Taken from CD-sleeve of 'Scion':
Though, at the time, I felt extremely pressured and overworked, in
retrospect, I have many warm and satifying memories of Matthews
Southern Comfort. Those eighteen months we worked together, were a
valuable learning process for me, both as a band leader, and being part of a
democratic voice.
To be confronted with the body of work we produced in such a short period
of time, is staggering. It seemed as though we were constantly touring, yet
we managed to record three albums. (If one is to include the first, which
was truly intended as a solo shot.)
The thinking behind M.S.C was to have an acoustic contemporary, folk
based sound, employing three part harmony, with a country twinge. We
were upon reflection, a little heavy on the twinge, but considering we had a
player of Gordon Huntleys calibre and background, that was hardly
surprising.
There were, for the record, two different lineups, with Andy Leigh and Ray
Duffy replacing Pete Watkins and Roger Swallow, on bass and drums, only
the second line-up recorded.
I left the band believing we had gone as far creatively as we were capable.
In hindsight, I may have been a little hasty in reaching that conclusion. Had
my leadership qualifications been more developed, we probably could have
become something truly unique. We recorded a total of nine radio-sessions.
Around fourty songs. But thanks to the BBC and their unique space saving
philosophy, only two remain. The first recording of "Woodstock" we ever
made is among the missing. I have to take on some of the responsibility for
this. I was neglegent in my tape hoarding back then.
I did however, manage to unearth some outtatkes from "Later that same
year". On hearing them again, it's difficult to understand why we deemed
them outtakes. "Touch her if you can" would have been a glorious addition
to any one of our album. As far as I know, there are no more M.S.C hidden
gems of decent quality.
This is it. So enjoy.
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