Quicksilver Messenger Service

Not in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame

Eligible since: 1994

First Recording: 1968

Previously Considered? No  what's this?

Quicksilver Messenger Service
HALL OF FAME INDICATORS
Rolling Stone 500 Albums
🔲Rolling Stone 500 Songs
🔲Rolling Stone Cover
🔲Saturday Night Live
🔲Major Festival Headliner
🔲Songwriters Hall of Fame
🔲“Big Four” Grammys
500 Songs That Shaped Rock & Roll

R.S. Top 500 Albums (?)RankVersion
Happy Trails1892012

Essential Albums (?)WikipediaYouTube
Quicksilver Messenger Service (1968)
Happy Trails (1969)

Essential Songs (?)WikipediaYouTube
Pride of Man (1967)
Who Do You Love Suite (1969)
Fresh Air (1970)

Quicksilver Messenger Service @ Wikipedia

Will Quicksilver Messenger Service be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame?
"Musical excellence is the essential qualification for induction."
Yes: 
No :


Comments

19 comments so far (post your own)

They were the #3 band in the "Classic" SF pecking order scene of 1966-1970. They had the best lead guitarist, and were by far the tightest of the top SF bands in the Filmore West era (bands like the Airplane & G.Dead could barely tune their own instruments!). They also put down on vinyl the very, very best "artifact" of what psychedelic SF music sounded like in its prime. The "Happy Trails" LP is the closest you can get to being there w/o a time machine.

Oh, and when microwave popcorn came around but no microwaves were yet in dorm rooms, how do you think people made the popcorn? By cranking up, way up, Chip's (John C.) guitar solos on "Who Do You Love", of course. And how about that intro to "Mona"?- "this one's rock n' roll", and then they prove it!

Posted by Skip on Wednesday, 05/15/2013 @ 04:51am


This band defines psychedelic rock. No one who attended one of their concerts in the 60s will ever say they don't remember it...even though this might be the only thing they remember from the 60s. QMS "tore the roof off" long before Parliament-Funkadelic.

I was a veteran of the Fillmore in the 60s...BLESS you Bill Graham and friends! After moving to SoCal in 1968, I saw QMS at a place called the "Bank." That concert was one of the loudest, most astounding musical presentations. Why, my ears are still ringing.

They took everyone's breath away with their arrangements and sonic inventiveness. There were no holes in their music. They certainly laid the foundation for the evolution of Pink Floyd and others who explored electronica and feedback.

So, if you think those movie portrayals of Voodoo rituals depicting bodies writhing on the floor and whirling like dervishes are fantasy, I am here to testify that the Bank concert was that scene.

Not only that, their lyrics ran the gamut from politics ("Pride of Man" - remarkable, TIMELESS song; "What About Me" - a great environmental statement) to love ("Light Your Windows").

Cheesecrop (above) mentioned "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You." You gotta believe that Led Zep adopted this number because of what QMS did to make it so powerful.

St.Stephen (above) called "The Fool" a "masterpiece." Indeed...it is. If you have not heard it, get undistracted, turn off the phone, stop texting, slide the headphones on, and submerge into the 12 minute version. What a sonic tour de force. QMS did things in this song not heard before or since.

For anyone who needs to know this band, the first album (Quicksilver Messenger Service) is perfect.

Happy Trails is a full-on, psychedelic concert with some great music. The Original Score from...Revolution is a great time capsule of excellent 60s music and features two QMS numbers. I believe it's available only in vinyl.

I am waiting for some enterprising tribute band to pick up on the QMS sound. If they play it true and with passion, they will melt minds.

Posted by steven on Thursday, 07/2/2015 @ 23:08pm


Have no logical idea why they are not in..

