Cressida (progressive rock band)

Cressida were a British progressive rock band, best known for their mellow, symphonic sound. Originally known as Charge, they were active from 1968 and 1970, and recorded two albums for Vertigo.

Career

The roots of Cressida were sown in March 1968, when guitarist John Heyworth answered an advertisement in Melody Maker, and later travelled to London to join The Dominators, a band whose situation he later described as "hopeless - until Angus Cullen applied for the lead singer spot". He and Heyworth hit it off immediately, and Heyworth was invited to stay at Cullen's family flat in Barkstone Gardens near Earl's Court. The pair settled down to some serious writing, eventually welcoming bassist Kevin McCarthy and drummer Iain Clark to the fold and now calling themselves Charge.

The band's early setlists included covers of songs by The Doors ("Spanish Caravan"), The Drifters ("Save The Last Dance For Me") and Spirit ("Fresh Garbage"), alongside original compositions by Cullen and Heyworth. In the Summer of 1969, shortly after returning from a German tour, the band's organist Lol Coker decided to leave, and moved back to Liverpool to marry his Swiss girlfriend and take over his father's business. He had stayed just long enough to play on the band's first demo, which got them a recording contract with Vertigo Records.

Peter Jennings then joined. "I was auditioned at the Roebuck pub in Chiswick, a place they sometimes used for rehearsals", he later remembered. "I imagine we ran through a 12-bar or two and possibly they tried me out on one of the numbers from their set, but anyway they liked the way I fitted in and I joined them that day". Jennings' previous musical experience included blues gigs playing 12-string guitar in tandem with ex-Paramounts pianist Andy Staines, and (in 1968–69) White Rabbit with drummer Ron Berg and guitarist Andy Rickell (a.k.a. Android Funnel). After White Rabbit came to an end, Jennings played with several short-lived bands.

At this point the band settled on the name Cressida. "None of the band considered Charge that wonderful a name. We decided after some discussion on a name taken from the William Shakespeare play Troilus and Cressida. Their first gigs as Cressida were in Germany, including the Star-Club in Hamburg sharing the bill with Colosseum and East Of Eden, in the Autumn of 1969. Their manager at the time, Mike Rosen, also drove their Transit van and, being a trumpet player (he later joined Mogul Thrash), occasionally joined the band on stage for some of their more extended numbers. But Rosen soon fell out with producer Ossie Byrne (of early Bee Gees fame), and from that point Mel Baister assumed managerial duties.

Other forays into Europe included a trip to Bratislava, where they performed at the end of a week's competition between various bands from the Eastern bloc; a week supporting Black Sabbath at Brussels' Theatre 140; and a performance at the Open Circus (an event held in a large tent with lion taming, fire eating and other side shows) in Rouen, France, alongside Brian Auger, Barclay James Harvest, Man and Circus.

Cressida mostly played the university and college circuits, as well as London clubs such as the Speakeasy, Revolution and Blaises and the Marquee Club. The first LP was recorded at Wessex Studios with Byrne producing. It consisted of songs by either Cullen or Heyworth (who handled lead vocals on one), plus one contribution each by Jennings and Clark.

Cressida went through a difficult phase when Heyworth was forced to leave in early 1970.

Heyworth (who would contribute one last piece to the second album, although he did not play on it) was replaced by John Culley, who had been playing with Geno Washington. The new line-up recorded Cressida's second LP, Asylum, later in 1970 (again with Byrne producing, and with orchestral arrangements by Graeme Hall), but it was released posthumously in 1971, the band having broken up in September 1970. Noted jazz flautist Harold McNair guested on the song "Lisa" from the album.

After the band split up, Clark joined Uriah Heep. McCarthy joined Tranquility, for whom he vocals and rhythm guitar instead of bass. Culley linked up with Black Widow and from 1981–1984, joined Colin Tench to launch the London six-piece progressive rock band Odin. Culley is currently (2010) working with Colin Tench in BunChakeze, an international outfit.

Heyworth died in January 2010. In 2011, three of the four surviving original members of the band, Angus Cullen, Iain Clark, and Kevin McCarthy got together again with Peter Jennings. The band were prompted to play a one-off live gig at The Underworld, Camden Town in London on December 2, 2011. Coinciding with the show is the limited edition release of a vinyl album of previously unreleased demos that Cressida made before their first album, to be followed in 2012 by a CD release.

Band members

• Angus Cullen - lead vocals, acoustic guitar, percussion
• John Heyworth - guitars, vocals (1968-70)
• John Culley - guitars (1970)
• Lol Coker - organ (1968-69)
• Peter Jennings - organ, piano (1969-70)
• Kevin McCarthy - bass
• Iain Clark - drums, percussion

Discography

• 1970 - Cressida (Vertigo)

1. "To Play Your Little Game" (Heyworth) 3:15
2. "Winter Is Coming Again" (Heyworth) 4:42
3. "Time For Bed" (Cullen) 2:18
4. "Cressida" (Cullen) 3:57
5. "Home And Where I Long To Be" (Heyworth) 4:04
6. "Depression" (Cullen) 5:02
7. "One Of A Group" (Jennings) 3:35
8. "Lights In My Mind" (Heyworth) 2:45
9. "The Only Earthman In Town" (Heyworth) 3:32
10. "Spring '69" (Cullen) 2:14
11. "Down Down" (Heyworth) 4:15
12. "Tomorrow Is a Whole New Day" (Clark) 5:19

• 1971 - Asylum (Vertigo)

1. "Asylum" (Cullen) 3:31
2. "Munich" (Jennings) 9:30
3. "Goodbye Post Office Tower Goodbye" (Cullen) 2:47
4. "Survivor" (Cullen) 1:32
5. "Reprieved" (Jennings) 2:29
6. "Lisa" (Cullen) 5:05
7. "Summer Weekend of A Lifetime" (Cullen) 3:20
8. "Let Them Come When They Will" (Heyworth) 11:46

References

External links

• Official 'Cressida' website
• Review of 'Cressida' album
• Band overview
• Most of the information contained herein came from a Cressida profile/interview in the UK fanzine Ptolemaic Terrascope.