Sandy Bull Re Inventions: Best of The Vanguard Years (1999)

Cotton has played for many labels over his career, Vanguard being but one of those labels. This CD is basically a compilation of two excellent Vanguard recordings. Tracks 1 though 5 are from the album "Chicago/The Blues/Today Volume 2", which was recorded in 1966. Tracks 6 through 15 are from the album "Cut You Loose" which was recorded two years later in 1968. The bonus track, "Next Time You See Me" was previously unreleased. When listening to the CD you will notice two distinct styles. The first five tracks, Cotton performs with a stripped down band consisting only of James Madison on guitar, Otis Span on piano and S.P. Leary on drums.

This 20-track collection of Musselwhite's early days shows that even back then the man could blow effectively in a variety of settings. In addition to the groundbreaking recordings he made with his own group, this also includes Musselwhite backing John Hammond on two tracks and a duet with Walter Horton from the Chicago, The Blues Today! sessions – nice additions. Highlights include "Chicken Shack," "Cristo Redemptor," "Cha Cha the Blues," and "I Don't Play." A nice introduction to this blues veteran.

Born John Barry Prendergast to a father who owned a cinema and a mother who played piano, all the elements were in place for John to develop his career as he did. Even when he had to do national service, he managed to secure a job as an army bandsman, so he managed to use that period to hone his craft. John first came to prominence via his recording of Hit and miss, which became the theme to the TV show Jukebox jury. Famous as his TV theme became, John's most famous hit is the James Bond theme. This particular compilation, as its title suggests, focuses on John's recordings for EMI. Many of these recordings date from the early to mid sixties, but there are a few from the nineties too. Most of the tracks are instrumentals, but there are also three Shirley Bassey tracks (Goldfinger, Mr Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Diamonds are forever) and a Matt Monro track (Born free) in which John was involved. Two of the Shirley Bassey tracks are famous, but I'd not heard the other one before buying this CD. It was apparently intended as the theme for Thunderball but was dropped in favor of the Tom Jones song Thunderball. There are 25 tracks altogether and the CD comes with a nice booklet. By no means a definitive John Barry compilation, this does at least contain all those early sixties tracks that I particularly wanted and showcases John's versatility as a composer and arranger. Sadly, John died early in 2011 but his legacy in the history of cinematic music is assured.

A product of New York City's early '70s glam rock scene, Twisted Sister were eager students of the New York Dolls, with Kiss's theatrics, Slade's pop acumen, and the shock rock of Alice Cooper tossed in for good measure. Based out of Long Island and featuring the core lineup of guitarists Jay Jay French and Eddie "Fingers" Ojeda, vocalist Dee Snider, bassist Mark "The Animal" Mendoza, and drummer A.J. Pero, the group issued two critically acclaimed, under-the-radar efforts before breaking into the mainstream in 1984 with Stay Hungry.

A product of New York City's early '70s glam rock scene, Twisted Sister were eager students of the New York Dolls, with Kiss's theatrics, Slade's pop acumen, and the shock rock of Alice Cooper tossed in for good measure. Based out of Long Island and featuring the core lineup of guitarists Jay Jay French and Eddie "Fingers" Ojeda, vocalist Dee Snider, bassist Mark "The Animal" Mendoza, and drummer A.J. Pero, the group issued two critically acclaimed, under-the-radar efforts before breaking into the mainstream in 1984 with Stay Hungry. The LP went multi-platinum on the strength of the monster singles "We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock." Twisted Sister released two more albums (Come Out and Play and Love Is for Suckers) before ceasing operations in 1988. They reformed in the early aughts and issued the holiday album Twisted Christmas in 2006 but disbanded again in 2016 following the death of A.J. Pero the year prior. Founded in 1972 by guitarist John Segal (aka Jay Jay French), Twisted Sister based their every move on the New York Dolls. Their apprenticeship on the local club scene was a slow one. Still, by late 1975, a somewhat stable lineup had coalesced around French, fellow guitarist and high-school buddy Eddie "Fingers" Ojeda, bassist Kenneth Harrison Neil, and drummer Kevin John Grace. Several different vocalists filed through their ranks, but it was only with the arrival of Dee Snider in early 1976 that the group found its true leader. Snider brought a strong Alice Cooper influence to the band, giving their glam-forward sound a welcome kick in the ass. He also quickly developed into their dominant songwriter, and with new drummer A.J. Pero in tow, Twisted Sister began making a name for themselves in and around N.Y.C. Arriving in 1983, the seminal You Can't Stop Rock 'n' Roll laid the groundwork for future endeavors. With its polished production values and more consistent material, the LP yielded only one chart-flirting single in the title track (for which the band filmed their first video) but garnered serious cred with the metal crowd. Later that year, L.A.'s Quiet Riot topped the charts with their smash hit Metal Health (the first heavy metal album to do so), and Twisted Sister took advantage of this sympathetic musical climate to unleash their definitive statement, 1984's Stay Hungry. The album saw Snider dig deep into his pop, punk, and glam roots and infuse massive commercial appeal to the band's hard rock onslaught. Bolstered by the anthemic singles "We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock," Stay Hungry was certified platinum in five countries (triple platinum in the U.S. and quintuple platinum in Canada) and pushed Twisted Sister to the fore of the pop/hair metal scene. The songs' accompanying videos, which featured actor Mark Metcalf reprising his role as the hot-headed ROTC leader Douglas C. Neidermeyer from the movie National Lampoon's Animal House, received heavy rotation on MTV. The extensive touring that followed guaranteed the album's stay near the top of the charts for many months to come and, against all odds, helped make Twisted Sister into household names in America. 1985's Come Out and Play received mixed reviews, attempting to cater to the band's hardcore elements and newfound pop constituency while introducing an excessively glammed-up image makeover. Snider remained in the spotlight, appearing before a Senate committee later that year (along with Frank Zappa and John Denver) to testify against the Parents Music Resource Center's demands for music censorship legislation. Drummer Pero had tendered his resignation at tour's end, opening the door to a very troubled 1986 for Twisted Sister as rumors ran rampant about an irreparable rift between Snider and French over the band's direction.

