Quicksilver Messenger service - Happy Trails (1969)

Quicksilver Messenger Service (sometimes credited as simply Quicksilver) is an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1965 in San Francisco. The band achieved wide popularity in the San Francisco Bay Area and through their recordings,[3] with psychedelic rock enthusiasts around the globe, and several of their albums ranked in the Top 30 of the Billboard Pop charts. They were part of the new wave of album-oriented bands, achieving renown and popularity despite an almost complete lack of success with their singles (apart from "Fresh Air", which reached number 49 in 1970).[4] Though not as commercially successful as contemporaries Jefferson Airplaneand the Grateful Dead, Quicksilver was integral to the beginnings of their genre. With their jazz and classical influences and a strong folk background, the band attempted to create an individual, innovative sound.[5] Music historian Colin Larkin wrote: "Of all the bands that came out of the San Francisco area during the late '60s, Quicksilver typified most the style, attitude and sound of that era."[6]

Member Dino Valenti drew heavily on musical influences he picked up during the folk revival of his formative musical years. The style he developed from these sources is evident in Quicksilver Messenger Service's swing rhythms and twanging guitar sounds.[7] After many years, the band has attempted to reform despite the deaths of several members. In 2009, original members Gary Duncan and David Freiberg toured as the Quicksilver Messenger Service, using various backing musicians.


Happy Trails is the second album of the American band Quicksilver Messenger Service. Most of the album was recorded from two performances at the Fillmore East and Fillmore West, although it is not clear which parts were recorded at which Fillmore. The record was released by Capitol Records in stereo.


Track listing
Side one
No.TitleLength
1. "Who Do You Love Suite"
I. "Who Do You Love (Part 1)" (Ellas McDaniel)
II. "When You Love" (Gary Duncan)
III. "Where You Love" (Greg Elmore[note 1])
IV. "How You Love" (John Cipollina)
V. "Which Do You Love" (David Freiberg)
VI. "Who Do You Love (Part 2)" (McDaniel)" 25:22

Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
2. "Mona" McDaniel 6:53
3. "Maiden of the Cancer Moon" Duncan 2:54
4. "Calvary" Duncan 13:31
5. "Happy Trails" Dale Evans 1:29
Total length: 24:47

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