It just goes to show how little people know about Terry Reid, who passed away yesterday at the age of 75, and how little they were aware of his work, that almost everything written about this great musician boils down to the legend of him turning down invitations to join first LED ZEPPELIN and then DEEP PURPLE. To begin fathoming all the depth of the artist’s talent in earnest, though, one has to watch his appearance at 1971’s Glastonbury Fayre, where Reid delivered a stellar, stunning performance and forged a lifelong creative collaboration with David Lindley, which would pave the way for Terry’s American career, one strewn with failures not of his doing, but still remarkable.
It was on his home turf, in England, that Reid first acquired the moniker of Superlungs, with his 1968 debut album Reissues2 and self-titled sophomore effort from 1969 showcasing Terry’s distinctive vocals and top-notch mastery of guitar, the second platter also etching the warbler’s image, taken by his namesake Terry Manning, on the memory of many fans. Those fans were in for a surprise, when Reid, having parted company with producer Mickie Most, got signed by Ahmet Ertegun to Atlantic and moved to the States to record “River” in 1973 and, in 1976, under the guidance of Graham Nash, the cult classic “Seed Of Memory” which signaled the Briton’s full embracing of West Coast idiom and the start of Terry’s troubles.
With ABC going bankrupt on the day the last-mentioned record was out, and its follow-up “Rogue Waves” flopping in 1978, and Reid switching to sessions for the likes of Bonnie Raitt and UFO before resuming his own path with “The Driver” in 1991. Overseen by Trevor Horn, that offering contained a cover of “Gimme Some Lovin'” which landed on the “Days Of Thunder” OST, and a take on “The Whole Of The Moon” which seemed destined to become a hit only to see the reissue by THE WATERBOYS’ original and shoot up the charts instead of Terry’s version. With no further new platters, he resorted to constant touring and singing on friends’ recordings, including "Drawing Horses" by Dzal Martin who played with Reid for years, with other musicians occasionally doing his numbers. The veteran’s new road trek had to be canceled recently, however, as he was diagnosed with cancer, and GoFund me campaign was launched, apparently too late, to finance Terry’s treatment.
A hugely underrated artist, he will be sorely missed.
