Latest Edition [Import]

John Mayall | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 12, 2009)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: LEMON RECORDS
• ASIN: B001SGFA6Y
• Also Available in: Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #192,790 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Gasoline Blues

2. Perfect Peace

3. Going to Take My Time

4. Deep Down Feelings

5. Troubled Times

6. The Pusher Man

7. One of the Few

8. Love Song

9. Little Kitten

10. A Crazy Game

Editorial Reviews

Digitally remastered reissue of this album from the British Blues icon. The title makes a virtue of necessity, as John Mayall introduces another new line-up Two guitarists, High Tide Harris and Randy Resnick, lead the band in more of an up-tempo R&B style than has been used in much of Mayall's music during the past several years, starting with the timely 'Gasoline Blues' (1974 was the year of the gas lines, remember?) and going on to 'Troubled Times' (which advises impeaching President Nixon). For the first time on CD this sought after John Mayall album is available, endorsed a by John himself, and he has contributed a new interview for the notes. Lemon. 2009.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars One of Mayall's Weakest, June 30, 2009

By 

Kurt Harding "bon vivant" (Boerne TX) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Latest Edition (Audio CD)

The Latest Edition is one of the many mid-70s John Mayall releases that fizzled out and disappeared unlamented soon after their initial appearances. I never saw or heard this before even though in 1974 I was already a fairly avid consumer of music. But as soon as I heard this reissue, I understood why.
This CD is one of the worst and weakest Mayall albums I have ever had the displeasure of hearing. There are a couple worse but their names escape my memory. Unmemorable is a good way to characterize both the music, which injects unsavory elements of funk and disco into the blues style Mayall is famous for, and the line-up, most of whose names would likely leave the most rabid Mayall completeists scratching their heads.
There are a lot of lame tunes here. It doesn't help that the worst one, Gasoline Blues, opens the album. Musically, it is so bad that it helps to sour the listener on almost everything that follows. The best song is The Pusher Man, a preachy anti-drug song as only Mayall could write one. That is followed in quality by the only real wailing blues cut, A Crazy Game. Perfect Peace and Troubled Times are just OK, but beyond those four is a musical void.
The CD comes with an insert that features a picture of the band and some rather poorly edited commentary. If you are determined to try to become a Mayall completeist, then you are going to want to get Latest Edition no matter what I say. But my advice to those not so driven is to steer far away from this one.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars review, October 16, 2010

By 

Scott Blackerby (Reston, Virginia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Latest Edition (Vinyl)

I'm hard pressed to think of a modern artist with as extensive a recording catalog as bluesman John Mayall. The thing that makes it even more amazing is the fact so much of his catalog is pedestrian, if not outright dull. Not that I don't enjoy a good blues rock album on occasion, but can you imagine trying to wade through the length of Mayall's 50 year catalog? Take issue with those comments? Well I challenge you to slog your way through 1974's "The Latest Edition". Co-produced by Tom Wilson and Eirik the Norwegian (?), this time out the album featured all original Mayall material. Backed by yet another new lineup (by my count this was line up number 24 - hence the flippant title), there really wasn't much of interest this time out. Blues remained Mayall's raison d'etre, but this time around he seemed interested in expanding the audience with a couple of more mainstream numbers - check out 'Going To Take Me Time', 'One of the Few' and 'Love Songs'. The results were okay ... not his best, not his worst.

