It's a Beautiful Day
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- For the Beach Boys song see It's a Beautiful Day (song)
- For the U2 song see Beautiful Day
- For the Queen song see Made in Heaven
- For the Sarah Brightman song see It's a Beautiful Day (Sarah Brightman song)
| It's A Beautiful Day | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Background information | |
| Origin | San Francisco |
| Genre(s) | Rock, Jazz, Folk, Classical |
| Years active | 1967 - 1974, 1997 - present |
| Label(s) | CBS, Columbia |
It's a Beautiful Day was a band formed in San Francisco in 1967, the brainchild of violinist and vocalist David LaFlamme. LaFlamme, a former soloist with the Utah Symphony Orchestra, had previously been in the band Orkustra, and unusually, played a five-string violin. The other members were his wife Linda (keyboards), Pattie Santos (vocals), Hal Wagenet (guitar), Mitchell Holman (bass) and Val Fuentes (drums). Although they were one of the earliest and most important San Francisco bands to emerge from the Summer of Love, It’s a Beautiful Day never quite achieved the success of their contemporaries such as The Grateful Dead and Santana, with whom they had connections. It’s A Beautiful Day created a unique blend of rock, jazz, folk, classical and world beat styles during the seven years the band was officially together.
The band's debut album, It's a Beautiful Day, released in 1969, featured the tracks "White Bird", "Hot Summer Day", "Time Is" and "Bombay Calling". The intro of the latter was used, at a slower tempo, by Deep Purple as the intro to "Child in Time" on its In Rock album. The vocals and violin playing of David LaFlamme plus Pattie Santos' singing attracted attention including FM radio play, and nationally, "White Bird" bubbled under Billboard's Hot 100 chart peaking at #118.
By 1970 the original lineup of the band had changed a little- the LaFlammes had split up and Linda left the band, replaced by Fred Webb. The following album, Marrying Maiden, released in 1970, included memorable tracks and was also a chart hit. In that year, the group also performed at the Holland Pop Festival at the Kralingse Bos in Rotterdam, The Netherlands and at the UK Bath Festival.
The band continued to record Choice Quality Stuff/Anytime in 1971 and the live album Live At Carnegie Hall in 1972, touring until 1974, when they split up. Pattie Santos was killed in a car crash on December 14, 1989. In 1976, LaFlamme's solo version of "White Bird" finally cracked the HOT 100, peaking at #89.
It's a Beautiful Day reunited in 1997 under the name "David LaFlamme Band" for the recording labels. The band still features founder David LaFlamme and original drummer Val Fuentes. Other band members are LaFlamme's current wife, Linda Baker LaFlamme (vocals), Toby Gray (basses), Gary Thomas (keyboards), Rob Espinosa (guitars), Michael Prichard (percussion). They completed a string of shows in 2005 and 2006 and toured with Jefferson Starship in 2007.
A version of "White Bird" by violinist Vanessa-Mae was released in 2001 and reached number 66 in the UK Singles chart.[1]
Contents |
[edit] Personnel
- David LaFlamme - violin
- Linda LaFlamme - keyboards (1967 - 1970)
- Pattie Santos - vocals
- Hal Wagenet - guitar
- Mitchell Holman - bass
- Val Fuentes - drums
- Fred Webb - keyboards (1970 - 1974)
- Bill Gregory - guitar (1972 - 1974)
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
- It's a Beautiful Day (1969) US Album Chart No. 47/UK Album Chart No. 58, 1970[2]
- Marrying Maiden (1970) US Album Chart No. 28/UK Album Chart No. 45, 1970[2]
- Choice Quality Stuff/Anytime (1971) US Album Chart No. 130
- Live At Carnegie Hall (1972) US Album Chart No. 144
- It's a Beautiful Day...Today (1972) US Album Chart No. 114
- 1001 Nights (Compilation) (1974)
- White Bird/ Amherst Records (1977)
- Inside Out/ Amherst Records (1978)
- It's A Beautiful Day / Marrying Maiden (Rerelease) (1998)
- Beyond Dreams (2003)
- David LaFlamme - Live in Seattle (2003)
- David LaFlamme - Misery Loves Company (2005)
[edit] Singles
- Bulgaria / Aquarian Dream (1968) Sound 7
- White Bird / Wasted Union Blues (1969) Columbia 44928
- Soapstone Mountain / Good Lovin' (1970) Columbia 45152
- The Dolphins / Do You Remember The Sun (1970) Columbia 45309
- Anytime / Oranges and Apples (1972) Columbia 45536
- White Bird (live) / Wasted Union Blues (live) (1973) Columbia 45788
- Ain't That Lovin' You Baby / Time (1973) Columbia 45853
[edit] References
- ^ Chart
- ^ a b http://www.chartstats.com/artistinfo.php?id=11138 Chart positions
[edit] External links
- Rare Album Review [1]
- Itsaboutmusic.com
- Allmusic.com
