Country life (Delaney and Bonnie) (LP 914 - 920)

Delaney & Bonnie  Genesis (Vinyl, Crescendo Records, 1971) **  

Delaney & Bonnie  Home (Vinyl, Stax Records, 1969) ***  

Delaney & Bonnie  The Original Delaney and Bonnie: Accept No Substitute (Vinyl, Elektra Records, 1969) ***

Delaney & Bonnie and Friends  On Tour With Eric Clapton (CD, ATCO Records, 1970) ***  

Delaney & Bonnie and Friends  To Delaney From Bonnie (Vinyl, ATCO Records, 1970) ***  

Delaney & Bonnie and Friends  Motel Shop (Vinyl, ATCO Records, 1971) ***  

Delaney & Bonnie and Friends  D&B Together (Vinyl, CBS Records, 1972) ****  

Genre: Blues rock

Places I remember: Real Groovy Records; Slow Boat Records; Vinyl Countdown; Spellbound Wax Co.

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Never Ending Song Of Love (Motel Shot)

Gear costume: Country Life, Only You Know And I Know (D and B Together), Coming Home (On Tour), Piece Of My Heart (Home)

Active compensatory factors: Prolific for a short period, Delaney and Bonnie Bramlett were the antidote to organized and commercial big rock. Instead they gave off a family, good time, down home vibe that was catnip to the friends that came onboard from 1969 to 1972.

Genesis is an album made up of stuff from 1964 - 65 and 1967, before they became an item. Instead it's a Delaney album with Bonnie on three tracks. Delaney's talent is right there though - no wonder he and Leon Russell were musical mates.

First album proper with the two of them is Home, on the Stax label, another false start in some ways. More in the soul frame of mind (Stax remember), it features the Stax regulars (Booker T, Steve Cropper, Duck Dunn, Al Jackson as well as Leon Russell and Isaac Hayes) as the backing band. So it sounds good - these guys can't not sound good, but the material doesn't yet feel like Delaney and Bonnie. Bonnie's soulful version of Piece Of My Heart and Delaney's Hard To Say Goodbye are stand outs.

The big early one is Accept No Substitute, as it wooed stars like George Harrison (he tried in vain to put it out on Apple Records but the Elektra contract was already signed) and Eric Clapton. The sound becomes more of a gospel/soul/rock/blues amalgam on this one.

Notable friends along for the good times were Leon, Bobby Whitlock, Carl Radle, Bobby Keys, Jim Price, Jim Keltner, and Rita Coolidge. Yes, Eric was paying attention! He recruited the band for his first solo album and later for Derek and The Dominos.

The playing is great again and more in tune with the Delaney and Bonnie vibe. She is the star show of this album, that and the live in the studio feel.

Most of the friends joined the tour with Eric Clapton that year, except Leon. Eric takes a back seat, happy to be just another band member. 

To Delaney From Bonnie has more of the same gospel/rhythm and blues/rock stuff going on, While Motel Shot is a more acoustic run through some trad folk and gospel edged songs.

My favourite album of theirs is probably the least heralded because they were splitting up as a couple - ironically called D and B Together. Somehow, they sound very much at ease on these songs and Bonnie's vocals are superb. If you were looking for an entry point I'd go there before heading back to Home and Accept No Substitute.

Where do they all belong? I've put it with the blues rock albums as it fits with Clapton/ Derek & The Dominoes more than it does in the soul section in my fevered brain.