Lake Records LACD 364 (2022)
A Review from Andreas Wandfluh , thank you Andreas
At last arrived! The brand new CD box from Lake Records and Paul Adams. And what is it? Is it another CD box that documents the work and life of Chris Barber († 2021), similar to the CD box „A Trailblazer’s Legacy“ released in 2021??
No definitely not, it is vastly different from the „Trailblazer’s“ CD. Paul Adams presents his own selection of 109 songs played by the Chris Barber Bands from 1949 – 2008, 105 of which have never been released before. You get 6 fantastic new CDs with almost new/different versions of Chris Barber’s music! A jewel not only for Chris Barber fans, but also for the followers of the Jazz and Blues scene in Europe.
Paul Adams says about this CD Box:
The choice of recordings is my personal choice – other people may have made different ones. Where possible I have tried to find rare versions. Apart from the very early days I have restricted the choice to the period from 1954 until 2008, when Pat Halcox left. The collaboration between Chris and Pat resulted in one of the longest associations in the history of jazz anywhere in the world. Pat had a unique presence in the band and, to me, once he left, the band never sounded quite the same to me.
And Paul wrote to me in an e-mail
It took a year to compile and some of the audio restoration was quite challenging. In the end I’m proud of it but compiling this and writing the book made me realise even more how much Chris influenced things and influenced me.
Indeed, Paul Adams can be proud of the selection. It is to his credit that many of the well-known Chris Barber songs have been brought to us, on the one hand in new versions, and on the other hand, as far as possible, excellently restored.
So what is included in the CD’s:
Chris Barber and his Bands
CD1 – Gotta Travel on 1949 – 1960
CD2 – Key to Highway 1961 – 1979
CD3 – Take me Back to New Orleans 1980 – 1999
CD4 – Watch Gonna Do? 2000 – 2008
CD5 – Time now to feature a member of the band 1959 – 2004
CD6 – Farewell Blues and some Rarities 1954 – 2001
Each song is a rarity and there are many hidden gems to be found. There are too many to mention individually. Nevertheless, I would like to quote a few titles which are among my favourites:
- „Stevedore Stomp“ from 1966 with fantastic solos by Ian Wheeler (altosax).
- “Billie’s Bounce“ from 1979 with John Crocker – a piece I have never heard from John before.
- „Oh, You Beautiful Doll“ from 1968 (not only because I made it possible for Chris Barber to acquire the rights of the 1968 Geneva recordings.) It’s a tune practically never played by other jazz bands.
- „Gotta Travel On“ – although from the same year (1959) as the legendary LP/CD – Chris Barber in Berlin, I personally think this version is better.
- „Stumblin‘ Block Blues“ from 1983 with Ottilie Patterson – I also like this version better than the recording on the LP „Madame Blues and Doctor Jazz“.
- „Let My Man Alone“ from 1957 with Ottilie Patterson.
- “Mercy, Mercy, Mercy“ from 2001 with the Big Chris Barber Band – the composer Joe Zawinul would be proud to listen to Chris Barber’s interpretation.
- “Devaluation blues“ from 2005 by the Big Chris Barber Band – Chris‘ 10 bar blues!
- „Savoy Blues“ from 1964/65 with a beautiful trombone intro by Chris.
and, and, and…
This is my personal choice and I will find more on this collection – you will certainly choose other titles. But the important thing is: everyone will find their favourites here and have an overall picture of the work of Chris Barber and his bands.
Another difference to the „Trailblazer’s“ recordings is the fact that there are hardly any recordings with guests. It’s the music of the band! Guest appearances are included in the „Trailblazer’s“ CD box, on which Paul Adams also played a major role.
But that’s not all! The 6 CD set comes with a 78-page booklet containing lots of information and over 10 photos. The book is divided into three sections. Part 1 covers the history of the band, part 2 contains comments about the individual tracks on the CDs, while the third part is the discography.
If you don’t already own any Chris Barber recordings (I do not think so…), then you must buy this set. And if you have a nice collection of Chris Barber recordings, then you must buy this CD set as well – Just once more for all time!
If listening to this music doesn’t make you tap your feet on the floor, then you are probably asleep…
Andreas Wandfluh
June 2022
The official release date of the CD Box: June 24, 2022