Spirit - I Got A Line on You

[6664818GGG]

Randy California died saving his 12 year-old son from the riptide on a Hawaini beach. He was not just a great guitar player, he was a great guy. Born Randy Craig Wolfe, he became guitar Wizard Randy California. Now he is a Bodhisattva saving not just his son, but many. Which name has he given himself in the next life. Or, ... did Jimi pick a name for him again? We love these guys, especially Randy. Greg Gibbs of Portland (by way of Fresno)

[ha1jo2]

spirit thats the! thank you mr california & company for the music and vibe forever and ever

[gribbstone234]

sparkin a fat one, listening to this on AM radio and drivin my Checker to town on a Friday evening....... great memories

[squid4104]

Fuckin mental.Brill song,simply amazing!

[kvernon1]

The bassist looks familiar...who is he?

[feloniousrem]

cheese eatin vid but back in day. great band fish fry road to all !!!!!!!!  hopriki

[holzg01]

Yes, there were many women.

[55pennylane]

love it takes me back to 1973  when i graduated:)

[Planktontwo]

The whole video is funny in regards to the idea that back in the 60's when groups were on TV. Was it lip syncing or real? This one leaves no doubt. Kind of like seeing Michelle Phillips using a banana as a michrophone on the Ed Sullivan show. LOL  GREAT SONG and thanks for the posting

[jeffthrow6892]

Awesome clip.........hadn't seen this before!

[jenniferjuniper97]

RAWK n ROLL! A fantastic song!

[shipstar343]

play that dust pan!

[CambridgeStudiosTV]

You're right - Cassidy does look like he's traveled back. Very cool. 

[1957skeeter]

wheather it was him or not. the guy whomever it is does not make them a 4 man band. he's sitting in,playing a dustpan. none of them are actually "playing" anything anyway. btw, Randy's hair looks, it is back in the day...but he sure looks like Jeff. and he looks blind (to me anyway).we should call Ed and see who it is!

[1957skeeter]

Not sure on the time frame, but sure he is sitting right there. Jeff has a '95 version of this song.It should be in the margin. Anyway...Randy was great huh? I was a teenager when I seen them at the Rivoli. DID NOT appreciate it like I would now. Maybe we'll get to meet all of them on the other side. Actually I'm counting on it!!!!

[comicstew]

@1957skeeter  sorry but no way is that Jeff Healey - it's Jay Ferguson. Look at the clothes everyone is wearing - early 70s ..the hair and hats say the same thing ...and that vest mixed the women in mini skirts. Sorry that is early 70s. Healey grew up in Toronto and i doubt highly was bumming around California when he was under 10 years of age or had a THICK MOUSTACHE by then. Finally they were never a 4 man band which you are suggesting if it was him.

They are great though!

[spacepatrolman]

@comicstew there was another spirit i got a line on you video in here with skunk baxter maybe that started the confusion

[spacepatrolman]

@spacepatrolman jeff skunk baxter i should say playing with spirit he was playing a clear plastic stratocaster

[spacepatrolman]

@spacepatrolman 2:12 that guy must be stoned out of his mind to be blowing into a dust pan like that not very hygenic

[ClearLight1967]

@1957skeeter This is the original line up and the clip is from 1968/69.

[1957skeeter]

That's Jeff sitting down to the left of Randy. He was born in '66. This is an '80's video.

[comicstew]

@1957skeeter Do you now for sure because i highly doubt this is an 80s video...70s at best. Quality is far from 1980s stuff but bang on for the 70s.

[fendermac]

"The Family That Plays Together" will always and ever be in my top ten favourite albums of all time

[redcherbonne]

Randy looks shy & adorable in the beginning of his career. I saw them perform at The Filmore East The lead singer was high as a kite on acid(that's ok so was I)

[1957skeeter]

IT ALWAYS SEEMS LIKE CASSIDY WAS TRYING TO TAKE THE SPOTLITE AWAY FROM RANDY. BEIN' HIS STEPDAD, MAYBE A LITTLE RIVALRY??

[1957skeeter]

IT WAS GREAT...TOO YOUNG TO REALLY APPRECIATE IT I'M SURE...WISH IT WERE NOW. THE OLD RIVOLI THEATER IS HAUNTED...ALWAYS WONDERED IF IT WAS RANDY.

[1957skeeter]

SEEN THEM AT THE RIVOLI IN INDPLS. AROUND '75. AWESOME.......THAT IS SO COOL THE LATE JEFF HEALY SITTIN' THERE SO COOL.

[comicstew]

@1957skeeter Really ? 8 month old Jeff Healey is in the video?

[1957skeeter]

@comicstew The "late" Jeff Healy

[comicstew]

@1957skeeter you see an 8 month old in the video? that's how old he was then....where do you see that?

[stingray1964]

Just curious, did Jay sing lead on anything back then...?

[napoli1024]

I always thought the bald guy was sexy.