A product of New York City's early '70s glam rock scene, Twisted Sister were eager students of the New York Dolls, with Kiss's theatrics, Slade's pop acumen, and the shock rock of Alice Cooper tossed in for good measure. Based out of Long Island and featuring the core lineup of guitarists Jay Jay French and Eddie "Fingers" Ojeda, vocalist Dee Snider, bassist Mark "The Animal" Mendoza, and drummer A.J. Pero, the group issued two critically acclaimed, under-the-radar efforts before breaking into the mainstream in 1984 with Stay Hungry. The LP went multi-platinum on the strength of the monster singles "We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock." Twisted Sister released two more albums (Come Out and Play and Love Is for Suckers) before ceasing operations in 1988. They reformed in the early aughts and issued the holiday album Twisted Christmas in 2006 but disbanded again in 2016 following the death of A.J. Pero the year prior. Founded in 1972 by guitarist John Segal (aka Jay Jay French), Twisted Sister based their every move on the New York Dolls. Their apprenticeship on the local club scene was a slow one. Still, by late 1975, a somewhat stable lineup had coalesced around French, fellow guitarist and high-school buddy Eddie "Fingers" Ojeda, bassist Kenneth Harrison Neil, and drummer Kevin John Grace. Several different vocalists filed through their ranks, but it was only with the arrival of Dee Snider in early 1976 that the group found its true leader. Snider brought a strong Alice Cooper influence to the band, giving their glam-forward sound a welcome kick in the ass. He also quickly developed into their dominant songwriter, and with new drummer A.J. Pero in tow, Twisted Sister began making a name for themselves in and around N.Y.C. Arriving in 1983, the seminal You Can't Stop Rock 'n' Roll laid the groundwork for future endeavors. With its polished production values and more consistent material, the LP yielded only one chart-flirting single in the title track (for which the band filmed their first video) but garnered serious cred with the metal crowd. Later that year, L.A.'s Quiet Riot topped the charts with their smash hit Metal Health (the first heavy metal album to do so), and Twisted Sister took advantage of this sympathetic musical climate to unleash their definitive statement, 1984's Stay Hungry. The album saw Snider dig deep into his pop, punk, and glam roots and infuse massive commercial appeal to the band's hard rock onslaught. Bolstered by the anthemic singles "We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock," Stay Hungry was certified platinum in five countries (triple platinum in the U.S. and quintuple platinum in Canada) and pushed Twisted Sister to the fore of the pop/hair metal scene. The songs' accompanying videos, which featured actor Mark Metcalf reprising his role as the hot-headed ROTC leader Douglas C. Neidermeyer from the movie National Lampoon's Animal House, received heavy rotation on MTV. The extensive touring that followed guaranteed the album's stay near the top of the charts for many months to come and, against all odds, helped make Twisted Sister into household names in America. 1985's Come Out and Play received mixed reviews, attempting to cater to the band's hardcore elements and newfound pop constituency while introducing an excessively glammed-up image makeover. Snider remained in the spotlight, appearing before a Senate committee later that year (along with Frank Zappa and John Denver) to testify against the Parents Music Resource Center's demands for music censorship legislation. Drummer Pero had tendered his resignation at tour's end, opening the door to a very troubled 1986 for Twisted Sister as rumors ran rampant about an irreparable rift between Snider and French over the band's direction. They eventually re-emerged with 1987's Love Is for Suckers, which commenced with the mighty "Wake Up (The Sleeping Giant)" and featured new drummer Joey "Seven" Franco. However, not even the services of pop-metal producer Beau Hill could save the album from disappointing sales, and Twisted Sister wound up disintegrating shortly thereafter. Dee Snider soldiered on with a new hard rock band named Desperado (later renamed Widowmaker and featuring guitarist Bernie Tormé and drummer Franco). Grunge came and went, and posthumous releases like 1992's Big Hits and Nasty Cuts and 1994's Live at Hammersmith provided glimpses into Twisted Sister's meteoric flight across the hard rock firmament.

A product of New York City's early '70s glam rock scene, Twisted Sister were eager students of the New York Dolls, with Kiss's theatrics, Slade's pop acumen, and the shock rock of Alice Cooper tossed in for good measure. Based out of Long Island and featuring the core lineup of guitarists Jay Jay French and Eddie "Fingers" Ojeda, vocalist Dee Snider, bassist Mark "The Animal" Mendoza, and drummer A.J. Pero, the group issued two critically acclaimed, under-the-radar efforts before breaking into the mainstream in 1984 with Stay Hungry.

Weighing in at a hefty 34 tracks, this is the most exhaustive Swinging Blue Jeans anthology available…

UK compilation from the veteran band spotlighting their early years as a British Blues outfit under the guidance of guitarist Peter Green…