Mr. Skin: Spirit’s stellar drummer Ed Cassidy, a forgotten rock legend.

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In a previous post pondering the perfect symmetry of Deaf Gahan performing in the Reisz Mahal as Sardonicus, we naturally came to the rock band Spirit and its 1970 album Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus. In turn this started me thinking about the overlooked career of a true original, Spirit’s drummer Ed “Mr. Skin” Cassidy, who died at the age of 89 in 2012.

Spirit remain one of rock and roll’s unsung entities. Formed in 1966 by guitarist Randy California, bassist Mark Andes and singer Jay Ferguson, the band would become complete with the addition of drummer Ed Cassidy, who was Randy California’s stepfather, and several years older than the other band members. Cassidy’s glaring bald head was an anomaly in the heyday of long hair, just one of many paradox’s within the world of Spirit. So dig in and explore our little salute to this great lost band as we dish out our Top 10 Spirit Songs.

Cassidy’s incredible life and career are described in this video. It isn’t the best quality, but the point is to remember Cassidy’s underrated contribution to the story of rock.

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