Man
Cult Welsh prog-psych group’s amorphous and unruly back catalogue, navigated by Jim Wirth.
Are they not Man: the ‘Welsh Dead’, (from left) Terry Williams, Ken Whaley, Deke Leonard and Micky Jones, Staten Island ferry, 1974.
Courtesy George Jones, Alamy
“EVERYONE WAS so stoned,” said long-term Dire Straits drummer Terry Williams, looking back on his early days with Welsh improv demons Man. “I don’t know who was worse, the band or the audience. Probably about equal.”
Fans of roughneck Brit rock’n’rollers Johnny Kidd & The Pirates whose sound was transformed by contact with the sulphurous West Coast psychedelia of Quicksilver Messenger Service, Man’s robust mix of hard riffs and off-the-cuff experimentation made them a significant presence on the 1970s live circuit – especially in Germany.