Webbed Feet (Chicken Shack) (LP 2211)

Chicken Shack  Forty Blue Fingers Freshly Packed & Ready To Serve (Vinyl, Blue Horizon Records, 1968) ****

Genre: Blues; rock 

Places I remember: JB Hi-Fi

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: When The Train Comes Back

Gear costume: You Ain't No Good; See See Baby 

Active compensatory factors: Chicken Shack's 1968 debut album is a glorious thing.

Twenty-five year old Christine Perfect (soon to be Christine McVie) is terrific on piano and Stan Webb's vocals and guitar are the real thing, maan. These two are ably supported by Andy Sylvester (bass) and Dave Bidwell (drums).

That wonderful voice of Christine's is a thing of beauty and a force of nature. It's also good to have that female perspective in a blues band - she contributes two key songs from a woman's point of view that are invaluable to Chicken Shack's relevance and longevity.

Where do they all belong? I must search out more of Christine McVie's solo albums. That voice is soooooo good.

Fishing in your river (Chicken Shack) (LP 2103)

Chicken Shack  In The Can (Vinyl, CBS Records, 1980) *****  

Genre: Blues rock 

Places I remember: Roger Marbeck gave me a cassette of this before I bought a vinyl copy.

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Fishing In Your River 

Gear costume: I Wanna See My Baby

Active compensatory factors: I don't usually focus on compilations in these posts but I need to make an exception for this one.

The cassette version accompanied me throughout the early eighties as I did my teaching practicums in Hastings, Keri Keri and Auckland. So, it has very pleasant associations for me.

And these songs, both from the late sixties with Christine Perfect (before she became Christine McVie) and into the seventies without her, completely hold up.

Stan Webb led the Shack at the time and his guitar, vocals, and rakish sense of humour are well to the fore - giving a sense of cohesion to this set.

I love this album, and I love this sort of English blues rock.

Where do they all belong? A great corner of English blues rock.