Do you remember The Damnation Of Adam Blessing?

This Cleveland, Ohio, quintet formed in 1968, borrowing their odd name from a 1961 pulp novel called The Damnation Of Adam Blessing. Consisting of Bill Constable (vocals), Jim Quinn and Bob Kalamasz (guitar), Ray Benich (bass) and Jim Schwark (drums), their origins lay in local garage bands Dust and The Society. With a fiery live set centering on their lengthy rendition of Jimi Hendrix’s “You Got Me Floatin’”, and often opening for local heroes The James Gang, they’d soon built a loyal following. In 1969 they signed to United Artists at the behest of Cleveland producer/ radio manager Eric Stevens, whose father Perry was an influential record promoter. Quinn has since stated that they were signed without UA ever hearing them play, such was Perry Sr’s sway.

 

Combining exciting originals such as Cookbook and Le Voyage with dreamy ballads and covers of Morning Dew, and even a rocked-up Last Train To Clarksville, their self-titled debut LP - released in March 1970 - showed them as the equal of virtually any rock band of the time. Advertised as “a satanic happening etched on lacquer with love”, the album was promoted via showcase gigs in New York, LA and Chicago, but the band failed to connect with audiences outside Ohio, where the LP quickly sold 10,000 copies.

 

Morning Dew became a sizeable local hit when lifted as a 45 and, as 1970 wore on, they shared stages with the leading acts of the day, including Janis Joplin, Jefferson Airplane, The Faces, Grand Funk Railroad and Alice Cooper. Their performance at the Cincinnati Pop Festival on 13 June 1970 almost provoked a riot. Widely considered one of the greatest hard rock albums ever made, it takes in the scorching Driver, propulsive Death Of A Virgin and anthemic Back To The River, with politicized lyrics, complex arrangements and exceptional singing and guitar parts. Despite being marketed by UA as “the Midwest’s hottest group”, the band still failed to break nationally, and cracks began to show. These often centered on teenage bassist Benich’s explosive temper, and by 1971 drummer Schwark had departed, to be replaced by Constable’s brother Ken.

 

Their third LP, Which Is The Justice, Which Is The Thief, was recorded in Cleveland in March 1971, and appeared that summer. Embracing horns, strings and progressive influences, it’s less immediate than its predecessors, but contains several fine tracks, with typically impressive musicianship and vocals. The band almost didn’t live to see its release, though - the inner gatefold photo was shot one morning in one of Cleveland’s toughest inner-city areas. As the long­haired band members posed, a posse of drunken rednecks erupted from a bar opposite and piled into them, badly beating Bill Constable. 

They just managed to leap back into their car and roar off before serious injury was inflicted. When the album sold disappointingly on release in 08/1971, the band splintered, though they took the bold step of renaming themselves Glory for a disappointing final album on the Avalanche label in September 1973.

Thereafter, the members scattered across the US, with Benich eventually being jailed for life in 1982 following a shooting at his home in Delaware. However, on his parole, the band reformed for a triumphant induction into Cleveland’s Rock Hall Of Fame in September 2000.