Various Artists – 2th Blues Festival Bonn 1987 (1988)

As everyone here probably knows, I am a great lover of blues music (regardless of whether it is black or white blues music).

And here is a very special rarity, recorded live at the 2th Blues Festival in Bonn/Germany.

I guess this album was only released in Germany.

So, This are one of the hardest recordings of bands like Canned Heat, Chicken Shack, Man (they were of course not a blues band) and Dr. Feelgood … all bands I like very much …

… and I m guess there are still many fans of these bands and their music.

So enjoy this album (including the jam session as an encore… !) … I call it: Excellent stuff and you should not miss it !

Recorded live at the Biskuithalle, Bonn/Germany, September, 27, 1987

Personnel:

Chicken Shack:
Bev Smith (drums)
Wayne Terry (bass)
Stan Webb (guitar, vocals)
David Wilkie (keyboards)

Dr. Feelgood:
Lee Brilleaux (vocals, guitar)
Philipp Mitchell (bass, vocals)
Drums, Vocals – Kevin Morris (drums, vocals)
Gordon Russell (guitar)

Man:
Martin Ace (bass, vocals)
Micky Jones (guitar, vocals)
Deke Leonard (guitar, vocals)
Terry Williams (drums, vocals)

Canned Heat:
Adolpho „Fito“ De LaParra (drums)
Larry Taylor (bass, vocals)
James Thornberry (guitar, vocals, flute)
Henry Vestine (guitar)

Tracklist:

Chicken Shack:
01. The Thrill Has Gone (Darnell/Hawkins) 7.52
02. Have You Ever Loved A Woman (Myles) 10.57
03. I’d Rather Go Blind (Jordan) 6.44

Dr. Feelgood:
04. Down At The Doctors (Jupp) 4.13
05. See You Later Alligator (Guidry) 3.27
06. Back In The Night (Johnson) 4.06
05. Milk And Alcohol (May/Lowe) 2.47

Man:
06. What A Night (Roger/Leonard) 3.26
07. Jumping Like A Kangaroo (Ace) 4.58
08. Bananas (John/Jones/Ryan/Williams) 8.31

Canned Heat:
09. Going Up The Country (Wilson) 3.01
10. Rollin’ And Tumblin’ (Morganfield) 4.19
11. Amphetamine Annie (Wilson/Hite/Parra/Vestine/Taylor) 4.22

All Star Jam Session:
12. Dust My Broom (James) 8.53

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Alternate frontcover:

Chicken Shack – Roadies Concerto (1981)

Chicken Shack are a British blues band, founded in the mid-1960s by Stan Webb (guitar and vocals), Andy Silvester (bass guitar), and Alan Morley (drums), who were later joined by Christine Perfect (later McVie) (vocals and keyboards) in 1967. Chicken Shack has performed with various line-ups, Stan Webb being the only constant member.

David ‘Rowdy’ Yeats and Andy Silvester had formed Sounds of Blue in 1964 as a Stourbridge-based rhythm and blues band. They invited Stan Webb, who was leaving local band The Shades 5, to join them. The band also included Christine Perfect and Chris Wood (later to join Traffic) amongst others in their line up. With a new line-up Chicken Shack was formed as a trio in 1965, naming themselves after Jimmy Smith’s Back at the Chicken Shack album. ‘Chicken shacks’ (open-air roadside chicken stands) had also been frequently mentioned in blues and R&B songs, as in Amos Milburn’s hit, “Chicken Shack Boogie”. Over the next few years the band had a residency at the Star-Club, Hamburg with Morley, then Al Sykes, Hughie Flint (who was John Mayall’s drummer when Eric Clapton was in the band) and later Dave Bidwell on drums.

They made their first UK appearance at the 1967 National Jazz and Blues Festival, Windsor and signed to Mike Vernon’s Blue Horizon record label in the same year;[1] releasing Forty Blue Fingers, Freshly Packed and Ready to Serve in early 1968. A mainstay of the British blues boom, and a regular at UK festivals (Stan Webb’s wandering through the crowd with a 200 ft extension to his guitar lead during the band’s set was a regular occurrence[citation needed]), Chicken Shack enjoyed some commercial success, with Christine Perfect voted Best Female Vocalist in the Melody Maker polls two years running. They had two minor hits with “I’d Rather Go Blind” (c/w “Night Life”), and “Tears in the Wind”, after which Perfect left the band in 1969 when she married John McVie of Fleetwood Mac. She was replaced by Paul Raymond from Plastic Penny.

After being dropped by Blue Horizon, pianist Paul Raymond, bassist Andy Silvester, and drummer Dave Bidwell all left in 1971 to join Savoy Brown.[1] At this point Webb reformed the band as a trio with John Glascock on bass and Paul Hancox on drums, and they recorded Imagination Lady. The line-up did not last; Glascock left to join Carmen, while Webb was recruited for Savoy Brown in 1974 and recorded the album Boogie Brothers with them.

