Barry Goldberg -Two Jews Blues (1969)

This is one of those late-’60s collaborations where I expected the world to explode when I put it on, and felt disappointed when it didn’t. However, when you get past looking at players in the band, and listen to the music, there are a number of wonderful cuts. Enough of them for me to replace the vinyl with the CD. “Blues for Barry And…” is Bloomfield at his best with a solid band behind him cranking out this slow blues you wish wouldn’t end. Barry Goldberg has always played a solid organ, whether with Harvey Mandel, Charlie Musselwhite, or out on his own. This is his chance to be the leader of an all-star lineup. My regrets are that it is only 35 minutes, and most importantly I would have liked to put all the guitar players together for a cut or two; they never get to play off one another. (by Bob Gottlieb)

Personnel:
Duanne Allman (guitar on 08.)
Art (bass on 06.)
Mike Bloomfield  guitar on (02 – 05.)
Barry Goldberg (keyboards, vocals)
Eddie Hinton (guitar on 01.)
Eddie Hoh (drums)
David Hood (bass on 01 – 05. + 08.)
Don MacCallister (bass on 07. + 09.)
Harvey Mandel (guitar on 06. + 09.)
Charles Musselwhite (harmonica)’
Soulville Horns (horns on  02., 03. +  06.)

Tracklist:
01. You’re Still My Baby (Willis) 3.31
02. That’s Alright Mama (Crudup) 2.47
03. Maxwell Street Shuffle (Goldberg) 2.35
04. Blues For Barry And (Dedicated To Big John’s) (Goldberg) 10.15
05. Jimi The Fox (Dedicated To Jimi Hendrix) (Goldberg) 3.27
06. A Lighter Blue (Goldberg) 2.45
07. On The Road Again (Sebastian/Faithful) 2.00
08. Twice A Man (Goldberg/Ruby) 4.25
09. Spirit Of Trane (Goldberg) 4.00

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The Beatles – Christmas Album

From 1963 to 1969, The Beatles were very busy creating a host of songs that forever changed the structure and landscape of the world of popular recorded music. Classic albums such as “A Hard Day’s Night”, “Help!”, “Rubber Soul”, Revolver”, “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Bnad”, “Magical Mystery Tour”, “The Beatles” and “Abbey Road” all helped to shape music in new sound dimensions. For the holidays toward the end of each year, The Beatles recorded a series of unique flexi-discs containing specially-created Christmas messages that were distributed only to members of their fan club. Each of these recordings reflect what was going on within the group at the time. The 1963 and 1964 messages had the boys reading from a prepared script by Tony barrow. Even with this dialogue, their charm still shines through. For 1965, they decided to improvise their own material, which has an out-of-tune rendition of “Yesterday” as part of the proceedings. The discs for 1966 and 1967 are a series of cleverly pantomimed sketches, with a different recurring theme song for each one. By the time the 1968 and 1969 discs were issued, it was clear that the boys were going in different directions, as they had messages from the guys recorded seperately. After The Beatles break up in 1970, the fan club issued a long-playing album containing all 7 Christsmas messages together. This was later issued on CD, with the best sound quality available. It is a special Beatles album, one that belongs in every fan’s CD library. Everywhere it’s Christmas, especially when you’ve got “The Beatles’ Christmas Album” as part of your holiday festivities! (by Timothy Swan)

Each year from 1963 through 1969, the Beatles recorded a special Christmas greeting for their fans. The Official Beatles Fan Club in England sent flexi-discs containing the Christmas messages to its members each holiday season.

The American fan club, Beatles (U.S.A.) Ltd., was established in 1964, and for their first Christmas, the American fan club sent fans the 1963 Christmas message on a soundcard, which is like a flexi-disc, but is “printed” on the post card that is mailed. No message was sent to the American fans in 1965 because the tape was not received on time.

The Beatles Christmas flexis are very rare, and sell, in excellent condition, anywhere from $200 to $500.

