Guide to British Music of the 1960s
June 2003
DVD Review
BeGlad for the Song has No Ending
BeGlad for the Song has No Ending was one of the more unusual films of the 1960s. It certainly was never along the lines of A Hard Day's Night or Catch Us If You Can! The Incredible String Band was one of the more idiosyncratic acts to achieve success in the 1960s by virtue of their blend of traditional folk music and psychedelia, much of it played on a variety of instruments. In many ways the String Band brought world music onto the commercial stage. Their admirers included the Beatles and the Stones as well as Robert Plant and Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin. While they played Woodstock and would routinely sell out the Albert Hall, there is little remaining footage of the band from those days.
In 1969 Peter Neal put together a film about the String Band for the BBC's Omnibus programme. However, this was never broadcast and the film lay unseen for many years apart from a release to independent cinema in the UK and USA. A limited release was made on video during the 1990s but now there is a full release on video and DVD with an additional interview with Peter Neal.
The film consists of two parts, the original Omnibus documentary followed by a fantasy sequence The Pirate and the Crystal Ball. Of these, the first is far more accessible, showing interviews with Mike Heron and Robin Williamson as well as clips of the band playing both in the studio and at the Royal Festival Hall. The interviews start to give a flavour of what the String Band was all about. Other elements show the broad selection of instruments that are used to make the music. Songs played live during this segment include Mercy I Cry City, All Writ Down and the Iron Stone. The latter is particularly noteworthy showcasing as it does the superb sitar playing of Mike Heron. At the time the band included Rose and Likky, then girlfriends of Mike and Robin who added some additional instrumentation and vocals.
The Pirate and the Crystal Ball fantasy sequence is quite unlike anything else. Robin Williamson, in particular, was becoming more interested in a wider range of performance arts and had begun incorporating some of his ideas into the String Band's shows. The mime and dance troupe Stone Monkey has started appearing alongside the band too. Malcolm LeMaistre of Stone Monkey later became a fully fledged member of the String Band adding vocals, guitar, some songwriting and leaping. The sequence has a certain charm even if it is difficult to work out the story. The film of the different characters is backed by a music track with Mike's sitar much to the fore. One of the funniest parts of the film is where the pirate (Rakis of Stone Monkey) is chasing the bird (LeMaistre). the unusual running style was due to Rakis trying to stop his trousers falling down. He failed in the end and fell to the ground before recovering to shoot the bird.
First published 2001 by Wienerworld