Traffic - Dear Mr. Fantasy (1967)

Formed in April 1967 in the West Midlands region of England, this band’s most acknowledged lineup featured Steve Winwood, Dave Mason, Jim Capaldi, and Chris Wood. The group’s earliest singles were inspired by The Beatles, but they're most remembered for works fusing psychedelia, rock, jazz, and folk. Windwood, Mason, and Wood often collaborated with Jimi Hendrix and even appeared on Hendrix’s Electric Ladyland in 1968, the final album of The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Although the group initially split in 1969 for Winwood to form Blind Faith with Eric Clapton and Ginger Baker, the group reunited in 1970 and, in some incarnation or another, continued on until 1975. The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004.

Coming from their debut album, Mr. Fantasy released in 1967, this song’s lyrics were written by Capaldi and its music was written by Winwood and Wood. Never released as a single, it has since been covered by the Grateful Dead, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, Jimi Hendrix, and many others. Based on a poem given up on by Jim Capaldi, it was later retrieved and finished up by Steve Winwood and Chris Wood.



Traffic - Dear Mr. Fantasy (1967)

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Lyrics:

Dear Mister Fantasy, play us a tune
Something to make us all happy
Do anything, take us out of this gloom
Sing a song, play guitar, make it snappy

You are the one who can make us all laugh
But doing that, you break out in tears
Please don't be sad; if it was a straight mind you had
We wouldn't have known you all these years

Dear Mister Fantasy, play us a tune
Something to make us all happy
Do anything, take us out of this gloom
Sing a song, play guitar, make it snappy
Yeah

Dear Mister Fantasy, play us a tune
Something to make us all happy
Do anything, take us out of this gloom
Sing a song, play guitar, make it snappy

You are the one who can make us all laugh
But doing that, you break out in tears
Please don't be sad; if it was a straight mind you had
We wouldn't have known you all these years

Traffic - Coloured Rain (1967)

Steve Winwood left The Spencer Davis Group with whom he had been singing with as early as fifteen years old. After quitting, he formed a new band with Dave Mason. Mason would have a great future ahead of him playing and recording with many world-renowned artists.

This song, although never one of their singles or big hits, is a great psychedelic song. The psychedelic nature of the song is exactly where Dave Mason wanted to take the group stylistically; however, the rest of the band wanted to head toward blues and folk, so Mason parted ways.

Luckily this song, and the others on the album Mr. Fantasy, were created and released before the band made their stride toward a new sound without Dave Mason.



Traffic - Coloured Rain (1967)

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Lyrics:

Yesterday I was a young boy
Searching for my way
Not knowing what I wanted
Living life from day to day
'til you came along
There was nothing but an empty space and a pain

Feels like coloured rain
Tastes like coloured rain
Bring on coloured rain
Yeah!

I can see the sail of changing
Filling with surprise
United with a feeling
Bringing love into my eyes
‘til you came along
There was nothing but an empty space and a pain

Feels like coloured rain
Tastes like coloured rain
Bring on coloured rain
Yeah!