Shake That Thing! – The Blues in Britain 1963-1973 (3CD Box Set)
For most music historians and blues commentators, the original British Blues movement formulated in the early sixties and lasted, or more accurately evolved, through to the early seventies, by which time rock (from hard rock and psychedelic to folk-rock and progressive) was making the bigger statement.
This highly productive period of British Blues is documented on Shake That Thing! a 3CD, 73 track celebration covering the formative years through to 1973.
The anthology chronologically tracks the more traditional blues styles adopted and performed by many an artist as they developed and broadened to explore, cover, and eventually write, in a multitude of blues styles including ragtime, jug band, R&B, and folk-blues.
From country blues influenced beginnings (the harmonica wailing instrumental 'County Line Special' by Cyril Davies And His Rhythm And Blues All Stars opens the album), CD1 covers the first five years through such gems as the celebratory gospel blues of 'Up Above My Head I Hear Music In The Air' by Long John Baldry & The Hoochie Coochie Men (featuring Rod Stewart on his first ever commercial recording), pre-war US blues (Robert Johnson’s 'Ramblin’ On My Mind' by the Bluesbreakers with Eric Clapton) and The Animals British soul styled cover of blues standard 'See See Rider.'
There’s also a welcome place for Alex Harvey’s acoustic take of Muddy Waters' 'Honey Bee' (a reminder that Harvey was a blues/ R&B man way before he became a Sensational rock star) and the piano led barroom blues of 'Me And My Gin' by Beverley Martyn, one of two songs she recorded for a single at a Decca Session (inexplicably shelved, and not heard until fifty years later).
True pioneers and leading lights of the British Blues movement are also catered for, here represented by the acoustic picking of 'Don’t Want You Woman' by Ten Years After, a double helping of Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac ('The World Keep On Turning' and Jeremey Spencer’s piano & vocal arrangement of Robert Johnson’s 'Hellhound On My Trail') and a similarly piano & vocal arranged take of 'Vicksburg Blues' by Savoy Brown.
Nor would it be any sort of early blues in Blighty collection if the founding father of British blues, Alexis Korner, wasn’t featured, here closing out CD1 with 'Steal Away.'
(The number features a young singer by the name of Robert Plant, who was about to head into the studio to put his voice to the debut album by a band called Led Zeppelin).
CD2 covers the fertile 1968-1969 period when Jethro Tull were still a straight-laced blues band (here re-working Sleepy John Estes’ 'Someday Baby Blues' as 'Some Day The Sun Won’t Shine For You'), John Martyn was acoustically picking the Delta blues ('Goin’ Down to Memphis') and John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers ('Laurel Canyon Home') featured 18 year old guitarist Mick Taylor, who would go Rolling on to even bigger things a year later.
Folkier blues was also starting to come into its own through artists such as Ralph McTell (his ragtime-folk cover of Eugene "Buddy" Moss’s '(My) Baby Keeps Staying Out All Night Long,' and Pentangle (featuring Bert Jansch, John Renbourn and singer Jacqui McShee) with their take of Furry Lewis’ 'Turn Your Money Green.'
Elsewhere there’s a double helping of British blues harp luminary Steve Rye via solo outing 'Bread Of Heaven,' and Sonny Boy Williamson II’s 'Stop Breakin’ Down' (the latter as the trio Prager, Rye & Hall).
Acoustic slide maestro Sam Mitchell also features, maturely performing forlorn folk-blues 'Leaf Without a Tree,' while only 19 (his guitar skills would be heard by a bigger and wider audience after playing on Rod Stewart’s Gasoline Alley and Every Picture Tells A Story).
CD3 covers the transitioning seventies period of British blues, before rock and its variants took heavier hold.
The early seventies offered up a raft of interesting, multi-styled blues artists, including acoustic artist John James ('Picture Rag'), Andy Roberts (his take of Son House’s version of 'John The Revelator'), the psychedelic blues of The Incredible String Band ('Robot Blues') and folk-blues duo Trader Horne (Jackie McAuley & Judy Dyble), here performing 'Down and Out Blues,' their folky take of the Bessie Smith standard 'Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out.'
The seventies also ushered in, or upped the profile, of artists and bands that would make a significant mark in the blues and/ or gain wider commercial success.
Here you will find an early outing for Medicine Head (Son House’s 'Walkin’ Blues'), the Climax Chicago Blues Band (later to drop Chicago from their name) with short instrumental 'Country Hat,' Humble Pie (their classic heavy blues rendition of Muddy Waters’ 'Rollin’ Stone'), Mungo Jerry ('San Franciso Bay Blues') and Rory Gallagher, on his way to greatness via a Blueprint for success, performing Big Bill Broonzy’s 'Bankers Blues.'
(Gallagher’s celebrated but short-lived power-trio Taste also feature with their live performance of 'Gambiln’ Blues').
The anthology fittingly closes out with one of the UK’s most important living bluesmen, Dave Peabody, and the fingerpicking, country/folk blues fun of 'Last Of The Good Time Guys.'