These recordings offer a unique time-capsule glimpse into the personalities and evolution of the Beatles from 1963 through 1969. In the early years, like their appearances in A Hard Day’s Night, even though these messages were scripted by “somebody’s bad hand-wroter” (their Press Agent Tony Barrow), the Beatle’s geniune wit and humor shines through, for example, in 1963, when as John mentions taking part in the Royal Variety show, the boys extemporaneously launch into a whistling version of God Save The Queen, or in 1964, when Paul mentions that they don’t really know where they’d be without the fans, John says, off-handedly, “In the Army, perhaps…”

For older Beatles fans who remember hearing these messages over the years, “these little bits of plastic” are a fond holiday tradition, while for younger Beatles fans they offer a whole new insight into a pop music phenomenon which might never be repeated.

Personnel:
George Harrison – John Lennon – Paul McCartney – Ringo Starr

Tracklist:
01. Beatles Xmas Flexi 1963 / 5.02
02. Another Beatles Xmas Flexi 1964 / 4.02
03. Beatles Third Xmas Flexi 1965 / 6.23
04. Beatles Fourth Xmas Flexi 1966 / 6.39
05. Christmas Time Is Here Again 1967 / 6.10
06. Beatles 1968 Xmas Flexi / 7.53
07. Beatles Seventh Xmas Flexi 1969 / 7.42
08. Outtake Xmas Messages From 1964 / 4.41
09. Christmas Time Is Here Again (Full Version) / 5.42
10. Crimble Medley / 0.31
11. Messages / 0.33

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**

Mal Waldron – My Dear Family (1993)

This date is notable for the pairing of pianist Mal Waldron and smooth jazz reedman Grover Washington, Jr.. Washington was always over-qualified to play his particular brand of instrumental pop, and it is a joy to hear him stretch out a bit on this straight-ahead session. His supple tone mixes well with trumpeter Eddie Henderson and both musicians take full harmonic advantage of performing with the moody and expansive Waldron. The only disappointment here is the overall somber quality of the selections. Despite an inspired version of “Footprints” and an unexpected choice in the funky “Jean Pierre” — off Miles Davis’ 1981 We Want Miles — the album lags. “Left Alone” features Washington’s trademark soprano sax sound and is a pretty ballad, but is followed up with the mid-tempo “Sassy” negating the prior tune’s impact. Waldron could have earned more kudos with his inclusion of the Japanese traditional song “Sakura Sakura” — an interesting foray into world jazz — if he had only bookended it with some bright up-tempo numbers. Still, this is a superbly performed album by stellar, world-class musicans and should please most hardcore jazz fans. (by Matt Collar)

Recorded on September 23 &24, 1993 at Sound On Sound Studio, NYC

Alternate frontcover

Personnel:
Pheeroan Aklaff (drums)
Eddie Henderson (trumpet, flugelhorn)
Mal Waldron (piano)
Grover Washington, Jr. (saxophone)
Reggie Workman (bass)

Tracklist:
01. Footprints (Shorter) 4.48
02. Left Alone (Waldron) 8.18
03. Sassy (Waldron) 4.02
04. Sakura Sakura (Cherry Blossom) (Traditional) 9.04
05. Here’s That Rainy Day (v.Heusen/Burke) 7.44
06. Jean-Pierre (Davis) 6.30
07. Red Shoes (Noguchi) 7.59
08. My Dear Family (Waldron) 5.19

*
**

Joshua Rifkin – Piano Rags By Scott Joplin (1970)

Scott Joplin: Piano Rags is a 1970 ragtime piano album, consisting of compositions by Scott Joplin played by Joshua Rifkin, on the Nonesuch Records label. The original album’s cover states the name as Piano Rags by Scott Joplin, as contrasting the album’s spine. The record is considered to have been the first to reintroduce the music of pianist and composer Joplin in the early 1970s. It was Nonesuch Records’ first million-selling album.

Rifkin provides a brief history of ragtime music, a biographical sketch of Joplin, and musical analysis of his compositions. He notes, “The awakening of interest in black culture and history during the last decade has not yet resurrected Joplin and his contemporaries, who remain barely known beyond a growing coterie of ragtime devotees. Yet it offers a perfect opportunity to discover the beauties of his music and accord him the honor that he deserves.”

