John Barleycorn Must Die

Liked it fine! Not a lot stuck out, and get a bit tired of the 60s-70s era medieval pretensions. The title track was a little precious and ponderous for me, in part because of this. The last track, “Every Mother’s Son” was a good ride and held my attention as an enjoyable, The Band-adjacent instrumentation.

Couple of good tracks.

I’ve finally gotten to the age where I can appreciate jam, so I liked this. The addition of a flute was fun! And the title track was a standout for me, despite being more of a traditional ballad than a jam. Solid 4/5

*Cool jazz rock *Loved the first half but a few tracks on the B-side weren't as strong

Classic folk rock

Solid rock/jazz album

I really enjoyed that! I didn’t enjoy their self-titled, so this was a nice surprise.

This was a new one for me - big fan!

Pretty good album and doesn’t overstay it’s welcome!

2.67

nice enough

Solid old school 70s American rock. Not a lot of songs on this were known to me, but it was a great easy listen.

some solid jazz rock. They feel like a sister band to Chicago in a good way. I may like them better? I can't decide. I like glad, empty pages and the transition from jazz fusion soul rock into some more singer songwriter stuff with stranger to himself, John Barleycorn and then bringing it back home with every mother's son. Honestly, as close to perfect as this kind of record can get to

I like this, I like Steve Winwood's voice. Solid. 4.0

Enjoyable aalbum.

Great first track

oh i liked this.

Organs are for churches and bodies, not pop albums. God, what an awful sound. Didn't mind the folky title track though.

The right side of jazz rock. Well produced and thoroughly enjoyable. And heck, why not throw in a bit of folk as well. I liked reading about John Barleycorn and alcohol and the various folk songs from the 16th century onwards, very interesting stuff.

This was pretty interesting. I liked it

I found this surprisingly enjoyable. Some sort of vaguely prog, folk music. Never heard of traffic before but I might come back to this for another listen.

It's fine but why is it on the list`?

This album features five sub-prog rock originals (plus a cover of the title track) in which singer Steve Winwood tries his best to combine rock and soul, doing neither very well. The construction of these songs (none of which should have been more than three minutes long) is also loose and aimless, and seems mostly designed to give the Traffic jammers yards of time to noodle away on a flute, or whatever.

Traffic is pretty special. I only wish they had exploited Steve Winwood's voice a bit more back then. Nevertheless I love the interplay of the instrumentals and how it is kind of like rock's version of trance or low fi or something. I kind of like the mellowness of it as well the cleverness. Some of this album has that "Oh, I love this song!" thing going on, and I am glad the album generator put this on the list as it is not only worthy, but it "reminds" one of great past bands like Traffic, who feel still fresh and relevant.

60’s/70’s rock with a bit more polish and improv. The addition of some wind instruments also helps to make the sound bigger and more easily identifiable.

too prog for my taste some nice jams though

A huge improvement over their self titled album. Great sound and listen.

Hmmm. Mostly sounds like background music from a parody 70s TV show. It's not offensive in any way, but also not pleasurable. Then the title track is just boring folk music jammed in - what I expected the whole album to be like from the cover.

Erinnert mich an Jethro Tull, nur nicht ganz so geil.

Den ersten instrumentalen Song fand ich am besten. Nichts per se gegen den Gesang, aber ohne hätte es zu 4 Sternen gereicht.

Sempre bom ouvir um rock folkeado e bluezado dos anos 70. Além de ser uma ótima banda que mistura ecleticamente os gêneros, o álbum é curtinho, tão bom que nem se vê acabando.

5 / 10

wait hold up. 6 tracks. 34 minutes. i'm liking the looks of this. and this supposed to be a rock band??? thank goodness they're not, this is way better. ooh big fan of this quite piano melody on glad. got that haunting *exotic* flare. ok now i get why this is rock. still boppin'. john barleycorn is a good song. props to them. 5/5

Vaca come back

The British need to pass a test if they are allowed to make music or no. 2/5

Nice.

It's alright? Like the majority of albums so far on this journey it's not memorable but it's not bad.

Dreary and without soul

Not the best album of a not very notable band. 5/10

Snore

A couple of decent tunes. When they moved into the jazz/rock sections of tunes, the music meandered hopelessly. I think Traffic suffered this malady throughout most of their career. I don't think they ever recovered from the loss of Dave Mason.

I couldn't appreciate it enough. Not sure I would like it more in the future.

This wasn't a bad album, but it could have been so much better. A progressive rock album with jazz and folk influences sounds like it could have been right up my alley, but the band unfortunately does very little with it. The biggest problem is how standard most of the arrangements are. The jazz grooves are straightforward to a fault, which especially becomes an issue when the band stretches songs out to 7 minutes with very little variation. It sounds like these songs are meant to meander, but everything feels too static and locked in place. The standout track for me is the titular John Barleycorn, a more straightforward folk song with some excellent harmonies. This album did sound pleasant, and the band clearly has talent, I just wish they did more with it.

mild garbage

not as good as Joni Mitchell’s Blue

*1970. *Typical 70s rock, but with some extra jazz/R&B influence. *Normally I like this style, but I had a tough time making it through this album even though it's only 34 minutes... I didn't dislike it, but the songs are long and they get a bit repetitive. RATING - 6.5/10

Gear: ZMF Auteur Classic LTD Shedua Artwork: 🌾🧶✏️ Production (2010 Remaster): 🎧😘🤌 Music: 🎸🧠😌 Rating: 🌽🌽🌽🌽/5

I think I should have liked it more than I did. I have a bone to pick with flute insertion, has to be done just right. Not unpleasant but I didn't find anything here that I couldn't wait to hear again. Maybe I will try again later.

