Gracious was a British progressive rock band which existed from 1967 to 1971, and released two albums, Gracious! (1970, Vertigo/Capitol) and This Is... (1972, Philips). The roots of the band lay in the long friendship between singer Paul 'Sandy' Davis and guitarist Alan Cowderoy, who met while at the same school in Esher, Surrey, between 1959 and 1965. It was a Catholic school, so when they decided to form a band together, they chose the most controversial name two twelve-year-old boys could come up with - Satan's Disciples! Inevitably, when performing at the school concerts, they had to change the name to The Disciples. Davis was the drummer and vocalist, and Cowderoy played lead; two other school friends played bass and rhythm. In 1968, Martin Kitcat and Mark Laird joined on Hohner electric piano and bass respectively. Davis was still drumming as well as singing, but Robert Lipson, who played in a rival Esher band, agreed to join, allowing Davis to take the front of stage for the first time. The band's early sound was influenced by Cream and the British blues movement, and one of their first professional recordings was a cover of a John Mayall song. At one point the group was rehearsing in a building below Eric Clapton's London flat, and one day Clapton popped in during a rehearsal and ended up jamming with them. More pivotal, however, was interest from Pete Townshend which led to a support slot for The Who on a tour in 1968.
01 - Super Nova a) Arrival Of The Traveller b) Blood Red Sun c) What's Come To Be d) Say Goodbye To Love e) Prepare To Meet Thy Maker 02 - C.B.S. 03 - What's Come To Be 04 - Blue Skies And Alibis 05 - Hold Me Down 06 - Once On A Windy Day
