Outside Woman Blues

James McCarty | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 2, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Silica
• ASIN: B000069RMY
• Also Available in: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #26,395 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #87 in Music > Indie Music > Blues > General

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Blues You Can Use, September 2, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Outside Woman Blues (Audio CD)

If someone wrote a book about British blues-rock and failed to mention Jim McCarty, the book would have a gaping hole. McCarty was the Yardbirds' original drummer, and failing to mention him would be like not mentioning Cream's Ginger Baker or Led Zeppelin's John Bonham. The Yardbirds weren't strictly a blues-rock band; many of their songs favored a haunting, quasi-Gregorian outlook. But blues-rock was an important part of what they did, and McCarty's blues-rock side dominates Outside Woman Blues. This 2002 release finds the drummer leading a quartet that is billed as the Jim McCarty Blues Band, which also includes guitarist/singer John Idan and ex-members of Mott the Hoople (guitarist/singer Ray Majors) and the Strawbs (bassist Rod Demick). Not everything on this CD is blues-rock; "Lawyers, Guns and Money," for example, is '70s-style arena rock, while the moody "Heart's Not in It" is Police-like reggae-rock. But Outside Woman Blues favors blues-rock more often than not, and all of the material is solid - that is true of the studio recordings that dominate the disc as well as a few hidden live tracks at the end (including performances of "Train Kept a Rollin'" and the Yardbirds' "Heart Full of Soul"). Overall, the sound could be described as London by way of Chicago (as in Chess Records, Muddy Waters, Willie Dixon, and Little Walter) and Detroit (as in John Lee Hooker). Is Outside Woman Blues groundbreaking? Hardly. But then, it isn't supposed to be; this CD is meant to be faithful to McCarty's history. Although not in a class with the best work that the Yardbirds, Cream, or Ten Years After had to offer, it's a solid effort that will appeal to die-hard fans of classic British blues-rock.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Jim's rediscovered his blues roots, July 3, 2002

By 

Richard E. Barnes "Avalonrick" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Outside Woman Blues (Audio CD)

The CD is great. I think it is some of Jim's best work since Shoot. This band was a killer live unit. Their version of Cream's "Outside Woman Blues" with absolutely dead nuts on guitar tone makes you forget about how bad Eric's last cd was.
Walkin Thru The Back Streets is another burner. Other highlights are Black Hearted Woman, Heavy Weather,Lawyers,Guns & Money and Slow Driver. This is a disc that cries out to be have it Play it loud! This release makes you want to hear more from this line up consisting of Jim McCarty-drums/vocals John Idan-guitar/vocals ,Ray Majors (Mott/British Lions) -guitar/vocals and Rod Demick (Strawbs)-bass/harmonica.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars OUTSIDE WOMAN RAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!, July 7, 2002

By 

MARC WIARD (Kingman Kansas USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Outside Woman Blues (Audio CD)

I was a late comer to the Yardbirds (about 10 years ago), and have avidly sought out anything related to this group since then. This release captures the spirit of the Yardbirds in their finest hours. The cover of Cream's Title track is fantastic !!! This is every bit as good as the original version. Jim and the band are tight and precise on this whole disc. Every song is well worthy of a good listen, but IMO the true treats are:
Outside Woman Blues, Walkin' Through the Back Streets,Lawyers Guns and Money, and Slow Driver. Jim may have aged in years, but like a fine wine, has only become better. John Idan, Ray Majors, and Rod Demick round out this foursome, and go out and prove that R&R is still very much ALIVE and KICKIN'!!! Do yourself a huge favor and buy this disc. After the first song (Outside Woman)you'll be adding this to your favorites list and listening to it repeatedly. LONG LIVE ROCK AND ROLL---------OUTSIDE WOMAN BLUES RAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!