Osmosis

Osmosis was formed in 1969 at Berklee College of Music by Charlie Mariano (saxophone), Charlie Bechler (piano), Danny Comfort (bass) and Dick Banda (drums). Singer Bob Knox and guitarist Andy Steinborn joined later that same year and shortly afterward Lou Peterson replaced Banda.

Banda was primarily interested in jazz gigs but Osmosis, with the addition of Knox and Steinborn, was headed in a heavier, rock direction. When drummer Bobby Clarke joined the band, the rhythm section soared to a new levels, with  a lot of guitar and bass coordination between Comfort and Steinborn and a complex wall of sound generated by blending two outstanding drummers. Though “fusion” was not yet an actual category in record stores, that’s exactly what the band was creating with its combination of elements from both jazz and rock.

EARLY APPEARANCES, FIRST/LAST ALBUM

The band’s first performance was at New England Life Hall in October 1969. They followed up with gigs at colleges throughout the area and appeared at the Cambridge Common Concert Series with The Allman Brothers, Chicago Transit Authority – before they shortened their name to Chicago – and Alice Cooper. They regularly played double bills with The J. Geils Blues Band at various venues throughout New England and they opened for Ike and Tina Turner at New England Arena and the coliseum in Hyannis. The largest local venue they played was the 4th of July concert in 1970 with Swallow, Daddy Warbux and other local bands, with over 100,000 in attendance.

In 1970, Osmosis recorded what was originally supposed to be a double album in Studio B at RCA in New York City in less than nine hours, the rough mix being a powerhouse of ensemble rock and jazz – the genre that’s now called “fusion.”  Unfortunately, band members said, the final mix decimated the power and impact of those tracks and the group felt like they’d fallen victim to a producer who was trying to make a “pop” album; the vocals were heavily accented, echo splattered over all the tracks, solos spiced and liner notes penned by the producer tried to portray the band in a different light than they wanted. Simply put, most of the band members were hugely disappointed with the 11-track collection of originals called simply Osmosis.

VILLAGE VANGUARD FIRST, TOUR CANCELLATIONS, DISBANDING

On November 20, 1969, Osmosis became the first jazz-fusion band to appear at the Village Vanguard in New York City. Producer Bob Thiele tried to record the show, but the venue was too small. The band went on to play the opening of the Playboy Towers in Chicago, which was originally the Knickerbocker Hotel, and opened for Miles Davis at The Boston Tea Party in Boston.

A cross-country US tour was in the works with The Guess Who, but RCA had not included enough money in the band’s budget to support the group. After the label offered to purchase all new equipment for the road, there was little left to pay the band so the US tour was scrapped. A short tour of Japan had also been discussed, but that also fell through, and talks of backing Jimi Hendrix as the rhythm section on his next album collapsed in September 1970 when Hendrix died.

Osmosis’ final gig was in Boston in late 1970 at The Jazz Workshop, opening for George Benson. Shortly thereafter Charlie Mariano went to live in Europe and the band dissolved.