The album was released in November 1970 and sold 100,000 copies in its first year and eventually became Nonesuch’s first million-selling record. Record stores found themselves for the first time putting ragtime in the classical music section. The album was nominated in 1971 for two Grammy Award categories: Best Album Notes and Best Instrumental Soloist Performance (without orchestra). The Billboard “Best-Selling Classical LPs” chart for 28 September 1974 has the record at #5, with the follow-up “Volume 2” at #4, and a combined set of both volumes at #3. Separately both volumes had been on the chart for 64 weeks. In 1979 Alan Rich in the New York Magazine wrote that by giving artists like Rifkin the opportunity to put Joplin’s music on record Nonesuch Records “created, almost alone, the Scott Joplin revival.”

In January 1971, Harold C. Schonberg, music critic at The New York Times, having just heard the album, wrote a featured Sunday edition article entitled “Scholars, Get Busy on Scott Joplin!” Schonberg’s call to action has been described as the catalyst for classical music scholars, the sort of people Joplin had battled all his life, to conclude that Joplin was a genius.(by wikipedia)

The many faces of Joshua Rifkin

Personnel:
Joshua Rifkin (piano)

Tracklist:
01. Maple Leaf Rag 3.13
02. The Entertainer 4.58
03. The Ragtime Dance 3.13
04. Gladiolus Rag 4.24
05. Fig Leaf Rag 4.36
06. Scott Joplin’s New Rag 3.07
07. Euphoric Sounds 3.53
08. Magnetic Rag 5.11

All compositions by Scott Joplin

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**

The original Nonesuch labels

Hack Bartholomew – Holy Ghost Transfusion (1999)

New Orleans native Hack Bartholomew -who was once stationed at McChord Air Force Base – has been performing outside Cafe Du Monde for 40 years.

“I could play anything I heard from the time I was 6 years old, ” says Bartholomew. “When my dad gave me a trumpet I just put it to my mouth and played “When the Saints”. Just like that. Never held a trumpet. Never had a lesson Anything I heard I could just play.

Mayfield, who studied under Bartholomew, offers this note of caution:

“I would say when you see a musician playing on the street one mistake would be to classify anybody in New Orleans as one thing. He’s not just a street musician. Hack Bartholomew is a guy who plays in church on Sundays so he’s playing in front of 2000 people -4000 people –every Sunday at his church.He teaches younger musicians. I mean Hack Bartholomew is your quintessential New Orleans guy.(by king5)

Hack has played with such talents as George Benson, The Nevilles and Keith Richards. Hack can be found at the Café Du Monde beignet house, one of New Orleans’ major tourist spots. He plays the trumpet, sings and ministers the word of God to a captivated audience.

And this is his first CD and here are two reviews from amzon customers:

This was the first CD we bought on our first trip to N.O. In 2006. Hack was playing outside of Cafe du Monde. Loved his sound and immediately bought this CD. We got hooked on Hack and The Big Easy. Every year after that, this is the CD we plugged in as we crossed over the Lake and entered New Orleans. This year I got a wireless Bose speaker for Christmas, and started transferring all of my CD’s to my iPad. Much to my dismay, when I opened the case for Holy Ghost Transfusion, the CD was missing!! All we could figure was that we left it in the CD player of the rental van. (by Aunt Sharon)

Hack Bartholomew’s CD is terrific. I bought it from him while he was playing outside Cafe du Monde and didn’t really know what to expect. Turns out to be a marvelous surprise. From the first track to the last, you can hear the joy and wonder in Hack’s life brought to music. Even if you’re not particularly religious (I’m not!), this is one to savor. Give it a try!  (by MeowLady)

Personnel:
Hack Bartholomew (trumpet, vocals, piano)
Bryon Gitkin (guitar, bass, drums)

Tracklist:
01. Feel Like Goin’ On 4.47
02. Praise The Lord 4.59
03. Amazing Grace (a capella) 3.07
04. Amazing Grace 2000 5.21
05. Get The Best Of Me 6.14
06. Holy Ghost Transfusion 4.33
07. Call On The name Of Jesus 4.12
08. Witness 5.04
09. Thinking And Thanking 7.45
10. Come Unto Jesus 9.53

All songs written by Hack Bartholomew except “Amacing Grace” (Traditional)

*
**

Cafe du Monde, New Orleans

VA – Très Chic – French Cool From Paris To The Côte d’Azur (2013)