Accompanied by a 32 page booklet with track by track breakdowns, Shake My Thing! is the definitive DNA sample of British Blues during the genre’s most popular era.
Ross Muir
FabricationsHQ
This highly productive period of British Blues is documented on Shake That Thing! a 3CD, 73 track celebration covering the formative years through to 1973.
The anthology chronologically tracks the more traditional blues styles adopted and performed by many an artist as they developed and broadened to explore, cover, and eventually write, in a multitude of blues styles including ragtime, jug band, R&B, and folk-blues.
From country blues influenced beginnings (the harmonica wailing instrumental 'County Line Special' by Cyril Davies And His Rhythm And Blues All Stars opens the album), CD1 covers the first five years through such gems as the celebratory gospel blues of 'Up Above My Head I Hear Music In The Air' by Long John Baldry & The Hoochie Coochie Men (featuring Rod Stewart on his first ever commercial recording), pre-war US blues (Robert Johnson’s 'Ramblin’ On My Mind' by the Bluesbreakers with Eric Clapton) and The Animals British soul styled cover of blues standard 'See See Rider.'
There’s also a welcome place for Alex Harvey’s acoustic take of Muddy Waters' 'Honey Bee' (a reminder that Harvey was a blues/ R&B man way before he became a Sensational rock star) and the piano led barroom blues of 'Me And My Gin' by Beverley Martyn, one of two songs she recorded for a single at a Decca Session (inexplicably shelved, and not heard until fifty years later).
True pioneers and leading lights of the British Blues movement are also catered for, here represented by the acoustic picking of 'Don’t Want You Woman' by Ten Years After, a double helping of Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac ('The World Keep On Turning' and Jeremey Spencer’s piano & vocal arrangement of Robert Johnson’s 'Hellhound On My Trail') and a similarly piano & vocal arranged take of 'Vicksburg Blues' by Savoy Brown.
Nor would it be any sort of early blues in Blighty collection if the founding father of British blues, Alexis Korner, wasn’t featured, here closing out CD1 with 'Steal Away.'
(The number features a young singer by the name of Robert Plant, who was about to head into the studio to put his voice to the debut album by a band called Led Zeppelin).
CD2 covers the fertile 1968-1969 period when Jethro Tull were still a straight-laced blues band (here re-working Sleepy John Estes’ 'Someday Baby Blues' as 'Some Day The Sun Won’t Shine For You'), John Martyn was acoustically picking the Delta blues ('Goin’ Down to Memphis') and John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers ('Laurel Canyon Home') featured 18 year old guitarist Mick Taylor, who would go Rolling on to even bigger things a year later.
Folkier blues was also starting to come into its own through artists such as Ralph McTell (his ragtime-folk cover of Eugene "Buddy" Moss’s '(My) Baby Keeps Staying Out All Night Long,' and Pentangle (featuring Bert Jansch, John Renbourn and singer Jacqui McShee) with their take of Furry Lewis’ 'Turn Your Money Green.'
Elsewhere there’s a double helping of British blues harp luminary Steve Rye via solo outing 'Bread Of Heaven,' and Sonny Boy Williamson II’s 'Stop Breakin’ Down' (the latter as the trio Prager, Rye & Hall).
Acoustic slide maestro Sam Mitchell also features, maturely performing forlorn folk-blues 'Leaf Without a Tree,' while only 19 (his guitar skills would be heard by a bigger and wider audience after playing on Rod Stewart’s Gasoline Alley and Every Picture Tells A Story).
CD3 covers the transitioning seventies period of British blues, before rock and its variants took heavier hold.
The early seventies offered up a raft of interesting, multi-styled blues artists, including acoustic artist John James ('Picture Rag'), Andy Roberts (his take of Son House’s version of 'John The Revelator'), the psychedelic blues of The Incredible String Band ('Robot Blues') and folk-blues duo Trader Horne (Jackie McAuley & Judy Dyble), here performing 'Down and Out Blues,' their folky take of the Bessie Smith standard 'Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out.'
The seventies also ushered in, or upped the profile, of artists and bands that would make a significant mark in the blues and/ or gain wider commercial success.
Here you will find an early outing for Medicine Head (Son House’s 'Walkin’ Blues'), the Climax Chicago Blues Band (later to drop Chicago from their name) with short instrumental 'Country Hat,' Humble Pie (their classic heavy blues rendition of Muddy Waters’ 'Rollin’ Stone'), Mungo Jerry ('San Franciso Bay Blues') and Rory Gallagher, on his way to greatness via a Blueprint for success, performing Big Bill Broonzy’s 'Bankers Blues.'
(Gallagher’s celebrated but short-lived power-trio Taste also feature with their live performance of 'Gambiln’ Blues').
The anthology fittingly closes out with one of the UK’s most important living bluesmen, Dave Peabody, and the fingerpicking, country/folk blues fun of 'Last Of The Good Time Guys.'
Accompanied by a 32 page booklet with track by track breakdowns, Shake My Thing! is the definitive DNA sample of British Blues during the genre’s most popular era.
Ross Muir
FabricationsHQ