J'ai hésité pour ce nouvel ADLS entre une dizaine d'albums. Pourquoi celui-ci ? Probablement pour la bonne humeur qu'il dégage, parce à part ça on ne peut pas dire qu'il en mette "plein l'ouïe". Il a juste son petit charme. Et puis, il fait court au moins. En tout cas, le son est tout à fait correct. Je cause pour ce que je fournis comme matos.
Alors, si le nom de Brinsley Schwarz ne vous dit rien, il s'agit d'un groupe rangé dans le genre pub rock dont il est identifié comme un des tous prems, sinon LE pionnier de la catégorie. Sa musique, avec une assez forte couleur country rock, peut faire penser à The Band (lire chapter "Pub Rock") ou aux Flamin' Groovies, donc des groupes tout à fait respectables. "Feel A Little Funky" présente une ambiance très J.J. Cale.
Ma petite forme pour cause de crève me pousse à abréger la présentation, et je présente mes excuses aux ceusses qui entravent pas trop la langue de Benny Hill.
Brinsley Schwarz - "Nervous on the Road" (1972)
A1 - "It´s Been So Long" (Ian Gomm)
A2 - "Happy Doing What We´re Doing" (Nick Lowe / Bob Andrews)
A3 - "Surrender To The Rhythm" (Nick Lowe)
A4 - "Don´t Loose Your Grip On Love" (Nick Lowe)
A5 - "Nervous On The Road (But Can`t Stay At Home)" (Nick Lowe)
B1 - "Feel A Little Funky" (Nick Lowe)
B2 - "I Like It Like That" (Chris Kenner / Allen Toussaint)
B3 - "Brand New You" (Nick Lowe)
B4 - "Home In My Hand" (Ronnie Self)
B5 - "Why, Why, Why, Why, Why" (Nick Lowe)
BSnotr
Brinsley Schwarz - Guitar, alto and tenor sax, vocals
Nick Lowe - Bass guitar, acoustic guitar, vocals
Ian Gomm - Guitars, vocals
Billy Rankin - drums
Bob Andrews - Keyboards, alto sax, vocals
Engineers – Kingsley "Magic Fingers" Ward, Ralph Down
Producers – Brinsley Schwarz, Dave Robinson, Kingsley Ward
Recorded at Rockfield Studios
Artwork – Jet Powers - Design – Main Artery
Formation
Nick Lowe (bass, guitars, vocals) and Brinsley Schwarz (guitar, piano, vocals) originally met at Woodbridge School where they played in school bands with Barry Landerman (keyboards, vocals) and Phil Hall (guitar). In 1964, whilst still at school, they toured RAF bases in Germany as "Sounds 4+1". On leaving school, Schwarz formed "Three's A Crowd" with Pete Whale (drums) and Dave Cottam (bass). Landerman joined in 1967 and they renamed themselves Kippington Lodge. Their first two singles, produced by Mark Wirtz, in a close-harmony pop style, both flopped. Cottam left, and Schwarz invited Lowe to join. Landerman then left to join Vanity Fare, Bob Andrews joined on keyboards, and finally, Whale was replaced by Billy Rankin on drums. Although the next three singles also failed, they had a residency as support band at The Marquee. The band's style was changing from pop into "a folk-rock band with psychedelic pretentions". In 1969 they renamed the band after their guitarist, and performed their new music under this name, whilst continuing to play pop as Kippington Lodge. One of the band's first managers, John Schofield, was at the time the lover of Hattie Jacques (who would occasionally make bacon sandwiches for the band members when they visited Schofield's home). In the early part of their career the band shared a communal home in a large old house in Beaconsfield and these premises were used as a rehearsal space by The Band, who came to the UK as part of the Warner Brothers tour. The Band borrowed Brinsley Schwarz's instruments to rehearse.
The hype
Brinsley Schwarz signed a contract with manager Dave Robinson, of Famepushers, who devised a plan to earn the band extensive publicity. They were to open for Van Morrison and Quicksilver Messenger Service at the Fillmore East in New York City, on 3 and 4 April 1970. Robinson would fly a plane full of British journalists to the show, so they could review it, along with the winners of a Melody Maker competition, arranged in order to get pre-publicity. Though the band had planned on leaving a few days early, so they could rehearse, visa problems prevented this, so they went to Canada and entered the US in a light aircraft. They arrived in New York shortly before they were due on stage, and had to use hired equipment with which they were unfamiliar. The journalists were due the following day, but their plane was delayed for four hours, so they had free use of the bar, and eventually arrived at the show either drunk or hung over.[citation needed] The show did not go over well, and the band received a flood of negative reviews over the following weeks, including bad reviews of their eponymous first album, Brinsley Schwarz which was released shortly after their return to the United Kingdom. This incident became known as the Brinsley Schwarz Hype.
