A Taste of Early Brit-Pop
Kurt Harding | Boerne TX | 11/13/2008
(3 out of 5 stars)
"Thirty-five years before Paul Weller became the undisputed king of Brit-pop, there was Georgie Fame. Most Americans who have heard of him know him only through his exceedingly lame novelty hit The Ballad of Bonnie and Clyde that washed over our radio waves in the wake of the blockbuster film about that pair of Depression-era bank robbers. But few are aware that he was a huge hit with the Mods in Britain on the strength of his energetic and winning blend of pop, jazz, and R&B, a combination that is known today as Brit-pop.
I own several other Georgie Fame albums and am keen on his work with Van Morrison, and so was eager to acquire this after reading some very favorable reviews in the English music press. The liner notes that accompany this CD state that Somebody Stole My Thunder is a reappraisal of Fame's CBS years. After listening, I would say that while there are some highlights, those years leave much to be desired.
It took many listens to warm to this at all and I did not hear anything really compelling until the CD was more than half over. Oh, I think Fame's take on Seventh Son is hilarious but the listener has to brave a lot of mediocre material before there is something that grabs the ear. My favorites are the driving and soulful Roadrunner, Close the Door, the swinging Ask Me Nice, the howler Keep Your Big Mouth Shut, and a fine rendition of the blues classic Parchman Farm. The worst are Bidin' My Time (Cos' I Love You) which has no body nor any substance and the awful, almost intolerably swaggering Fully Booked on which Fame delivers a swabby recitation of women's names he imagines himself to be romantically involved with. The majority of the songs are just merely tolerable and fail to showcase Fame at his best.
If you are new to the music of Georgie Fame or have heard him as a sideman and are curious about his solo career, I would recommend that you skip this until you hear 20 Beat Classics where he truly is at his best. But if you are a Fame completeist, you'll want this for sure because it contains five tracks previously unreleased in the UK as well as a number of live ones. The CD is accompanied by a useful booklet that contains track info and interesting commentary on Fame's career trajectory."
Track Listings (24) - Disc #1