Band Plays on

Back Street Crawler, ??????????????? | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 13, 2004)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Wounded Bird Records
• ASIN: B0001XAQVE
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #169,297 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

While Paul Rodgers and Simon Kirke left Free for Swan Song/Atlantic's Bad Company, their ex-bandmate, the late Paul Kossoff, put together another group on Atlantic which sounded like...you guessed it...Bad Company. Terry Wilson-Slesser could easily be mistaken for Rodgers on so much of this album, be it the song "Jason Blue" or "It's a Long Way to the Top." This material is terrific sleeper stuff for the '70s hard rock genre, before Foreigner made that whole world much slicker. Where Lou Gramm could sometimes annoy, Back Street Crawler creates real hard rock art, taking this oh so seriously. The song "Jason Blue" is a powerful potion, one that would fit perfectly on a classic hits station, arguably one of the best tracks here. It is one of six compositions by Mike Montgomery, the major force on this album. Montgomery co-writes two additional tunes and sings lead on "All the Girls Are Crazy" and "Survivor," dueting with Terry Wilson-Slesser on "New York, New York" (a Mike Montgomery original, not the tune made famous by Liza Minelli and Frank Sinatra). And by the way, how many groups would have two guys named Terry Wilson in their band at the same time anyway? The more you play The Band Plays On, the more it grows on you. It is one of those albums that has enormous depth that can't be heard on the first spin or two. Sounding so much like Bad Company on the same label was no doubt a drawback -- the records showing up in the same section alphabetically at retail bins, their names so closely aligned, the unfortunate big difference for Back Street Crawler was no hit single emerging from this set. Mike Montgomery's vocal style on the excellent song "Survivor" isn't as gritty as Terry Slesser, nor as commercial. Slesser would leave after this project to be replaced by John "Rabbit" Bundrick on vocal, who similarly joined Free when they needed his talents to replace members moving on. "It's a Long Way Down to the Top" could be Bad Company performing "Ready for Love," down to the riff and the mood, but so many references to that band don't take away from the fact that this is a solid '70s blues-rock disc with hooks, top-notch production, and lots to offer. Wouldn't be surprised if somewhere down the road people started picking up on The Band Plays On, songs like "New York, New York," "It's a Long Way Down to the Top," and "Jason Blue" are ripe for being covered. ~ Joe Viglione, All Music Guide

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Paul Still Lives On, August 12, 2005

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Mad-Dog from Tulsa - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Band Plays on (Audio CD)

I bought this way back when there were only LP's not CD's, but the tone is still there ... sharp as a razor . Paul had a true style and sound that in time would have made him a full-blown "star". At times he could be somewhat sloppy, but not on "The Band Plays On". I believe he had one of the finest vibratos in rock ... he made a note sing ... something most guitarist never learn to do well. Paul was also an excellent rhythm player ... he is known for his lead playing but just listen to any of the songs on the CD ... the dude could play ... and he had a really great band to perform with, Back Street Crawler could have been a contender ... but fate had other ideas for Paul, sadly enough. This recording is 35 years old ... so it has a time stamped on it ... but this was how rock kicked butt in its day. And thanks to this CD, The Band Plays On ... and so does Paul Kossoff.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good first album, November 27, 2006

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chuck white (Lufkin, Tx) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Band Plays on (Audio CD)

Just as Ritchie Blackmore replaced the guitar player of Elf with himself and became Blackmores Rainbow. Paul kossoff replaces the guitar player from the band Bloontz, and renames the band Back Street Crawler. What a great move, I have the Bloontz LP and it was actually a good album, but with Kossoff playing the guitar, the band stepped up to Elite status. This is a really good album and Paul shows off his stuff with musicians other than the Free guys. If U like Blues U'll like this one.

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Solid album essential for Kossoff fans just don't expect something that sounds like Free, August 27, 2008

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WTDK "If at first the idea is not absurd, the... (My Little Blue Window, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Band Plays on (Audio CD)

The debut by Back Street Crawler "The Band Plays On" suffers from many of the same flaws as "Kossoff, Kirke, Tetsu, Rabbit"--the playing is terrific and some of the songs are quite good but lead vocalist Terry Wilson-Slesser is only adequate showing that voices like Paul Rodgers don't grow on trees. The mix of the album also buries the vocals which wouldn't be as much of a problem with a stronger lead vocalist.

allmusic mentions this album sounds a lot like Bad Company claiming that this explained why this failed to sell in large numbers. I don't know which album they were listening to but it wasn't "Back Street Crawler" because this sounds NOTHING like Free or Bad Company (and only shares the same rock-blues roots as Kossoff's previously band Free--half of which became Bad Company). Kossoff was a much better guitarist than Mick Ralphs but Bad Company had the advantage of two fairly prolific songwriters (Rodgers and Ralphs) who could write hooks and two occasional ones (Kirke and Boz Burrell)that could write solid material as well. Ironically, this album sounds more like early Mott the Hopple (which was the band that Rodgers recruited Ralphs from) with the original line up if it were fronted with a vocalist who sounded like Mick Ralphs but had the Dylanesque vocal mannerisms of Ian Hunter.

Mike Montgomery who wrote or co-wrote the bulk of the songs (and also provides a lead vocal or two)writes some nice material but unlike Free or even Bad Company, the songs lack the hooks to make the material work. Kossoff fans will find this essential though as he only recorded four albums outside of Free--the previously mentioned "Kossoff, Kirke, Tetsu, Rabbit", "Back Street Crawler" (his solo album not to be confused with this album "The Band Plays On") and "Second Street" (Backstreet Crawler continued on after Kossoff died changing their name to Crawler recording one album before disbanding).

Kossoff offers up some terrific playing on a number of tracks and that's the reason to pick up this album. Montgomery's songs are solid enough for Kossoff to hang some decorate blues guitar solos on while the rest of the band provides solid support.

This reissue by Wounded Bird was licensed from Rhino and is a flat transfer of the original album. The original mix was a bit murky to begin with and this self produced effort has much the same sound. This is a fine release and a solid album but those looking for something that sounds like Free or Bad Company are looking in the wrong place. This is essential for fans of Kossoff's fine guitar playing skills but it is far from a four or five star album.