Great opening track. It really got me excited for the rest of the album. Although there are several high points there are also a few lulls. With elements of rock, jazz, and folk I was hoping for a more experimental blend, but it does feel that sometimes they just pick a lane and sit in it for a while, before jumping again the next track, and they often fall back into a soft rock format. That said it was a pleasant listen, I just wished they'd drop the bland, vocal centric tracks so they could extend out some of them organ solos.

I had heard that Steve Winwood had a band but haven't given them a listen until this came up. I'm loving the piano and organ, and the winds... this is like power pop before there was power pop. The title track feels folksier than the rest of the album and feels out of place to me... but I'm digging the rest of the album.

This was a cool, weird listen. The use of the piano, organ, and woodwinds is unique, I’m not sure I’ve heard them used in combination like this before and it is fun in most spots. I’m not sure that I can say this blew me away or that I’ll reach for it again but it’s possible. 1 listen Favorite Track: Glad

An interesting album that is difficult to categorize. Some very good but repetitive instrumental sections. Varied insturments. Vocals mostly good but not always. All listenable but I wasn't wowed.

- Nothing offensive here (though the inclusion of woodwinds did generate a major eye roll). Nothing noteworthy either. - First instrumental track("Glad") is fun...some nice jazzy sax. "Empty Pages" is fine as well. Unfortunately, there are just a dozen acts that make similar music that are more interesting.

Groooooooooovy. I liked this one a lot. Vibey, psychy, flowy and jazzy. I had a blast.

Not as good wankery as the Chicago album I got previously

Middington

This started off sooooo strong for me, and then got just kind of like diet grateful dead by the end. Idk. It's just so meandering, I feel like I should be listening to it while wandering through a forest at a festival. Wasn't bad tho, the flute was fun

I appreciate the level of talent that went into making this album, it’s got a bunch of things going on for it like an acoustic jammy vibe while also having aspects of jazz slipped into sections. But unfortunately I was really put off by some of the vocals. Some were better than others, in fact this album had a weird back and forth for me. The first track is a real rollercoaster cause it had me then it lost me than it had me again, and that’s kinda how the rest of the album was. I liked freedom rider, empty pages, stranger to himself. But I really hated John barleycorn and every mother’s son. Glad just was too long and too much but I dont hate it like I hate those other two tracks. Honestly I guess I just wanted more blues rock and funk, and less southern rock/country flair. Pretty solid album though.

Really cool album. Enjoyed the vocals and some of the songs are great, specifically Freedom Rider and John Barleycorn. Chilled, soulful rock and roll. 3.5/5.

I just bought this record like 3 weeks ago to add to my Traffic collection. I love Traffic, mainly because I’m obsessed with Steve Winwood’s voice and piano/organ playing. Joe and I were lucky enough to see him in concert a couple years ago and he was fantastic. That voice is still there. This album is a great blend of rock and jazz, with a couple other genres thrown in for good measure. That first song is an incredible jam song. 7 minutes wasn’t enough. The whole album is great. I dig it.

A very instrumental collection. The music was decent but it felt more like a jam session than an album that you focus on the lyrics. No complaints and it was good to finally listen to a full Traffic album.

Fine, very clearly Traffic at work here. Dated but unmistakable.

I've seen Steve Winwood twice over the past few years and he has played Glad each time. He tours with an amazing band that grooves hard on that song, one of the highlights of his show. Didn't realize it was studio track until today, very happy to find it. Great groove throughout the album with flute front and center. Couple weaker songs that broke the flow for me, but overall this is an outstanding album.

Another fun album for the day. I really like the jazz/rock fusion and it’s done really well and the nice folksy twist brings some emotion to the album. It’s just very good musicians in a room writing very good music. It’s not the most exciting listen, but that’s a taste thing it’s a great album with two great finishing tracks.

this goes HARD!!!! i like low spark of high heeled boys better, but this is also really good! 4.5

Another nice but not essential record.

A couple of iconic cuts and enjoyable overall

Very respectable. Solid album. Unique sound.

Funky and I didn’t hate it so it must’ve had something to it.

Great jam album

Every Mother's Son

Bom. Adorei.

Solid

Poor guy.

Not bad, wouldn't put it on again though. 2,5/5

Fuck off. This is a $1 record for a reason.

Ok, but unremarkable

This is ok. I think it would be better if it were just instrumentals but i really enjoyed the music.

AKA “The other Traffic album”. I don’t particularly like it. I am reminded of going through a similar realization in high school. I do like Low Spark (the song) and the band is unquestionably talented. Stevie Winwood is a great singer etc. The problem for me is that it has an ethereal no bass line prog rock thing going on and that just doesn’t do it for me.

