Last Exit (Traffic album)
| Last Exit | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
||||
| Studio album and Live album by Traffic | ||||
| Released | May 1969 | |||
| Recorded | studios tracks: 1968, Morgan Studios, London and March 14, 1968, live at the (original) Fillmore, San Francisco |
|||
| Genre | Progressive rock | |||
| Length | 34:04 | |||
| Label |
Island United Artists |
|||
| Producer | Jimmy Miller | |||
| Traffic chronology | ||||
|
||||
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   |
Last Exit, released in May 1969, is the third album by English rock band Traffic. It is a collection of odds and ends collected by Island Records after the initial breakup of the band. The first half of the album consists of studio recordings, while the second half was recorded live at the Fillmore West. The album reached number 19 in the American Billboard 200 chart.
As implied by the cover photos, the album features the original lineup of Steve Winwood, Jim Capaldi, Chris Wood, and Dave Mason, though Mason does not actually appear on most of the songs. The original American LP released by United Artists Records has different cover artwork. The US front features a different picture of the band cut up into the shape of the band's logo with a black background.
Many of the studio recordings of this album were originally released on mono singles. The versions that appear on the album are re-mixed for stereo.
"Just for You" was previously released in February 1968 as the A-side of a UK Dave Mason solo single. Conveniently for its use on this album, other members of Traffic backed up Mason on this track. (The B-side was "Little Woman" which did not include other Traffic members.) The single was released after Mason left Traffic the first time, following Mr. Fantasy.
"Medicated Goo" and "Shanghai Noodle Factory" were the A and B-sides, of a UK Traffic single released in December 1968. Mason does not appear on these tracks. The single version of "Medicated Goo" is a different edit with false ending that is not heard on the stereo album. The song would become a staple of the re-formed band's live performances in 1970-71.
"Something's Got a Hold of My Toe" is an instrumental and appears to be an outtake not originally intended for release. It is unclear why producer Jimmy Miller (a lyricist elsewhere on the album) gets a co-writing credit on this. "Withering Tree" was previously released as the B-side to "Feelin' Alright" (September 1968), although the version on the LP is slightly different from the single. Dave Mason does not appear on this although it was probably recorded while he was still in the band. The two live recordings that make up the second half of the album do not feature Mason.
...
Wikipedia