Since 1977 Webb has revived the Chicken Shack name on a number of occasions, with a rotating membership of British blues musicians including, at various times, Paul Butler (ex-Jellybread, Keef Hartley Band)(guitar), Keef Hartley, ex-Ten Years After drummer Ric Lee and Miller Anderson, some of whom came and went several times. The band has remained popular as a live attraction in Europe throughout.

Webb remains as their only constant band member. (wikipedia)

And here´s a rare and pretty good live album, with an exceptional and unusual line-up (feat. Ric Lee on drums and Tony Ashton on organ).:

Chicken Shack in sensational line-up – their best ever live recording

In 1981 Stan Webb had possibly found the most prolific of all of his line-ups with basically an all-star line-up of bluesrock This ROADIES CONCERTO recording displays the mastery of this assembly of exceptional musicians – a gatheriing of the tribes! Rarely ever CICKEN SHACK played in such perfection.In this line-up they undertook a very successful toru of Europe, esp. Germany … they blew everybody’s mind! (artistcamp.com)

If you love the British Blues like I do … you should listen and enjoy !

Personnel:
Tony Ashton (keyboards)
Paul Butler (guitar, vocals)
Ric Lee (drums)
Alan Scott (bass)
Stan Webb (guitar, vocals)

Tracklist:
01. Tell Me (Burnett) 5.07
02. Why I Sing The Blues (King/Clark) 2.03
03. Back Door Man (Dixon) 7.00
04. Black Night (Webb) 5.59
05. So Far Back (Webb) 6.38
06. The End (Prisoner) (Webb) 4.13
07. Poor Boy (Webb) 4.34
08. Shake Your Money Maker (James) 3.56
09. Hideaway (King) 1.15

*
**

More from Chicken Shack:

Stan Webb’s Chicken Shack – Live In Germany ’75 (2015)

Although he is best known for his lengthy career in Heavy Metal (including playing bass on – and penning the lyrics and co-writing the music for – some of Ozzy Osbourne’s most recognizable songs), bassist Bob Daisley is a bona fide Blues lover. Forty years ago, Daisley indulged his love for this music as a member of Chicken Shack, one of the most beloved Blues acts in the world. Earlier this year, he released Live In Germany ’75, a CD recording of a Chicken Shack lineup completed by founding member Stan Webb on vocals/guitar, guitarist Robbie Blunt and drummer Bob Clouter. And man is it killer.

With only nine songs in 78 minutes, it’s clear that jamming is at the heart of this recording. From a driving nine-minute take on Willie Dixon’s “Homework” to the rock-solid shuffle of their nearly eight-minute cover of Sonny Thompson’s “I’m Tore Down,” Chicken Shack bring these Blues staples into new and exciting worlds. With Live In Germany ’75, you get a sonic snapshot of four musicians truly enjoying themselves on stage.

Naturally, Stan Webb’s fiery playing gets better and better with each listen. A true master of the guitar, Webb is in his perfect habitat on Live In Germany ’75, using the stage to explore his instrument in ways simply not possible in a studio setting. And when this combines with Blunt’s formidable skills, the results (such as in the band’s interpretation of Don Nix’s “Going Down” and Robert Johnson’s “Dust My Broom”) are otherworldly.

Not surprisingly, the band’s ability to handle real Blues rubs off on their own material, especially on the Webb/Blunt number “Rain On My Window Pane” and the Webb/Daisley/Blunt-written “Crying Again.” The epitome of authenticity, Chicken Shack’s originals effortlessly hold their own against the Blues standards explored throughout the set. The band on this CD is absolutely the real thing.

While every moment of Live In Germany ’75 offers high-caliber sounds, the 20-minute “Poor Boy” is the release’s undisputed masterpiece. Originally a five minute tune on Chicken Shack’s 1972 album Imagination Lady, the Webb composition reaches transcendental heights on the German stage, encompassing Blues, Heavy Rock, Funk and some truly awe-inspiring dynamics. (Check out the quiet jam that breaks out around the 5:40 mark.)

With a lineup comprised of players who would later end up working with the likes of Rainbow (Daisley) and Robert Plant (Blunt), it comes as little surprise that there is a heaviness to Live In Germany ’75 that easily puts the band in the same Hard Rock league as their mid ’70s touring mates in Deep Purple. If you’re a Metal fan interested in exploring the genre’s Bluesy roots, this is an album not to miss.

Limited to only 1,000 copies, Live In Germany ’75 is a perfect introduction to the onstage magic of Chicken Shack and an intriguing glimpse into one of the many fascinating eras to define Bob Daisley’s long-running career. Get it while you still can. (joelgausten.com)
By the mid 70s Stan Webb,one of a celebrated trio of 60s English blues guitar players,was the only one still dusting his broom onstage.With Clapton expensively suited and evermore soporific, Peter Green out of the business entirely,pursued by tabloid lowlifes and other demons,only Stan The Man still trod the boards in true blue shoes. Shifting public taste meant he’d often now appear on undercards of egocentric ‘prog’ bands,yet he still retained a grassroots following across Europe, especially in West Germany where his song ‘Poor Boy’ raised many a stein of pilsner.