Oh, for goodness' sake. This is not an all time great album !!!!!!! And I really like the title track! But when I used to listen to this album, I never listened to the whole thing, because the rest of the album is boring. And that's an LP, where it's More Work to listen to part of the record than just let it play! You have to get up and take the needle off the record. Haven't listened to this in many years. Glad is still pretty cool. Freedom Rider is still dull and formless. Ditto Empty Pages. Stranger To Himself is a bit better. John Barleycorn isn't every one's cup of tea, I would guess, but I really like it. Every Mother's Son is ok, but ... again. To me, this is a mediocre album. Capaldi and Wood do play well, I will give them that. And the musicianship shines more in a remastered digital format than it did on my old used LP.

Boring. Unmemorable

Boring and pointless. I'm trying so hard not to ask why is this record on the list but seriously why is this record on the list.

not annoying but certainly not inspiring Would I listen again: no Deserves to be on this list: no 3.1

Jazzy kind of rock. Steve’s voice is nice. Songs are ok enough.

You know what, I enjoyed this quite a bit. The title track was a little bit too old school Genesis for my taste, but this was fun

sympa mais la flûte FERME TA GUEULE 3-/5

Solid, never listened to Traffic before. Nice vibes, jazzy and proggy. Interesting stuff. Will check the band out further.

More instrumental than I normally like but still a pretty good album. 4 stars or B-.

British rock tinged with folk and jazz. The opening instrumental is a snooze fest. There’s a couple of pleasant enough songs that possibly influenced steely Dan. Excellent musicianship but not enough to hold my interest 2.5/5 but might creep up to 3 after a few listens.

A mix of early prog and folk, OK but nothing stands out for me.

A bit Jethro Tull, a bit Genesis. But still good.

Groovy man

Steve Winwood was one of the most prolific musicians of the late 60s and 70s, working with many respected artists (and Eric Clapton). However, for this album he reunited with Chris Wood and Jim Capaldi to reform their old band Traffic for another spin around the musical block. The result is a wild mix of folk, jazz and prog, reworking an old English folk song for the title track with the flute playing of Wood giving it a jaunty air. Given that there were only three of them playing on this, there is a fair amount of studio multitracking at work here but it all sounds fine to me. The overall result is an example of three talented musicians at the top of their game playing something of a mixed bag of musical genres.

Have I listened to this album before No How familiar am I with this album Unfamiliar How do I feel about this artist? The name sounds familiar but I count really know them Pre-Listen Thoughts: I have no idea wha tot expect from this Favorite track(s): John Barleycorn Post-Listen Thoughts: Short but sweet, a classic 70s sound that does not drag on too much

I like Steve WInwood's work with Traffic; this one I hadn't heard. It's a good listen, a melange of folk-rock, jazz, Olde Countrye storytelling. Winwood's solo career patterns Phil Collins' - they were way less interesting on their own. Not my usual fare, but it's better than anything Jethro Tull could ever touch.

Solid jazzy, blues-rock listen

01) Glad - 6,5 02) Freedom Rider - 6,5 03) Empty Pages - 6,5 04) Stranger to Himself - 6,5 05) John Barleycorn (Must Die) - 6,5 06) Every Mother's Son - 6,0 TOTAL: 6,42 (64/100) Current ranking: 676/969

영화노래 같다

I really like this album. This is Steve Winwood at his best.

An album I haven’t liked very much but a closer listen allowed for me to hear the unique brand of music this really is. Although classic rock is a simple description, this is shapeless and mysterious, that is deep and rich

My theory always was that Winwood is what made Blind Faith cooler than Clapton’s other bands. My theory was correct.

Älskar Traffic känner jag. Den här var bättre än förra! 3,5-4

Rockflöjt! Måste bli en svag fyra

boring

legal

Okay. 1970s. Folk prog?

Ni ahi lo mio. Por suerte no tan largo Nota: 2.8

It's pretty formulaic

Blah

It's alright

Þessir spila tónlist sem ég fíla þótt þeir nái aldrei að komast upp í meistaraverk svo ég mun líklegast gleyma þessari plötu með tímanum

I don’t think John deserved all of that

Well yeah, everyone must at some point.

31/06/2026 I am running out of things to say for these bang average albums. But bang average. Spotify listeners: 859.5k

Jazz folk fusion. Made me feel like I was in an Oceans 11 movie a little bit.

6/10 - The music was pleasant and kind of jammy. Not a style that I would frequent but if I found this in the $5 crate at a record store I would grab it.

Not really a prog fan but found this pleasant and I like the flute in the songs. 6/10

I did not particularly like the Steve Winwood album on here, but this is more interesting, if pretty indulgent. There's some folk rock, jazz, prog, and a little funk. It's pretty pleasant, but doesn't feel especially unique. The songs also feel a little more flash than substance at times. But the effect isn't distracting enough to make me dislike the album. Although, I will say that my favorite song here is John Barleycorn, which is a more straightforward folk song that really puts the writing at the forefront. Like I said, the cumulative effect of this is fairly enjoyable, but it's a little frustrating that it feels like their prog influence occasionally gets in the way of the songwriting. But this does still get a 3, even if it's kind of a shaky one.

After getting past the first tune - which I unfortunately associate with low budget 80s stand up comedy specials - the rest of the album was better than I expected.

John Barleycorn and I don't care, John Barleycorn and I don't care ... no really, its not bad. I thought it would be more of a classic ... didn't love it didn't hate it. At least it was shorter than that Stephen Stills album.

