Wednesday, December 12: Gypsyhawk, “Gypsyhawk”
Before he hit the ‘70s HR/HM tribute motherload with Gygax, Eric Harris indulged his Thin Lizzy jones with the excellently named Gypsyhawk. And the singer/bassist clearly recognized the awesomeness of the name, since Patience and Perseverance opened with an anthem and ostensible theme song called “Gypsyhawk”. The tune paid fairly exacting homage to Lizzy, UFO and Gillan without resorting to the name dropping that sometimes plagues acts like Pegazus and Night Demon, instead capturing the very distinct feel that those legendary acts delivered so naturally. As a song, “Gypsyhawk” admittedly felt a bit second-hand and pastiche, but it was also catchy, lighthearted and fun in a way that didn’t feel at all forced, and even if Gypsyhawk didn’t last too long before Harris formed Gygax, it laid out his approach and ethos perfectly.
