Sails of Silver now sported the same line-up that had brought it to the height of its success, "Sails of Silver" has often been seen as embodying a different spirit from their classic albums of the 1970s. Prior to "Sails of Silver", the band had always performed songs written by other people, predominantly traditional songs, but also a few 20th century pieces, such as the two Brecht songs on "Storm Force Ten". But on this album they included several songs they had written themselves, including "Let Her Go Down" and "Senior Service". This was the beginning of a trend that continues down to
1975–76 San Diego Sails season holding Portland's Bill Walton to 6 points and 11 rebounds, but Portland won 98-85. Despite the Sails' loss the ABA won 31 games against the NBA in that preseason, compared to 17 wins for the NBA. The ABA opened its 1975-76 season on October 24, 1975, and on that night the Sails hosted the Denver Nuggets before 3,060 fans. Denver's Ralph Simpson led all scorers with 30 points and Denver won 120-108. The next night the Sails began a long road swing by earning their first win in franchise history with a road victory against the Utah Stars. Bo Lamar