Customer Reviews: first live band I saw! February 28, 2010 B. Padley (south yorkshire uk) 1 out of 1 found this review helpful
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!!
Oil City Confidential March 1, 2010 Mr. D. J. Williams Excellent compilation of early Dr Feelgood tracks together with 3 influential tracks by other artists...strangely one of these is Shaking All Over by Johnny Kidd & The Pirates. An unusual choice because although Mick Green of The Pirates was a huge influence on & friend of Wilko Johnson he didn't play on this track.
That aside well worth buying can't wait for DVD of the film!!
Recognition at last! February 23, 2010 Mr. G. A. Stewart (London) 5 out of 7 found this review helpful
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.
Wilko great then and still going strong February 27, 2010 Martin B. Chillcott (Peterborough) 1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Don't believe one of the other reviewers, that Wilko's best years were up until the split. I booked Wilko to appear in a purpose erected Marquee in our village 4 years ago. Backed by Norman Watt-Roy on bass (Blockheads maestro) and Monti (ex Jesus & Mary Chain) they erupted on stage and didn't let up for over an hour, with an ocassional "1-2-3" in the 5 or 6 seconds in between each Wilko 'solo' original, R&B cover or Dr Feelgood classic. It turned back the clock 30 years. Go and see while you have the chance!
Unforgettable!
Some of us knew then that nothing would be the same...thankfully February 3, 2010 Marek Pryjomko 7 out of 13 found this review helpful
This is music that blew a 15 year olds mind and still makes a middle aged man very happy.
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