After Christine (McVie) had moved on,Chicken Shack featured Stan’s underrated vocals.During a half-century career (yes, that does merit a round of applause) he would cut many records with many different bandmates…all creditable and listenable, but something special has been captured here, delivering one of the most red blooded English blues albums for many a year.
The featured mid 70s lineup gels with a chemistry that cannot be scripted. The ‘Three Bobs’ as tagged here, craft irresistible launchpads for spirited takes on such chestnuts as ‘Tore Down’ and ‘Have You Ever Loved a Woman’. Fifty seconds into the opener, ‘Homework’ that trademark vibrato leaps from the right hand channel with blistering immediacy, whisking you off on a seventy eight minute two guitar sleighride…maybe ‘Poor Boy’ noodles on a bit, but that’s a minor carp, for this is a magnificently energetic and noisy blues gig from an age before the 12-bar format became synonymous with 53 year old accountants decaffing down to East Grinstead to ‘get their Quornbone boiled’. Without passion and feeling white blues often defaults to the turgid play-by-numbers dullardry of trad-jazz…no such issues with this puppy. (Peter Nicholas Zear)

Personnel:
Robbie Blunt (guitar, slide-guitar)
Bob Clouter (drums)
Bob Daisley
Stan Webb (guitar, vocals)

Tracklist:
01. Homework (Dixon) 9.26
02. Have You Ever Loved A Woman? (Myles) 10.20
03. I’m Tore Down (Thompson) 7.37
04. Rain On My Window Pane (Webb/Blunt) 4.17
05. Delilah (Webb/Daisley/Blunt) 5.18
06. Poor Boy (Webb) 20.26
07. Crying Again (Webb/Daisley/Blunt) 6.02
08. Dust My Broom (Johnson) 8.22
09. Going Down (Nix) 6.33

*
**

I recorded this gig 40 years, so this has been sitting in my archive since 1975. I’m pleased to be able to share it and air it. This show epitomises Chicken Shack at the time – raw Blues, Rhythm and Blues and a bit of Funk thrown in. It was my second stint with Stan Webb, I’d been with the Shack from early 1972 until mid ’73, when I left to join Mungo Jerry, which didn’t quite satisfy my lust for real Blues, hence my return to Stan. On this show Stan and I are joined by the aptly named Bob Clouter on drums and Robbie Blunt on slide guitar. Robbie went on to be Robert Plant’s guitarist in the early ’80s after Led Zeppelin became defunct. Stan was a legend, and is still highly regarded by many of his Blues peers. This lineup, to me, was one of the best, we’d been gigging a lot, our musical communication was almost telepathic. Stan and the ‘three Bobs’ were on tour with Deep Purple and an American band called Elf. Their lead singer, Ronnie James Dio, and I ended up in a band called Rainbow two years later with Deep Purple’s discontented lead guitarist, Ritchie Blackmore. During our time touring with Deep Purple in March 1975, we did some shows on our own in small theatres and clubs; this is a recording of one of them. In those days bands used to jam on songs when they played live, so this is typical of how we played the basic structure of a song then improvised and had fun with it; I’m very proud of how we sound on this. At the end of our show the tape ran out, but only the tail-end of the last song was lost. So until that point comes, sit back, relax and enjoy; these are ‘those days’… (Bob Daisley)

 

More from Chicken Shack:

Chicken Shack – Goodbye (1974)

Having lost fellow Chicken Shackers Bob Daisley (Bass) and Paul Hancox (Drums) to the rigours of touring just as the band’s now aptly-named sixth album, Unlucky Boy hit the streets, founder guitarist/vocalist Stan Webb went off in search of replacements – and quickly found them. in came pianist Dave Wilkinson, fresh from tinkling the ivories on singer/songwriter Roger Cook’s solo set, Minstrel In Flight, drummer Alan Powell and bassist Rob Hull, all of whom were rapidly schooled in Chicken Shack’s recent past.

Autumn was turning to winter, popular music in general was going about its eternal metamorphosis, and on the rock/blues vine the ‘progressive’ movement seemed to be winning out at the expense of pure blues. For all his bravado, to close friends Stan seemed to be less than enamoured of where his efforts’ most viable future possibly lay, and Deram still l had another album due. Webb was (and happily, once more as I wtite is} Chicken Shack. The dazzling guitarist and over-the-top entertainer had to date not been captured on vinyl strutting around his natural habitat – any stage – so it was logical that the ensemble’s contract be fulfilled with a live set.

