Manfred Mann Chapter Three - Manfred Mann Chapter Three, Volume Two (1970)

Manfred Mann Chapter Three was a British experimental jazz rock band founded by South African keyboard player Manfred Mann and long-time partner Mike Hugg. The line-up for its debut at Newcastle's Mayfair Ballroom on 24 October 1969 was; Mike Hugg (vocals/electric piano), Mann (organ), Bernie Living (alto sax), Steve York (bass) and Craig Collinge (drums), augmented by a five-piece brass section of Clive Stevens (tenor sax), Carl Griffiths (tenor sax), Dave Coxhill (baritone sax), Gerald Drewett (trombone) and Sonny Corbett (trumpet).
They released a second album in 1970, with the cumbersome title of “Manfred Mann Chapter Three Volume Two”. It followed the same formula as their debut - dark, brooding, grooves with lots of tasty keyboards and big, blaring horn sections. The second album was perhaps a bit more daring and experimental, potentially not quite as consistent, but with some superb highlights. The most impressive track was the fifteen-minute-plus "Happy Being Me", which began as a hard-driving number with a catchy wordless refrain before drawing out into a series of long, free-form solos from all instruments.
The band's approach centred on the "time, no changes" approach of Miles Davis and John Coltrane applied to slow, funky grooves with voodoo lyrics inspired by Dr John alternating with blaring big-band horn riffs and improvised free-jazz solos reminiscent of Ornette Coleman and Albert Ayler. Although intelligible at a time when artists like Davis himself were crossing over into the rock/funk field and American "jazz-rock" ensembles such as Blood, Sweat and Tears and The Mothers of Invention espoused brass sections and atonality, the formula was limited and the band expensive to maintain, so it was short-lived and disbanded after two albums. A third album was recorded in 1971, but shelved before its release. It consisted both of love songs which Mike Hugg would rerecord for his first solo albums and more experimental music featuring brass arrangements or Manfred Mann on the Moog synthesizer.
The band had two very interesting albums under their belt, but their sound was never going to result in any sort of radio play or hit songs. More importantly, such a large ensemble was massively expensive to maintain, and Mann and Hugg were financing it from their own pockets. Unable to break out of the club circuit, they called it quits and the experiment ended. Mike Hugg began a solo career, and Manfred Mann formed a new group, Manfred Mann's Earth Band, with which he was able to have a great deal of commercial success over the years.

Track listing

01. "Lady Ace"  (Mike Hugg)  -  7:58
02. "I Ain't Laughing"  (M. Hugg)  - 2:36
03. "Poor Sad Sue"  (M. Hugg)  - 5:54
04. "Jump Before You Think "  (M. Hugg)  - 4:52
05. "It's Good To Be Alive"  (Manfred Mann)  - 3:31
06. "Happy Being Me"  (M. Hugg)  - 15:54
07. "Virginia"  (Mann)  - 4:52

Bonus Tracks (1999 re-issue)
08. "I Ain't Laughing" (single mono version)  (M. Hugg)  - 2:32
09. "Happy Being Me" (single mono version)  (M. Hugg)  - 4:01
10. "Virginia" (alternate version)  (Mann)  - 3:32

Credits
Mike Hugg – vocals, piano, electric piano
Manfred Mann – organ
Steve York – electric bass, acoustic bass
Bernie Living – alto saxophone
Brian John Hugg – acoustic guitar, backing vocals
Craig Collinge – drums
Dave Brooks – tenor saxophone
Clive Stevens – soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone
Senny Corbet – trumpet
David Coxhill – baritone saxophone
Andy McCulloch - drums
Producer - Manfred Mann, Mike Hugg, Dave Hatfield

Notes
Recorded at Maximum Sound Studios, Old Kent Road, London, 1970
Genre:  Jazz rock, Progressive rock
Length: 43:37
Label: Vertigo/Bronze Records

© 1970