Lay me back (Lee/ LeFevre) (LP 2992 - 2996)

Alvin Lee & Mylon LeFevre  On the Road to Freedom (Vinyl, Chrysalis Records, 1974) ***  

Alvin Lee & Co  In Flight (Vinyl, Chrysalis Records, 1974) ***  

Alvin Lee  Rocket Fuel (Vinyl, RSO Records, 1978) ****  

Alvin Lee  RX5 (Vinyl, Avatar Records, 1981) ****  

Alvin Lee  Keep On Rockin' (CD, Seagull Records, 2000) ****

Genre: Country rock, rock

Places I remember: Real Groovy Records, Chaldon Books and Records, Amoeba Records, Melbourne record shop, The Warehouse.

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: So Sad (No Love of His Own) - Hari Georgeson's song and he's playing guitar on it. (On the Road to Freedom)

Gear costume: The Devil's Screaming  (Rocket Fuel)

They loom large in his legend (The Album Collection playlists): Part 1; Part 2; Part 3; Part 4; Part 5

Active compensatory factors: Alvin's first solo album away from Ten Years After is a laid back country rock affair with US gospel rock musician Mylon LeFevre and some famous guests, including George Harrison, Steve Winwood, Jim Capaldi, Ron Wood and Mick Fleetwood. So the music is superb!

Alvin downplayed the album at the time as, "[not] a commercial effort, just an LP recorded at home with some neighbours". Some neighbours!!

I like the fact that he tried something different, but he is a bit of a shadowy presence on the album. It's kind of anti- TYA music so there is none of Alvin's guitar flash evident. Instead, it's some very tasteful country rock.

Star turn is the George Harrison song - So Sad. George plays some brilliant slide guitar on it.

Still in 1974 and still a million miles away from TYA, In Flight is a double live album featuring some of the same musicians (although none of the famous neighbours). Alvin is in playful mode - some old rock and roll numbers and nothing from his album with LeFevre.

Mel Collins is the featured player on many of these songs and he doesn't disappoint on flute or sax. 

Rocket Fuel sees Alvin back in a rock band format, rather than with guests. Styled as Ten Years Later, the band is essentially a trio with Tom Compton (drums) and Mick Hawksworth (bass).

It's a really good set of songs and Alvin is on top form as Somebody Waltz indicates (sadly the album is not on Spotify). The trio is a format that suits him.

RX5 uses an expanded personnel (which includes Chris Stainton on keyboards) and Tom Compton retains the drum stool position. 

Given it's the eighties, Alvin and the band crank it up superbly right from the off, and maintain the energy levels throughout. It's impressive and almost gives me back some faith in the eighties as a musical decade. Almost.

Keep On Rockin' is a mightily impressive set as well. It comes as a double CD- Volume 1 and 2. Like his first album with LeFevre, there are some notable guest stars along the way, including Hari Georgeson again on three songs - some lovely slide guitar from George. Others include Clarence Clemons, Jon Lord, and Sam Brown.

Given it's a really long double CD (23 songs), the high quality is maintained well. When the band is on they are flying!! Apart from the title song, there are plenty of highlights including: Ain't Nobody's Business (an Alvin Lee song); The Bluest Blues; Boogie All Day; and I Want You (She's So Heavy) - his cover of Lennon's song is a guitar blitzkrieg.

Where do they all belong? Always keen to pick up anything by Alvin Lee (who died unexpectedly, aged 68, in 2013), although I'm not a completist. That said, there's a lot more coming when we get to Ten Years After - one of my favourite bands.