COLOSSEUM/COLOSSEUM II

Hiseman and Heckstall-Smith had first met up in the Graham Bond Organisation in 1966 - Hiseman having replaced Ginger Baker, who'd left for Cream. They both left Bond the following year; the drummer Joining Georgie Fame's band, the sax man - who'd earlier been a key figure in Alexis Korner's Blues Incorporated - heading for John Mayall's Bluesbreakers. But 1968 saw Hiseman in Mayall's band as well, the pair of them featuring on the Bare Wires album. Setting up Colosseum was the next move, the plan to fuse jazz and rock leanings and to allow individual talent to flourish within a band framework. The group's 1969 albums - Those Who Are About To Die Salute You and Valentyne Suite - saw Hiseman, Heckstall-Smith and Dave Greenslade playing alongside guitarist- vocalist James Litherland and bassist Tony Reeves (Reeves having also come from Mayall). The latter two departed - being replaced by Farlowe, read more...