1969 was a memorable year. Man landed on the Moon. John married Yoko. Woodstock was held. Charles Manson thought up a very nasty plan and Damon released 'Song of a Gypsy'. Whilst the other events went onto become important parts of history, Damon didn't even get any publicity or success at the time. Still the album, available in vinyl with or without a gatefold sleeve sold out its tiny initial pressing and disappeared into the void.
Over the next thirty years it grew into a minor cult sensation, its content and rareness turned it into the Holy Grail of many a collector. To give you an idea, a copy of the gatefold sleeve version of the album in decent condition is worth in excess of $3000. The value is based mainly on its extreme rarity, but is that all there was to it, or is the record itself worthy of some attention?
In 1999, thirty years after its original releases we can find out. In response to the interest generated by articles in numerous magazines, Damon decided to re-release the album, in a digital enhanced CD variation. So now the world can own a copy, even if its street value is considerably less than $3000.
Before I start getting into the meat of the review let me tell you I am reviewing this knowing it is a product from 1969, and as such it is going to sound a little bitter different from most of the CD's I receive. This is both in terms of the technology, and therefore the quality involved and also in respect to the era it was recorded in.
'Song of a Gypsy' is part folk, part rock, part blues and a whole lot of psychedelic atmosphere. It is not a long album, but the ten tracks involved take us on a journey through the mind and spirit of Damon, and the ending of a tumultuous decade. The theme for the album is life's paths and the journeys we all take, how in a sense we are all Gypsies in spirit, at least we are at certain parts of our life.
The album opens with the title track, with its distorted floating guitar, loose rhythmic drumming and Damon's mournful voice pinning it all together, a song that hints at eastern music and peaceful protest. A real strong track that introduces the feel of the album nicely. The journey from here to track 10, a mere thirty minutes away, is a rich and varied one. It truly is an album of shades, of moods and of emotions. Musically as well it drifts in different direction, each new music trick pulled gently from the bag so that you can see it coming, in other words not an album of sudden surprises, but nevertheless a CD that covers a whole lot of bases.
It is also not an album that it is easy to pick songs from, in terms of saying 'this track is great, this one is a good example of this etc', the songs are building blocks that individually are strong, rather than exciting, but together build a album that it is nearly impossible not to be impressed by. As well as the standard rock instruments the album also boasts dubrecki, finger cymbals, gypsy guitar and singing guitar. A diverse group indeed.
It would be easy to fall into long winded thoughts upon the social significance of the late 1960's, and build a review around it, certainly this CD displays a naïve, simplistic view of life and love that seems oddly out of sink with the music of today. I am not going to go any deeper than that though, if only because this album has enough to offer now, at the start of a new millennium, for it to be more than just a curiosity piece from another, more fragile era.
This is an album that will appeal to the hippie, old or new, the romantic, anyone interested in simple beautiful psychedelic folk rock, and in a larger sense to the adventurous music fan of any age. The CD is available to buy, and to listen to at his website. He has also just released a follow up album, a continuation to the Gypsy story, recorded three decades after the original. A review of that album will turn up around here one of these days, in the meantime let me drift off to the music of Damon.

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