Customer Reviews

Bring It Home

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This CD marks the return of Kim Simmonds to his blues roots. The guitar work is masterful, the songs excellent. The vocalist will remind the faithful strongly of Chris Youlden. A guest appearance by Hubert Sumlin on "Shake For Me" is a highlight. And the version of John Lee Hooker's "Little Wheel" is the finest boogie ever to come out of this band. Not just for fans, this is a fine performance by any standard, and a real validation/celebration of 70's style British blues.

The other reviews are pretty accurate, but I wanted to add that Lonesome Dave of Foghat fame makes a guest appearance singing High On Your Love. As all good Savoy Brown fans know, Lonesome Dave was SB's original rhythm guitarist in the 60s and sang lead vocals on Looking In and the live side of Blue Matter.

This album came out when almost nobody was playing this type of music anymore, right in the middle of grunge, it was like manna from heaven for my ears!

Released in 1994, Bring It Home marks the beginning of the end of the long dry spell for Kim Simmonds and Savoy Brown. Like Rip Van Winkle, just reawakened from a 20-year sleep (for Simmonds, it was probably about 4-5 years), the band wavers and wobbles, trying to find it's sea legs, but ultimately delivers the goods with the aid of a longtime friend known as Dr. Boogie. "Mr. Brown's Boogie" and "Little Wheel" are the highpoints of the album, rolling down the highway at ninety miles a minute, proof that Kim is once again capable of righteous boogie! Boogie!!! Frontman Pete McMahon is in fine form throughout, especially on "Sweet Loving Thing," where he notes wryly, "She makes my soda water sing..." Too much! Kim's guitar work, still blistering, has now begun to take on the almost delicate subtleties that make later albums "The Blues Keep Me Holding On" and "Strange Dream" so special. His muse, however, is not quite 100% back yet; many songs on the album are a little generic and must be classified good, not great. Example: While McMahon delivers a fine performance on "Your In For a Big Surprise," it's clear that Kim has about run the "rich man vs poor man" theme into the ground; he has yet to improve on "Money Can't Save Your Soul," the shimmering track from Looking In that, for my money, is the first and last word on the subject. However, there is still good blues and boogie to be had, so you may want to give Bring it Home a listen, and even take it home if you so desire. Boogie!!!

Kim Simmonds may be a little over rated as a guitar player--although he can be excellent when he puts his mind to it--there is no doubt in my mind that he is the very best blues, blues rock, and rock n' roll songwriter. (He's very good with pop: see his KINGS OF BOOGIE release.) While others use the same old rhythm, Kim changes them to make the songs more interesting. Simmonds is pretty good with words: makes them catchy. BRING IT HOME may be his best, although I miss the nice organ on his early stuff. On the composing, he does have help from Pete McMahon, the singer and harmonica player. There's some standards, but the ones I like the most are: sweet loving thing, misery, pack it up, worried man, you're in for a big surprise, and, that's what love will do. I count 6. A few jump/boogie tunes, and a slow blues, basically, round out the lineup. The sound could be better. McMahon does a good job on the vocals. For a new or old fan, you can't go wrong with this one.