Borderline 2 for me. Shit is low key annoying

At no point while listening to this did the thought "I MUST share this with somebody!" cross my mind. Even when trying to contextualize it for its time, I'm still not really excited about anything here. It's fine in some ways, but not something I need to come back to.

I was a fan. I really liked Freedom Rider it had quite a good groove to it. Short-ish album too which was nice so I didn’t have to listen to the same thing for an hour. I liked the Flutey parts in John Barleycorn.

Interesting, who tf is John barley corn tho, what did he do

So glad this was added to the list. Magnificent band from the 60's that have become a bit obscure and need to be recognized and revitalized.

Fun! Short! Funky! Let’s go!

For a supergroup, they don't sing all that well. And the songs aren't that interesting.

John Barleycorn you serve ZERO purpose. You should kill yourself NOW. It’s a weird album this is very piano and organ heavy but on the other side it’s got a jazzy sax that I appreciate a lot. It’s a prog folk album that has a great set of drums on it and a good flow through the songs. That’s kinda it it’s just a good collection of songs nothing like mind blowing just some good shit. I will add that I dig the piano on here heavy though like it’s always consistently providing a good backing to whatever song they need it on so good job well used piano there twin.

This really should have spoken to me. Generally, I love the genre and sound. But it just really didn’t hit home for me. It’s really good musically, but I didn’t feel like the songwriting was very good. Felt like a lot of noodling with some very uninspired vocal melodies.

5/10 It always makes me nervous when an album is more successful in the US than in the UK, and nevermore so than when it is a British artist. So, as expected, this was far from great - meandering and jazzy and a bit rubbish. Should be a 2, but a song near the end perked it up a bit and it wasn't unlistenable.

Sort of a mix of every 70's classic rock/southern/prog group, an enjoyable listen but not a whole lot stood out

Great sound on here. Excellent drums and guitar throughout. All 6 songs rock, Glad and Freedom Rider are great. Every Mother’s Son is my favourite with the keyboard, guitar, piano and flute working together to make this an excellent closer

Tremendo. Gran lírica, grandes instrumentales. Cerati se inspiro en Jonh para hacer fuerza natural. Tremendo

esperaba algo totalmente diferente, me gusto

fun, catchy. the sax & flute were my favorites. organ p cool too. i know this is weird and the album's great and all, but as i was listening, i just got this feeling of .. not really caring? high 3.

That's more like it. Some softer prog rock. Beautiful.

Average weirdo album from 1970. I'm not mad I heard it and I'll never be mad if it occurs again in my life but I wasn't really motivated by any factors.

Pretty good!

This album is probably not as special as other albums of similar style that I've heard going through the 1001 album list. But, honestly, I'm always down for this type of music. I'd say the first half was better, though. I enjoyed it. 3.5/5

4/5

One thing I've learned from this project is that music in the 60s kind of sucked. This isn't so bad, but it doesn't particularly move me

This was great and I think Steve Winwood is pretty underrated as a musician.

Really liked this album, but nothing seemed to stick in my memory.

636/1001 2026.06.15 🌕🌕🌗🌑🌑

This album falls into psychedelic rock category I think? Unfortunately, I do not like that genre.

But why? Why does he have to die? I've been wondering that for fifty years. Was it adequately addressed here? Maybe I missed e. Glad is my favorite Traffic tune BY FAR, although I keep expecting them to medley into Theme from Maude. Surely these fellas understand that Lady Godiva was a freedom rider. In fact, I just noticed that the very next song is called Freedom Rider. Coincidence? Hardly.

Unless you're a die-hard Traffic fan (or even a Traffic enthusiast), I suppose, I see no reason to have this album in addition to "Traffic" in this collection, even if this album may be slightly better taste of the band--or at least less fragmented version, although Dave Mason's absence seems kind of obvious with all the prog-style jamming and excessive flutes (but Jethro Tull was probably happy). I liked it that it clocked in at a brief 35 minutes, although the opening and closing tracks did seem a bit interminable. And while in theory I appreciate their take on an old folk song about beer, it's about as out of place as everything else in this weird mish-mash Steve Winwood vanity project (which was apparently meant to be a solo album but then Winwood decided to rope in fellow former Trafficers Jim Capaldi and Chris Wood).

I like their bluesy rock with folk flavor and jazz toppings! But this ain't no low spark of high-heeled boys! Still, quite nice.

This band absolutely do not need multiple albums on this list

The jammy style of this album makes it easy to put it on in the background, but it’s not something that demands your attention with crafted melodies.

Man I had hoped to like this but I didn’t! Maybe I’ll give it another spin- i don’t know much traffic but this doesn’t sound like what I do know so could have been that it was shockingly contrary to my expectations.

All time banger

A personal favorite. For me it’s a five star but realistically it’s a four star album.

Preferred the first half

Why is that every rock album on here is either 2 hours long or lasts 40 mins but each song is 7 minutes long? It's so fucking boring.

I mean it’s reasonable pleasant jamming and nicely played but found it pretty boring and didn’t compare that well to The Allman Brothers, maybe unfair to compare but it’s two jamming albums that have come up in quick succession. Nicely played but nothing more than that. Weak 3.