The Pye Studios’ Mobile Unit was booked for the night and on 26th October 1973 it travelled to the Brunei University in the West of England to preserve forever events on the boards. Barry Murray of Murray Simmonds Productions – an organisation part-owned by Harry Simmonds, manager of Savoy Brown and brother of that outfit’s kingpin, Kim – look over Neil Slaven’s role as technical overseer. Stan’s wry sense of humour was apparent from the outset, as he introduced the fact that proceedings were being recorded along the lines of ” It’s an old geezer with a Philips cassette and a couple of Vidor batteries actually ” , before storming off into Everyday I Have The Blues.

Chicken Shark were in good form, and quite apart from reprising a handful of numbers from their Deram days, Webb displayed his virtuosity on a variation of the old Bert Weedon hit Guitar Boogie Shuffle – now known as Webb’s Guitar Shuffle – before dosing the show with l.iitle Richard’s Tutti Frutti. The band’s disc outlet at home was expected to rush (he results inlo the shops, and indeed lacquers were cut, test-pressings made, and a domestic catalogue number, SML 1109) , allocated. The platter was never to sen4 li^ht of day in Britain.

Before it could be scheduled and alter only five months together, in January ’74 Stan announced to the press that Chicken Shack were no more and that he would be joining Savoy Brown. Deram understandably scrapped issue plans for Blighty – their parent, Decca, held Savoy Brown’s long-term disc agreement – although they’d originally intended to call Stan’s now-definite finale Chicken Shack Go Live an appellation it finally bears with this CD transfer.

The Savoyians being one of London U.S.A.’s biggest earners, they were not going to ‘isk possibly dissipating sales of Kim and Stan’s planned new venture, so Go Live was shelved there also, but Germany and Japan ultimately ensured the Shack’s farewell could be purchased by issuing Nova SDL 8008 and London K16P 9075 respectively, though signposted under the somewhat depressing end-of-everything alternative, Goodbye Chicken Shack Stan Webb and Kim Simmonds, along with a third guitarfst/frontman, Miller Anderson, plus Jimmy Leverton (Bass) and Eric Dillon (Drums) thence turned in one of Savoy Brown’s finest IP’s, Boogie Brothers (24th May I 974), and remained together for almost a year before Kim found himself on his lonesome once more.

As Jimmy and Eric went off to farm Utopian pastures new, Stan and Miller put together a band they named Broken Glass with ex-Shack cohort, keyboarder Tony Ashton, plus Robbie Blunt {Guitar}, Mac Poole (Drums) and Rob Rawlinson (Bass). After one eponymous album for Capitol in 1975 Glass fragmented (sorry, couldn’t resist that), and following a brief sojourn to take stock, Webb began assembling a new Chicken Shack .

With A multitude of personnel amendments and one-off recording deals littering his path throughout, the great man has remained a cherished part of the hint’s scene to this day, both at home and abroad. Regardless ol who is sharing his stage, Stan Webb in top gear is a formidable sight to behold and a guaranteed treat for the ears.

This C.D. gives an indication of the quality one might expect, although the songs on offer have naturally changed. Nevertheless, how much better that this revived artefact may today be more appropriately titled Chicken Shack Go Live than the unthinkable Goodbye.
Now where did I put those batteries? (by John Tracy)

Oh yes … Chicken Shack live … including these fucking good killer versions of “Going Down” and “Poor Boy” !

And as well should know .. Stan Webb plays till today …

Personnel:
Rob Hull (bass)
Alan Powell (drums)
Stan Webb (guitar, vocals)
Dave Wilkinson (piano)

Tracklist:
01. Intro/Everyday I Have The Blues (Chapman) 5.20
02. The Thrill Is Gone (King) 5.28
03. Going Down (Nix) 5.46
04. You Take Me Down (Webb) 5.06
05. Webb’s Boogie (Webb) 5.48
06. You’re Mean (King/Harris/Jemmott/Lovell/McCracken) 5.54
07. Poor Boy (Webb) 6.51
08. Webb’s Guitar Shuffle (Webb) 3.19
09. Tutti Frutti (LaBostrie/Penniman/Lubin) 2.29

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More Chicken Shack:

Chicken Shack – Unlucky Boy (1973)

Unlucky Boy is the sixth studio album by the blues band, Chicken Shack, released in 1973

Originally released in 1973, but reissued with two extra  in 1994, Chicken Shack’s Unlucky Boy finds guitarist/vocalist/songwriter and band founder Stan Webb in fine form. Only drummer Paul Hancox remains from the uneven Imagination Lady, and indeed the horn-oriented approach here is much different than the plodding Led Zeppelin-isms of the previous disc. Webb contributes six originals, and even though they are derivative of Savoy Brown (a band he joined for the Boogie Brothers album just a year later), his approach here is much more subtle and controlled than on his last effort.

Very rare factory sample discs

Chris Mercer’s saxes, often double tracked to sound like a horn section, bring a tough R&B to the mix, and drummer Hancox is a controlled powerhouse. Webb also reigns in his impulse to overextend guitar solos so prevalent on Imagination Lady, whipping off tight, controlled leads instead.