[steveY2K1]

I saw Spirit in 1973, at the performing arts ctr., Tampa, Fl.  They Rocked the whole place!! Ed Cassidy looked like an alien compared to the rest of the band...Charlie Daniels band came out first...

[zeppelinkid200]

i think ed cassidy and yul brynner are long lost identical twin brothers

[zeppelinkid200]

is it me or does ed look like yul brynner?

[redcherbonne]

I was lucky to see them at the Filmore East (who knows when) and that blond lead singer was tripping his brains out. It was great

[merseymained]

@seventhavenuebeats- ha! you've got a point, but, seriously now, just shut the fuck up and appreciate the footage :)

[seventhavenuebeats]

how can he play guitar with gloves on?

[cameriqueTV]

Happy Birthday, Cass!

[TheSanityInspector]

Ha, those knit caps are back in style!

[onlyirwin]

I saw Spirit at Steve Paul's The Scene in NYC.

The room was the size of a bathroom, and boy were they great!!!

[TheIrishmary]

My dad worked for the best stereo company in 1969, and I hand the first quaduaphonic 4 way speaker sysem in the living room, omg, we listened to this quad style in 1970 enhanced by blotter and beleive me, I had a line on you babe..

[LNSmithee]

I would love to hear from a member of the band who was there when they said, "Ed, we're not gonna be able to set up your drums. Here's something from a local toy shop. Now, uh, you, frizzy-hair, go and sit on that forklift over there, and -- here's a dust pan. It would be really cool if you could play it like a tambourine at first, and then blow into it like a reed instrument. Everybody got it? OK, we're back from the Clearasil commercial in 10. Quiet on the set!"

[flyurbansquire]

I wasn't high on acid before watching this vid, but I had two flashbacks during it.

This is a great song, and this is a classic put-on performance.

[harvey1954]

Ed Cassidy use to play for the pharoahs.

[flyinv1967]

baloney all this Jimmy Page ripped off Spirit nonsense

[flyinv1967]

Darn I wanted to see more of the 60's chicks.I still love my 6th grade music!!!why grow up.I still look like these guys and can play too

[flyinv1967]

ggg

[phoebepeepers]

saw spirit and jojo gunne both in the early 19702 both were AWESOME..i think both mark andes and jay ferguson went to jojo gunne...as far as this video are we all buzzed? rock on

[40ghostrider]

@phoebepeepers mark andes was ann wilson's boyfriend while in heart

[elbuck101]

Don't forget about Mark A. in JoJoGunn.If you like spirit give them a listen.

[bartlettohio]

Randy California was given that name by Jimi Hendrix,the summer that Randy played with Jimmy james and the Flames. Randy was only sixteen! Listen to the song " Taurus " on the first album, the only song written by Randy. You will hear the intro to " Stairway To Heaven " note for note. Shame on Jimmy Page!

[cooltooth112]

@bartlettohio Seems as if Led Zepplin stole a lot of stuff. They stole the exact song "When The Levee Breaks" from Memphis Minnie, an old blues gal. LZ claimed it as their own and to steal from those old delta blues people is a shame and a sin. She got nothing for it.

[57highland]

@cooltooth112 I think that an old-time blues player named Willie Dixon also claimed that the main riff from "Whole Lotta Love" was something he had come up with long before.

[cooltooth112]

@57highland Yea,I don't doubt it. Willie Dixon wrote a lot of songs, one of the most famous being "Spoonful". Done by Cream and credited to Willie Dixon. I think he also wrote "Hootchie Cootchie Man".

[57highland]

@cooltooth112 There was a short mention of it in the newspaper at the time; it just said that Dixon was suing Zep based on his belief that Zep used his riff in "Whole Lotta Love". I don't remember what came of it. I spotted it in the paper just by accident.

[SeattleLA]

Ed was about 44 when Spirit started, which shows that even then, it is never too late to be in a band.

[Misterhappynyc]

Check out Randy C.'s magnificent Sears Silvertone!

I always have felt that Mark Andes should write a book -- not only has he played with Spirit, Heart, and Ian McLagen as mentioned -- but also the original Canned Heat and Firefall! Talk about disparate! I also heard him in a radio interview backing up some alt rocker chick several years ago. Anyway, the guy seems to have seen the biz from every style and angle - i imagine he has a few good stories!

Spirit is one of the overlooked best...

[alexmonger11]

@Misterhappynyc yea mark said he fooled around with ann wilson of heart

[caveman735]

Great tune, Idiotic video.

[itsme111478]

Ed Cassidy looks like some guy from the present day who traveled back in time to hang out with some hippies!

[anonUK]

@itsme111478

It's certainly unusual to see a bald-headed man in a hippy band. Can you think of any others?

[bobfromireland1]

@itsme111478 DAMN!! that sounds like fun!

[inkey2]

@itsme111478 totally....Cassidy looks like he came from the future. I can attest that he looked absolutely crazy by 1960s standards......I remember seeing an album cover back in the day wondering who the hell this guy was.