- I'm assuming 'Gasoline Blues' was inspired by the mid-1970s OPEC oil shock. Slightly more rock-ish than your typical Mayall effort, it was also mildly funny (unless you were sitting in a line at a gas station waiting to fill up your tank). On the other hand the humor's probably lost on anyone younger than 50. rating: ** stars
- Mayall's never been the most overwhelming vocalist and on 'Perfect Peace' he sounded positively ghastly. Barely in tune, you were left to wonder whether he'd actually make it through the song. Shame since the song was actually pretty good with some nice lead guitar from Hightide Harris and Randy Resnick. rating: *** stars
- 'Going To Take Me Time' found Mayall and company taking a stab at getting funky ... Yeah, funk clearly wasn't Mayall's forte, but I'll give him credit for trying. In spite of Mayall's harmonica solo, the result was actually one of the album's more enjoyable tracks. rating: *** stars
- A standard country-blues number with Mayall sounding like his hand was caught in a vice, 'Deep Down Feelings' opened up with some stunning acoustic slide guitar from Harris. That guitar saved the track and actually made it one of the album's standout performances. rating: **** stars
- Ah, Mayall taking a stab at social commentary ... hum, a song that covers the waterfront from Richard Nixon's impeachment to rising crime rates. Well, I guess the sentiments in 'Troubled Times' are just as applicable today as they were in 1974. Mayall's tinkling keyboards were pretty funny to hear. rating: ** stars
- Wow, funk and social commentary ... Yeah, 'The Pusher Man' wasn't the most subtle anti-drug song you've ever heard, but you had to give him credit for taking a stand on an issue few musicians were willing to touch. Also kudos to Mayall for writing some rather graphic lyrics detailing the dangers associated with illicit drugs. rating: ** stars
- 'One of the Few' was an oddity in Mayall's catalog - namely an out-and-out stab at a pop song. Different and oddly intriguing though it would have been even better without the extended Red Holloway sax solo. rating: *** stars
- 'Love Songs' was a surprisingly mainstream ballad with a pretty guitar solo and some surprisingly tasteful Mayall keyboards, though Mayall simply didn't have the commercial voice to ultimately pull it off. rating: ** stars
- Another up-tempo blues effort, had a decent chorus, but it wasn't enough to make up for the rest of the songs plodding structure. rating: ** stars
- To my ears 'A Crazy Game' was the album's best track. Powered by a cool Larry Taylor bass line and some of Mayall's best harmonica, the result was an energetic and slightly funky effort, with Mayall and company actually sounding like they had fun recording the track. rating: **** stars

Hey, at least the cast on Mayall's leg was pretty cool !

A commercial disappointment, the album failed to chart in the States and also spelled the end to Mayall's longstanding relationship with Polydor. His next album saw him signed by ABC.

"The Latest Edition" track listing:
(side 1)
1.) Gasoline Blues (John Mayall) - 3:41
2.) Perfect Peace (John Mayall) - 3:50
3.) Going To Take Me Time (John Mayall) - 2:55
4.) Deep Down Feelings (John Mayall) - 4:42
5.) Troubled Times (John Mayall) - 4:11

(side 2)
1.) The Pusher Man (John Mayall) - 4:05
2.) One of the Few (John Mayall) - 2:44
3.) Love Songs (John Mayall) - 5:39
4.) Little Kitten (John Mayall) - 2:35
5.) A Crazy Game (John Mayall) - 4:35

5.0 out of 5 stars A FINE MIX OF SOUL BLUES FUNKY AND GREAT SONGWRITING TOO!, December 1, 2010

By 

New Kid In Town - See all my reviews

This review is from: Latest Edition (Audio CD)

I`m sorry but I have to totally disagree with other reviews here...I bought this vinyl when I was 15 and loved it since then...unlike most Mayall works this is not a sheer collection of 12 bar blues.....but figures a bunch of great compositions finely tuned and arranged by some amazing musicians, a mix of soul and funk, and blues of course.... that merge into a much more creative and pleasent work than most mayall. I love the whole atmosphere in this LP you can really feel its been produced back in the 70`s in Los Angeles, the ocean, the traffic jams, the highways and the magalopoly are all there...the whole funky feel that this lp has make it stand out from all previous Mayall production, and I like it expecially because there is an attempt in resulting a more commercial work , even though it failed to be a success this is a real SUPERROCKSTAR work, You are goin to Love it! just put on Love song sit back and enjoy or possibly make love to someone while listening to this track...it lasts about 5 minutes so there`s time enough for a nice one:-)