Producer Neil Slaven contributes honest, witty, and often self-deprecating liner notes that help explain why two of these songs suffer from poor mixes (basically, he had consumed various substances and couldn’t salvage the songs after the fact). Strings on “As Time Goes Passing By,” (also included in a shorter single version) are a nice touch and bring a bit of class to the proceedings while maintaining the R&B slant of the disc. Two unedited studio jams make the cut as “Stan the Man” and the seven-minute “Jammin’ with the Ash,” both featuring pianist Tony Ashton, who really lets loose on the latter.

Things get stripped down for an unusually delicate version of Lonnie Johnson’s “Too Late to Cry” with just strummed guitar and bass. The opening trio of Webb-penned tunes shows some of his best songwriting with the instrumental “Prudence’s Party” a terrific capsule of Webb’s stinging, gritty guitar style. The album sounds dated but harkens back to a particular time in British blues that is charming in its anything goes attitude. That helps make this one of Stan Webb’s more consistent and successful offerings. (by Hal Horowitz)

This is the Masterpiece of Rock and on e of the best Blues-Rock
Album of All Time. Stan Webb, British Halfgod on Guitar in exciting form. (by Dani Rocksaurier)

This album is quite good, nothing more nothing less:

Ah, the wonderful Chicken Shack re-mastered, good news for blues freaks (such as myself)  … Here´s Chicken Shack with their charismatic frontman and lead guitarist Stan Webb. Webb was famous for his live performance, running down the aisles (before the wireless) with a mega long guitar wire, going banana while playing electrifying guitar soli!

This of course do not apply to the studio albums, which actually didn’t get nowhere near their live performances! This album is quite good, nothing more nothing less, good clean blues tracks! Get their first album or a live session, If you want the Shack on fire!!  (by Tonny Larsen)

Personnel:
Bob Daisley (bass)
Paul Hancox (drums, percussion)
Stan Webb (guitar, vocals)
+
Tony Ashton (piano)
Chris Mercer (saxophone)

Tracklist:
01. You Know You Could Be Right (Webb) 3.47
02. Revelation”(Webb) 5.13
03. Prudence’s Party (Webb) 3.13
04. Too Late To Cry (Johnson) 3.09
05. Stan The Man (Webb) 4.25
06. Unlucky Boy (Thornton/Dupree) 2.34
07. As Time Goes Passing By (Webb) 4.46
08. Jammin’ With Ash” (Webb) 7.04
09. He Knows The Rules (McCracklin) 4.05
+
10. As Times Goes Passing By (single version) (Webb) 3.32
11. Doctor Brown (Brown) 3.05

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Bob Daisley & Stan Webb

A handwritten track list
and letter from Decca stating this was the first test pressing.

Chicken Shack – Imagination Lady (1972)

Imagination Lady is the fifth studio album by the blues band Chicken Shack, released in 1972 on the Deram record Label.

Imagination Lady is much in the same tradition as the great British bluesmen Alexis Korner and John Mayall, Webb’s revolving-door personnel landed the band several notable members, including: John Almond (tenor/alto sax), Hughie Flint (drums), and Christine Perfect (keyboards/vocals). For this album, Webb (guitar/vocals) gathered a trio consisting of himself, future Gods and Jethro Tull member John Glascock (bass), and Paul Hancox (drums). Enthusiasts of the more traditional 40 Blue Fingers, Freshly Packed and Ready to Serve and OK Ken albums have been quick to dismiss the latter-era band, often citing the whole over amplified power metal trip as detracting from their blues origins.

While certainly valid assessments, the power trio featured on Imagination Lady brings more than sheer volume to this release. As with the previous Chicken Shack long-players, this disc features several Webb originals augmented with some well-chosen cover tunes. The album opens with a ferocious cover of B.B. King’s “Crying Won’t Help You.” This version is highlighted by Glascock’s thrashing basslines and Webb’s wah-wah driven lead guitar and gin-soaked vocals. In a style akin to the Faces or even some of the rowdier moments from the Peter Green-led Fleetwood Mac, this trio grinds out the blues with a decidedly English edge. The folkie “If I Were a Carpenter” is speared with searing electric guitar leads that rip throughout the likewise spirited contributions from Glascock and Hancox. The tune is also afforded an unexpected sensitivity that contrasts well between the all-out sonic onslaught of the chorus and the restrained polyrhythms of the verses. In regards to original material, “Daughter of the Hillside” is without a doubt Webb’s most impressive contribution to the album. It is arguably the strongest side on the disc. This straight-ahead rocker is an ideal trio effort with equal contributions from all three recalling the intense instrumentality of Cream or early Led Zeppelin. With so much potential, it’s unfortunate that the 11-minute epic “Telling Your Fortune” — which is nothing more than a 12-bar blues platform for solos from Webb and Hancox — is so erratic. In an ironic contrast, the closing number “The Loser” is upbeat and almost pop-oriented, again displaying the immense strength of this short-lived incarnation of Chicken Shack. (by Lindsay Planer)

Chicken Shack were chief beneficiaries of the 1968 Brit blues boom, but the sales graph was flatlining by the time of 1972’s Imagination Lady. Shame, really: some of us will strip to the waist, grease up and wrestle for the right to proclaim it the worthiest thing they ever did. Wildcard guitarist and sole constant Stan Webb had commandeered drummer Paul Hancox and bassist John Glascock to create a brawny blues-rock trio with the pedal constantly to the metal – and the transfusion of new blood duly created a rampaging ogre.

