Dragonfly were formed in the unlikely small southwestern Colorado town of Durango. Coincidentally, Mrs. UMR and I were there just 3 weeks ago. Great place to visit. But would be a near impossible place to start a band and thrive. It's not near any major city centers, and the town itself had a population of 10,000 in the 60s. Of course that wasn't their grand plan, and they continued to try and make it in Los Angeles. I bet that was a fun desert drive in the 60s (not). They also worked the Denver scene back then (not close in proximity either), but it was hardly a mecca for psychedelia.
Whatever the case, perseverance wins the day, and Dragonfly did manage to eke out one LP released to a non existent audience. Years later, it became a cult classic, and has been an expensive item ever since I started collecting in earnest in the late 80s. A fellow friend/collector back in Dallas had a copy, so I first heard it back in the early 90s. It has an immediate likeable sound for psychedelic fuzz fans. The album is stuffed to the gills with fuzz, more than just about any other album of its kind. Just a few days ago, I said this about Andwellas Dream Love and Poetry: "I think one of the keys to appreciating 1960s psychedelic albums is to focus on the singles mentality of the era. The 45 RPM single that is. The short form track with bursts of fuzz guitar." That mindset is needed more on Dragonfly than any other album I can think of. The downside to Dragonfly's sole album is a complete dearth of songwriting. Unlike some of their peers such as Morgen and The Plastic Cloud, there isn't anything memorable on the album. It's just 10 short bursts of punk-snot heavy psych (there are 12 tracks, but 2 are just interludes). For ardent fans of the style, songwriting isn't that important. It's about attitude, atmosphere, and sound texture. I find myself in between both camps. Which makes it a keeper.
Ownership: CD: 2019 Sunbeam (UK). Digipak with a full set of liner notes and 2 relevant bonus tracks taken from their predecessor group The Legend. After all these years, this is the first time for me to own a copy of this album, though I've heard it a couple times in the interim between first exposure. It's not the kind of album I'd drop $500 on, so this CD will have to do. Good sounding CD too (Sunbeam can be sporadic on this front).
8/26/23 (new entry)
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