Roger the Engineer

Yardbirds | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 11, 1997)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Warner Bros / Wea
• ASIN: B000002MTT
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (34 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #184,522 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Lost Woman

2. Over, Under, Sideways, Down

3. The Nazz Are Blue

4. I Can't Make Your Way

5. Rack My Mind

6. Farewell

7. Hot House of Omagarashid

8. Jeff's Boogie

9. He's Always There

10. Turn Into Earth

11. What Do You Want

12. Ever Since the World Began

13. Psycho Daisies

14. Happenings Ten Years Time Ago

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

England's Yardbirds were often overlooked in favor of other bands from the heyday of the British Invasion, but their legacy has loomed large decades after their demise. After all, they fostered the careers of Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Jimmy Page, and bands such as Renaissance, Cream, Led Zeppelin, Blind Faith, and the Jeff Beck Group. After cutting their teeth as faithful, if energetic, blues revivalists on live albums and a handful of singles, they cut this, their first real studio album, in 1966. Taking their cue from previous singles like the Gregorian-influenced "Still I'm Sad" and the future-shocker "Shapes of Things," the 'Birds produced what remains one of blues-rock's most progressive and distinctive albums--and one that, remarkably, was never initially released in the U.S. in its original form. Veering sharply from Beck's classic riffing on the rollicking "Over Under Sideways Down," the band explores broad palettes of style and hue, be it the more traditional blues of "Lost Woman," neomedieval turns ("Ever Since the World Began," "Turn into Earth"), strange psychedelia ("Hot House of Omagarashid"), or showcases for Beck's playful, pioneering fret work ("Jeff's Boogie"). As an added bonus, both sides of the band's sonically apocalyptic single "Happenings Ten Years Time Ago"/"Psycho Daisies" (with the rare twin-lead guitar lineup of Beck and Jimmy Page) are also included. An album as enjoyable as it is historically influential. --Jerry McCulley

Product Description

The Yardbirds are often overlooked in favor of other bands from the heyday of the British Invasion, but their legacy has loomed large decades after their demise. After all, they fostered the careers of Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Jimmy Page, and bands such as Renaissance, Cream, Led Zeppelin, Blind Faith, and the Jeff Beck Group. After cutting their teeth as faithful, if energetic, blues revivalists on live albums and a handful of singles, they cut this, their first real studio album, in 1966. The Yardbirds produced what remains one of blues-rock s most progressive and distinctive albums - and one that, remarkably, was never initially released in the U.S. in its original form. Veering sharply from Beck s classic riffing on the rollicking Over Under Sideways Down, the band explores broad palettes of style and hue, be it the more traditional blues of Lost Woman, neomedieval turns ( Ever Since the World Began, Turn into Earth ), strange psychedelia ( Hot House of Omagarashid ), or showcases for Beck s playful, pioneering fret work ( Jeff s Boogie ). As an added bonus, both sides of the band s sonically apocalyptic single Happenings Ten Years Time Ago / Psycho Daisies (with the rare twin-lead guitar lineup of Beck and Jimmy Page) are also included. An album as enjoyable as it is historically influential.
This release of Roger The Engineer includes both the stereo and radically different mono versions of the album, along with 7 bonus tracks. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Half Blues-Rock Rave-Ups/Half Psychedelic Experimentation, April 2, 2000

By 

Steve Vrana (Aurora, NE) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Roger the Engineer (Audio CD)

Only recently made available stateside, this is the only Yardbirds' album to feature all original material. The standout track is the No. 13 hit "Over, Under, Sideways, Down" propelled by Jeff Beck's cutting lead guitar. Equally impressive are blues-derived numbers like "Lost Woman," "The Nazz Are Blue," "Jeff's Boogie" and "Psycho Daisies," one of only two tracks to feature both Jeff Beck AND Jimmy Page (on bass). The other track is "Happenings Ten Years Time Ago," which features Beck and Page both on guitar. It would be the band's last U.S. hit (#30 in 1966), and its psychedlic quality was representative of many songs on the album. There's the slightly trippy "I Can't Make Your Way," the mantra-like vocal and stinging lead guitar of "Hot House of Omagarashid," the chanting vocal of "Turn Into Earth." While the band's experimentations in the studio were not all successes, other than Rhino's greatest hits package, this is the one complete Yardbirds album to own. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Possibly The Greatest Blues/Rock Album Ever Made, November 18, 2003

