A good 72mins live CD taken from 3 consecutive sets in November 1966 as the sharp-eyed among you will have spotted. It's a nice live Muddy to add to the collection if only because of the lack of a piano which probably makes it unique for his live shows. Don't why, maybe everyone he liked was sick or on holiday. Whatever, it makes for a different dynamic as he and the band plough through some of his most popular songs. The band -George Smith on harp, Luther 'Georgia Boy' Johnson guitar, Sammy Lawhorn guitar, Mac Arnold bass (the only one I haven't heard of), and Francis Clay on drums -are tight and able.
Nice one.
While I was never a big Motown fan -I only have one 2-CD best of the label in my collection- one of the first vinyl records I bought back in the mid-60's was a 6-track Marvin Gaye e.p. (that's extended play for anyone under forty) containing I can't remember what but I'm damn sure Can I Get A Witness was on it. Indeed it wouldn't surprise me if they were same as the first 6 cuts on this album. On second thoughts, no, I Heard It Through The Grapevine had to be on it and that's 16th here. Or am I getting mixed up with Smoky Robinson and the Miracles? Whatever, Marvin Gaye was one of the best voices on the Tamla Motown label and his early death at the hands of his father a genuine tragedy for music.
Seeing as we're talking about R'n'B in the 60's sense of the phrase, Soul Music on the Stax label was a southern answer to it and nobody did it better than Aretha Franklin. I've got the odd track of hers on my Ipod but this 2-CD best of looks to be (as it hasn't arrive yet) from the track listing to be as good as you can get from this powerful singer.
Hmm, I've just noticed that all three of them have the 60's in common. So you can take the boy out of the 60's but you can't take the 60's out of the boy.
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