hypersongs

Happy the Man

An American progressive rock band from James Madison University in Virginia who signed to Arista in 1976 and made two instrumental albums with the producer Ken Scott, Happy the Man (1977) and Crafty Hands (1978).

Harrisonburg and the Cellar Door

Happy the Man formed in 1973 at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia, later moving to the Washington area. Stanley Whitaker and Rick Kennell met in Germany in 1972, and Whitaker had formed Shady Grove with David Bach; Kennell supplied contacts for the drummer Mike Beck and the singer Cliff Fortney, who with Kennell had been in the Fort Wayne band Zelda. Frank Wyatt met Whitaker in a James Madison music class, and Kit Watkins replaced Bach. The name came from a reference to Goethe's Faust and the Bible, suggested by Whitaker's brother Ken, and Whitaker says the band was happier than darker prog acts. Early sets included covers of Genesis, King Crimson and Van der Graaf Generator, and after Dan Owen replaced Fortney in 1974 and left in early 1975, the band went instrumental.

In 1975 they moved to the Washington area, where the Georgetown radio station WGTB and The Cellar Door venue helped them, with a management deal at the Cellar Door. On June 28, 1976 Peter Gabriel tried them out at their Arlington house but did not hire them, and after a summer showcase in New York, Clive Davis signed them to Arista; Whitaker says he signed them on the spot, mostly because his head of A&R, Rick Chertoff, loved them.

Arista and the end of the first run

Happy the Man, produced by Ken Scott, was recorded in November and December 1976 at A&M Studios in Hollywood and released in August 1977; AllMusic's Guarisco gave it three and a half stars. In 1977 they toured with Foreigner, Renaissance, Stomu Yamash'ta and Hot Tuna, and Beck left late that year, replaced by Ron Riddle. Crafty Hands, again produced by Scott, was recorded in December 1977 and January 1978 and released on September 21, 1978; Whitaker called it a ballsier record overall, more spontaneous, with little rehearsal time. It did not sell, Arista ended the contract, Coco Roussel replaced Riddle, and the third album was demoed in February 1979 at a house in Reston, Virginia under the working title Labyrinth. Watkins left on May 27, 1979 to join Camel, and the band dissolved after a last show at James Madison; the material came out in 1983 as 3rd, Better Late on Watkins's Azimuth label.

They reunited on June 8, 2000 at the State Theatre in Falls Church, Virginia, then played NEARfest 2000, and made The Muse Awakens (InsideOut, 2004). Other releases include Beginnings (1990, 1974 and 1975 demos), Live (1994, recorded in 1978) and Death's Crown (Cuneiform, 1999). Both Arista albums were remastered by Watkins and reissued in 1999, and newer remasters made at Air London were expected from Iconoclassic Records, with liner notes by Syd Schwartz. Wyatt ran a studio called Crafty Hands from 1999 and made Oblivion Sun and Pedal Giant Animals with Whitaker. Music Street Journal says the band's name comes from a Genesis single, which conflicts with Whitaker's account.

Albums

  • Crafty Hands 1978 · Arista

    Their second album: eight pieces, instrumental apart from one, with Ron Riddle on drums and a Greg Hawkes co-write opening.

Songs

  • Service with a Smile Crafty Hands · 1978

    The 2:44 instrumental that opens Crafty Hands, credited to the drummer Ron Riddle and The Cars' keyboardist Greg Hawkes.

Sources

  1. Happy the Man, Wikipedia
  2. Happy the Man (album), Wikipedia
  3. Stanley Whitaker interview, Psychedelic Baby (2025-03-16)
  4. Happy the Man, Indiana Musicpedia