The Judge
RAVES!
Date: 22/01/11
Hawkwind - "Images" (1990)
I've fallen a bit behind on this, haven't I? (And where the hell is this year going to, by the way?)
I know I've put a Hawkwind video up already, but here's one from a point where - to my ears at least - they were last at their most interesting; the 1990 LP Space Bandits.
There had been the obligatory changes of lineup after the band's 1988 LP Xenon Codex, with virtuoso guitarist Huw Lloyd-Langton again bowing out. This meant that the Spaceship Captain himself Dave Brock had to switch back to concentrating on guitar work, leaving Harvey Bainbridge to handle keyboards. In addition, Danny Thompson Jr. - sticksman for most of the band's 'Heavy Metal Gods' period in the Eighties - was replaced by Richard Chadwick. Veteran violinist Simon House returned to join Alan Davey (bass, vocals, synths).
Perhaps the biggest surprise came at the microphone, however, with the induction into the crew of west-country singer and performance artist Bridget Wishart. Although there had been women involved in Hawkwind's performances before - Kris Tait (later Mrs Dave Brock) and the unforgettable Stacia to name but two - this was the first time the band had featured a female vocalist.
For the most part it worked, and worked very well. Here's Images, the opening track from Space Bandits. It gives you some idea of how Hawkwind sounded before they tried - with varying success - to reinvent themselves as ambient music exponents by the time of their next album, 1992's Electric Tepee:
