Socrates Drank The Conium • Socrates Drank The Conium

The Greek power trio Socrates Drank The Conium, also simply known as Socrates, was formed in Athens in the late 1960s. During the Greek military dictatorship (April 1967 to July 1974), there were hardly any opportunities to perform. However, they were something of a house band at the Kitarro Club, where they gave numerous successful concerts. The line-up consisted of Yannis Spathas (g), Antonis Tourkoyorgis (b, voc) and Elias Boukouvalas (dr). Around 1970/71 they released a series of singles on Polydor. Then in mid-1971 they recorded their self-titled debut album in a single three-hour live session. It was unfortunately recorded with a very poor production, but shows the amazing talents of all three musicians. They played an excellent, guitar-driven, heavy psychedelic hard rock with English lyrics. Particularly remarkable was the unique guitar playing of Spathas, the „Greek Hendrix“.

However, the first LP, which was only released in Greece at the time, received little attention and is now a very rare and sought-after collector's item.