![]() The song is simple, two dark chords: A7 and D7 (A5/D5 and A7/D9 work, too). And then in 1968, Terry Reid belted out 10 minutes of potent “Witch”-craft. And the Brian Auger, Julie Driscoll & the Trinity take of almost 8 minutes. The next year saw a pair of superb “Season of the Witch” covers: The wah-drenched “Super Session” workout by Stephen Stills and Al Kooper, running 11 minutes and also featuring drummer Hoh. (The Hollywood session notes do not indicate Page was present.) The organist is unidentified. He played it with Bobby Ray (bass) and “Fast” Eddy Hoh, although the electric guitar work has been credited by fans to Jimmy Page, who worked on the album. He calls it “a very modern jam.”ĭonovan’s own recording remains a classic, recorded in Hollywood and clocking in at 5 minutes. ![]() “How dare I be so cool? It’s a magic track,” the songwriter says of the song’s enduring attraction for musicians. The spell never was broken - “Witch” remains among the most covered songs of 1960s rock. The song also proved a terrific framework for jamming. “Season of the Witch” wasn’t a drug song, really, but its stoner vibe and spooky-surreal lyrics caught the fancy of many of the era’s underground bands. Not long after, Donovan became the first of many British pop stars rounded up by the drug squad - with members of the Stones and Beatles close behind. It was a chilling sound to come from me, and I didn’t know where it was coming from at first.” “It was anticipating the (drug) bust, so it was a dark song for that reason. ” ‘Season Of The Witch’ was kind of prophetic,” the one-time folk singer recalled decades later. In May, Donovan was back in the studio in search of new directions. The troubadour also debuted “The Trip,” about an LSD-illuminated night out in L.A. In January, he recorded “Sunshine Superman,” an early psych-pop song that raised eyebrows - sunshine was slang for a popular type of LSD. A TV documentary had just caught the Scottish singer and some friends getting high. Then they took action.ĭonovan Leitch was looking over his shoulder as the year began. In 1966, for example, the Beatles profiled a Doctor Feelgood of their acquaintance in “Doctor Robert.” The Stones unleashed the pill-popping “Mother’s Little Helper.” The bands celebrated their altered states in song, hesitatingly at first, then full blast. The high times were peaking in Britain, with the rock-star elite leading the psychedelic parade.
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