The great Garfield - penny for your thoughts

[Big Ears Teddy]

Last night David played a Garfield tune and called him "The Great".

"The Great" is not a phrase to be taken lightly, usually reserved for people at the very top of their genre. Such people are mostly very famous. Eric Clapton, David Gilmour, Mark Knopfler, Jimi Hendrix... these guys are obvious candidates for "The Great" label when it comes to guitar players, for example.

So then there's Garfield French.

I must confess, I had never heard of this guy before NYtheSpirit.com. Famous he ain't! You throw the phrase "the great Garfield French" into a conversation and you are going to get a lot of puzzled looks.

Now, I have been around for a while. CFNY from the yellow house? Check. CHUM-FM when Larry Green used to drive us nuts by playing jazz in the daytime? Check. Dave Mickey the ultimate motor mouth? Check. Been there for them all.

But I cannot remember ever hearing Garfield before NYTS.com. If it wasn't for DM, I wouldn't know anything about him.

Did his stuff get played back in the day? Was he on the radio? Did CHUM-FM play him? Did he do concerts in the Toronto area? Massey Hall? The Rock Pile? High school gyms??

How did I miss this guy?

David likes to say he can't remember much about the 70's. I messed around with a few substances too. But I'm pretty sure I would remember an artist as distinctive as Garfield French, and I don't.

Is he worthy of "The Great" label? I'm not so sure about that. You might need a larger body of work to qualify. But he sure is interesting, and my thanks go the The Great David Marsden for playing him and making this old soldier aware of him.

[Marsbar]

I believe sometimes greatness is found in the creative works of an artist. One does not always require celebrity status to obtain greatness. Garfield's work is a world of creative thoughts and energy.

Yes, I played a lot of Garfield's music at CHUM-FM. As did the other on-air folks. And yes - he was played at CFNY-FM in the late 70's and early 80's.

And then there is this from Wiki - The band's debut album Strange Streets, released in 1976, garnered Canadian radio airplay for the single "Old Time Movies", and was supported by touring both on their own and as an opening act for Canadian dates by The Doobie Brothers. Their second album, Out There Tonight, was released in 1977. It was less successful, leading to conflict with their label, and the band moved to Polydor Records for their third album Reason to Be in 1979. One more album, Flights of Fantasy, was released in 1981 before the band broke up.

And you may also enjoy seeing this....

http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=84137

BTW Big Ears Teddy - it's never too late to learn of great music. That's why we are here. Plus there was such a deluge of amazing music back then ... it is understandable to miss a few of the secret gems.

[Big Ears Teddy]

Well I am baffled, because I don't remember hearing Garfield back in the day, and I was certainly listening to the best radio stations of those [cough] interesting [cough] times.

But now, Garfield has become old hat for me. I can recognize his voice instantly. I know the songs. So I don't wanna hear him No Mo. The thrill is in the discovery. When the unusual becomes mundane, it's no fun any more.

Just kidding.

I hope you, David, will continue to make inspired choices for your show. When you pull up those secret gems, it's magic.

[kongponleu88]

This was a record that brings back great memories of San Antonio in the ... ... Mister, penny for your thoughts ...
goldenslot