Krautrock band Can invented the Jam band

[Taverner]

Seriously! Sure, the Grateful Dead jammed and man could they fucking jam!

But If you listen to their studio albums, there is very little jamming - most of it is just really good music, but not jammy at all.

But take, say, Out of Reach by Can. This is 1978. At the same time, there are other Krautrock ensembles doing jammy stuff, but none of them really hit the jam band formula except Can. And it would be years before the first 'out of the closet' jam band would hit the scene, Phish.

[CrownPrinceBandar]

1. I can only halfway get behind that notion........

I would say that Can was exploring the frontiers of improvisation, but GD was waiting for the acid to wear off. And I like both bands.

However to do this discussion right, we would require a few beers and several hogleg doobies.

[Taverner]

2. All present and accounted for

But do this: listen to Phish's Junta and Can's Out of Reach, after smoking said doobie and said beer.

[Bennyboy]

3. Welll,

I don't think they had the access to the substances that jambands had (have). I kind of get what you are saying but still I think the jamband has it's roots in jazz. To me, none of the Europeans really got the psychedlic scene. Or got it differently anyway, it was way more underground than here that is for sure.

I know a lot of people that are with you on this though. they think Can was all that, but they love Euro rock. I love American rock and roots music....

[Taverner]

7. Dude - I like it all

Did I mention I devour music?

But yeah - the jambands today do ingest a lot of psychadelic - but never underestimate the power of Heroin (readily available to the Krautrockers) in music. Three songs: "Happiness is a Warm Gun." "Golden Brown," and "Heroin" (of course.)

Never underestimate the power of Cocaine in music. "Station To Station" says this.

It's all about being uncomfortable, and being forced to face that discomfort.

I love the atonal works Trey has pursued...Ernie Stires is one genius!

And I have heard some versions of "Space" that blew my mind - and I was completely SOBER at the time!

[FKA MNChimpH8R]

18. Can's first few records were recorded unconventionally

to say the least. They'd go into their studio, improvise for hours, recording everything. Then Holger Czukay (bassist/engineer) would edit the results into discrete pieces using some of this and some of that which he felt went nicely together.

Holger and Irmin Schmidt are now both past seventy and as out there as ever. Schmidt wrote an opera (that sounds like Richard Strauss on acid and I mean that as very high praise) around Mervyn Peake's Gormenghast novels and recently composed a ballet. Czukay is still orbiting out on the furthest fringes as brilliantly as ever. I met Holger when he and Doc Walker came to Minny back in the 1990s. Incredibly nice man - gives off a very wizardly, friendly, Dumbledorian vibe in person.

[no name no slogan]

4. Can is/was highly underrated

And I would venture to say their "jam" stuff is a hell of a lot more interesting than an hour of guitar wankery by a bunch of hippies from San Francisco. Or Vermont, for that matter.

[Taverner]

8. Dude, its all good

There is no x is better than y - unless we are talking Can v Britney Spears....

[kentauros]

5. I would think Ozric Tentacles would pre-date Phish for jam

in recent decades :D

[harmonicon]

10. and they were/are primarily just Gong rip-off artists

with bits of Hawkwind and dub thrown in.

(not that I wasn't an Ozrics worshipper at one time)

[HughBeaumont]

12. "You" is one of the most underrated albums of the 70s.

[darkstar]

14. Sweet...another fan of "You"

Terrific stuff.

Pot-head pixie, out....

[FKA MNChimpH8R]

15. It is an amazing record.

and the whole Radio Gnome Invisible trilogy is a wonderful, funny and eclectic trip. Smoked more than a few doobs to "YOU" back in the 1970s. :) Steve Hillage is still one of my all time favorite lead players, so fluid and melodic. The live stuff I've amassed over the years confirms that Gong of that era was an incredible, mind blowing band in concert.

[FKA MNChimpH8R]

6. Find yerself a copy of "Can Live 1971-77"

There is music of genuinely terrifying intensity to be found there, especially the 35 minute "Colchester Finale" improvisation.

Can were so far ahead of their time that much of their music still sounds exttremely futuristic.

[Taverner]

9. Definitely - there are some chords on their stuff I just can't replicate...

[Iggo]

11. Cream...just sayin'. (n/t)

[Taverner]

13. Sure, in concert they jammed

But on LP?

[swag]

16. I guess I have to stop liking Can now.

[enigmatic]

17. Can is one of the all-time great bands that's sadly underappreciated

:thumbsup: