HAWKWIND celebrate the 50th Anniversary of their classic live album Space Ritual with a new box set and live show.
The expansive double album, often cited as one of the greatest live albums of all time, was released in May '73 and documents the Ladbroke Grove space-rock explorers' monumental Space Ritual 'space opera' tour of the previous year.
Fuelled by the lyrics of Robert Calvert, illuminated by the elaborate lightshow of Liquid Len and the Lensmen, and designed through the graphic visions of Barney Bubbles, the show caught Hawkwind at a commercial high point following their Top 3 single 'Silver Machine' and Top 20 album Doremi Fasol Latido. The recordings were drawn from shows at Liverpool Stadium and Brixton Sundown, now Brixton Academy.
A new 11-disc box brings together a new remastered version of the original album, a new stereo remix by producer Stephen W Tayler, and new mixes of the complete sets from Liverpool, Brixton and Sunderland Locarno. The set is completed by a 5.1 surround mix of the original album on Blu-Ray disc, a 68-page book and a reproduction of the original Space Ritual tour programme.
Set for release on 29 September on Atomhenge through Cherry Red, it's available to pre-order here.
If you can't afford that, there'll also be new transparent double-vinyl and 2xCD editions.
To celebrate the event, also on 29 September Hawkwind will be playing a very special show at London's Royal Albert Hall, with special guests The Crazy World Of Arthur Brown. Tickets are on sale here.