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Epitaph - Epitaph (1971)

Track listing:
  1. Moving To The Country 5:14
  2. Visions 5:27
  3. Hopelessly 8:16
  4. Little Maggie 8:35
  5. Early Morning 10:05
  6. London Town Girl 3:28
  7. Autumn 71 4:30
  8. Are You Ready 4:29
  9. I'm Trying 5:33
  10. Changing World 5:50

Notes

British progressive heavy rock bands like Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, Uriah Heep and Led Zeppelin inspired many young bands in Germany. The Germans usually preferred to use English lyrics, and several bands, like Blackwater Park, 2066 & Then and Epitaph, had British vocalists! Epitaph were founded in Dortmund in 1969, consisting of Cliff Jackson (vocals, guitar), Bernd Kolbe (bass, mellotron, vocals) and Jim McGillivray (drums). The first sessions for their debut album, released 1971 on Polydor, were recorded in an Essex studio in England. For unknown reasons, it was however finished in Windrose Studios, Hamburg, where a fourth member was added to the group: Klaus Walz (guitar, vocals). The five resulting tracks sounded similar to the groups mentioned above, and particularly the earliest incarnation of Uriah Heep. Epitaph's Cliff Jackson didn't attempt to copy Byron's operatic vocal style, though. There were both fast rock'n'roll numbers and slow ballads with mellotron textures, usually in the 'heavy progressive standard song length' - from 5 to 7 minutes.

Epitaph are a German-British band who play British styled hardrock with nice double lead guitars. Although being no typical Krautrock band, they were and still are a desired live act. Comprised of 2 Germans and 2 Brits, Epitaph's sound is similar to the traditional British progressive heavy rock genre along the lines of Uriah Heep, Deep Purple, Led Zepplin. However, one can not overlook the effect which King Crimson had on Epitaph. Non-Crimson fans should note that the Crimzoids had a track titled 'Epitaph' on their 1969 debut LP; oddly enough, there is a track on Epitaph's debut which could easily be mistaken for this track! Coincidence?

'Epitaph 1971' features five guitar driven rock tracks, which are quite derivative at times of more popular British bands. The album opens with 'Moving To The Country' is a straight forward rock number reminiscent of early Uriah Heep. Following this is 'Visions', a slow atmospheric ballad heavily influenced by King Crimson's 1969 track 'Epitaph', the track contains lush mellotron and the chord sequence and lyrics similar to Pink Floyd's 'Echoes'. Though derivative of both of these two great bands, 'Visions' sticks out as the best track on this album. 'Hopelessly' is another progressive heavy rock tour de force. This track builds slowly and contains an extended instrumental section. 'Little Maggie' contains a nice chorus hook and a playfully jangly blues/folk guitar similar to Jimmy Pages' work. Perhaps the most original composition from the LP, 'Early Morning', contains a fairly complex arrangement and an ominous sound. The album manages to stand on its own and should appeal greatly to fans of progressive heavy rock.