by Rob Dwyer, with special thanks to Larry Davis and Gary Dean
Without any further adieu, here's a link to the Jackson '72 Super 8 footage. I encoded this in Real Media format and it's a 12 MB download. Click here to see Larry's Super 8 film!
The story of the film
I've always been fascinated by the amateur Super 8 films that I sometimes come across while researching rare rock films. Most of the dates, places and information about the person who filmed these little gems is often lost or uncredited, which leaves us with a mysterious film of unknown origin. Thankfully, I was able to find the source, origin and date for this film, thanks to the Internet! When Larry Davis filmed this show with his Super 8 camera back in 1972, he had no idea that his work would be viewed by so many 30 years later! For most amateur photographers and filmmakers like Larry, this was simply a labor of love and something he could add to his own scrapbook of memories. But in retrospect, he captured 2 minutes of magic from a tour that has been sadly undocumented on any other commercial or amateur film. There's always hope that something else will surface, but as of yet, nothing has.
I did communicate with Larry about his video several months back. Currently, he has no VHS copy of this film to view for his own enjoyment. But he does still possess the original Super 8 master reel, which also contains 2-3 minutes each of the opening sets by Gentle Giant and Argent. This film has also been a bit of justice for fans of those bands, who are even more difficult to find footage of! Apparently, Larry sold his only VHS copy to a collector some years back. My copy was provided by Gary Dean, who more than likely got his copy from the collector in question. Before last year, this film was unknown to Sabbath collectors.
Larry was kind enough to share a scan of a photo that he took at the Jackson '72 show (see top of page). I've been hesitant to post this picture for a long time, wanting to save it for a future project possibly. But I've decided to go ahead and share this nice snapshot with everyone, since it is relevant to my story here. It's a great picture of Tony and the silhouette of Ozzy on the amplifier cabinets is so cool, because you can tell it's him! I've been using a piece of this silhouette on my index pages since I started the site. It's one of my favorite pictures, kind of like that famous shot of Hendrix's silhouette on his amplifier cabinets. Magical!
Here are some of Larry Davis' memories of this show from a Gentle Giant fan site:
I happened across an old concert ticket last night dated Sept. 7, 1972. It's been 25 years since the only time I've seen them. They were an opening act for Black Sabbath in Jackson, Mississippi. I had really gone to see Argent who was the second group to play that night. I have always been a big fan of the Zombies and Rod Argent.
I was the first person there, arriving about 4 hours before the concert was to begin. They weren't even taking up tickets yet; thus I still have the whole thing carefully preserved. This was also before the days of very strict security regarding cameras. I had brought along my 35mm and my Super 8 movie camera loaded with fast film to record what I could.
I immediately grabbed the first row center seat and was able to hold it for the entire night, fighting off other fans and stoned hippies. I even caught one of Argent drummer Robert Henrit's drumsticks when he tossed them to the crowd later that night.
The roadies were still setting up equipment when I got there and I watched intently. I was then and am now a musician (drums) and was fascinated by the complex intermingling of equipment for 3 different bands on one stage. I watched the sound check. I actually got to meet and get an autograph from Rod Argent. We spoke only briefly as he was double checking the keyboard settings. God, he even had a Mellotron!! Those were the days.
I had never heard of Gentle Giant before that night but when they took the stage and did some music from the first two albums I was absolutely blown away. Never before had I seen this level of talent and precision. Not even the famous James Brown band could touch this. I had brought along three reels of movie film so I shot one whole 50' roll of Tri-X on them. I still have it.
After they left the stage the rest of the concert was a letdown. Even Argent with it's great talent and original arrangements was lacking. Sabbath was good but I kept flashing back to Derek Shulman stalking the stage during Alucard. I wanted to see Kerry Minnear play the Marimba again. I wanted to hear the harmonies. I was hooked!!
The next day I bought both of the first two albums. I never let up from there. I have everything they have done with the exception of the "best of" album; I didn't see a need for it as I had all the songs on the original albums. (All I have is vinyl)
Now, I really did not like "OCTOPUS" nearly as much as "Glass House," "Free Hand," or "Interview." I also prefered "Power & Glory," All of it is good. Here I am, 50 years old and still listening to this obscure band that knocked me out 25 years ago. I do not hear any new stuff that can compare. The closest I have been able to find was Jethro Tull.
More rare films to come?
And as of one week ago (December 2002), I happened across yet another previously unknown Super 8 film of Black Sabbath!! This one was filmed at Cumberland County Arena in Fayetteville, NC on January 30th, 1977 by a great guy named Steve, who also filmed at least a dozen other bands during that period (including The Stones, Uriah Heep, Heart, Black Oak Arkansas, Lynyrd Skynyrd and many more). It's been a great pleasure to meet Steve, who has lots of great stories that I'll showcase here later.
Anyhow, this 13 minutes of silent Super 8 footage is the only known live footage of the TECHNICAL ECSTASY tour. We are in negotiations right now to get this transferred to DVD for prosperity. And in time, I hope that fans like yourself will have the privilege of viewing this for yourself in the coming year!
