BANK HOLIDAY AFFIRMATIVE, 1975
As glam rock’s star began to fade, Reading’s 1975 edition turned out to be the event’s most commercially successful to date, selling out well in advance of the August Bank Holiday. A cold and damp weekend for the most part, the three-day 15th National Jazz, Blues & Rock Festival was distinguished by its strong roster of acts… and beer can fights in the crowd.
A pivotal moment in time, the ’75 line-up boasted such progressive greats as headliners Yes, Wishbone Ash and Hawkwind, as well as Supertramp, Caravan, Soft Machine, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Renaissance and Celtic harp wizard Alan Stivell. There was, however, a distinctive sense of change in the air with Dr Feelgood, Heavy Metal Kids and the comic antics of Alberto Y Lost Trios Paranoias ushering in a grittier, street-level alternative to what the music press felt to be prog’s bloated over-indulgence.
With its presence emphasised by onstage branding, Entec was once again key to the production, providing a generous lighting rig organised by Fiona Ross and Pat Chapman, and sub-hiring a powerful PA system from Rikki Farr’s south London company Electrosound.
Three years earlier, Reading had become the first festival in the world to establish twin stages, side by side, to cut down changeover times. In ’75, another innovation was the addition of a large projection screen between the two stages that conveyed important information to the audience.
On the Saturday, Yes, with Patrick Moraz installed on keyboards, more than lived up to their reputation as a world class act, performing cuts from their most recent album, Relayer, accompanied by a dynamic light show, laced with laser effects.
Notable for their Roger & Martyn Dean-designed ‘barnacle’ stage set, the band’s insistence on playing well beyond the midnight curfew did not prove popular with Harold Pendleton’s team, who incurred a £2,300 fine.
Although New York legend Lou Reed failed to show up, despite heavy billing, the assembled crowd witnessed milestone performances by Judas Priest and UFO which arguably helped to foster mainstream awareness for these classic British hard rock outfits. And all this for just £5.95.