Love the slightly amusing folk song "John Barleycorn (Must Die)".  It's very dated in this way throughout, but I actually really enjoyed it for that specifically, which I don't normally say.  They just did such a good job of each style and had significant variation in the album.  It's all ridiculous songs played exceptionally.  This is just a time capsule that exists not because of its timeless appeal but just simply because of its excellent craft.  Like a kids toy made well that works just as well in 2026 as it did back in the 70s. I mean they thew lots at it as well.  Flutes, piano, organs, acoustic, electric rock, etc.  Freestyle elements of Jazz / Jamming.  Happy to come across this interesting live album.

A classic product of the seventies, but a generally enjoyable listen. It's quite an eclectic mix that starts off sounding like the soundtrack to a 70's cop show and moves through folk revival and prog rock, all with a distinctly British bent. The title track was a strangely compelling listen (why doesn't modern rock music use more flute?) and "Every Mothers Son" injected a bit of familiar full band rock reminiscent of the Eagles. I think I found this album more interesting than I did enjoyable. I would happily dive back in for a re-listen but it didn't fully capture my imagination the first time through.

Bit of a shift on from their last album, still blending a bunch of influences, but away from psychedelia towards a more jazz funk easy listening bluesy folk rock kinda thing. But like the other album, it's interesting enough, and listenable, while never straying near anything great.

Their most defining album according to Steve Winwood. Clearly a defining moment and easily their most memorable record. It’s a joy to listen to and bears repeated listens well. Great record.

Thought this started strong with the jazz-influenced opening track, but found that as it went on the album felt more and more like a fairly trad 70s rock album. The musicianship is decent but I found myself wondering what makes these guys any more or less interesting or distinctive than their peers.

Pretty decent. High 3

2/5

Nice album! Though I can't explain why, I think it suffers a bit from the problem that each song blends into each other. I had a hard time distinguish them from each other. But I really enjoyed having it in the background when working. Got me in a good mood. Strong 3!

Utterly forgettable, sounds like a mix between Jethro Tull and Pentagle. Both those bands are good in their own right but this failed to bring something unique to the table. I feel we’ve had plenty of similar music on this list and this album just feels like one of many. Strong 2, not bad just bland to me.

An interesting prog rock album. Not totally sure I love this, but I can respect its musical ability. Not sure also I'll go back. 3/5, high 3 though.

# Album Name: John Barleycorn Must Die # Artist: Traffic # Rating: 3/5 # Comments: Not a bad listen. Could be a grower. But for now its just alright # Top Tunes: # Would I listen to it again? Maybe

Didn't know what to expect, but it was an instant dislike. Only interesting song was the folk song cover. Grating jazz rock. 2.5 rounded down. Heard before? No Owned: No. 80/316 (25%) Will I get: No

A lovely album from a superb band headed by Steve Winwood.

Some fine folk music, for those folk that like their music folky.

This feels to me like early prog but without as much virtuosity. The songs are ok, but I'm never left humming them later. That said, this is mature, understated and well performed. I admire the musicianship, if not the finished product.

Pretty good jams if it weren't for Steve Winwood.

Ah the limitations of marking out of 5. It's average, it's 5/10 but 3/5 is too much and 2/5 seems harsh. It's a 3 then.

Cool

I’ve heard this before. I appreciate they have a flute player, rock should incorporate flute and other instruments that don’t appear to rock more often. Steve Winwood’s voice has always irritated me, but it doesn’t seem as bad as in his 80s solo songs here. His keyboard sound makes up for that. The songs are mostly good and everyone plays real well, but there is a lot of aimless jamming filling out the songs. That said, the songs are short enough that the aimless jamming doesn’t go on forever, and the album is short enough that the aimless jamming doesn’t take over the album. Altogether solid classic rock.

Quite wide-ranging and outstanding. Jazzy vibes and grooves, shades of Genesis. My thing! 4.4

Not bad

Stevie Winwood doing his thing

Spoiler alert! He doesn't die. In fact, he's not really even on this album.

I'm honestly not sure what I was expecting, but it definitely was not this. I guess Dear Mr. Fantasy is the only Traffic song I was really familiar with. This is great though, very much digging it. 4/5

I’ve always considered Traffic a favorite classic band, at the same time, always underestimated them. They kept growing with each album, but each shift felt authentic and resulted in solid and enduring work. Their first album (Mr. Fantasy) was psychedelic rock in its purest form. Their second album (self titled) moved into a more varied sound that incorporated folk and soul. This, their third studio album, shifted the weight with some jazz elements and opening up to longer, more patient grooves. I really enjoy this album, just like I do their earlier albums and the subsequent “Low Spark of High Heeled Boys.” Add to all this that you also have Steve Winwood’s work in The Spencer Davis Group and Blind Faith — and you have a truly great artist operating at a high level from the late 60s into the early 70s. Keeping in mind how this album fits within the whole of a great catalogue, I am rounding up to 5.

This album sounds great! Regardless of the circumstances surrounding the various iterations of Traffic, they fire here on all cylinders with excellent Rock and Roll. The funny thing is that I have listened to this album many times in the past, and it never enters my regular rotation. I am not sure why, but after this listen (very high quality sound situation), I am convinced that overlooking this album is mistake. It is like a full meal with flourishes, pointers, epiphanies, and no room for dessert!

One or two good songs. One or two boring

Unremarkable, but not offensive to listen to while I was working.

Okay 70's post-folk rock. Songs were a little longer than they should have been.

I do like Winwood's work, but this was mostly seen in bands where he's the 4th most interesting character. Great pianist, brilliant arranger, patchy lyrics if this is anything to go by. It was fine. I'd listen again with a fat zoot.