Listen to them, positively steaming in with Crying Won’t Help You Now: lack of blues feel is more than compensated for with unruly, unpolished, first-take excitement. Hancox in particular – recommended by John Bonham – is a flailing Tasmanian devil in the Philthy Animal Taylor mould. The insane phased drum solo in Telling Your Fortune perhaps indulges the man a tad too far – but you try stopping him.

Thrillingly, the band lunge at If I Were A Carpenter like pub drunks: it’s a Vanilla Fudge-style, taste-free disembowelment, and all the better for it. Truthfully, Imagination Lady is closer in spirit and execution to May Blitz than Fleetwood Mac, in the grand tradition of fractious, E-major wah-wah sludge-rock. (by record collector)

For me is this album a masterpiece of heavy blues rock !

Personnel:
John Glascock (bass)
Paul Hancox (drums)
Stan Webb (guitar, vocals)

Tracklist:
01. Crying Won’t Help You Now (King) 5.10
02. Daughter Of The Hillside (Webb) 3.53
03. If I Were A Carpenter (Hardin) 6.35
04. Going Down (Nix) 3.33
05. Poor Boy (Webb) 5.11
06. Telling Your Fortune (Webb) 11.11
07. The Loser (Webb) 2.32

*
**

Chicken Shack – Accept (1970)

Accept is the fourth album by the blues band, Chicken Shack, released in 1970. Accept was Chicken Shack’s last album on the Blue Horizon label. This album was also the last for Andy Sylvester, Dave Bidwell and Paul Raymond as members of Chicken Shack. It also marks a departure from pure blues to a more progressive and psychedelic sound. (by wikipedia)

This band’s fourth album, it was released in 1970 and seems to offer a prescient blend of nascent prog and heavy blues rock, where their prior outings skewed more decisively toward the latter. That it came out in 1970 and not 1971 is a big difference considering the changes in the rock scene that the next year would bring — if one had to pinpoint a moment when “rock got heavy,” even factoring in Blue Cheer‘s prior contributions, there are solid arguments to be made for ’71 — but though Chicken Shack weren’t the first to blend blues jams and more progressive and melodic flair, what with Jethro Tull around and all, Accept Chicken Shack does it with remarkable balance between the two sounds that, over the ensuing years, would only grow more and more incongruous.

Recorded with the lineup of founding guitarist/vocalist Stan Webb, bassist Andy Sylvester, keyboardist/vocalist Paul Raymond and drummer Dave Bidwell, it would be their final outing through Blue Horizon Records and after it came out, Webb would have to completely revamp the lineup after losing Sylvester, Raymond and Bidwell all to Savoy Brown.

Chicken Shack live at the  Bath Festival 1969 (© Al By)

All the same, listening to the rolling start of “Diary of Your Life,” the gritty swing and harmonies of “Never Ever,” the complex structure and arrangement of “Some Other Time” — vaguely post-Beatles but grown outward — and the soft departure of “Andalucian Blues,” whatever friction there might’ve been in the band doesn’t show up in the compositions, which are more varied than some of what would follow in the UK (also a good deal of what preceded), but hit with no less impact when they choose to do so. At 35 minutes, Accept Chicken Shack leaves one wondering how anybody couldn’t with its niche blend of elements and confident execution, earning its place in that great dusty canon of heavy ’70s classics just waiting to be discovered by new generations of listeners in a vinyl shop or online. In this case, clearly the latter.

Webb has kept Chicken Shack going. Over the years he’s brought in nearly 50 players, but they still perform as Chicken Shack from time to time (seem like a good bet for the next installment of Psycho fest) and had releases out as recently as 2008. Accept Chicken Shack is more than a footnote in a larger career, however, and as you can hear in these songs, whatever came later, this lineup was able to come together to accomplish something special during their time. (by theobelisk.net)

Personnel:
Dave Bidwell (drums)
Paul Raymond (keyboards, vocals)
Andy Sylvester (bass)
Stan Webb (guitar, vocals)

Tracklist:
01. Diary Of Your Life (Webb) 3.06
02. Pocket (Webb/Raymond) 3.23
03. Never Ever (Webb/Raymond) 2.43
04. Sad Clown (Webb/Raymond) 3.41
05. Maudie (Webb/Raymond) 2.54
06. Telling Your Fortune (Webb) 4.23
07. Tired Eyes (Webb) 2.06
08. Some Other Time (Webb/Raymond) 3.06
09. Going Round (Webb/Raymond) 2.32
10. Andalucian Blues (Webb/Raymond) 2.21
11. You Knew You Did You Did (Webb) 2.26
12. She Didn’t Use Her Loaf (unknown) 4.12
+
13. Maudie (single version) (Webb/Raymond) 3.01

*
**

German single version of Maudi b/w Andalucian Blues

 

Chicken Shack – OK Ken (1968)

O.K. Ken? is the second album by the blues band, Chicken Shack, released in February 1969. O.K Ken? reached number 9 in the UK Albums Chart, three places higher than its predecessor, 40 Blue Fingers, Freshly Packed and Ready to Serve.

