{"id":26269,"date":"2023-12-12T05:30:56","date_gmt":"2023-12-12T10:30:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/?p=26269"},"modified":"2023-12-12T09:58:09","modified_gmt":"2023-12-12T14:58:09","slug":"album-review-john-mayalls-bluesbreakers-live-in-1967-volume-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/2023\/12\/12\/album-review-john-mayalls-bluesbreakers-live-in-1967-volume-3\/","title":{"rendered":"Album Review: John Mayall\u2019s Bluesbreakers \u2013 Live in 1967 Volume 3"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Though the movement got its start in the 1950s thanks to pioneers Cyril Davies and Alexis Korner \u2013 both of whom were greatly influenced by American blues records \u2013 the British blues boom of the 1960s had John Mayall\u2019s Bluesbreakers at its epicenter. An astounding number of notable musicians \u2013 making their names in both rock and blues idioms \u2013 passed through the ranks of Mayall\u2019s band. Time in the Bluesbreakers wasn\u2019t just creatively fulfilling for these musicians; the Bluesbreakers provided a kind of proving ground for their future endeavors.<\/p>\n

From its start in 1963 through to current day (at age 89, Mayall continues to record and perform), the Bluesbreakers have seen well over 100 musicians pass through the group\u2019s ranks. Jack Bruce and Eric Clapton both served under Mayall (though not at the same time<\/del> only briefly) before forming Cream. Dick Heckstall-Smith, Jon Hiseman and Tony Reeves launched ambitious jazz\/blues ensemble Colosseum after their time together in Mayall\u2019s band. Mick Taylor was only 17 when he joined the group as lead guitarist; his time with Mayall raised his profile and eventually helped him land a spot in the Rolling Stones.<\/p>\n

But the group of ex-Bluesbreakers that went on to play the purest and most exciting brand of the blues was Fleetwood Mac. Years before the group (with a very different lineup) became leaders of the soft rock movement with their landmark 1977 album Rumours<\/i>, Peter Green\u2019s Fleetwood Mac (as it was originally known) delivered a fiery, impassioned blues.<\/p>\n

Green had been a full member of Mayall\u2019s group since taking over for Eric Clapton, who left the band to start Cream with Bruce and drummer Ginger Baker. Green\u2019s work on A Hard Road<\/i> arguably bested what Clapton had done on Mayall\u2019s so-called \u201cBeano\u201d LP. The rhythm section of Mick Fleetwood and John McVie was only part of the Bluesbreakers with Green for a very brief period (April to June 1967), and never recorded an album together. That four-piece would release only one single, a reading of Otis Rush\u2019s \u201cDouble Trouble\u201d backed by a cover of Elmore James classic \u201cIt Hurts Me Too.\u201d<\/p>\n

The a-side of that 45 was a highlight of the short-lived lineup\u2019s set list. It and seven other tunes would be captured in a series of live recordings from that year. Select tracks from several <\/em>different 1967 gigs \u2013 one at the Manor House, another at the Ram Jam, one at the band\u2019s regular haunt Klook\u2019s Kleek and a Bromley date \u2013 form the core of <\/b>Live in 1967 Volume 3<\/i>.<\/p>\n

The audio quality on this new collection is far from pristine; Mayall\u2019s vocal and Fleetwood\u2019s drumming both come through sounding a bit thin. But McVie\u2019s lyrical, rock-solid bass work shines through, and even with its sonic shortcomings, the set sizzles.<\/p>\n

That quality is largely thanks to the incendiary fretwork of Peter Green. At the top of his game, Green served up searing leads, showcasing his take on the Chicago brand of blues. Whether it\u2019s the slow-to-the-breaking-point blues of \u201cTears in My Eyes\u201d or the lead guitar showcase of \u201cGreeny,\u201d the band is on fire. Mayall\u2019s harmonica and keyboards are always tasteful, and the quartet is whip-smart and tight on \u201cYour Funeral and My Trial.\u201d<\/p>\n

The highlights of Live in 1967 Volume 3<\/i> come toward the end: Freddie King\u2019s \u201cThe Stumble\u201d had been the high point of A Hard Road<\/i>, released the previous February; Green\u2019s complete command of his instrument is highlighted even more so on this live recording. And at nearly five minutes (two more than its studio counterpart) there\u2019s even more to love in this version of \u201cThe Stumble.\u201d Unsurprisingly, the crowd goes wild. The collection wraps up with a performance of \u201cDouble Trouble,\u201d a smoky take on the song that more than doubles the length of the single.<\/p>\n

Because Live in 1967 Volume 3<\/i> is a compilation, it might have programmed better with \u201cThe Stumble\u201d closing the set. But the recording of \u201cDouble Trouble\u201d ends with a quick band introduction over the crowd\u2019s cheering, so placing it at the end makes sense as well.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Though the movement got its start in the 1950s thanks to pioneers Cyril Davies and Alexis Korner \u2013 both of whom were greatly influenced by American blues records \u2013 the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":26270,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,49,65],"tags":[5262,354,1186],"class_list":["post-26269","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blues","category-new-release","category-review","tag-blues-breakers","tag-bluesbreakers","tag-john-mayall","cat-9-id","cat-49-id","cat-65-id","has_thumb"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26269","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26269"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26269\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26574,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26269\/revisions\/26574"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/26270"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26269"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26269"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26269"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}