Retro French music is very much in vogue on this side of the Channel and Union Square have sought to capitalise on this by releasing this most entertaining overview of 1950s and 1960s French music. While any two CD compilation can only ever hope to scratch the surface and more in-depth anthologies are required to be fully comprehensive, for the neophyte this actually serves it’s purpose well of introducing the listener to a whole raft of musicians. The music is neatly divided up between male crooners, Left bank existentialist singers, women singers and jazzier influences that includes both instrumentalists from famous French new wave film soundtracks, or French jazzers. Among the crooners, Yves Montand deserves to be heard by an anglophone audience and his interpretations of the music of Prévert are near definitive. Here he delivers the smooth sounding ‘C’est si bon’. Talking of smooth operators, Sacha Distel takes some beating and it may come as a surprise to non-French readers to learn that he was a very accomplished jazz guitarist before becoming a singer. Arguably his most famous song is showcased here, ‘Scoubidoo’. Henri Salvador gained international recognition late in his career, but this early jazz scat, ‘C’est le be bop’, is an indication of what was to follow. While Charles Aznavour is best known in the UK for ‘She’, his late 1950s and early 1960s sides were full of emotion and jazzy orchestrations and ‘Je me voyais, déjà’ is typical of his output from the era. For more left-field sounds, this compilation deserves great credit for including some of the following singers. Bobby Lapointe came to prominence as a subversive singer who made a brief appearance in François Truffaut’s ‘Shoot the pianist’ film. Here ‘Framboise’ is boisterous, fast-paced and a delight from start to finish.

Preceding the 1960s starlettes by a decade, Juliette Gréco possesses a deep, throaty voice that was ideally suited to interpreting Gainsbourg and Prévert and ‘Si tu t’imagines’ is just one of her vast repertoire and a fine example at that. Léo Ferré is the current French president’s favourite singer and the melodic ‘A Saint Germain des Prés’ is an early illustration of Ferré’s beautiful voice. He would later become famous for his lengthy literary raps and he was very much an anti-establishment figure. Barbara may be less known outside France, but has few equals in France as a singer-songwriter and ‘Dis quand reviendras-tu?’ is a fine example of her pared down sound. Jacques Brel needs little introduction, but for those as yet unaware ‘La valse à mille temps’ shifts gear as only Brel knows how and he is an all-time great of the French language. Last, but by no means least, Serge Gainsbourg is nothing less than a national treasure, but interestingly for those who are familiar with his later psychedelic period, here the focus is on his jazz period. Both ‘Intoxicated man’ and ‘Requiem pour un twister’ are superior examples of his early period that stand the test of time. A trio of French women singers includes the obligatory Françoise Hardy and her seminal ‘Tous les garcons et les filles’, another Truffaut sound track song by Jeanne Moreau, ‘Le Tourbillon’, featured in the delightful ‘Jules et Jim’ film and a melancholic sounding Brigitte Bardot on ‘Sidonie’.

Jazz musicians featured include Miles Davis and his stunning contribution to Louis Malle’s ‘Lift to the Scaffold’ film and pianist Martial Solal and the terrific soundtrack to Jean-Luc Godard’s seminal ‘A bout de souffle’/’Breathless’. Noteworthy are two other pieces, the Latin-jazz influenced ‘No hay problema’ by Art Blakey and his Jazz Messengers and a vocal number by Claude Nougaro. This French singer deserves a compilation of his own for an English-speaking audience, such is the richness of his 1960s jazz and 1970s Brazilian flavoured songs. A final mention should be made for France’s answer to Lambert, Hendricks and Ross, les Double Six who deliver a stunning version of one of Art Blakey’s staple tunes ‘Moanin’. All in all a musical experience that is truly a ‘joie de vivre’! (by Tim Stenhouse)

Tracklist:

