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Product Description
Review
Dr Feelgood’s acclaim is firmly rooted in the Then, rather than the Now. You-had-to-be-there tales abound, talk of the band’s ferocious energy spun ‘til all are either rapt to the point of spending their last notes on a copy of debut album Down by the Jetty, or utterly despondent at the fact that a group branded ‘pub rock’ could ever mean as much to rock‘n’roll’s evolution as punk, prog or any prefixed sub-genre you’d care to mention.
This disc compiles a decent spread of Dr Feelgood tracks, from across their career – pre- and post-Wilko Johnson’s departure – and serves as the soundtrack to Julien Temple’s latest film of a punk-focused persuasion, following works on the Sex Pistols and Joe Strummer. Admittedly Dr Feelgood were never categorised alongside either the Pistols or The Clash, but their influence on the post-punk scene is every bit as vital: the percussive guitar playing of Johnson, who’d leave the band during the recording of 1977’s Sneakin’ Suspicion, left a huge impression on Gang of Four’s Andy Gill, among others.
Dr Feelgood’s mainstream appeal barely survived the 1970s, their last certifiable hit undoubtedly Milk and Alcohol, which closes proceedings here. Released in 1979, the cocky swagger of their only top ten single is fairly removed from the group’s initial offerings, which while relatively basic of design nevertheless sparked with a quintessentially English electricity that would help carve their name into rock’s family tree. With its squealing harmonica, lolloping bass and gnawing percussion, Roxette is a better artefact to remember the band’s heyday by. The 1974 single – yes, the chart-bothering pop Swedes of the 1980s took their name from it – was backed by (Get Your Kicks On) Route 66, and the Bobby Troup cover makes a welcome appearance here alongside several rousing reinterpretations, as well as a pair of moniker-inspiring Johnny Kidd originals.
Though they remain a touring unit, Dr Feelgood’s original vocalist Lee Brilleaux passed away in 1994, and not one of the band’s line-up of the early 1970s contributes today. As such new recordings have been thin on the ground, 2006’s Repeat Prescription revisiting the group’s peak-period material rather than embarking on any fresh direction. Fair enough: the fans are loyal, and aren’t likely to tire of the likes of the swinging She Does It Right and their well-chosen covers any time soon. As such, this is a worthy addition to an already vast catalogue. --Mike Diver
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
first live band I saw!,
By
This review is from: Oil City Confidential (Audio CD)
The 'Feelgoods' were the first live band I saw at Sheffield City Hall way back in 1975 (saw them twice there that year!).. and I still see (sir) Wilko , and the current band of the same name 3 or 4 times a year, the film is awesome, and the soundtrack is just as good, and the bonus tracks of the 'Pirates' etc, is a neat touch, whilst I have all the songs in one guise or another, I am a bit of a 'complete-ist' and this sits very well alongside, the early first two albums, stupidity ( the best one to buy!!)and the bbc sessions, the other later albums arent as consistent unfortunately.. but this is a great starter for younger or recent inquisitors, powerful and raw RnB just like it should be!!
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Too young to appreicate them, but not too late to love them!,
By
This review is from: Oil City Confidential (Audio CD)
I dabbled with "Feelgood" in the seventies because I missed them by a couple of years. Music for me started with the punk scene: Stranglers, Jam, Pistols, Buzzcocks, Costello, in that order, so apart from "Down at the doctors," and "Milk and Alcohol," that was all I'd heard of them. But last night I watched "Oil City Refinery" on BBC TV and was blown away. Was compelled to watch it all the way through. Wilko is a guitar genius, and Brilleaux had a great Rock and Roll voice. The other guys in the band seemed to prefer taking a back seat in terms of stage presence, but they still provided solid drum and bass. Wilko's frenetic energy and tortuous comments didn't always allow others to get a word in, but then he is the most intriguing to watch and to listen to. (Psychologists tell us that our personalities do not change much over the years and all these guys appear to be no exception.) Loved the cutting and pasting of old black and white movie clips of cops and robbers to tell the story of "Feelgood," and all the old footage of Canvey Island. Loved all the live footage clips, absolutely stunning and captured them at their best. Just ordered "Singles, The UA Years" at a very reasonable price. Won't be attempting to buy the backlog collection of albums (Mrs would kill me with all the bills to pay), but as a return to the nostalgia of my "partly missed" seventies experience it'll do nicely!
14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Recognition at last!,
By
This review is from: Oil City Confidential (Audio CD)
I imagine most people browsing this album will be fairly new to Dr Feelgood, having seen the (wonderful) film? In which case, go ahead, you won't regret it. Dr Feelgood really were that good. The power of this music, even so many years later, is undiminished and electrifying. No-nonsense, hard-driving, tight, gut-pumping R&B (REAL R&B, not that soppy stuff that has hijacked the name these days) that flew in the face of every trend at the time, and changed the story of rock and roll.
One word of caution: the conventional wisdom is that, post-Wilko Johnson, Dr Feelgood were somehow not worth bothering with, and that they could have conquered the world had they not split. Nonsense. For a start, the split with Wilko was inevitable. He was frustrated by the limitations, as he saw them, of R&B; so you wonder what direction the band might have taken had he stayed. I for one don't think it would have been great - his new material for the Sneakin' Suspicion album was pretty weak, for one thing; and for another, his subsequent career didn't pull up any trees. I think those first few years with the Feelgoods were Wilko's big moment. In the meantime, Dr Feelgood went on to make 4 terrific albums with Gypie Mayo on guitar, who may not have been the innovator WJ was, but who could play like a demon in his own pretty original way (also check out the BBC sessions [which feature Wilko and Gypie] and BBC live album, which are magnificent), and even after that made some fine records with various other guitarists - if you ignore the dodgy albums they made with Stiff records. The fact is, though, that any band with Lee Brilleaux in it was still Dr Feelgood, and, Wilko or not, they were still the best in the world at what they did. This music is addictive. I fell in love with it over 30 years ago, managed to see Dr Feelgood 7 times before Lee's death, and still listen to them all the time. If you're just discovering them, welcome, and enjoy.
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