This album was Christine Perfect’s last album as a member of Chicken Shack. (by wikipedia)
This is an excellent example of a band playing music they love and having a great time doing it. There’s nothing particularly new going on but it doesn’t really matter, there are some great electric blues songs with occasional vocals from the superb Christine Perfect. The strange conversational outtakes between each song can become annoying but they don’t make the album any less enjoyable. (by an amazon customer)

Anyone growing up in the progressive rock and blues era of the late 60’s early 70’s will know the Chicken Shack as a heavy blues band and regular performers on John Peels Top Gear programme. OK Ken is perhaps one of the most spontaneous with the band performing at their best and having a laugh whilst doing it. Each track is introduced by impressions of famous people at the time, such as John Peel, Hughie Greene and Prime Minister Harold Wilson. There is also what appears to be an intro by the real Steptoe and Son alias Wilfred Bramble and Harry H Corbet.

Chicken Shack (with fans). Major contributors to the British Blues movement

These can make the album or detract from it depending on your viewpoint, but for me they add to its appeal. The music is heavy and blues based with some good numbers by Freddie King and tremendous vocals by Christine Perfect. It is solid, traditional electric blues with an injection of fun. If you grew up with band you will know it and love it, if not you will surely enjoy it but may find the track intro’s annoying. (by Colin Andrew)

This is a typical Britisch blues album from that “Blue Horizon” period and it´s a real good one and note the great brass section !

And their hit single “I´d Rather Go Blind” is till today a classic tune … such a movingly song !

Personnel:
Dave Bidwell (drums)
Christine Perfect (keyboards, vocals)
Andy Sylvester (bass)
Stan Webb (guitar, vocals)
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Johnny Almond (saxophone)
Buddy Beadle (saxophone)
Don Fey (saxophone)
Steve Gregory (saxophone)
Roderick Lee (trumpet)
Terry Noonan (trumpet)
Walter Horton (harmonica)

Tracklist:
01. Baby’s Got Me Crying (Webb) 2.25
02. The Right Way Is My Way (Webb) 2.00
03. Get Like You Used to Be (Perfect/Webb) 3.05
04. Pony And Trap (Webb) 3.00
05. Tell Me (Burnette) 4.40
06. A Woman Is The Blues” (Perfect, Webb) 2.50
07. I Wanna See My Baby (Walker) 3.30
08. Remington Ride (Remington/Penny) 2.50
09. Fishing In Your River (Webb) 4.30
10. Mean Old World (Jacobs) 3.15
11. Sweet Sixteen (King,/Josea) 6.20
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12. Worried About My Woman (single A side) (Webb) 2.37
13. Six Nights in Seven (singe B side) (Webb) 4.59
14.  I´d Rather Go Blind (James /Jordan/Foster) 3.17
15. Night Life (single B-side) (Buskirk/Breeland/Nelson) 5.21

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Christine Perfect + Stan Webb

Chicken Shack – Live At The Marquee, London (1973)

“Please welcome to the Marquee… Chicken Shack.”

None of that loud, rabble rousing introduction from the English MC. So we know, the venue is correct. But the year of performance? The back cover of this bootleg offers the lineup as Stan Webb, Paul Butler (ex Keef Hartley), Ric Lee (ex Ten Years After) and Andy Pyle (ex Kinks, Bloodwyn Pig). Surely some mistake. As the tracks played this evening at the London Marquee Club seem to suggest a gig to promote the new/next album, Unlucky Boy, which was released in 1973. This is borne out by Webb’s introduction of the band after the first song.

The Marquee Club gig exists in collector’s archives as either a 1CD or 2CD set. Not much else is known. At least, all that googling did not find out much about this recording.

What we have here is a blues gig finding its feet in the new order. By 1970, blues was already blues rock with one part of the scene going heavy metal. Blame it on Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs. Blame it on Led Zeppelin. But Chicken Shack proved to be fearless in that they throw up old blues covers, a blues version of the rockabilly Blue Suede Shoes and a handful of Chicken Shack originals. Wah Wah pedals, long instrumental breaks, oodles of Webb’s blueswailing all come together for an excellent early ’70s gig. Note there are some flaws in the recording but not much.

