Quicksilver Messenger Service

Quicksilver Messenger Service was, alongside the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, and Moby Grape, one of the architects of San Francisco's psychedelic jam band scene. The group was conceived in 1965 as a rock & roll vehicle for singer/songwriter Dino Valenti, but he was imprisoned on a drug charge and didn't rejoin until 1969. After building a fan base in the Bay Area and West Coast for two years, they resisted offers to record. Quicksilver signed with Capitol toward the end of 1967 and released their eponymous debut album in 1968. Happy Trails, the classic 1969 follow-up, was recorded live, and it was followed by the studio offering Shady Grove later that year. The early to mid-'70s saw the band issue several successful albums with a revolving lineup -- including Just for Love and What About Me (1970), Quicksilver (1971), and Comin' Thru (1972) -- before splitting up.