The development of electronic keyboard instruments has been much like the fashion industry; it really is a shame that these two worlds can't be brought together, in which case Mellotron trousers and a Fender Rhodes sports shirt, both back in fashion, would be a perfect match. In the early '70s, the former keyboard was just about everywhere on the hit parade, supposedly on the verge of replacing entire symphony orchestras with the touch of a finger. Kestrel was a quintet from Newcastle, England that featured a keyboardist named John Cook on Mellotron, among other axes. He was not the only talent in the group, nor the only reason to listen to the only album the group ever made, originally released in the mid-'70s on the Cube label. But largely forgotten like many a progressive rock album from this era that enjoyed only piddling success, the Kestrel effort has become the subject of cult interest basically because there's a Mellotron on it…

Short-lived band from Newcastle, which became from an oddity to a legend over the years.Kestrel (named after a type of bird) were born in 1975, featuring Dave Black on guitars/vocals, Tom Knowles on lead vocals, Fenwick Moir on bass and Dave Whitaker (formerly of Ginhouse) in the original formation, later to add John Cook on guitars and keyboars…