albums, tracks are sourced from Syd Barrett's The Madcap Laughs, David Bowie's Hunky Dory, the Stooges' Raw Power, Kevin Ayers' Bananamour, and Lou Reed's Transformer. On Melting Pottery I, "Baby Lemonade" is sourced from Syd Barrett's Barrett, "Milky Way" from Opel, and "Velvet Goldmine" from David Bowie's Five Years (1969-1973).

Author's Comments

Originally, for Melting Pottery, it was simply a collaboration between David Bowie, Lou Reed, and Iggy Pop called Hunky Dory - it was even the name of the supergroup. However, after checking out Auran's Gummaumma timeline that threw in Syd Barrett, Kevin Ayers and Robert Wyatt, I decided to have all six form the supergroup earlier to 1973. I think that is such a weird, wonderful collaboration; a Stone (in this timeline, at least), a Velvet, a Stooge, a Floyd, and two Machines performing under the same banner. Imagine if such a group existed back then, and imagine the discussions there'd be about trying to prune it down to a single album!

Also, I didn't include the tracklisting to The Dark Side of the Moon as I imagine it would stay the same, even in this timeline. After all, why mess with a perfect album? And yes, Hunky Dory will be part of the same storyline as Pink Floyd.