Posted by Calkid on Sunday, 09/6/2015 @ 23:10pm


We will be playing a few cuts of my fathers in the newly formed " Airplane Family & Friends" on the East Coast in Dec. 2016
Along with my Pop's hit song "Get Together" which was made famous by the Youngbloods and was one of PK's favorite which The Airplane covered in almost every live set.
QMS does belong in the Hall tho.
Sincerely,
Joli Valenti

Posted by Joli on Monday, 10/24/2016 @ 01:56am


BB King was the headliner for a show including two other bands in the early 70's. BB said that if the audience were to hang around for a stage change, "A special treat of performers will be coming up next". We were tripped and peaking even more wondering, what's up with this, we stayed and so glad we did. QMS was introduced, I was not hip. QMS was a real treat, they played great, an exceptional jazz tinge Rock n Roll, cool,clear,clean badass psychedelic music and lyrics. I got hip about them soon after that concert show. This r-n-r band should be introduced into the r-n-r hall of fame. I understand why BB King set us up that night with this blues based band, Quicksilver Messenger Service.

Posted by Allen Franzen on Thursday, 10/5/2017 @ 10:44am


John Cipollina is the older brother Mario Cipollina of Huey Lewis And The News.

Posted by Roy on Saturday, 07/21/2018 @ 15:13pm


Not gonna happen; they don’t have enough names who influenced them.

Posted by The Dude on Saturday, 07/21/2018 @ 22:12pm


A significant San Francisco area band, but the HOF probably feels that genre has been covered with previous, well known inducted San Fran acts,
They are in the same spot with L.A. bands from that period; Love and Spirit.
Both talented bands, but just not enough umph to get induction.
Of the three bands mentioned, Love will eventually get a nomination.
Induction? Not likely, unfortunately.

Posted by Mark on Monday, 07/23/2018 @ 22:59pm


Quicksilver messenger service should have been voted in years ago, lesser bands have made it. This band should be included along with other SanFrancisco bands, The Dead, the Jefferson airplane. Quicksilver did'nt record singles for air time that's why they can't get voted in.It's a shame a band with their caliber of music can't get the recognition they deserve and be inducted.....Also Bill Graham the promoter of both the Fillmore East/West should get in for the work he did promoting Rock&Roll, if it was'nt for him Rcck would have taken longer to be recognized!!!!

Posted by Bob Falcey on Wednesday, 08/15/2018 @ 12:17pm


Bob

Bill Graham is inducted in the HOF.

Posted by Mark on Thursday, 08/16/2018 @ 14:41pm


Bob Falcey
Couldn't agree more they are way over do..
They are one of the SF finest psychedelic rock go to band.... They did have a lot of members LOL Real trail blazers,,,,,,,,,,,,,,#@!=^"s good stuff ...

Posted by DrRock on Friday, 08/17/2018 @ 01:33am


*** PANTHEON MEMBERS ***

Let's get something straight!

Forget The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum!

Quick Silver Messenger Service will forever remain the quintessential musical masters of the psychedelic San Francisco sounds, period. It was they who influenced the others! Their sounds were original and inspired others.

They are permanent members in the fantastic Pantheon. A few notches above the Jefferson Airplane who are also great and WAAAAAAAAAAY above the lowly Grateful Dead who live in the basement, next to the morgue where drug injecting Jerry Garcia goes on as Dracula's insect eating assistant!

Have a nice day.

Marin County Historian...

