Copperhead - Copperhead 2 (1973)

Following the recording and release of Quicksilver Messenger Service's 'Just For Love' and 'What About Me' albums in 1970, both of which had been recorded in a studio in Hawaii with no electricity, John Cipollina left the band, as he thought that their music had become a little rudimentary, and he also wanted to play more sessions, which didn't sit too well with the other QMS members. He started looking around for a new group to play with, and soon teamed up with Mark Unobsky on guitars & vocals, Jim Murray on guitars, tablas & harmonica, Jim McPherson on piano & vocals, David Weber on drums, and Cyrus on bass, and this ensemble recorded a number of tracks in his home studio, for a proposed album by the newly-christened Copperhead. A second attempt was made in late 1970 and early 1971, with over twenty recordings being laid down in a professional studio, and they also starting gigging around California in 1971 and 1972, building up a reputation as a promising new band. The group's only album, a self-titled effort, was not released until mid 1973, which drummer Dave Weber recalls as being something of a mistake, as by the time it was recorded they were growing tired of playing the songs chosen for it. They also suffered other problems, mostly in that the two main songwriters didn't always see eye to eye, and some of their recorded work didn't reflect the spontaneity of their live shows. Unfortunately the band got caught up in the whole drug scandal episode that surrounded CBS's Clive Davis just after the album came out, and when he was removed from CBS a lot of groups were also dropped from the label, including Copperhead. They had already started recording a second album, but with no label backing it, the band folded, and Cipollina went on to form Raven, and then Terry And The Pirates. In January 1973 they had recorded a number of tracks at Roy Chen's Studio, and a couple of months later they laid down some more at KSAN Record Plant, and these can be added to the four completed songs from their second album sessions to start a reconstruction of that second record. Before they were dropped by Columbia, Copperhead had released a one-off single titled 'Chameleon', and so by adding that we now have 45 minutes of studio recordings, which make up a very creditable follow-up to the 'Copperhead' album. The opening track is a slithering untitled instrumental, which I've named 'Sidewinder', in keeping with the snake theme of the band's name, and had they stayed together and not been dropped by Columbia, then the 'Copperhead 2' album could well have been released in late 1973.  

Track listing 

01 Sidewinder 
02 Chameleon
03 My Own Twisted Way 
04 Read Between The Lines 
05 Drunken Irish Setter
06 Local Color 
07 Puttin' It To You
08 California Blues
09 Heebies Jeebies 

10 Bigelow 6-9000
11 Keeper Of The Flame