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I purchased this cd from a local music store close to where I live. I bought this purly on faith because there were no samples of the songs on the cd, the only reason I bought this cd was because of my liking of Jimmy Page. When I put in the cd I was impressed with the variety of songs on the cd. The short lived but extremely powerful guitar solo in Leave my Kitten alone. The other great guitar solos in the rest of the songs, and just hearing Jimmy Page playing before the Yardbirds and Zeppelin. Overall this is a cd worth buying if you are a diehard Jimmy Page enthusiest.

Excluding releases by the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, Sanctuary Records is almost single handedly keeping the British music scene of the 1960s alive in the new millenium. Their release of various compilation CDs, often including some long forgotten gems by long forgotten groups, is to be commmended. One of their more interesting releases from 2001 is this sampling of various solo artists and groups that Jimmy Page played guitar with as a session musician during the mid-1960s. If you ever wondered what Jimmy Page did pre-Yardbirds and Led Zeppelin, here's your chance to hear early recordings to which he contributed. There are the expected blues numbers, but also a few pop tunes, e.g., "The In Crowd" by The First Gear and he does some acoustic work with Nico (later of the Velvet Underground), as well. Sometimes Page simply strums a rhythm guitar but, more often than not, he plays lead guitar and some of the solos are remarkable, considering when they were recorded. Just listen to "Leave My Kitten Alone" by The First Gear and you'll hear a short, but blistering guitar solo that was years ahead of its time (recorded in 1964).

The major notable omission on this CD is Page's work with Donovan, probably absent due to the rights being owned by another record company. Also, the two tracks that Page recorded with Eric Clapton are, according to the informative notes in the CD inlay, nothing more than a home-recorded jam session that wasn't intended for commercial release. These minor quibbles aside, this CD succeeds on two levels. First, it's a great showcase for Page's early session work, and it also succeeds in reviving largely forgotten music from the British 1960s. Recommended.

Track Listings - Castle Select Label
1. See You Later Alligator - Wayne Gibson
2. A Certain Girl - The First Gear
3. Leave My Kitten Alone - The First Gear
4. Help Me - The Primitives
5. Let Them Tell - The Primitives
6. Well Sing In The Sunshine - The Lancastrians
7. Was She Tall - The Lancastrians
8. The In Crowd - The First Gear
9. The Bells Of Rhymney - The Fifth Avenue
10. Im Not Sayin - Nico
11. The Last Mile - Nico
12. She Belongs To Me - The Masterminds
13. Im Your Witch Doctor - John Mayalls Bluesbreakers
14. Telephone Blues - John Mayalls Bluesbreakers
15. The World Keeps Going Round - The Lancastrians
16. Circles - Les Fleurs De Lys
17. So Come On - Les Fleurs De Lys
18. Moanin - Chris Farlowe
19. Choker - Eric Clapton And Jimmy Page
20. Freight Loader - Eric Clapton And Jimmy Page