Despite their musical excellence, Sydney band Galadriel never achieved any commercial success during their short career, and they were forgotten for many years. Ironically, their eclectic and ultra-rare 1971 LP has now became one of the most collectible artifacts of Australian '70s progressive rock.
Taking their name from the Elven Queen of Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, Galadriel was formed in 1969 by guitarist and songwriter Garry Adams and drummer Doug Bligh. They soon made a name for themselves on the thriving Sydney dance/discotheque circuit. They often played at Sydney's "Joseph's Coat" disco and shared gigs with many of the top progressive groups of the day including Kahvas Jute, Blackfeather and Spectrum.
The band signed with Gus McNeil's Cellar Music, which was also the publishing company for Spectrum's Mike Rudd and Coutnry Radio's Greg Quill. Around October 1970 Galadriel recorded ten original songs at Sydney's United Sound Studios with American engineer-producer Tom Lubin. They shopped the recordings around for several more months without success, but eventually they were signed by the Polydor label, who released the LP and their second single "Standing In The Rain" / "Working", in May 1971. These were Polydor's first local rock releases in Australia and although the recordings were remarkably good, Polydor evidently lacked the experience and clout to get it noticed and regrettably both album and single sank without trace.
Late in 1971 they prepared to record their second album. Tracks slated for the new LP included the epic live highlight "Song For Your Reason", "In The Night" and "Poor Boy", one of their most commercial numbers, which was earmarked as a probable single. Unfortunately, the second Galadriel LP was never recorded.
(text courtesy of Milesago )
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