[Maguirerichardson]

This looks like a real dig at not being able to play live - Randy playing rhythm such that the camera goes for bass....Great vid.....thanks....who else saw them play Glastonbury in 81? (although they did have technical problems - mind you so did I)

[MaceMn]

Has anyone ever caught a video of this tune where Spirit plays w/ like 20 other musicians including Jeff Baxter? Awesome stuff.

[percypage74]

Great stuff! Just seeing all the original members is enough for me (better than 80's concerts with Ed and Randy). I live in Austin and keep forgetting to look for Mark Andes when I occasionally see Ian McClagan play. Ian is SO cool and nice. And frickin short, though that doesnt matter, now does it?

[babyj1996]

i read where MARK ANDES said he made out with ANN WILSON !

[Rusfi16]

What drum is Cassady banging? I'm not seeing it.

[rockon1898]

How young Mark Andes was then...and Jay!

[dullsvillain]

They got Cheshire catty acid attitude : )

[MattHatter]

I love these old clips, especially of bands that you don't get to see too much old footage of like Spirit. You Tube has really tuned me in to how bands loved to make fun of lip-syncing on these old shows, especially the late '60s bands like Buffalo Springfield (who couldn't make it through a lip-sync if a gun had been pointed at them). Love Ed Cassidy playing the toy drum and then proceeding to loose the beat and laugh about it. But why focus on Mark when Randy had the guitar behind his head?!

[NewportBaseballDad]

Great clip, thanks for finding it and sharing it! I've always loved this song but the videos I've see for it have been poor. This clip is great, even with the running time showing.

[navahero]

Incredible, simply no words. Don't know what they're on, but I do know that I want a couple or three!

[MrClearlight]

I feel their first album is their best despite the acclaim for "Sardonicus"

[beauhalo]

Mark is now playing with Ian Mclagan's [ small faces] 'bump band' They both are amazing still!! [ but in this video it looks like he may already have been thinking about the future...................

[cucumberinmypants]

Turn it up!!!

[yokai1968]

The guy on Bass is off his skull on something!

[alexmonger11]

@yokai1968 what do you mean ?

[jenniferjuniper97]

classic rarely hear anymore. ha! dig the skirts.

thanks YouTube!

[ratrare]

wasn't it great that back then we didn't care if it was live or lip-syched...we were just grateful....

[Qweeqeh13]

Ok... I need a line up here! Who is next to Randy and Cass? I am a bit of a newbie when it comes to these dudes. Thanks...

[lordritchie]

That's John Locke back on the keys, Jay Ferguson on background vocals and Mark Andes on Bass. Their true and best lineup.

[bobosyd]

I forgot all about Mark Andes being in Spirit. I tend to associate him with Heart.

[MattHatter]

You know Mark Andes' dad was Keith Andes who played Don Quiote in "Man From La Mancha" which became the inspiration for the band to do the song "Straight Arrow" on the first album.

[EmpZappa66]

@bobosyd Don't forget Firefall which also had the original Byrds drummer Michael Clarke.

[alexmonger11]

@bobosyd yea he had a fling with ann wilson while in heart

[babyj1996]

@lordritchie mark will be inducted in RRHOF with HEART in 2012, he was ann wilson's boyfreind for awhile

[luangu]

Go right to yer head!!

[philthelion]

Check out Aren't You Glad from The Family that plays together album. It's not as popular,but I love it.

[ftsjr]

I love this song.

[spotbelly]

too bad you cut Fashions with Deanna..icing on the cake!

[centralparocker]

Unreal!.........so good, baby!!!!

[guitarcrazy7]

haha this is great

[ClearLight1967]

Yep, odd approach to camera work on that show. Maybe the regular camera guy was off sick that day :)

[bjorntooski]

@ClearLight1967 ....

i am in the process of updating my music from my high school college hippie days and I recently added CLEAR LIGHT #1 to the correction (AND the first Spirit LP) 2 of the LPs I GROWED up on .. any relation ..

John Rubensteen ended up in the movie Zachariah.

[paulklee11]

@ClearLight1967 great funny vid of great band- saw them at the Electric Theater Chicago- Joe Cocker opened for them- one of the absolute best bands ever live- they played TOGETHER in such a unique way- Ed is still around thank G-d!

[goal2jtb]

By the way, I saw Spirit do this one -- actually, really live -- at the Whiskey in Hollywood circa '67 (or was it '68?). They were great live, albeit not quite as orchestrated as their first LP!

[ClearLight1967]

Lucky man! I didn't get to see them perform till the very early 80s, and then it was just down to Randy and Ed.

[aaronmonkeylover]

@goal2jtb i think it is very cool that Hendrix often told his interviewers that he dug Randys' quitar style

[goal2jtb]

Man, Cass is playing the greatest kit I've ever seen! Where can one pick up a replica like that one? Guitar Center had better get cookin' to come up with something this good. And of course kudos to the cameraman for honing in on the solists at just the right moment! They just don't make music videos like this anymore.....