It's a Beautiful Day

• Artist: It's a Beautiful Day
• Rating:
• Release Date: 1969
• Total Time: 30:16
• Genre: Rock

Review

Although they are not one of the better-known San Francisco bands to have emerged from the ballroom circuit of the late '60s and early '70s, It's a Beautiful Day were no less memorable for their unique progressive rock style that contrasted well with the Bay Area psychedelic scene. Led by David LaFlamme (flute/violin/vocals) and his wife, Linda LaFlamme (keyboards), the six-piece unit on this album vacillates between light and ethereal pieces such as the lead-off cut, "White Bird," to the heavier, prog rock-influenced "Bombay Calling." One of the most distinct characteristics of It's a Beautiful Day is their instrumentation. The prominence of David LaFlamme -- former violin soloist with the Utah Symphony and original member of Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks -- adds a refinement to It's a Beautiful Day's sound. Likewise, the intricate melodies -- mostly composed by the LaFlammes -- are structured around the band's immense virtuosity, a prime example being the exquisitely haunting harpsichord-driven "Girl With No Eyes." The noir framework, as well as lyrics such as "...she's just a reflection of all of the time I've been high," point rather candidly to the hallucinogenic nature of the song's -- if not the band's -- influences. The same can be said of the languidly eerie "Bulgaria." The almost chant-like quality of the track slowly crescendos into an hypnotic and dreamlike sonic journey -- led by LaFlamme's brilliant violin work. By virtue of being a Bay Area fixture in the late '60s, It's a Beautiful Day could also easily double as a hippie dance band -- which they can also execute with great aplomb -- as the wildly up-tempo "Time Is" amply proves. It's a Beautiful Day remains as a timepiece and evidence of how sophisticated rock & roll had become in the fertile environs of the San Francisco music scene. ~ Lindsay Planer, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
White Bird	David LaFlamme, Linda LaFlamme	It's a Beautiful Day	(6:11)
Hot Summer Day	Linda LaFlamme, Danny Kirwan, David LaFlamme	It's a Beautiful Day	(5:51)
Wasted Union Blues	David LaFlamme	It's a Beautiful Day	(4:09)
Girl with No Eyes	Linda LaFlamme, David LaFlamme	It's a Beautiful Day	(3:51)
Bombay Calling	David LaFlamme, Vince Wallace	It's a Beautiful Day	(4:28)
Bulgaria	David LaFlamme	It's a Beautiful Day	(6:14)
Time Is	David LaFlamme	It's a Beautiful Day	(9:38)

Credits

Pattie Santos (Tambourine), David LaFlamme (Vocals), Hal Wagenet (Vocals), Bruce Steinberg (Harmonica), David LaFlamme (Flute), Linda LaFlamme (Piano), Pattie Santos (Percussion), Linda LaFlamme (Celeste), Val Fuentes (Drums), Linda LaFlamme (Keyboards), Val Fuentes (Vocals), Mitchell Holman (Bass), Linda LaFlamme (Organ), Bruce Steinberg (Cover Design), Bruce Steinberg (Photography), Pattie Santos (Vocals), David LaFlamme (Producer), Mitchell Holman (Harmonica), Pattie Santos (Bells), Linda LaFlamme (Piano (Electric)), Hal Wagenet (Guitar), Linda LaFlamme (Harpsichord), Brian Ross-Myring (Engineer), Matthew Katz (Producer), Mitchell Holman (Guitar (Bass)), David LaFlamme (Violin), Mitchell Holman (Vocals)

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