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Traffic

Formed
1967
Origin
Birmingham
Genre
Progressive / Folk Rock

Formed in Birmingham in 1967 around teenage prodigy Steve Winwood, fresh from the Spencer Davis Group, Traffic blended rock, jazz, folk and psychedelia into a loose, exploratory sound. Known for retreating to a remote countryside cottage to write, the band became a cornerstone of Britain's late-1960s progressive rock scene and a key link between Birmingham's beat-group era and the album-oriented rock that followed.

Lineup

  • Steve Winwood — vocals, keyboards, guitar
  • Jim Capaldi — drums, vocals
  • Chris Wood — saxophone, flute
  • Dave Mason — guitar, vocals
Traffic, photographed in 1973.
“Traffic 1973” by Heinrich Klaffs, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Source.

Discography & Spotify

Three landmark albums, streamable in full.

Mr. Fantasy

1967

Open album in Spotify ↗

John Barleycorn Must Die

1970

Open album in Spotify ↗

The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys

1971

Open album in Spotify ↗