Alvin Lee went home
It is rare that the audience at a concert can’t wait for the party to end, while enjoying themselves all night. In the case of Ten Years After, however, this happened often due to the frenzy, that they performed at I'm Going Home overwrote the entire evening. This was the case in Woodstock, where both the film and the official record of nearly 10-minutes peak was rock and roll, and so it was, as long as the absolute leader of the gang, Alvin Lee was on stage.
Until March 6th 2013
I'm Going Home. Alvin Lee, although, had a family, he spent four and a half decades on the road. His last record, last year's Still On The Road To Freedom implied the same thing while tributing to his musical roots. It would have been 40 years now that he finished his first solo album titled On The Road To Freedom, with partners like Stevie Winwood, Jim Capaldi, Mick Fleetwood and George Harrison. He went home for good. A routine surgery beat the pick out of his hand.
One of rocks most humble and kind individuals, someone who placed music above all, left us. He entered the genre four decades ago with Ten Years After, but he could also play swing, and even had nice poetic songs. The Love Like A Man, Help Me, Woke Up This Morning, 'I'm Coming On, the epic I Can’t Keep From Cryin' Sometimes, the lovely Thing About The Time Circles are perhaps the most valuable songs of his heritage. And of course the many mixes of I'm Going Home.
Alvin, was in his main element when he performed live with or without Ten Years After. The TYA 1973 live Recording has been among the best rock music records. But the only record released in 2001, next to the 1970-Fillmore East concert with the 16 minute Help Me, the Recorded Live is just a "smudge". And who ever saw Alvin play live - fortunately he was here several times, his biggest party was the 1994 Eurowoodstock - grabbed the joyful sound of his guitar and had an experience of a lifetime.
It has been several years since Alvin & Ten Years After finally parted ways, the old band has a new guitarist, they have been here to perform as well. One of my friends tempted me a few times to listen to them with him. For me Ten Years After doesn’t exist without Alvin Lee.
When you have to say goodbye to such a musician like Alvin, I always give thanks to human genius, which, if not the whole person, but found the sound of eternity. There are many already out there from his generation – unfortunately too many good bands could be compiled from them - but they left their voices and chanting instruments to us.
