Traffic reached a much wider audience when, on the dissolution of Cream, two thirds of that band, one third being Eric Clapton, joined Steve Winwood (during a temporary Traffic disbanding) to form Blind Faith, which also included future Traffic member and sometime Family man, Ric Grech.
In 1970, after the disbanding of Blind Faith, Winwood set about recording a solo album. After Chris Wood and Jim Capaldi became involved, the decision was taken to release this album (eventually what would become John Barleycorn Must Die) under the Traffic name, despite the absence of Dave Mason.
Around 1971, Mason left for good (having been in and out of the band from the beginning), and the the band experienced a variety of personnel changes. The resulting band added some jazzy elements to their style, pioneering the jazz-rock genre, and the compositions tended to stretch out over longer lengths. With their albums The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys (1971) and Shootout at the Fantasy Factory (1973) their popularity in the US grew. After two more albums, personnel problems resulted in the band calling it quits (but for a brief reunion in 1994 without Wood, who had died in 1983). Winwood, Mason, Capaldi, and Wood all pursued solo careers, with Winwood garnering the most success.
There are/were other artists with the same name:
*2) Traffic is also a pop-rock band from Estonia.
3) Traffic is an upcoming rapper from Los Angeles.
2) The Estonian poprock band Traffic came together in 2006 and consists of five members: Silver Laas - Vocals, Stig Rästa - Guitars, Robert Vaigla - Guitars, Tõnis Kivisild - Bass, Ivo Priilinn - Drums. The band has been to Eesti Laul several times, trying to get to the semi-finals of Eurovision. In 2009 they ended up in the 2nd place, in 2014 in the 3rd place.
Traffic has two studio albums. Some of their most popular singles are "Für Elise", "See Päev", "Kesköödisko", "Päevast Päeva", "Elekter" and "Meie laul".
3) Darrail Cail, better known as Traffic, is a rapper from Los Angeles, CA. He first received major mainstream attention in the music industry when he was featured on “Tookie Knows II” from ScHoolboy Q’s fourth LP Blank Face. He is one of Schoolboy’s childhood friends.
4) The Spectes, a band that eventually became Status Quo discovered psychedelia in 1967 and named themselves Traffic, but were soon forced to change it to Traffic Jam to avoid confusion with Steve Winwood's Traffic, following an argument over who had registered the name first. Shortly after Rick Parfitt's recruitment, in August 1967, the band officially became The Status Quo
Many A Mile To Freedom
Traffic Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Ask my bluebird to sing you, from the heart of a wishing well
Call all my reindeer to graze here, call all my grain to grow
Then together we flow like the river
Then together we melt like the snow
Many a thought unanswered, many a tale to tell
Ask my bluebird to sing you, from the heart of a wishing well
Then together we flow like the river
And together we melt like the snow
Many a mile to freedom, many a smile to tell
Ask my bluebird to sing you, from the heart of a wishing well
If you should ask me to give you the reason for life that we know
Then together we flow like the river
Then together we melt like the snow
A few more miles to go
Miles to freedom
The lyrics of Traffic's song Many A Mile To Freedom revolve around the themes of freedom, happiness, and the passage of time. The song begins with a proclamation that there is still a long journey ahead towards freedom, and many stories yet to be shared. The reference to the bluebird represents a desire for positivity to emanate from the core of one's being, while the wishing well symbolises a yearning for a better future. The call to bring together reindeer and grains signifies the need for all things to work together in harmony.
The lyrics then move on to pondering the purpose of life, with the answer being that we are all meant to flow together like a river and melt away like the snow. This is an acknowledgement of the transience of life, but also a recognition that when we are united, we can achieve something beautiful and enduring. The final lines, "A few more miles to go, Miles to freedom" convey a sense of optimism and determination, that though the journey is long, we are on the right path towards our ultimate goal.
Overall, Many A Mile To Freedom is a song that celebrates the joys of life, whilst acknowledging that the path towards freedom is not always smooth. The lyrics encourage us to keep moving forward, with the right attitude, and the right mindset.
Line by Line Meaning
Many a mile to freedom, many a smile to tell
There are still many miles to travel on our path towards freedom, but along the way there are also many experiences worth smiling about.
Ask my bluebird to sing you, from the heart of a wishing well
If you need inspiration or a message of hope, listen to the sweet song of my bluebird as it echoes from a magical wishing well.
Call all my reindeer to graze here, call all my grain to grow
Let's bring together all the elements of our lives - friends, family, nourishment - to thrive and flourish in this moment.
Then together we flow like the river
If we work together, we can move forward with the same powerful, rhythmic force as a river.
Then together we melt like the snow
And when we come together, we can also experience the same kind of transformative warmth and beauty as when snow melts into water.
Many a thought unanswered, many a tale to tell
There are still so many questions to be explored and stories to be shared on this journey.
If you should ask me to give you the reason for life that we know
If you're searching for meaning and purpose in life, I may not have all the answers, but I believe we can find them together.
A few more miles to go
We've come a long way, but there is still some distance left to travel before we reach our destination.
Miles to freedom
But we will keep pressing forward, because each mile brings us closer to a sense of true freedom.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: ANNA CAPALDI, STEVE WINWOOD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Hyrum
Many a mile to freedom, many a smile to tell
Ask my bluebird to sing you, from the heart of a wishing well
Call all my reindeer to graze here, call all my grain to grow
Then together we flow like the river
Then together we melt like the snow
Many a thought unanswered, many a tale to tell
Ask my bluebird to sing you, from the heart of a wishing well
If you should ask me to give you the reason for life that we know
Then together we flow like the river
And together we melt like the snow
Many a mile to freedom, many a smile to tell
Ask my bluebird to sing you, from the heart of a wishing well
If you should ask me to give you the reason for life that we know
Then together we flow like the river
Then together we melt like the snow
A few more miles to go
Miles to freedom
Richard Feld
I had the pleasure of touring with this band in the '70s. We did their sound on their tours. What a pleasure in retrospect.... hard work at the time. My wife and I still listen to "Low Spark and I have forgotten the stress and remember only the music. Please enjoy their poetry!
Victor Hugo
Que afortunado você é.
Raul Jennings
I can only say ------ you were so fortunate!
Gene Wickersham
Thank you. Hard work indeed. B-3s and huge amplifiers. Traffic were a great team and I appreciate your efforts. They sounded great in studio and live, not easy, because their music was complex. Hats off to the Roadies, engineers and producers who helped make it happen.
Trucker Kev The Paid Tourist
must have been really great to get to work with the late great Chris Wood
Stephen Quail
That must have been a hard gig man.I would love to hear about anything that stands out about your time with Traffic.peace nn love
William Bunter
As a 67 YEAR OLD I LOOK BACK AT THE LATE 60S EARLY 70S MY HIPPY DAYS AS THE GREAT MUSIC ERA. SO MANY WONDERFUL BANDS AND SPACEY MUSIC.
GRFalk
As a 22 year old I'm happy to have all this amazing music right at my fingertips.
Stephen Marcus
Running out of superlatives to describe Traffic. SW about the best of the era in my book. Still wonderful at age 70, great voice, virtuoso musician, puts on a wonderful show. Been playing this music for over 50 years and never tire of it.
Richard Ell
True story...When this album first came out, I bought 5 copies BLIND - had not listened to it at all - and handed four of them to friends. I had every confidence the album would be a Piece Of History. Made the rounds, passing them out. Reactions were mixed at the sight of the unusual album cover, but all thoroughly enjoyed it - and the stuff they were smoking lol. This song was highly regarded...all fell silent while listening to it.