Black Pearl (band)
Encyclopedia
Black Pearl was a San-Francisco-based band that existed from the late 1960s to the early 1970s. They released two albums, Black Pearl (1969) and Black Pearl - Live! (1970).
noted for their extreme long hair for the times and their single, " Are You a Boy or Are You A Girl". The Barbarians were also noted for the band's drummer, Moulty, who had lost one hand in a childhood accident and consequently played drums with a hook.
The band was formed after Barbarians' singer and drummer Moulty refused to travel to Boulder, Colorado for a two week engagement. A new drummer, Oak O'Connor, plus Mulcahy and Fieldings, joined with ex-Barbarians Morris, Causi and Benson, all initially based in Boston, to form Black Pearl in 1967. The band relocated from Boston to San Francisco, after a period of time in Colorado.
Fieldings, who was white, was a wild showman who modeled his stage presence on that of James Brown
. His admiration for James Brown was evident on the group's live album, which contains a twelve minute version of James Brown's "Cold Sweat". As noted by one reviewer, "Black Pearl crank out some hard rockin' psych-rock music with the most ferocious drumbeats you've heard in a while." The band's three guitar lineup was considered to be both unique and powerful, being a format also found in contemporaries Moby Grape
and Buffalo Springfield
.
Black Pearl released two albums, Black Pearl (1969) and Black Pearl - Live! (1970), with the second being less well-received than the first.
1969; CD reissue Wounded Bird
, 2007
Black Pearl - Live! Prophesy, 1970
History
Black Pearl was composed of Bernie "B.B" Fieldings (vocals), Bruce Benson (guitar), Oak O'Connor (drums), Geoffrey Morris (guitar), Tom Mulcahy (guitar) and Jerry Causi (bass). Morris, Causi and Benson had been members of the Barbarians, a 60s garage bandGarage band
The term garage band can refer to:* A band that performs garage rock* GarageBand, audio production software published by Apple Inc.* GarageBand.com, a website that helps publicize emerging bands...
noted for their extreme long hair for the times and their single, " Are You a Boy or Are You A Girl". The Barbarians were also noted for the band's drummer, Moulty, who had lost one hand in a childhood accident and consequently played drums with a hook.
The band was formed after Barbarians' singer and drummer Moulty refused to travel to Boulder, Colorado for a two week engagement. A new drummer, Oak O'Connor, plus Mulcahy and Fieldings, joined with ex-Barbarians Morris, Causi and Benson, all initially based in Boston, to form Black Pearl in 1967. The band relocated from Boston to San Francisco, after a period of time in Colorado.
Fieldings, who was white, was a wild showman who modeled his stage presence on that of James Brown
James Brown
James Joseph Brown was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and recording artist. He is the originator of Funk and is recognized as a major figure in the 20th century popular music for both his vocals and dancing. He has been referred to as "The Godfather of Soul," "Mr...
. His admiration for James Brown was evident on the group's live album, which contains a twelve minute version of James Brown's "Cold Sweat". As noted by one reviewer, "Black Pearl crank out some hard rockin' psych-rock music with the most ferocious drumbeats you've heard in a while." The band's three guitar lineup was considered to be both unique and powerful, being a format also found in contemporaries Moby Grape
Moby Grape
Moby Grape is an American rock group from the 1960s, known for having all five members contribute to singing and songwriting and that collectively merged elements of folk music, blues, country, and jazz together with rock and psychedelic music...
and Buffalo Springfield
Buffalo Springfield
Buffalo Springfield is a North American folk rock band renown both for its music and as a springboard for the careers of Neil Young, Stephen Stills, Richie Furay and Jim Messina. Among the first wave of North American bands to become popular in the wake of the British invasion, the group combined...
.
Black Pearl released two albums, Black Pearl (1969) and Black Pearl - Live! (1970), with the second being less well-received than the first.
Discography
Black Pearl AtlanticAtlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
1969; CD reissue Wounded Bird
Wounded Bird Records
Wounded Bird Records is a CD only, re-issue record label, that was founded in 1998 in Guilderland, New York. They re-release lesser known albums from both popular and lesser known artists, including Deborah Harry, Chic, David Blue, Marilyn Martin, Gordon Haskell, Jon Anderson, Adrian Belew, Ellen...
, 2007
Black Pearl - Live! Prophesy, 1970