Customer Reviews

Jumping at Shadows: The Blues Years

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This one is absolutely great. I buy all Mac and Peter Green releases (and between Mick and Peter they have been dredging the vaults and churning out the releases lately.....). I wasn't expecting much from this one but was very pleasantly surprised. I must say that the first two tracks (from the opening night of the Boston Tea Party concerts) really set me back.....extremely nice....then there is a great depth of guitar work showcases....36 in all.....that give a wonderful exhibition of what Peter Green was all about in those "blues" years.....as if the blues didn't drive Mac and all of Green's work over the years.

Although everything is here....Black Magic Woman, Jumping At Shadows, Oh Well, Green Manalishi, Rattlesnake Shake, Long Grey Mare.....don't buy this for the well known pieces, this one is for those who want to see exactly how Green drove one of the greatest bands in its best years.

Fans of 60's & 70's British, White-Boy Blues bands like John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Savoy Brown, Ten Years After and The Yardbirds need to look no further for the summit of the genre's Mount Olympus. If you see "Fleetwood Mac" an expect Stevie Nicks and AOR orientated pop music, just hit the back button on your browser now. This is not your sister's Fleetwood Mac & Peter Green wasn't called the "Green God" for nothing. Green is arguably the best "white" blues guitarists ever, heck one of the best blues guitarist ever, period! There is not a weak track in the lot; and the sound is very good. So if you enjoy the @ss-kickin' blues of Kim Simmonds, Alvin Lee, Eric Clapton, Mick Taylor etc...you owe it to yourself to get this album ASAP. There is absolutely no way you will regret it.

This is THE set to own if you wish to get a taste of what the early Mac were all about.
Danny Kirwan and Jeremy Spencer were certainly talented musicians, good singers and great guitarists, John McVie was a really solid bassist, and Mick Fleetwood was a fabulous drummer, but the true power behind the band was the phenomenally gifted Peter Green.
To hear the young Peter Green sing and play with such skill and feeling is to truly experience joy. There are so many great tunes on the two disks that it would take too much space to discuss them all. Suffice it to say that if you like blues, and are open to the idea of young white British guys playing blues, then this collection is for you. There simply were and are no better blues guitarists than Peter Green. And his singing is every bit as great as his playing. You would get no argument from Clapton or anyone else about this.
Pete and I are the same age; I am glad he is "back" and playing the blues again. One of the biggest disappointments of my life came in about 1969. I was eagerly awaiting the band's upcoming concert at The Tyrone Guthrie Theatre in Mpls. They hit the West Coast first, where Jeremy fell prey to some religious fanatics, and then Pete as well (this may not be exactly what happened), and then the band cancelled all of the remaining shows.
After an eternity Pete has resurfaced. I wish him the best. He appeared in the Scorsese blues series, but alas, did not play. At least Beck (Jeff) played.

B.B. said Pete was the only other blues guitarist who could make shivers go up and down his spine. High praise. Without a doubt one of the greatest, most soulful blues players ever. It simply doesn't get any better than this.

The music of course is wonderful; my complaint is with Castle reissues in general; why is it that Rhino does such a great job listing recording dates etc., but on Castle reissues one is left to guess? There are so many versions of early Fleetwood Mac songs available, it would be nice to know which is which.

I just received this cd today, put it in the machine and listened to some beautiful, smooth, smooth blues from one of the greats. In fact, Peter Green may BE the greatest among all the "white-boy" bluesmen. This year, the 100th year anniversary of "The Blues", I would recommend this as a great starter introduction into the genre of "white-boy" blues along with Johnny Winter's "Progressive Blues Experiment" album. The material in this compilation is well layed-out and diverse so that each next track is a refreshment from the previous track, while the previous track leaves you yearning for more.
Truly a masterpiece of music by a true master of the guitar.

As a major peter green fan I picked up this double cd with some trepidation. I already had most of this on vinyl or other cd's. Well I was wrong in that view. The cuts seemed to have been culled and curried and the real fleetwood mac surfaced. The vocals were spot on and peter and company sounded like they meant it . Yes peter someone does really give a damn for you. You are the spark and the true purveayor of blues that some of the great early english bands were for a short time before commercial condsiderations crept in. One gauntlet for you other folks, Peter Green is the best blues hound to be found , sorry eric and jimmie and jeff beck is more profound than that .Peter Green knew what Robert Johnson saw that night down on Hwy 61 he has lived with the hellhounds on his trail!

This collection appears to be an attempt to bridge the gap between the casual Fleetwood Mac fan who didn't know they ever played blues...and the obsessives who feel the Blue Horizon box set represents the pinnacle of the band's achievement. While the box set is overkill on a nuclear scale, two discs is still more than really needed to get the best of Green together when a CD can hold 80 minutes of material.

Here, You get material previously found on the "Mr. Wonderful","Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac", and "Then Play On" albums, some period singles, and some tracks heard in different versions on the double disc "Fleetwood Mac Live in Chicago".

The material that best acquits itself is usually the tunes the band wrote for itself. "Oh Well","Jumpin' at Shadows" and "Black Magic Woman" are revelatory here in live versions, revealing that most of the Green era's magic came in concert, not in the studio. "World in Harmony" proves to be one of the more tuneful and interesting instrumentals the early unit put out. "Green Manalishi" is tough and an early version of the single "Man of the World" sounds crisper here. (Presumably, the master for the single has deterioarated over time..it sounds very hissy.) 2 of the songs also found on "Live in Chicago" ("Talk to me Baby" AKA "I Can't Hold Out","Like it This way") sound better in more guitar oriented versions without the piano/horn clutter.

On the 2nd disc, highlights are "Blues in B Flat Minor" (this later became "Before the Beginning" on "Then Play On"), slide workout "Coming, I'm Coming" and "Stranger Blues" in a live rendition with plenty of screaming slide from Jeremy Spencer. "Rattlesnake Shake" is also great.

Unfortunately, Spencer is mostly responsible for the disc's lowest points (overbearing vocals on Elmore James' "The Sun is Shining" and Otis Rush's "I Have to Laugh"). The live cut of "Coming Your Way" from "Then Play On" suffers from a poor vocal mix. Many of the blues chestnuts covered by the band here are just not inspiring.

The set also is missing several important recordings from the Green era, 2 time single hit instrumental "Albatross", Kirwan's "Although the Sun is Shining" and "Like Crying", and Spencer's take on James' "Dust my Broom".

Had those been added to the highlights above, you come out with a 5 star 15 track overview. But as released, it tends to make the case AGAINST Green era Mac. The best Peter Green era CD is still "Then Play On".

Peter Green really shines on this CD. This CD has many rare tracks but it also gives a nice overview and introduction to the sound of this era of Mac. Peter Green had a real great singing voice. He was a great and unique songwriter. And he could play guitar on par with any of the 60s guitar gods. His touch, phrasing and tone will turn on any blues lover.

This is the one Fleetwood Mac album that cover's Green's playing from all angles. It's lean on the "Jeremy Spencer plays Elmore James" cops which are a essential in the general scheme of things. But the party here is about Green. It's a great overview to his playing. The sound quality does vary (bass heavy at times), but the rewards are so great that it's hardly an issue.

Super Blues---------I only wish that the album cover was the one pictured--it's not. That's a small thing--get the CD for the great sounds--blues lovers won't be disappointed.