Melanie at Crystal Palace, 1972. Photo Barry Plummer
A lot of artists complain bitterly when they find their music being bootlegged – think of that famous footage (available on YouTube) of Neil Young walking into a Hollywood record store in 1971, to discover an unauthorized live album sitting on the shelves!
Melanie felt the same way. The latter part of her career was positively plagued by fans trading, selling and posting online her unreleased out-takes and live shows, a flood that ultimately led her to authorize the wholesale emptying of her archive by Cleopatra Records for a marathon series of releases and bonus track-stacked reissues. Check them out here: https://cleorecs.com/search?q=Melanie&options%5Bprefix%5D=last
But she also regretted never having been “properly” bootlegged – that is, having a concert pressed on vinyl, slipped into a plain white sleeve with photocopied art gummed to the front, given a bizarre title, and sold through the underground network of mon-and-pop stores that once proliferated.
So we did it for her.
From The Banks of the River Effra – Crystal Palace 1972 was recorded at the Crystal Palace Garden Party in London, and is released today resplendent with its own bootleg-style art insert, white label and a suitably obscure title – the River Effra is one of London’s so-called “lost rivers,” flowing through the area now occupied by the Crystal Palace site.
The gig was a truly heavyweight occasion. Melanie was a festival veteran by now; Woodstock in 1969 was followed by the Isle Of Wight Festival in 1970, Glastonbury Fayre and the Montreux Jazz Festival (also available from Cleopatra Records) in 1971, and many more.
Crystal Palace itself was a veritable Woodstock reunion. Staged on June 3, 1972, Melanie headlined a bill that also featured Joe Cocker, Richie Havens and Sha Na Na, alongside the Beach Boys.
Unfortunately, the day didn’t really live up to its billing. It rained for most of the afternoon, the PA was problematic, and delays plagued the show – including a 90 minute wait for the Beach Boys. By the time Keith Moon and Legs Larry Smith introduced Melanie (who flew in specifically to play the show), even the rain-soaked faithful were grumbling.
But 16,000 people welcomed her all the same; and, by the time her set was over, maybe… just maybe… they’d forgotten how miserable the rest of the day had been.
The album does not feature the complete performance. Although the entire festival was filmed, and excerpts (including three Melanie songs) were broadcast on US TV the following month, the whereabouts of the footage today is unknown.
At some point, however, an edit of the event seems to have been made, leaking out on a bootleg cassette a couple of years later, and then vanishing from view. From The Banks of the River Effra – Crystal Palace 1972 is its first ever official release, and while the fidelity – like the artwork – could be described as bootleg quality, it is nevertheless a powerful, and joyous performance.
Track Listing
- Someday I’ll Be A Farmer
- Beautiful People
- Ring The Living Bell
- What Have They Done To My Song Ma
- Bitter Bad
- Peace Will Come (According To Plan)
- Together Alone
- Psychotherapy
ALBUM: https://cleorecs.com/products/melanie-crystal-palace-white-label-vinyl
