I was first alerted to the existence of this (mostly-defunct) band via a passing reference in an old review of a Taylor Hicks concert. The reviewer mentioned that it would be cool if Hicks covered some “obscure Blodwyn Pig” tunes. Having never heard of such a thing as a Blodwyn Pig, I felt compelled to do a little research and see if I agreed.

A Google search turned up the snazzy website of founding member Mick Abrahams and, much further down the page, their mySpace. Abrahams, a former member of Jethro Tull, had left Tull in 1968 over creative differences and founded the Pig. At the time, Tull was headed into flute-loving folk-rock and Abrahams just wasn’t interested. Blodwyn Pig’s modern blues/jazz sound was fresh and exciting, compared frequently to such better-known musical pioneers as Frank Zappa, and was part of the 70s edge into Prog and Art Rock. Yet, in Europe at least, they managed to grow a mainstream audience as well, appearing on popular UK programs like Top of the Pops.

On their myspace and elsewhere, Abrahams tells some awesome stories of hilarity, madness and debauchery while on tour and in the studio. They released two albums, toured the U.S. twice, and were poised for big, big things. Unfortunately, the good times came to an end because of his crippling fear of flying (or rather, as he says, of crashing) and the other members unceremoniously booted him in 1970. Karma turned around and kicked them in the ass, and within seven weeks the Pig was no more. There was a brief, not-that-successful reunion in 1974, and since 1988 Abrahams has occasionally reconvened the Pig with various former members. He also plays with rotating band members as the Mick Abrahams Band.

Listening to Abrahams’ solo stuff on squirrelmusic.com, his guitar playing reminds me quite a bit of his contemporaries Eric Clapton and B.B. King. However, with Blodwyn Pig, the sounds and influences are varied and sometimes subtle. On 1969’s Ahead Rings Out the jazz groove of Jack Lancaster’s dual saxophones (seriously, you have to watch this to believe it) melds with Ron Berg’s crashing rock drums to create something that I’m pretty sure was out of the norm for that year: “The Modern Alchemist”.

“It’s Only Love”, from the same album, is very much a blues song but also has a strong Big Band influence, with an emphasis on the high-hat in the drums, and a prominent horn section, in addition to Abrahams’ excellent blues guitar. My grandparents would have no problem at all dancing to this song.

Blodwyn Pig took advantage of each technological advancement they could afford, recording Ahead Rings Out on 8-track and 1970’s Getting To This on 16-track. They were also creative in getting just the right sound, even when the recording and filtering equipment was not yet dreamed of. On “Dear Jill”, a song featured in the movie Almost Famous, Abrahams explained, “by double-tracking the guitar, which was an Ecko 12-string with only 9-10 strings on it (depending on my mood or how many strings I could afford on the day) it sounded akin to a modern chorus effect pedal.” (Liner notes to 2001 re-issue of Ahead Rings Out, via Wikipedia.)

Additionally, on Getting To This, Abrahams says, “I did sing a verse of “Variations on Nainos” with my head in a bucket of water with a mike positioned over it!” (From Blodwyn Pig’s mySpace.) “Variations on Nainos” is an experimental jazz type song with a Swingin’ 60’s vibe (it could be in the background of an Austin Powers scene with no dissonance). The bucket verse — double-tracked “with the same bucket,” by the way — appears around the 3:10 mark below.

Again reinforcing the idea that Blodwyn Pig could not be pigeonholed, “Same Old Story” touches into psychedelia and the Indian rhythmic and melodic influences of the time, but in areas with a harder edge than taken by other bands.

If you’re interested in further listening, the mySpace page jukebox features four songs, and there is quite a bit more, I believe, on Abrahams’ own site, including his solo work. But between YouTube and imeem.com, it is possible to hear just about everything for free. There’s also quite a bit available on iTunes, should you be so inclined, although not the first two records–live albums and an anthology.

I think that, should Taylor Hicks choose to do the research and select from the more heavily blues-influenced Blodwyn Pig songs, he could indeed have a hit on his hands. What might be more useful to him is a songwriting collaboration with Abrahams, who is still active and whose current music I find more compatible with Hicks’ style.

So what is a Blodwyn Pig? I’m not really sure. Blodwyn is a Welsh first name meaning “white flowers” or “blessed flowers”, usually female although one site lists it as male. We all know what a pig is, but I’m not able to analyze the band name beyond this point. Abrahams does not explain the origins of the name (assuming he even remembers at this point), so it may be impossible to know.