Traffic is my new favorite band.

It is cool to hear 70s psychedelic music that is not guitar forward. The best songs on this album prominently feature the reeds (Chris Wood) and keys (Steve Winwood). This is not to say that there aren’t some great guitar riffs, like we hear on “I Just Want You to Know” or “Stranger to Himself”. It is just that the jazz infused tunes are just more innovative, particularly for 1970. It is easy to see why this album is considered a classic. It is also easy to see why this album, the first gold record for Traffic, was included on this list. I really enjoyed this one, particularly when I gave it a second listen after I smoked one after work.

Unique music style with flashes of brilliance. The only reason I did not give 5 stars is that I found the vocals a bit weak.

what did he do?

a few I didn't like but it was actually solid Will I listen to again: 76%

Excellent prog/jazz album that does a great job of keeping tight and concise. A side is definitely stronger, but very strong album that blends jazz instrumentation together with a rock sound in a very satisfying way. Top tracks: Glad, Freedom Rider, Empty Pages

Nice old rock

Always had a bit of a soft spot for this album as I heard it a lot in my teens (despite being a teen in the 80s and 90s)

Legendary band, legendary album/title, but I know very little about them or any of these songs. Great piano intro on "Glad", then it got way jazzy, but that piano groove is so nice! I liked "Freedom Rider", very classic rock-ish. "Empty Pages" I know from the radio and would consider it the blueprint for his solo work a decade in the future (see Arc Of A Diver). The folky title track didn't hit the mark for me. Highlight: some good 70's guitar grooves ("Stranger To Himself" & "Every Mother's Son". I love Winwood and his voice, it's interesting to see his growth from Spencer Davis to Traffic to his platinum solo albums. Decent album but nothing groundbreaking on this one, one or two fringe radio songs. 3 stars.

Pretty OK.

DNF

A mashup of basically every subgenre of rock and roll that was popular in the late 60s. Well performed but not much for me to write home about.

First track really set the stage for this one. Crisp production. Great Jam band. When the second track vocals hit I was impressed. Mixing creativity with some pretty hard riffs for the time. I was thoroughly impressed.

I was not expecting anything from this except more tired boring brit rock but this was actually great. I think a lot of it stemmed from the fact that they seemed to know when to stop playing. The songs go on as long as they need to and not a minute more, unlike so many of their contemporaries in the style. The playing was crisp and the production was great, especially given it was recorded in 1970. I particularly enjoyed Glad and the title track (which with the flute makes it sound like Jethro Tull, who I love), but the whole thing was good.

I thought this was fine, but I’m hard pressed to think of much of anything to say about it. Some jazz rock fusion that was nice to listen to, but unremarkable.

I don't believe I needed to hear this before I died.

Short and sweet, solid album. Started looping and I didn't even catch it.

I had this band literally two days ago on the list. So I'm just copy/ paste this one because it still fits. "Oh I bet they are some of you all dads favorite band. Pretty standard classic rock station fodder. I mean you can't just play Zeppelin and the Beatles over and over. So traffic shines as the full in. Seriously though it's not terrible, it's just not memorable." Why are they on the list more than once?

I wanted to like this more than I did. I saw multiple reviewers making Steely Dan comparisons, but the difference with Steely Dan is that their prodigious skills were in service of fantastic songs. This albums instead has mostly mid songs performed really well.

Ωραίο άκουσμα. Κοντά στα γούστα μου γενικώς, απλώς νιώθω ότι δεν έχει το κάτι ξεχωριστό για να γίνει πολύ καλό Empty Pages

2,5 sin más. Volver a escuchar si tal

It grabbed me pretty early on, but unfortunately lost me just as quickly

Pretty decent folksy sounding soft rock. Good uses of harmonized vocals, flutes, and acoustic guitars, plus I always like music that tells a story. But overall I can't think of why this is considered a must hear album as it didn't really do anything that truly makes it stand out. 3/5

I think this is the second album I ever bought, and I still have it. Legendary recording.

Very boring. Like a bad folly Steely Dan. Bonus point because they’re from Birmingham where I went to uni.

This! Was shockingly good. Really dig the organ and the jazzy sounds. Paired with the folk classic John Barleycorn.

I feel bad for rating this so low, because the idea of it is perfectly fine - Steve Winwood and some session guys get together to play some jazz-folk. But the songs are barely songs for the most part, the lyrics feel trite, and the extended jams are just not doing anything for me. I've been through this twice in a row and made it halfway through a third time before giving up. I feel like someone needs to tell me what to listen for, which is a sign this album isn't going to work for me.

se siente muy bonito, como lleno de paz idk

After the first couple songs I started to drift out of focus on this one.

I had never ever heard this whole album in order. This is a masterpiece a whole story with character development and even side notes for the story.amazing songwritting and stringing the songs together with simple words and references is amazing

Glad - 4/5 Freedom Rider - 5/5 Empty Pages - 4/5 Stranger to Himself - 4/5 John Barleycorn - 4/5 Every Mother's Son - 3/5 Average score: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

entraînant, jazzy, fun, a tad weird, instruments focus, flutes, saxo, synth

again not for me but listenable!!