CD 1:
01. Françoise Hardy: Le temps de l’amour (Dutronc/Salvet/Morisse) 2.23
02. Serge Gainsbourg: Requiem pour un twisteur (Gainsbourg) 2.37
03. Jeanne Moreau: Le tourbillon (Bassiak/Delerue) 2.03
04. Les Double Six: Rat Race (Jones/Perrin) 2.35
05. Claude Nougaro: Le cinéma (Legrand/Nougaro) 2.56
06. Sacha Distel: Brigitte (Brousolle/Distel) 2.17
07. Magali Noël: Alhambra-Rock (Goraguer/Vian) 2.35
08. Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers: No hay problema (Marray) 4.33
09. Charles Aznavour: Je m’voyais déjà (Aznavour) 3.22
10. Claude Nougaro: Les Don Juan (Legrand/Nougaro) 3.17
11. Léo Ferré: À Saint-Germain-des-Prés (Ferré) 3.01
12. Michel Legrand: Blues chez le bougnat (Legrand) 2.08
13. Charles Trenet: Que reste-t-il de nos amours? (Trenet/Chauliac) 3.10
14. Henri Salvador: C’est le be bop (Vian/Dieval) 2.05
15. Sacha Distel: Marina (Reardon/Distel) 4.11
16. Mouloudji: Comme un p’tit coquelicot (Grasso/Valery) 3.43
17. Anna Karina: Chanson d’Angela (Legrand/Godard) 2.23
18. Boby Lapointe: Framboise (Lapointe) 2.39
19. Catherine Sauvage: Black Trombone (Gainsbourg) 2.29
20. Corinne Marchand: La joueuse (Varda/Legrand) 1.52

CD 2:
01. Claude Nougaro: Le jazz et la java (Datin/Nougaro) 2.24
02. Françoise Hardy: Tous les garçons et les filles (Hardy/Samyn) 3.05
03. Serge Gainsbourg: Intoxicated Man (Gainsbourg) 2.35
04. Line Renaud: Sexe (Gaste) 3.32
05. Jacqueline Dano: Chanson de Lola (Varda/Legrand) 2.12
06. Jacques Brel: La valse à mille temps (Brel) 3.48
07. Martial Solal: New York Herald Tribune (Solal) 1.26
08. Les Double Six: Moanin’ (Timmons) 3.09
09. Magali Noël: Strip-Rock (Goraguer/Vian) 2.16
10. Boris Vian: Je suis snob (Walter/Vian) 2.49
11. Brigitte Bardot: Sidonie (Cros/Spanos/Riviere) 2.52
12. Barbara: Dis quand reviendras tu? (Barbara) 2.52
13. Juliette Gréco: Si tu t’imagines (Queneau) 2.42
14. Yves Montand: C’est si bon (Homez/Betti) 2.33
15. Henry Cording: Vas t’faire cuire un oeuf man (Sinclair/Mike) 2.51
16. Sacha Distel: Scoubidou (Teze/Distel) 3.00
17. Gilbert Becaud: Me-que-me-que (Becaus/Aznavour) 2.27
18. The Miles Davis Ensemble: Générique (nuit sur Les Champs-Élysées) (Davis) 2.53
19. Brigitte Fontaine & Areski: Il pleut sur la gare (Areski/Faintaine) 1.47
20. Valérie Lagrange: Si ma chanson pouvait (Lagrange) 5.25

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Alvin Lee – Live At The Rockclub, Munich (1993)

In 1993 Alvin Lee did a tour through Germany to promote his “Nineteen Ninety-Four” album, which was released in the same year.

And this is an audience tape from this tour (recorded by me).

So you can hear a typically Alvin Lee concert from this period of his career  (with an exhausted audience !)… many songs from his “Nineteen Ninety-Four” album and a few songs from his Ten Years After period … I guess this´was a defiant Alvin Lee concert .. he tried to escape from his “Ten Years After” image …

And so it´s a very import recording, because Alvin Lee was more than “Mr. Ten Years After” … and I guess, this is a very, very good audience tape … And if you like this sort of audience tapes … tell me … and I will publish more of this rare material from my personnel collection.

Recorded live at the Rockclub, Munich/Germany, November 18, 1993

Steve Gould + Alvin Lee

Personnel:
Steve Grant (keyboards, vocals)
Steve Gould (bass, vocals)
Alvin Lee (guitar, vocals, hermonica)
Alan Young (drums)

