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Blind Faith

By Eric Snider on Wed, Oct 18, 2006 at 5:00 am

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London Hyde Park 1969

BLIND FAITH

Sanctuary

Blind Faith, arguably the first rock supergroup, was by all accounts doomed from the start. Exhibit A: This DVD of the band's first gig, performed in front of 100,000 people in London's Hyde Park in 1969. Playing new material like "Sea of Joy," "Can't find My Way Home" and "Had to Cry Today," the band essentially phones it in. Eric Clapton stands stock still to the left and behind drummer Ginger Baker, reluctantly playing rhythm and some lackluster solos, looking bored all the while. Steve Winwood tries to inject some life into the proceedings, but he basically comes off as wooden. A short documentary and a perfunctory collection of bonus material — a psychedelic promo for the Spencer Davis Group's "I'm a Man," for instance — add little. Hyde Park looks for all the world like a case of "Hey, we've got this footage; let's try to make a few shekels off it." 2 stars

About The Author

Eric Snider

Eric Snider is the dean of Bay area music critics. He started in the early 1980s as one of the founding members of Music magazine, a free bi-monthly. He was the pop music critic for the then-St. Petersburg Times from ‘87-’93. Snider was the music critic, arts editor and senior editor of Weekly Planet/Creative...