Perhaps the albatross surrounding Webb’s neck was the one hit single Chicken Shack laid. Sorry. The Christine Perfect sung I’d Rather Go Blind, that most people remember Chicken Shack for. Tonight, that was four years ago. But on this night, they were the journeymen that Eric Clapton would love to be remembered as.

Recorded live the the Marquee Club, London, 1973
VG to Ex- SBD stereo. Some tape speed issues, cuts or taper stops and starts the recording.

Personnel:
Rob Hull (bass)
Alan Powell (drums)
Stan Webb (guitar, vocals)
David Wilkinson (piano)

Tracklist:
01. Have You Ever Loved A Woman (Myles) 6.17
02. Daughter Of The Hillside  (Webb) 5.27
03. Prudence’s Party (Webb) 4.20
04. Dave’s Boogie (Wilkinson) 9.15
05. Webb’s Guitar Shuffle (Webb) 6.24
06. Crying Won’t Help You Now  (Webb) 6.54
07. The Thrill Is Gone (Hawkins/Darnell) 6.17
08. Poor Boy (Webb) 16.13
09. Unlucky Boy (Webb) 6.44
10. Blue Suede Shoes (Perkins) 4.48
11. Stan’s Blues (Webb) 7.04
12. You Know You Could Be Right (Webb) 5.15

Still alive and well: Stan Webb´s Chicken Shack !

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Chicken Shack – Forty Blue Fingers (1968)

Chicken Shack are a British blues band, founded in the mid-1960s by Stan Webb (guitar and vocals), Andy Silvester (bass guitar), and Alan Morley (drums), who were later joined by Christine Perfect (McVie) (vocals and keyboards) in 1968. Chicken Shack has performed with various line-ups, Stan Webb being the only constant member.

David ‘Rowdy’ Yeats and Andy Silvester had formed Sounds of Blue in 1964 as a Stourbridge-based rhythm and blues band. They invited Stan Webb, who was leaving local band The Shades 5, to join them. The band also included Christine Perfect and Chris Wood (later to join Traffic) amongst others in their line up. With a new line-up Chicken Shack was formed as a trio in 1965, naming themselves after Jimmy Smith’s Back at the Chicken Shack album. ‘Chicken shacks’ (open-air roadside chicken stands) had also been frequently mentioned in blues and R&B songs, as in Amos Milburn’s hit, “Chicken Shack Boogie”. Over the next few years the band had a residency at the Star-Club, Hamburg with Morley, then Al Sykes, Hughie Flint (who was John Mayall’s drummer when Eric Clapton was in the band) and later Dave Bidwell on drums.

They made their first UK appearance at the 1967 National Jazz and Blues Festival, Windsor and signed to Mike Vernon’s Blue Horizon record label in the same year; releasing Forty Blue Fingers, Freshly Packed and Ready to Serve in early 1968. A mainstay of the British blues boom, and a regular at UK festivals (Stan Webb’s wandering through the crowd with a 200ft extension to his guitar lead during the band’s set was a regular occurrence, Chicken Shack enjoyed some commercial success, with Christine Perfect voted Best Female Vocalist in the Melody Maker polls two years running. They had two minor hits with “I’d Rather Go Blind” and “Tears in the Wind”, after which Perfect left the band in 1969 when she married John McVie of Fleetwood Mac. She was replaced by Paul Raymond from Plastic Penny.

40 Blue Fingers, Freshly Packed and Ready to Serve is the debut album by the blues band Chicken Shack, released in 1968. The album reached number 12 in the UK charts. This album has three Freddy King covers; Lonesome Whistle Blues and See See Baby from Freddy King Sings; and San-Ho-Zay from Let’s Hide Away and Dance Away40 Blue Fingers, Freshly Packed and Ready to Serve is the debut album by the blues band Chicken Shack, released in 1968. The album reached number 12 in the UK charts. This album has three Freddy King covers; Lonesome Whistle Blues and See See Baby from Freddy King Sings; and San-Ho-Zay from Let’s Hide Away and Dance Away. (by wikipedia)

What should I say: If you love the Bitisch Blues Boom … then you have to listen … because Chicken Shack was one of the most important groups of this boom …

Personnel:
Dave Bidwell (drums)
Christine Perfect (keyboards, vocals)
Andy Silvester (bass)
Stan Webb (guitar, vocals)
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Johnny Almond (saxophone)
Alan Ellis (trumpet)
Dick Heckstall-Smith (saxophone)
Tracklist:
01. The Letter (Taub/B.B. King) 4.25
02. Lonesome Whistle Blues (Toombs) 3.02
03. When The Train Comes Back (Perfect) 3.32
04, San-Ho-Zay (F.King/Thompson) 3.02
05. King Of The World (Hooker) 4.59
06. See See Baby (F.King/Thompson) 2.22
07. First Time I Met The Blues (Montgomery) 6.24
08. Webbed Feet (Webb) 2.53
09. You Ain’t No Good (Perfect) 3.35
10. What You Did Last Night (Webb) 4.36

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Alternate US frontcover