Rip

Sorta like a jazzy, hippie album

This is where my brief 4+ star album streak ends. The instrumental at the beginning was nice, and so was "John Barleycorn Must Die", the title track. It turns out the latter track was an old folk song, which happens to be better than most of the album it gives its name to. Everything else on "John Barleycorn Must Die" was your acceptable early 70s filler. For a band with a good reputation like Traffic, I was left mildly disappointed. 3 stars for "John Barleycorn Must Die".

not entirely my vibe but listening at work and it's not distracting

Great music dude

Jazz/Latin/Folk/Blues is a thing yeah? Well it certainly is on this album. I’m a huge fan of the folk/flute end of traffic and the title track is an absolute classic, the rest of the album doesn’t reach that high standard but this is sixties psych folk at its best

dull

Classic album by Steve Winwood, Chris Wood, and Jim Capaldi. When this album was released I wondered how the group would sound minus Dave Mason. The answer was - terrific!

Me ha parecido super disfrutable y creativo

Me gustó. Buen álbum. Buena guitarra y muy buena armonía con la flauta y demás.

Nah

Gotta love Steve Winwood

estuvo ok, los temas ahí bastante largos y el de john barleycorn la vdd no me gustó y ya como que en general no me gustó tanto

Álbum muy tranquilo ideal para estar entrecasa fumándose uncaño insta y viendo reels o haciendo hongos también. "jhon barleycorn" me hace acordar a uno de Cerati hard, cuando encuentre que tema de cerati es modifico este para ser mas exacto. Muy buena guitarra durante todo el álbum y a eso se le suman otros instrumentos como flautas e instrumentos de vientos lo que suma tranquilidad y personalidad a cada canción. Es un album que me gustaria escuchar nuevamente y tambien descubrir mas de la banda 8/10

Didn’t hate it but never want to listen again

Enjoyed this

Short, a nice wee listen

Forgettable

It was fine. A couple of listens didn't really leave any strong impression though.

Freedom Rider— JAZZ FLUTE

Such nostalgia for this one!

Mom can we have some Jethro Tull? No. We have Jethro Tull at home. Jethro Tull at home = Traffic

That flute.

This one was much better than the self titled.

funky stuff

Quite jazzy at the beginning. Not a big fan...

5/5 Favorite Songs: Glad Freedom Rider Empty Pages Stranger to Himself John Barleycorn

It’s okay.

Very interesting first instrumental track. Especially enjoyed the mysterious piano and Hammond ending. Good rhythm section aswell. Track Two- a fantastic one. Steve Winwood is such a great vocalist. He shines in this jazz rock song. Cool Flute solo. 3- a lighter funky song. Good playing. Nice chorus. 4 is nice aswell. Great bass playing from winwood. What an all around musician he is. 5 a beautiful folksy number. Harmony vocals go hard 6. Like the piano Hammond and drums. A good song. It a very good album, but it has some moment that are not as high as others... I'm feeling a very very high 3. Almost a 4, maybe even a four. Yeh I'll give it a flat 4

Very jazzy but no hooks

classic acid rock, jazz infused jams on this thing, the flute guy gives some dimension to it great tracks but nothing that stands out over the rest, kind of lost in the jamming while still being the most interesting part of the record

Does feel like we’ve had numerous albums that sound like this. Not unpleasant though.

I really liked this one with the progressive vibe mixed with a bit of jazz and classic rock. The slower folky songs - not so much.

I thought I was listening to some sort of 60s/70s tv show probably called ‘Prog rock coppers’ for the first couple of songs. Then they finally do a folky one which is what the album title suggests it should be, then it drifts off into more funky prog blues. Which is quite the journey, but as it goes a very enjoyable one. Talented musicians just doing whatever they feel like, gotta respect that on this one.

It's got a bit of everything sometimes sounds like the album has skipped tracks but sounds like it would have been an incredibly fun record to make.

3/5

Winwood is outstanding.. I like this.

I have a vague memory of hearing about the band when I was younger. However, I don’t remember any of their music. That’s a shame. I really missed out back then. It’s a great album in the style of the time, and I enjoy listening to it again. 5/5

DNF - BORING!!!! If your mum sells Avon then your dad loves Traffic. I’d rather go play in the road.

Very fun and entertaining while I was listening, can't wait to forget it instantly

Me encantó mal, muy muy buen disco

2.5

it was fine. i really liked the first track

This one didn't seem to make any impression on me.

Steve Winwood, one of the icons of this era. Great album.

Mostly uninteresting.

A nice sound, didn’t like all the songs but it was nice and short

Great band, finally some good music. I have this album from way back, and was glad to listen to it again.

I was really surprised with this one, I really enjoyed this album.

6/10

un día se juntó el flautista de hamelin, encías sangrantes, Claudio Arrau y el cepillo de dientes del comercial de colgate y salió este discazo. top de los que llevo escuchados hasta ahora

There's a few really cool songs on here, but also some that were just okay. A fairly decent listening experience.

Pretty good. I think it would’ve been better as an instrumental album, but the singing was ok. 3.5/5

I enjoyed this album far more than I thought I would! It really grew on me the more I listed. It was charming and quite fun. I really appreciated the use of the flute and found it to be a great touch. Was it my favorite album? No. Would I revisit it again? I think it's unlikely, but there was a song or two I could maybe picture myself listening to again down the line.