Tracklist:
01. Keep On Rocking (Lee) 4.19
02. Long Legs (Lee) 6.18
03. I Hear You Knocking ( Bartholomew/King) 3.44
04. Ain´t Nobodys Business (Lee/Grant) 5.07
05. Love Like A Man (Lee) 5.45
06. The Bluest Blues (Lee) 6.31
07. Good Morning Little Schoolgirl (Lee) 7.25
08. Take It Easy/Drum Solo (Part 1) (Lee/Young) 11.46
09. Take It Easy + Drum Solo (Part 2) (Lee/Young) 2.55
10. I Don´t Give A Damn (Lee) 4.11
11. I Want You (She’s So Heavy) (Lennon/McCartney) 8.36
12. Johnny Be Goode (Berry) 1.52
13. I´m Going Home (Lee) 11.40
14. Choo Choo Mama (Lee) 3.55
15. Rip It Up (Blackwell/Marascalco)

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Quartz – Nantucket Sleighride + Wildfire (1980)

Quartz are a British heavy metal band.

Quartz dates back to as early as 1974 when they were known as Bandy Legs. They signed to Jet Records in 1976 and supported Black Sabbath and AC/DC. The band changed their name to Quartz for their 1977 debut album, Quartz. The album was produced by Tony Iommi and Quartz toured with Black Sabbath to support this release. Queen guitarist Brian May handled guitar on “Circles,” which also features Ozzy Osbourne on backing vocals. This track did not appear on the album but would turn up as the B-side to the “Stoking the Fires of Hell” single.

Quartz toured heavily during this time, playing the Reading Festival three times (1976, 1977 and 1980) and touring in support of some of the larger hard rock bands of the time (Iron Maiden, Saxon, UFO and Rush).

Quartz released their second studio album, Stand Up and Fight, in 1980 and their third, Against All Odds, in 1983 before calling it quits. In 1979 Geoff Nicholls left to join Black Sabbath. He contributed keyboards and songwriting from 1980s Heaven and Hell to 2004.

In 2004, doom metal band, Orodruin covered “Stand Up and Fight” on their album Claw Tower.

Prior to the founding of Quartz, Hopkins had played in Wages of Sin, a short-lived Birmingham band which toured as a backing band for Cat Stevens in 1970. After that band’s dissolution, two of his bandmates, expatriate Canadians Ed and Brian Pilling, returned to Canada and formed the band Fludd; Hopkins briefly joined that band in 1972 as a replacement for founding guitarist Mick Walsh, but left by the end of the year after they were dropped from their original record label.

Quartz reformed in 2011 playing a reunion gig on 16 December 2011 at The Asylum in Birmingham, England. The line up consisted of Geoff Nicholls, Mike Hopkins, Derek Arnold, Malcolm Cope and vocalist David Garner. (by wikipedia)

And this ist their extremely rare single with a great version of one of the best Mountain songs ever … Nantucket Sleighride, written bei Felix Pappalardi and Gail Collins …  This version was used as the theme to the long-running British political television show Weekend World. Listen to this very dynamic version !

Quartz was a very underrated group … And you´ll hear more from Quartz in this blog very soon !

Personnel:
Derek Arnold (bass)
Mal Cope (drums)
Mick Hopkins (guitar)
Taffy Taylor (vocals)
+
Alan Long (keyboards)

Tracklist:
01. Nantucket Sleighride /Papplardi/Collins) 5.32
02. Wildfire (Arnold/Hopkins/Cope/Taylor) 5.17

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The Big Chris Barber Band – European Tour (2011)

This new CD covers almost a complete concert of the present Big Chris Barber Band (What’cha Gonna Do and All Blues are missing). However, not all the recordings are from a single concert: all the recordings were made in January and February 2011 in England, Scotland and Germany. Rebecca Evans, the band’s sound engineer, mixed and put together the best ones from several concerts for the CD, supported by the band’s banjo player Joe Farler, known as a technical wizard. The sound quality of the live recordings is great.

The CD features the new faces among the band:

– David Horniblow, clarinet & saxes, since March 2010.
– Jackie Flavelle, bass/bass guitar, who joined the band in August 2010, but was formerly
on tour with Chris Barber from 1967 to 1977.
– Amy Roberts, saxophone and clarinet – the outstanding young talent joined the forces
of the Big Chris Barber Band in January 2011.
– Gregor Beck, drums, started in April 2010 with the band.

