Badger – One Live Badger 1973 ,Germany ,Prog Rock (2)br br Badger were one of those seventies bands that are barely remembered outside the br circle of hard-core Yes fans. Only in existence for a couple of years, br they managed to produce two albums, White Lady, the 1974 studio album which br was a fairly mellow, soul-influenced affair featuring ex-Apple Records artist br Jackie Lomax, and the altogether more interesting progressive rock debut One Live Badger. br Formed in mid 1972, the roots of the band stretch back a few years earlier when br Tony Kaye linked up with David Foster who was getting material together for a br prospective solo album. Foster, a former band mate of Jon Anderson in The Warriors, br was first introduced to the Yes camp when he co-wrote Sweet Dreams and Time And A br Word with the vocalist with for the band's second album. Although the solo album br was eventually scrapped, Foster and Kaye kept in touch and following Kaye's br departure from Yes and brief involvement with Flash, set about remixing and br reworking the original material. br br Deciding to form a band to play and record the songs, drummer Roy Dyke was recruited br from the recently disbanded Ashton, Gardener and Dyke who recommended that guitarist br Brian Parrish, who had recorded a largely ignored album with Adrian Gurvitz, br should complete the line-up. After intensive rehearsals, the band made their debut at br "The Rainbow Theatre" in December 1972 supporting Yes at the infamous concerts br that spawned the sprawling Yessongs live album. Atlantic Records, to whom both groups br were signed, decided that as the equipment was in place they should make the most br of their financial outlay and record the support group's set as well. br In a bold move that seems rather extraordinary by today's standards, br it was these recordings that formed the basis of One Live Badger. br br And what a great album it is, the material is strong and the group sound as if br they have been playing and writing together for years. The production, by the group, br Jon Anderson and Geoffrey Haslam, is crisp although somewhat more raw and aggressive br than the resulting Yes recordings from the same concerts. As expected, br Kaye's signature Hammond organ sound is to the fore on most of the tracks br (and in particular on the album closer On The Way Home), although he does use other br keyboards to add different textures: the chorus of Wind of Change features the mellotron, br The River utilises an electric piano to great effect and a Moog synthesiser is br evident on other tracks. Guitarist Brian Parrish plays some great solos, br although nothing too flash (excuse the pun!) or overburdened with technical virtuosity.