I do not know who John Barleycorn is and why he must die. It's smooth prog rock, lending itself to be more jazz based with the prominence of the sax and flute all throughout. Likely a result of former guitarist Dave Mason leaving the group prior to this album. Steve Winwood steps up and provides vocals for most of the album, showcasing the talent that he would display in his later solo endeavors. All in all, it's a slightly unique take on the prog rock sound that was everywhere at the time. Didn't really get me going, however.

This one is quite boring to my ears... Just like the 1969 Traffic album this doesn't really move me in any way. The vocals are just not that good. I found myself enjoy the instrumental parts of songs more than the parts of the songs where it has vocals. Though however when he is singing yearnfully, those parts are good. Another good thing I can think of is the tone, which I enjoyed a lot. Highlight Song/s: "Every Mother's Son"

It's bewildering how each song switches to a new style and genre. I like the folk song and the last track of the album, the rest do very little for me, and it feels inconsistent and weird.

- Enjoyable but not overly memorable

fav songs: empty pages flat, forgettable, samey 50/100

Didn't hate this, but certainly never going to revisit this in my lifetime.

the organ on every mother's son made my soul levitate from this realm and into a better world.

This album is basically a pale progressive rock project, which is unfortunate because the album starts very strong with a fun and groovy jazz piece, "Glad", thanks to the lively instruments and solos of the saxophone, electric saxophone and piano. The second song, "Freedom Rider", introduces the voice and I was surprised how soulful it sounds. For the rest, it keeps the same elements as the previous track, having a groovy and jazzy with the incorporation of a nice flute which has its own solo. Next is "Empty Pages", and apart from sounding similar to Stevie Wonder, both in voice and pianos (I hope I'm not sounding crazy, I swear this song sounds a bit like Stevie Wonder), it doesn't offer anything really interesting, and it is at this point that the album becomes stale. The only positive things I can say about this is that the keyboard solo sounds good and the bass is very groovy. When it comes to the negatives, the worst part of this is that the choruses feel like fail attempts to create some grandiose moments. Then comes "I Just Want To Know", a track that last one minute and half and doesn't do anything more than presenting the electric guitar which has some solos in the following track, "Stranger to Himself". All that I said about "Empty Pages" I can say about this song as the voice is soulful but the piece itself is uninteresting. The second to last song, "John Barelycorn (Must Die)" is a boring folk piece about how a group of man torture and kill this man, but I didn't find neither its sound nor the lyrics to be anything special. Finally, "Every Mother's Son" is a more traditional progressive rock song with solos and improvisations, but that really hasn't anything impressive nor appealing about it. So apart from the fun start, some groovy lines and the soulful voice, I didn't find anything here to be truly compelling, and I would even dare to say that the majority of it is quite boring.

Love his voice and their music - just not ALL of it.

This has been my day for music. Unironically listened to the new Jack Harlow album, and then this just wow *chief's kiss.* Goated instrumentals wasn't a huge fan of the vocals (Like Glad might have been my favorite track). Overall I just loved the sound. Perfectly fit the vibe of my day. Little uppitty. Little chill. Would buy this album. Thinking once again that Jorge Ben Jor deserved a 5 from me.

Was writing the review in my head while I checked the previous traffic album I remembered we had, and both reviews were nearly identical. Decent American rock, terrible pan pipe sections. Think the good songs here were genuinely good as opposed to just influential but really either of these albums tells you all you need to know about Traffic.

Yeah this is my kind of music. I liked the previous one a few years back, this is great. Long, diversionary songs. Nice singing, catchy hooks. Empty Pages and Stranger To Himself are the standouts. Nice themes. Nothing creative to say, just a good album.

This was a pretty good poppy blues type thing. I think I remember preferring the previous album of theirs that we had though. Nothing blew me away 3

ya me esta encantando por favorrr, dios bendiga este estilo musicalllllllllllll

Mid

Nice and chill.

Notable Lyrics: Struggling with confusion Disillusionment too Can turn a man into a shadow Crying out from pain Es gibt sehr viel Musik aus dieser Zeit die sich sehr ähnelt. 36 Minuten und 6 Songs ist auch wirklich kurz für ein Album. Ich finde aber, dass ganze hat einen guten Groove, solange es nicht zu viel Flöte in den Instrumentals sind komme ich damit auch gut klar. Es gibt wenig was mich stört, aber auch wenig das mich begeistert. Wenn es eines der ersten Alben dieser Art wäre die ich gehört hätte wäre das vermutlich anders. Aber so bleibt es bei unterem Mittelfeld. Gerade noch 3.

-Hey lass und mal ein poppiges Album mit allen aktuell gängigen Musikstilen machen. -Okay. Aber nur wenn wir maximal betonen was für Mucker wir sind. - Muss es gut sein? - Humbug, einfach alles reinpacken was geht.

Orgelsolo, Flötensolo Orgelsolo, Flötensolo. Musikalisch begabt wie Helge Schneider, nur nicht so lustig.

Favorite album by Traffic so far, titular song is fuckin awesome

Yeah fine I guess

Decent album. Keys are played very well. Overall, pretty good. 3/5 Might listen again

70’s

Great 60’s rock

Decent. Title track was highlight.

I liked it, for a while I even forgot that I was listening to a new album - it felt just as familiar as my usual classic rock:)

Pretty good but not my vibe. Could be fun on a roadtrip in the west