Certainly going beyond what any of us ever thought we’d hear from super group Captain Beyond, Lost & Found 1972-1973 features never-heard-before vintage demo tracks, from these self-described “space rock” rockers. Considered one of the most underappreciated gems of 70s rock, this super group of Englishmen and Americans featured Deep Purple’s original singer Rod Evans, Iron Butterfly’s Lee Dorman and Rhino Reinhardt, and Johnny Winter’s drummer Bobby Caldwell.
Captain Beyond released three studio albums after Duane Allman heard a demo tape of the group, and was so blown away, he all but demanded the band join The Allman Brother Band roster on Capricorn Records. Those original demos remained buried until just recently when Caldwell unearthed them. The noisy guitar jangly heavy jump of “Uranus Expressway,” a song that never appeared on any Captain Beyond release, opens the CD. We get the demos of tunes like “As The Moon Speaks (To The Waves Of The Sea),” the descending warble key opening of heavy organ plodder, “Icarus,” with its mastery of riffery
A particular brand of jamming this band does heavy and hard, with Caldwell’s drumming at the leading, isw at the heart of “Dancing Madly Backwards (On A Sea Of Air).” Then there’s “Myopid: Void,” which really showcases what Captain Beyond was all about: heavy attack, soling flights of guitar, mid-tempo change-ups and Evans singing strong through the drive and punch of mix of rock and psychedelia. The players of Captain Beyond were pretty ‘super’ and these tunes sound very good for demos. Lost & Found 1972-1973 is a brilliant collection of stuff to be sure, as much to please fans of this band, as anyone looking to go beyond their usual rock listening.
~ Ralph Greco. Jr.