Pub-rock
Later in 1970, Brinsley Schwarz released their second album, Despite It All, which had a definite country sound to it. They were heavily influenced by Eggs over Easy, who they first saw perform at 'The Tally Ho' in Kentish Town, and admired their laid-back style and extensive repertoire. In 1971, guitarist Ian Gomm joined the band, and they recorded their third album Silver Pistol. In response to "the hype", they became anti-commercial and spent much of 1971 rehearsing, although they toured on the Downhome Rhythm Kings package with Help Yourself & Ernie Graham (ex Eire Apparent), who were all managed by Dave Robinson. This led to them backing Ernie Graham on his eponymous solo album.
Brinsley Schwarz played at the second Glastonbury Festival (1971), and one track, "Love Song", appeared on the subsequent Glastonbury Fayre album. Their solid live performances soon garnered the band a large fanbase in London, Brinsley Schwarz were soon dubbed "pub rock" by rock journalists. They sounded rather like The Band, with Schwarz's guitar work influenced greatly by Robbie Robertson's. In February 1972 they supported Hawkwind and Man at the Greasy Truckers Party, which was issued as a double album, and brought critical acclaim. Unfortunately, for a band known for its live performances, this was their only live album.
1972's ironic take on country-rock, Nervous on the Road, also received excellent reviews. It did not reach the charts, but earned them a UK tour, opening for Paul McCartney's Wings. The same year, they also acted as Frankie Miller's band for his debut album Once in a Blue Moon. Their fifth studio album Please Don't Ever Change, issued in 1973, was less well received by the critics, and achieved poor sales. However during this time they made successful appearances on The Old Grey Whistle Test with Lowe on guitar and vocals, Gomm on bass and Schwarz on piano alongside Andrews on keyboard and recorded sessions for John Peel's BBC Radio 1 show. In 1974 they arranged for Dave Edmunds to produce their sixth album The New Favourites of... Brinsley Schwarz which was more polished, and again received good reviews. This association also led to their touring as Dave Edmunds' backing band, appearing on the live tracks of his Subtle as a Flying Mallet album. In addition to the albums, Brinsley Schwarz also issued a series of singles under their own name, and various pseudonyms, such as "The Hitters", "The Knees", "Limelight" and "The Brinsleys" but these all failed. They finally disbanded in 1975.
Brinsley Schwarz played at the second Glastonbury Festival (1971), and one track, "Love Song", appeared on the subsequent Glastonbury Fayre album. Their solid live performances soon garnered the band a large fanbase in London, Brinsley Schwarz were soon dubbed "pub rock" by rock journalists. They sounded rather like The Band, with Schwarz's guitar work influenced greatly by Robbie Robertson's. In February 1972 they supported Hawkwind and Man at the Greasy Truckers Party, which was issued as a double album, and brought critical acclaim. Unfortunately, for a band known for its live performances, this was their only live album.
1972's ironic take on country-rock, Nervous on the Road, also received excellent reviews. It did not reach the charts, but earned them a UK tour, opening for Paul McCartney's Wings. The same year, they also acted as Frankie Miller's band for his debut album Once in a Blue Moon. Their fifth studio album Please Don't Ever Change, issued in 1973, was less well received by the critics, and achieved poor sales. However during this time they made successful appearances on The Old Grey Whistle Test with Lowe on guitar and vocals, Gomm on bass and Schwarz on piano alongside Andrews on keyboard and recorded sessions for John Peel's BBC Radio 1 show. In 1974 they arranged for Dave Edmunds to produce their sixth album The New Favourites of... Brinsley Schwarz which was more polished, and again received good reviews. This association also led to their touring as Dave Edmunds' backing band, appearing on the live tracks of his Subtle as a Flying Mallet album. In addition to the albums, Brinsley Schwarz also issued a series of singles under their own name, and various pseudonyms, such as "The Hitters", "The Knees", "Limelight" and "The Brinsleys" but these all failed. They finally disbanded in 1975.
Wikipedia
Ian Gomm was named "Best Rhythm Guitarist" by NME in 1971
