Dantalian's Chariot - Chariot Rising (1983)

Esoteric Recordings are pleased to announce the release of a newly re-mastered collection of 1967 studio recordings by the legendary British Psychedelic band DANTALIAN'S CHARIOT - "Chariot Rising". Dantalian's Chariot was born of a time when British popular music was going through a transformation. Psychedelia was on the ascendant thanks to the Beatles' "Sgt. Pepper" album and the work of Pink Floyd on "Piper at the Gates of Dawn". The influence of the Summer of Love was felt by the members of Zoot Money and his Big Roll Band, a legendary R&B group who had recorded two albums for EMI and were a popular live attraction in the mid-1960s. Keyboard player and Vocalist Zoot Money disbanded his band to form Dantalian's Chariot with fellow band members Andy Somers (guitar, sitar - later known as Andy Summers in The Police), Pat Donaldson (bass) and Colin Allen (drums). The band were soon established as one of the finest psychedelic groups, thanks to their innovative music and light show brought from San Francisco. The single "Madman Running Through the Fields" was released in September 1967 and is now highly regarded and hailed by Record Collector magazine as one of the finest of the era. Although the band were in demand as a live attraction, they disbanded in April 1968, (with Money & Somers soon joining Eric Burdon & the Animals), leaving a series of recordings for a prospective album in the vaults. First released in 1996, these recordings have been newly re-mastered for this Esoteric Recordings reissue. The release also features an illustrated booklet with rare photographs and promotional material and an essay featuring exclusive interviews.