Blues: The British Connection [Paperback]

Bob Brunning (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1987

Former Fleetwood Mac member Brunning charts how London shows by US Bluesmen like Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker—then forgotten at home—influenced a generation of British musicians from The Stones and The Animals to The Bluesbreakers and The Yardbirds. This led to huge Stateside 1970s success for blues-influenced British rock giants like Fleetwood Mac and Led Zeppelin and a renaissance of the U.S. blues scene.

"An engaging personal memoir."—Charles Shaar Murray

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Brunning has performed with blues bands since 1967 (when he broke in with Fleetwood Mac and Savoy Brown), which adds both authority and an insider's perspective to this excellent history of British blues. The early style changed after visits to the U.K. during the '50s by Muddy Waters and other Americans. Then came the '60s explosionAlexis Korner's Blues Incorporated, Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton, John Mayall, the Animals, Manfred Mann, the Spencer Davis Group, the Pretty Things and Ten Years After. Brunning traces events to the present, but his best chapters recount the pleasures, miseries and "eternal problems for white bands who worked with visiting American bluesmen." He recalls one conflict: "The only words Jimmy Witherspoon said to me during the three days' residency was when he walked over to me whilst we were on stage and said, 'Tell that f-----g guitar player to turn down, or I'll knock him off the stage.' " Brunning skillfully blends his own memories with those of many other British musicians; the result is an informative, energetic, entertaining, fast-paced survey.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Bob Brunning was the bass player in an early incarnation of Fleetwood Mac. Since then he has played in a vast array of blues bands, including many line-ups of his own recording and touring Deluxe Blues Band. He is also the author of Blues: The British Connection and Fleetwood Mac: Rumours and Lies

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Blandford Pr (April 1987)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0713718366
• ISBN-13: 978-0713718362
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,918,396 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Important Book from One Who Was There, December 13, 2003

By 

SF Sorrow (Laguna Hills, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Blues: The British Connection: The Stones, Clapton, Fleetwood Mac and the Story of Blues in Britain (Paperback)

As the original bassist for Fleetwood Mac and a former member of Savoy Brown, Brunning was in a unique position to observe the British Blues Movement exploding around him. Indeed, his own Brunning-Hall band (and Two-off project, Tramp) brought together some of the UK's brightest blues talents. Brunning uses these experiences plus numerous personal interviews to craft an engaging and frequently amusing account of this important (and frequently neglected) art form. I've gone through a couple of editions of this book and read each chapter several times. I recommend without hesitation.