Regular listeners to the band will be happy to have a CD that covers the most recent line-up of the Big Chris Barber Band. Different from previous recordings is Chris’s singing on Precious Lord, Lead Me On and the current version of Ice Cream, with the singing of Peter Rudeforth and Chris Barber. And of course, I personally miss one musician: blues guitarist John Slaughter, who died much too young in 2010. His blues parts have been taken over by others, for example by Chris Barber on trombone on Black & Tan Fantasy. (by Andreas Wandfluh)

Personnel:
Chris Barber (trombone, bass)
Gregor Beck (drums)
Richard Exall (clarinet, saxophone)
Joe Farler (banjo, guitar)
Jackie Flavelle (bass)
Mike Henry (trumpet, cornet)
David Horniblow (clarinet, saxophone)
Bob Hunt (trombone, trumpet)
Ami Roberts (saxophone, clarinet)
Peter Rudeforth (trumpet, fluegelhorn)

Tracklist:
01. Bourbon Street Parade (Barbarin) 5.27
02. Rent Party Blues (Ellington/Hodges) 3.19
03. Jungle Nights In Harlem (Ellington) 2.45
04. The Spell Of The Blues (Johnston/Dreyewr/Ruby) 2.57
05. Jubilee Stomp (Ellington) 3,28
06. Precious Lord, Lead Me On (Dorsey) 5.28
07. Wabash Blues (Ringle/Meinken) 6.33
08. Wild Cat Blues (Waller/Williams) 3,28
09. Merry-Go-Round (Ellington) 3.42
10. Black & Tan Fantasy/TheMooche (Ellington/Wesley) 8.19
11. C JamBlues (Ellington) 5.01
12. Corn Bread, Peas & Black Molasses (Terry/McGhee) 4.13
13. Hot & Bothered (Ellington) 2.38
14. Petite Fleur (Bechet) 3.28
15. When The Saints Go Marching In (Traditional) 11.06
16. Ice Cream (Johnson/King/Moll) 3.58

*
**

Georgie Fame – Get Away (1966)

Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames funktioned as the house band of the now legendary Flamingo club in London from about 1963 to 1966, were they served an audience of mainly American GIs mixed with a handful of brave British boys. In a time when you rarely heard American soul hits on British radio (or any other European radio), Fame covered material from Stax, Atlantic etc. According to Fame, the first time he heard “Green Onions” was in fact not on the radio but when a GI brought the 7inch to the Flamingo. An experience that immediately triggered him to change from piano to organ.
What makes these cover versions vital even today – and in that they are similar to the Stones’ early recordings of blues songs – is the enthusiasm and adoration the group has for it’s source material. This exuberance is combined with a tightness and professionalism developed in many long nights at the Flamingo, which becomes especially clear on the album’s b-side.
A wild and driving version of “See Saw” already announces what to expect of the album’s second half and as soon as the needle drops on “Music Talk” and you hear the often-sampled opening drum-break, you know this is gonna be a party. There’s not a dull moment following with the jubilating “Whole World Shakin’ “, the jazzy “El Bandido”, the irresistible “World Is Round” and raving covers of “The In Crowd” and “Last Night”.
This is the American issue of what appeared on the British market as the group’s third album, called “Sweet Things”. Only “My Girl” and “Dr. Kitch” were replaced by “Get Away”, Fame’s big hit of the time, and “El Bandido”.

In other words: This is a fucking good album by the great Georgie Fame !

Personnel:
Speedy Acquaye (percussion)
Cliff Barton (bass)
Peter Coe (saxophone)
Georgie Fame (organ, vocals)
Colin Green (guitar)
Glen Hughes (saxophone)
John “Mitch” Mitchell (drums)
Eddie “Tan Tan” Thorton (trumpet)

Tracklist:
01. Get Away (Powell) 2.32
02. Sweet Thing (Hunter/Stevenson) 2.30
03. Ride Your Pony (Neville) 2.38
04. Funny How Time Slips Away (Nelson) 3.10
05. Sitting In The Park (Stewart) 3.25
06. See Saw (Covay/Cropper) 2.44
07. Music Talk (Paul/Judkins/Hull) 3.19
08. Last Night (Laine) 5.06
09. It’s Got The Whole World Shakin’ (Cooke) 3.10
10. El Bandido (Powell) 3.08
11. The World Is Round (Thomas) 2.38
12. The “In” Crowd (Page) 2.55

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Alternate frontcover