Cosmic traveller Donovan Leitch served his musical apprenticeship in hippy toil before being discovered by songwriter Geoff Stephens in 1964. Donovan effectively launched his career in 1965 when he became a regular on the British rock TV programmed Ready Steady Go, yet his US performing debut was at the 1965 Newport folk festival. Donovan first hit the British scene with his melancholic \u201cCatch the Wind\u201d which settled nostalgically at #4 in 1965. The song marked a status as the first folk song to go pop which was largely due to the London Philharmonic String Orchestra and harmonies by the Ivy League. In hindsight Donovan was a true flower child often fobbed off as a Dylan wannabe, yet his music was sweet lavender blue with little or nothing of the blues.<\/p>\n
Donovan\u2019s sensual stroke on \u201cLalena\u201d was beautifully expressed by the first stage of Deep Purple while they were resident in the US. His jazzy, \u201cSeason of the Witch\u201d co -penned with Shawn Phillips gained formidable access through the likes of the blues of Al Kooper Supersessions, the psyche Vanilla Fudge and Brian Auger & Julie Driscoll. Donovan had just sailed through the charts with the Geoff Stephens \u201cCatch The Wind\u201d and was busy recording his debut What\u2019s Bin Did and What\u2019s Bin In when Geoff decided to include Mick Softley\u2019s \u201cGold watch Blues\u201c and \u201cThe War Drags On\u201d, plus Shawn Phillips\u2019 \u201cLittle Tin Soldier\u201d (Hans Christian Anderson). Assisted by ex Shadow Brian ‘Licorice’ Locking on bass and future Pretty Thing drummer Skip Alan, the album was a superb folk showcase. equal to any Dylan project.<\/p>\n
Donovan\u2019s Eastern vegetarian stance was voiced on the Kevess & Secunda ode \u201cDonna, Donna\u201d. During his sabbatical to India to visit the Maharishi Mahesi Yogi alongside the Beatles, a Beach Boy and Mia Farrow, he wrote the Lewis Carroll influenced \u201cHurdy Gurdy Man\u201d which included a verse by George Harrison and distorted guitar by Allan Holdsworth. He only performed the hidden verse at live performances. The \u201cHurdy Gurdy Man\u201d single with Indian Tambura and guitar by Jeff Beck reverberated into the charts in June 1968. The Hurdy Gurdy Man album received the profound support from John Bonham and John Paul Jones later to ignite as Led Zeppelin.<\/p>\n
Donovan stood fast as a great songwriter – with a database of ballads, which reflected the English heritage in all its serenity. From the translucent \u201cColours\u201d \/ \u201cTurquoise\u201d, and \u201cSummer Day Reflection Song\u201d to the seventies glam rock of \u201cRock & Roll Soldier\u201d. Donovan captured two eras respectively with an appropriate style. Catchy calypso, like \u201cThere Is a Mountain\u201d and \u201cEpistle to Dippy\u201d flavoured the charts during the mid-sixties. Donovan\u2019s old English embrace with the poetry and novels of yesteryear were clearly portrayed in his lyrics. The blues rip on \u201cHey Gyp (dig the slowness)\u201d released in 1965 was covered by the Animals on their 1966 Animalism. Things got somewhat eclectic with Donovan\u2019s \u201cGoo Goo Barabajagal (love is hot)\u201d zapping #12 thanks to Jeff Beck\u2019s excruciating wah-wah and Mickie Most marketing. In 1971 Donovan recorded a double album of children songs entitled H.M.S. Donovan.<\/p>\n
The new age ballad, \u201cAtlantis\u201d, launched during the summer of love in 1969, has become an epic theme for the New Age generation of the future. Donovan remained a Welsh busker filled with the hippie mysticism and thanks to Mickie Most, a number of singles cleaned up, namely \u201cSunshine Superman\u201d #1 UK & US charts.The ballad was dedicated to the Beatles, and originally entitled \u201cFor John and Paul\u201d. Paul returned the compliment by whispering vocals on \u201cMellow Yellow\u201d and John answered by writing \u201cSexy Sadie\u201d for him. The original version carried for 4.35 min and swelled with a vibrant guitar hook. Shawn Phillips featured on sitar and the edited single spearheaded Donovan\u2019s newfound identity as an \u2018electric hippie troubadour\u2019. Sultry Jewel brought the sunshine out again during the wake of the millennium. After many years of identity crisis where he was accused of copying Dylan (Both started at the same time)?<\/p>\n
Donovan finally found justified nirvana. Donovan Leitch also starred and wrote music for the 1972 German film The Pied Piper, but it was Franco Zeffirelli\u2019s \u201cBrother Sun, Sister Moon\u201d from he soundtrack that re-captured the tender beauty of Donovan\u2019s spiritual voice. He merrily strode through the flower power phase with the outstanding \u201cSunny South Kensington\u201d (name – checking Allen Ginsberg & Jean-Paul Belmondo), \u201cMellow Yellow\u201d and the enthralling jazz-filled, \u201cA Gift from a Flower to a Garden\u201d. The infectious \u201cJennifer Juniper\u201d was written for Jenny, sister of Pattie Boyd, wife of Harrison \/ Clapton, future wife of Mick Fleetwood. Somewhere in 1970 Terry Reid recorded a gutsy version of \u201cSuperlungs My Supergirl\u201d which was released in the States as a single . It sold reasonably well due to most thinking it was about Superman and that power aid breathe.<\/p>\n
In 1973 Donovan co-sang on the title track of Alice Cooper\u2019s Billion Dollar Babies. He was truly the English essence of Dylan with definitive flower power energy, free from the rustic protest of his assumed mentor. Far from the blues Donovan wore his love like heaven, dressed in saffron would sail homeward looking for Atlantis with the help of the “Hurdy-Gurdy-Man.<\/p>\n
Added:<\/b> March 15th 2008 Cosmic traveller Donovan Leitch served his musical apprenticeship in hippy toil before being discovered by songwriter Geoff Stephens in 1964. Donovan effectively launched his career in 1965 when he became a regular on the British rock TV programmed Ready Steady Go, yet his US performing debut was at the 1965 Newport folk festival. Donovan first […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8313","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hipplanet.com\/hip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8313","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hipplanet.com\/hip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hipplanet.com\/hip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hipplanet.com\/hip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hipplanet.com\/hip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8313"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.hipplanet.com\/hip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8313\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hipplanet.com\/hip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8313"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hipplanet.com\/hip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8313"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hipplanet.com\/hip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8313"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nReviewer:<\/b> Shiloh Noone<\/a> | See all reviews<\/a> by Shiloh Noone
\nCategory:<\/b> Music<\/a>
\nLocation:<\/b> South Africa<\/a>
\nRelated Link:<\/b> Seekers Guide To The Rhythm Of Yesteryear<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"