If you haven't heard of the band Jerusalem yet, get ready to have your mind blown. I got their album last night through snail mail and haven't stopped listening to it.

"When The Wolf Sits"

A little history lesson: 

Jerusalem is a British "hard rock" band from the '70s. I say "hard rock" because I think that's about as vague as you can get when it comes to classifying a band's genre, but I'll agree that they are definitely fucking hard. 

It all began in 1966, when three classmates in Salisbury, Wiltshire, UK, heard an album by John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers, an electric 12 bar blues band. Up until that time, the music scene in the UK was overwhelmingly pop thanks to The Beatles and other tagalong bands who wanted that kind of bubblegum fame and success (remember, in 1966 The Beatles were still moptopping around in their matching suits). But musicians like John Mayall and Peter Green (Fleetwood Mac) and Alvin Lee (Ten Years After) wanted more, and were ultimately responsible for the Blues Boom that revolutionized the sound of music in the UK. Those three classmates, Paul Dean, Ray Sparrow, and Chris Skelcher, wanted more from music, too. After seeing Mayall and his Bluesbreakers perform at a local venue, they decided to start their own band. The only problem was, none of them knew how to play any instruments. 

They each decided to pick up an instrument: Paul chose the bass, Ray the drums, and Chris the electric guitar. Paul wrote all of the songs and based them on the blues and boogie vibes that influenced them. After months of practice, they finally found the courage to perform for a live audience. Meanwhile, Paul and Chris were both attending school while Ray pursued his family's business. They were serious about their music but still unsure of their abilities. When Paul returned from college that year, he brought with him a friend, Bill Hinde, who just so happened to play the guitar. And lucky for them, because Chris Skelcher decided around the same time that he was going to focus on his education and leave the band. 

With Chris' sudden departure, Paul Dean and the newly included Bill Hinde decided they needed a lead guitarist and introduced another friend of theirs from college, Bob Cooke, to the band. Acting as a foursome, Paul realized he no longer wanted to be the singer of the band but instead focus more on songwriting and his bass abilities. Changing their lineup once again, the group brought on a mutual friend as their new singer, Phil Goddard. Finally comfortable in their skins and their musical abilities, the fivesome began playing everywhere and anywhere they could. Paul chose the name Jerusalem after an Elgar piece of the same name that he remembered singing during school assemblies. And thus, Jerusalem was born. 

Around the same time that Jerusalem was settling into their new flow, Micky Dallon, a respected songwriter, musician, and producer in London, discovered Jerusalem (through Paul's older sister) and put them in Pye Studios to record some demos. Next thing they knew, Ian Gillan, the front man and songwriter for Deep Purple, was knocking on their door. Apparently when Ian first met Paul at his house, Paul was playing Black Sabbath's S/T album on the record player, and Ian, not knowing who Sabbath was at the time, was very impressed by his taste. 

Over the next few months, Ian enlisted the help of Deep Purple's bassist Roger Glover and took Jerusalem to a small farm cottage near Wilton (known as the Pig Mansion) to record. Nobody would ever hear the recordings off these sessions, but the practice was all they needed. After the Pig Mansion sessions was finished, however, the band's lineup would change once more with the departure of Phil, their lead singer. 

Unlike every other addition and change to their band in the past, this time, with the guidance of Ian Gillan as their manager/producer, Jerusalem advertised for a lead singer in the local newspapers. They were down to two applicants: one an exceptional singer, and the other a natural showman. Leaning towards their blues infused hard rock sentiments, Jerusalem picked the showman, Lynden Williams. 

The bands lineup was now concrete with Lynden on vox, Bob Cooke on lead guitar, Bill Hinde doing rhythm, Paul on bass, and Ray Sparrow on drums.

In 1972, Gallin took Jerusalem to his recently purchased recording studio, Kingsway Recorders Studio, to make their first album, titled Jerusalem. The sessions for the album only lasted a few weeks, but they weren't attached to a label yet. Gallin, undeterred, decided to send Jerusalem on a local tour. When they came back, Deram Records, a subsidiary label off Decca Reords, released their album. It would be their only full length LP. 

After the release, Jerusalem toured through Europe with Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Uriah Heep, and Status Quo, among other bands. When they returned from touring, Deram Records prompted Jerusalem to make a single to keep their buzz up, and the song "Kamikaze Moth" was released as a 45 with "Frustration" (from the LP) as the B side. But they never released another album. The song is now a rare cult discovery for hard rock enthusiasts. 

"Kamikaze Moth"

Jerusalem were considered to be ahead of their time, and maybe that's why they didn't last. Or maybe it's because they didn't want to conform, and Paul Dean didn't want a record label monetizing off his creativity. But for any record collector, Jerusalem is a band worth knowing, maybe idolizing, for they created a sound that was unlike any other.

The end.