By 

Josh H. (Toledo, Oh (USA)) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Roger the Engineer (Audio CD)

The Yardbirds were probably the greatest British blues band that ever lived. Nothing against other greats like The Stones and Cream, but there's just something about The Yardbirds' music that inevitably puts them above BOTH of those bands.
Look at "Turn Into Earth" for instance. It's my favorite Yardbirds song, and there's just something about it that HAUNTS ME TO DEATH. It is the most eerie, mystifying song that I have ever heard. I get feelings that I just can't put into words when I listen to it. It's quite similar to "Still I'm Sad" from a year earlier, but even MORE haunting. It's so dark that it practically sounds like a funeral song. How they managed to write something like this I'll never understand.
And the blues numbers are killer too. The rumbling bass on "Lost Woman" (hats off to Samwell-Smith) is totally fantastic. "Over Under Sideways Down" became a hit for the band, and it isn't hard to see why, with Jeff Beck's piercing guitar line (he also played bass on this one). And speaking of Jeff, he even gets to sing on "The Nazz Are Blue", the only song that he ever sang in his entire career (as far as I know). His voice is nothing to marvel at, but when it comes time for his guitar solo, all I can say is WOW. The guy rips into those blues licks in a way that just leaves you speechless. Slowhand who?
Then there's the ultra-catchy "I Can't Make Your Way", which is about as British as you can get. This one will be stuck in your head for a long, long time, I guarantee it. "Rackin' My Mind" is cool. The verses are really tame and quiet, and then all of a sudden, they change gears and it gets really intense, with some ferocious licks from Beck. This is the stuff that legends are made of, ladies and gentlemen. "Farewell" is a shimmering slice of Heaven. The lyrics may be somewhat depressing, but that glorious piano and Relf's wonderful vocals (and lyrics) make it a masterpiece. And it's only two minutes long! "Hot House Of Omagarashid" is just a throw-away, the only weak song on the album. Jeff Beck gets his own jazz guitar instrumental with "Jeff's Boogie", a swingin' little tune that will get your feet movin' in no time. "He's Always There" and "What Do You Want" are two EXCELLENT rockers, and "Ever Since The World Began" is very unique. I mean, it starts out so evil and devilish, and then, unexpectedly, it turns into a happy, up-tempo boogie. Man, these Yardbirds are clever, aren't they?
And then we have two songs with Jimmy Page AND Jeff Beck on lead guitar. "Psycho Daisies" is simply awesome. AWESOME, AWESOME, AWESOME! The spacey guitars and the pounding drums will put you in rock 'n roll Heaven. And "Happenings Ten Years Time Ago" is, to quote Guitar World Magazine, "An awesome psychedelic stew" (they use the word 'awesome' like I do). And that's absolutely right. Young Page delivers a stinging solo here, and he's already gained that classic 'Jimmy Page style' even here, two years before he would go on to form Led Zeppelin.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Near The Top, January 14, 2000

By 

G.C. "greg27" (Potomac, MD USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Roger the Engineer (Audio CD)

I must say that I agree with some of the criticisms listed here, but I still think this is a great album that ranks up there with other 1966-era classics like Aftermath (Stones); Blonde On Blonde (Dylan); Face To Face (Kinks); and Revolver (Beatles). This album's initial U.S. release was entitled "Over, Under, Sideways, Down" and featured only 10 tracks. It wasn't in print for long. Eventually it became available only as an import and then was re-issued domestically in 1983 under its current title before going out of print (again). This CD is basically a digital version of the 1983 release with a couple of tracks only available on the imports. If you are a Jeff Beck fan, this was his last stand with the group. If you are Jimmy Page fan, he only appears on a couple tracks, namely "Happenings Ten Years Time Ago" which was released as a single after "Over, Under, Sideways, Down". What may be remarkable is that the Yardbirds at this time were under a considerable amount of stress, they were changing managers and preparing for more tours and they were about to lose Jeff Beck. This left them about a week to record this album. Contrast this with the Beatles who had studio time at Abbey Road under the direction of producer/arranger George Martin who encouraged their creativity. Parts of this disc may sound dated, but it has held up better than other recordings from the same era.