A new dawn broke in England in 1966-67 and it was a blues-rock dawn. Bands like Cream, Free, Ten Years After, The Rolling Stones and even Fleetwood Mac were blending their blues roots with the insistent beat of rock and gaining commercial success from it. and during the late 1960s, Spooky Tooth was one of a contingent of new British rock bands inspired by the first British Rock Invasion of acts like The Rolling Stones, The Yardbirds and The Animals.
Spooky Tooth took Europe and America by storm; alongside their Island Records label mates Traffic, Free and Jethtro Tull. From 1967 through 1974, they released seven Billboard-charting albums. After the band’s demise, all of the members went on to careers as solo artists or members of other successful bands.
It’s been 30 years since “It’s All About”, their first Stateside release on Bell Records (later reissued by A&M as “Tobacco Road”). For musicians who have not recorded together for many years, there were a number of obstacles to overcome. Each of the group members had created their own lives and coming together again presented somewhat of a challenge. Although the group wanted to honor some of their past material, they were also very conscious of writing contemporary new material which would reflect who they are now.
Part of the Spooky Tooth legacy is that they were always great at covering songs by then-unknown writers (Elton John, Robbie Robertson) and at recording songs by established writers and making them their own (Lennon/McCartney, Al Kooper, Bob Dylan) in the inimitable Spooky Tooth style.

One of the more intriguing components of the blues-rock movement was Spooky Tooth. They differed from other bands in that they utilized two very distinctive, talented vocalists (Mike Harrison and Gary Wright) and they featured an ominous yet potent organ sound.
By 1968, they had broken through commercially in England and were on the verge of releasing their most popular material. It was at this time that they performed on several editions of BBC´s radio program Top Gear.
Six of the nine tracks presented on BBC Sessions are taken from those appearances and showcase a band poised at the brink of big-time success. An aural snapshot of a well known band at that juncture of its recording career is very rare.
~Spooky Tooth´s “BBC Sessions” is that rare photograph~
As a special bonus, three additional tracks are included, one an obscure 1966 recording from Deep Feeling (featuring Spooky Tooth guitarist Luther Grosvenor and pre Traffic drummer Jim Capaldi !)) and two alternate mixes from the Spooky Tooth´s 1999 reunion release Cross Purpose.
Music from Deep Yesterday, Classic Yesterday and Reunion Yesterday´s BBC Sessions is everything a title like this should be.

This is a nice addition for every serious Spooky Tooth collector, but:
For years now bootlegs of Spooky Tooth’s BBC recordings have been circulating, most with less than excellent sound. Finally we get a chance to hear the band at its finest: LIVE “at the Beeb,” and what do we get? A truncated set, short in selections and definitely not what we would like to hear. The half dozen BBC songs come from but one or two of the numerous sessions the band recorded between 1968 and 1969, and many are faded in, suggesting that they are taken from transcription discs with spoken voice-over introductions that were simply edited out. Missing are some of the best BBC sessions, songs like “Tobacco Road,” and “Evil Woman” that were hallmarks of the band in concert. Although the studio outtakes from the 1999 reunion album are nice to have, they really do not fit comfortably into this collection. Equally disappointing are the two “bonus cuts” tacked on to the end of the disc which come from a 1970 Berlin concert, but which are rather shabby sounding, and which appear with no explanation as to their origins. In short we get a taste of what might have been, namely a Spooky Tooth BBC set to rival those recently issued by the Kinks, and the Who, but which instead winds up a missed opportunity. (by Christopher L. Dolmetsch)
More rare Spooky Tooth recordings will come !

Personnel:
Live at the BBC:
Mike Harrison (vocals, keyboards)
Luther Grosvenor (guitar)
Mike Kellie (drums)
Greg Ridley (bass)
Gary Wright (vocals, organ)
Deep Feeling:
Jim Capaldi (drums, vocals)
Luther Grosvenor (guitar, vocals)
Gordon Jackson (guitar)
David Meredith (bass)
Poli Palmer (vibraphon, flute)
1999 Reunion:
Mike Harrison (vocals)
Luther Grosvenor (guitar, percussion)
Mike Kellie (drums, percussion, background vocals)
Dave Moore (keyboards, synthesizer)
Greg Ridley (bass, background vocals)
Live in Berlin, 1970:
Mike Harrison (vocals, keyboards)
Luther Grosvenor (guitar)
Mike Kellie (drums)
Andy Leigh (bass)
Gary Wright (vocals, keyboards)

Tracklist:
Live at the BBC:
01. Sunshine Help Me (Wright) 2.03
02. Too Much Or Nothing (Dylan)I 3.54
03. Feelin’ Bad (Kellie/Wright) 2.56
04. The Weight (Robertson) 3.17
05. I Can’t Quit Her (Kooper/Levine) 3.02
06. Blues Town (Harrison/King/Wright) 3.35
Deep Feeling (feat. Jim Capaldi and Luther Grosvenor):
07. Pretty Colours (unknown) 2.41
1999 Reunion Recordings Studio Outtakes:
08. Sunshine (Wallinger) 4.55
09. How (Kellie) 4.49
Live in Berlin, 1970:
10. Better You Better Than Me (Wright) 4.17
11. Soulful Lady (unknown) 8.50

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Mike Harrison (03 September 1945 – 25 March 2018)
Mike Kellie (24 March 1947 – 18 January 2017)
Greg Ridley (23 October 1947 – 19 November 2003)