Posted by Max on Monday, 08/24/2020 @ 07:19am


To have a Rock n Roll Hall of Fame without bands like Quicksilver Messenger Service and Spirit is a travesty. Both of these bands are not in because they they would not do 3/4 minutes songs for top 40 radio. I saw Quicksilver at The Fillmore East 2 time and they brought the house down and when Greg Elmore did his solo the place was memorized. When they did Mona and Who do you love, the balcony was actually rocking up & down about 6 " and they almost stopped the show for fear the balcony would collapse. With 2 of the finest guitar players John Cipollina and Gary Duncan with Nicky Hopkins on keys along with Dino Valentine vocals and Greg on drums, you got your money's worth with them on stage. If you listen to their Happy Trails album you will know that they belong in the Hall, along with Spirit. Jimi Hendrix met Randy ( Jimi named him California because he had another Randy in his band ) when Randy was 14 and thought enough about him he asked His parents if Randy could join his new Band in England. Randy started the band Spirit with his stepfather and Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin doth used Spirit to open most of my heir tours in US. Both Quicksilver and Spirit belong in any Hall that has to do with R&R. It's a shame that they did not make it when most members where alive and it's a travesty if they never get in, when there are bands that are in that don't belong. Sorry for the long winded statement, but it had to be said

Posted by Bob Falcey on Thursday, 10/7/2021 @ 19:45pm


To have a Rock n Roll Hall of Fame without bands like Quicksilver Messenger Service and Spirit is a travesty. Both of these bands are not in because they they would not do 3/4 minutes songs for top 40 radio. I saw Quicksilver at The Fillmore East 2 time and they brought the house down and when Greg Elmore did his solo the place was memorized. When they did Mona and Who do you love, the balcony was actually rocking up & down about 6 " and they almost stopped the show for fear the balcony would collapse. With 2 of the finest guitar players John Cipollina and Gary Duncan with Nicky Hopkins on keys along with Dino Valentine vocals and Greg on drums, you got your money's worth with them on stage. If you listen to their Happy Trails album you will know that they belong in the Hall, along with Spirit. Jimi Hendrix met Randy ( Jimi named him California because he had another Randy in his band ) when Randy was 14 and thought enough about him he asked His parents if Randy could join his new Band in England. Randy started the band Spirit with his stepfather and Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin both used Spirit to open most of their tours in US. Both Quicksilver and Spirit belong in any Hall that has to do with R&R. It's a shame that they did not make it when most members where alive and it's a travesty if they never get in, when there are bands that are in that don't belong. Sorry for the long winded statement, but it had to be said

Posted by Bob Falcey on Thursday, 10/7/2021 @ 19:52pm


Yup! No Quicksilver, Spirit, or Love! Yet the Beastie Boys are in and they are not Rockers. Also Donna Summer (disco), Joan Jett who had no hits but she makes it in cause she is a woman. Also, no Jethro Tull either. The HOF has been a joke for a long time now!

Posted by Gary Magnus on Friday, 09/1/2023 @ 17:08pm


The Hall a disgrace. No Quicksilver Messenger Service or Jethro Tull or Spirit or Love.
R n R wasn't just a hit money maker or fashion oriented. There are us forgotten fans by the millions still listening to these bands today because we feel it. Being a part of our young selves in a crazy period of the 60s when we were more different than any other genres of R n R. So to exclude us all makes this sham of a hall only related to money. Not the actual music and musicians excluded. We don't have Huey Newton or Eldridge Cleaver or even George Carlin like strong personalities speaking out about this cuz it's not important in society. Just important to us before we pass that these musicians are included in what we believe is part of our history. It's not lost on me that history is written by the victors.

Posted by Lani Scarratt on Wednesday, 12/20/2023 @ 19:34pm


Won't be in because they were all mavericks / rebels that refused to kiss @$$and the remaining original members probably don't even cate .. Now A badge of honor to ***not*** be in that political commie Marxist club the r.r.h.o.f. ....it's no longer about the music quality or the correct genre...

Posted by Jmason on Thursday, 12/21/2023 @ 17:57pm


...I Lost faith in their judgement when they inducted Dolly Parton..Now it's all about which politician the artist supports with the big bucks. Lib bias now rules RRHOF has for years now

Posted by Jmason on Thursday, 12/21/2023 @ 18:05pm


...I Lost faith in their judgement when they inducted Dolly Parton..Now it's all about which politician the artist supports with the big bucks. Lib bias now rules RRHOF has for years now

Posted by Jmason on Thursday, 12/21/2023 @ 18:05pm


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