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Album 1. Track 7. Backwater Blues
THIS EPISODE:
“Backwater Blues” — Track 7 from Colosseum’s 1969 debut Those Who Are About to Die Salute You.
Chaz and Dr. Glund return to the altar of Volume and place upon it a seven-and-a-half-minute slab of unapologetic British blues. “Backwater Blues” is not here to charm you with pop efficiency or tidy radio edits. It settles in. It stretches out. It reminds the listener that in 1968 London, the blues was not an affectation, it was oxygen. Yeah bay bee.
This is identified, without hesitation, as perhaps the bluesiest track on the record — the sort of cut that, on a “traditional” album, might have been placed second to hook the unsuspecting. Instead, Colosseum tuck it into Track 7 like a confident afterthought. The band does not posture. They simply play — and every instrument is in it to win it. No wallflowers. No passengers. Just feel.
Dr. Glund applies Glundian Logic: blues as foundation, jazz as expansion chamber. The result is cross-discipline combustion. Jon Hiseman receives the Octopus Citation for Limb Independence, Tony Reeves’ bass lines are clocked and admired, and James Litherland’s guitar tone passes the First Commandment without requiring appeal.
Naturally, the proceedings detour.
A live BBC performance (January 1969) is unearthed and examined like an archaeological artifact that still sweats. Shorter. Tighter. No less lethal. The recently released Transmissions: Live at the BBC (1969–1971) box set enters the chat, and suddenly we are comparing studio sequencing to live set logic — including the revelation that “The Road She Walked Before” once opened a BBC broadcast while “Backwater Blues” followed immediately behind.
From there: the Doctor’s Digression spirals outward into authorship disputes (“Theme from an Imaginary Western” properly attributed at last), a brief symposium on bands covering one another in the late ’60s, and the ceremonial invocation of “Doctor, Doctor” as a potential recurring segment.
Meanwhile, “Backwater Blues” remains planted at the center of the room — steady, confident, indulgent — reminding everyone that Colosseum could swing hard without sacrificing intellect, and expand the form without ever selling out.
The blade of judgement stays sheathed.
YOUR PRESCRIPTION
Recommended Indulgences to Satisfy the Voluptuary
(Listener Discretion Encouraged, Authority Not Recognized)
Administered not for correction, but for pleasure.
Dosage may be increased arbitrarily.
Recommended Conditions
Best consumed in a dim room where the air feels slightly heavier than usual
Volume set to “irresponsible but defensible”
Headphones encouraged; distractions discouraged
Pairs well with a respectable whiskey, a functioning hi-fi, and the willingness to let seven minutes unfold without interference
May be taken alone, or in the company of someone who understands that the blues is not background music
Further Listening — As Administered in This Episode
“The Road She Walked Before” — Colosseum (BBC Session)
“Theme from an Imaginary Western” — Colosseum
“Doctor Doctor” — UFO
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
View all episodes
By Chaz Charles and Dr. Porifera GlundTHIS EPISODE:
“Backwater Blues” — Track 7 from Colosseum’s 1969 debut Those Who Are About to Die Salute You.
Chaz and Dr. Glund return to the altar of Volume and place upon it a seven-and-a-half-minute slab of unapologetic British blues. “Backwater Blues” is not here to charm you with pop efficiency or tidy radio edits. It settles in. It stretches out. It reminds the listener that in 1968 London, the blues was not an affectation, it was oxygen. Yeah bay bee.
This is identified, without hesitation, as perhaps the bluesiest track on the record — the sort of cut that, on a “traditional” album, might have been placed second to hook the unsuspecting. Instead, Colosseum tuck it into Track 7 like a confident afterthought. The band does not posture. They simply play — and every instrument is in it to win it. No wallflowers. No passengers. Just feel.
Dr. Glund applies Glundian Logic: blues as foundation, jazz as expansion chamber. The result is cross-discipline combustion. Jon Hiseman receives the Octopus Citation for Limb Independence, Tony Reeves’ bass lines are clocked and admired, and James Litherland’s guitar tone passes the First Commandment without requiring appeal.
Naturally, the proceedings detour.
A live BBC performance (January 1969) is unearthed and examined like an archaeological artifact that still sweats. Shorter. Tighter. No less lethal. The recently released Transmissions: Live at the BBC (1969–1971) box set enters the chat, and suddenly we are comparing studio sequencing to live set logic — including the revelation that “The Road She Walked Before” once opened a BBC broadcast while “Backwater Blues” followed immediately behind.
From there: the Doctor’s Digression spirals outward into authorship disputes (“Theme from an Imaginary Western” properly attributed at last), a brief symposium on bands covering one another in the late ’60s, and the ceremonial invocation of “Doctor, Doctor” as a potential recurring segment.
Meanwhile, “Backwater Blues” remains planted at the center of the room — steady, confident, indulgent — reminding everyone that Colosseum could swing hard without sacrificing intellect, and expand the form without ever selling out.
The blade of judgement stays sheathed.
YOUR PRESCRIPTION
Recommended Indulgences to Satisfy the Voluptuary
(Listener Discretion Encouraged, Authority Not Recognized)
Administered not for correction, but for pleasure.
Dosage may be increased arbitrarily.
Recommended Conditions
Best consumed in a dim room where the air feels slightly heavier than usual
Volume set to “irresponsible but defensible”
Headphones encouraged; distractions discouraged
Pairs well with a respectable whiskey, a functioning hi-fi, and the willingness to let seven minutes unfold without interference
May be taken alone, or in the company of someone who understands that the blues is not background music
Further Listening — As Administered in This Episode
“The Road She Walked Before” — Colosseum (BBC Session)
“Theme from an Imaginary Western” — Colosseum
“Doctor Doctor” — UFO
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.