DR. FEELGOOD
''ALL THROUGH THE CITY (WITH WILKO JOHNSON 1974-1977), DISC ONE''
APRIL 16 2012
225:26
DISC ONE
1 /She Does it Right
Wilko Johnson 3:25
2 /Boom Boom
John Lee Hooker 2:45
3 /The More I Give
Wilko Johnson 3:27
4 /Roxette
Wilko Johnson 2:58
5 /One Weekend
Wilko Johnson 2:18
6 /That Ain't the Way to Behave
Wilko Johnson 4:00
7 /I Don't Mind
Wilko Johnson 2:39
8 /Twenty Yards Behind
Wilko Johnson 2:13
9 /Keep it Out of Sight
Wilko Johnson 3:03
10 /All Through the City
Wilko Johnson 3:08
11 /Cheque Book 4:08
12 /Oyeh!
Michael Greco / Mike Maxfield / Robin McDonald 2:32
13 /Bonie Moronie/Tequila
Chuck Rio 4:52
14 /I Can Tell
Ellis McDaniels / Samuel Smith 2:45
15 /Going Back Home
Mick Green / Wilko Johnson 4:01
16 /Back in the Night
Wilko Johnson 3:18
17 /Another Man
Wilko Johnson 2:55
18 /Rolling and Tumbling 3:12
19 /Don't Let Your Daddy Know
Wilko Johnson 2:57
20 /Watch Your Step 3:23
21 /Don't You Just Know it
Huey "Piano" Smith 3:52
22 /Riot in Cell Block Number Nine
Jerry Leiber / Mike Stoller 3:40
23 /Because You're Mine
Nick Lowe 4:54
24 /You Shouldn't Call the Doctor (If You Can't Afford the Bills)
Wilko Johnson 2:34
DISC TWO
1 /I'm Talking About You
Chuck Berry 1:59
2 /Twenty Yards Behind
Wilko Johnson 2:06
3 /Stupidity
Solomon Burke 2:20
4 /All Through the City
Wilko Johnson 2:54
5 /I'm a Man 5:10
6 /Walking the Dog
Rufus Thomas 2:57
7 /She Does it Right
Wilko Johnson 3:04
8 /Going Back Home
Mick Green / Wilko Johnson 3:47
9 /I Don't Mind
Wilko Johnson 2:13
10 /Back in the Night
Wilko Johnson 3:09
11 /I'm a Hog for You Baby
Jerry Leiber / Mike Stoller 3:17
12 /Checkin' Up on My Baby
Sonny Boy Williamson II 3:17
13 /Roxette
Wilko Johnson 3:04
14 /Sneakin' Suspicion
Wilko Johnson 3:53
15 /Paradise
Wilko Johnson 4:06
16 /Nothin' Shakin' (But the Leaves on the Trees)
Cirino Colacrai / Eddie Fontaine / Diane Lambert 3:29
17 /Time and the Devil
Wilko Johnson 3:01
18 /Lights Out
Seth David / Malcolm Rebennack 1:55
19 /Lucky Seven
Lew Lewis 2:48
20 /All My Love
Wilko Johnson 3:49
21 /You'll Be Mine
Willie Dixon 3:20
22 /Walking on the Edge
Wilko Johnson 3:41
23 /Hey Mama Keep Your Big Mouth Shut 3:57
DISC THREE
1 /Dr. Feelgood 2:23
2 /Everybody's Carrying a Gun
Wilko Johnson 2:27
3 /I'm a Hog for You Baby
Jerry Leiber / Mike Stoller 3:10
4 /Time and the Devil
Wilko Johnson 2:49
5 /Lights Out
Seth David / Malcolm Rebennack 1:48
6 /Everybody's Carrying a Gun
Wilko Johnson 8:30
7 /Sneakin' Suspicion
Wilko Johnson 3:43
8 /Malamut feat: The Big Figure / Mick Green / Wilko Johnson / Phil Thumpston
Mick Green / Wilko Johnson 4:34
9 /Casting My Spell on You feat: The Big Figure / Mick Green / Wilko Johnson / Phil Thumpston
Alvin Johnson / Edwin Johnson 2:30
10 /Comin' Home Baby feat: The Big Figure / Mick Green / Wilko Johnson / Phil Thumpston 2:24
11 /I'm Talking About You
Chuck Berry 2:04
12 /My Girl Josephine
Dave Bartholomew / Fats Domino 2:09
13 /Small Gains Corner 2:52
14 /(Get Your Kicks On) Route 66
Bobby Troup 3:23
15 /I'm a Hog for You Baby
Jerry Leiber / Mike Stoller 3:06
16 /Stupidity
Solomon Burke 2:04
17 /She Said Alright
Wilko Johnson 3:40
18 /All Through the City
Wilko Johnson 3:04
19 /Roxette
Wilko Johnson 2:23
20 /Boom Boom
John Lee Hooker 2:42
21 /Keep it Out of Sight
Wilko Johnson 2:57
22 /Riot in Cell Block No. 9 3:48
23 /Johnny B Goode
Chuck Berry 4:00
REVIEW
by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Hard work was hardwired into Dr. Feelgood's DNA. They never left the road, not even after the death of their lead singer Lee Brilleaux in 1994. Nearly two decades after his demise, a lineup of Dr. Feelgood containing no original members continues to grind out gigs across the United Kingdom, a testament to the band's take-no-prisoners aesthetic, even if their presence tends to obscure what made the Feelgoods so special in the mid-'70s. It took Julien Temple's 2009 documentary Oil City Confidential to remind the world at large about Dr. Feelgood's crucial place in history, how they turned pub rock into something tougher, harder, leaner, and meaner, something that paved the way for punk rock just a few years later. Oil City Confidential told the story, but it's All Through the City (With Wilko 1974-1977) that provides the supporting evidence. A four-CD/one-DVD box chronicling everything that the original lineup of Brilleaux, guitarist Wilko Johnson, bassist John B. Sparks, and drummer John "The Big Figure" Martin recorded during their four years together, All Through the City contains all the vital music Dr. Feelgood ever recorded. They'd make other good records -- 1978's Private Practice and its hit single "Milk & Alcohol," for instance -- but this is the music that made the band's legacy, and it still packs a wallop: this is intense, gritty, hard rock & roll, its love of old R&B tying it somewhat to the past but the vicious vigor of the performances still feeling modern. This lacerating energy is best felt on the live performances -- their hit album Stupidity and the television performances collected on the DVD -- but their first two LPs, Down by the Jetty and Malpractice contain much of the same nervy spirit, conveyed by Wilko's slashing cubist guitar and Brilleaux's growl. On the welcome disc of rarities that concludes this set, some of the thought behind the band's evolution is evident -- an early version of "Roxette" betrays some deep doo wop roots that the group defiantly shook off just a year later -- but that only strengthens the case for Dr. Feelgood. They knew precisely how to trim away the fat, they knew what mattered: the hard angular riffs, the throttling rhythms, the sense of malicious malevolence that pervades even the love songs. All of that is showcased on All Through the City, a box set that captures Dr. Feelgood in all of their rage and glory.
REVIEW
By MarkBarry
"…All Your Lovin’…Thrills Me So…”
As you've no doubt already guessed from the avalanche of five-star reviews this Dr. Feelgood retrospective has already received - "All Through The City" is frankly a bit of a box set barnstormer.
Covering the Wilko Johnson/Lee Brilleaux/John Sparks/Big Figure years - it features 4 full album's worth and a large haul of previously unreleased studio outtakes and live cuts from the time.
There's even a lengthy DVD that in itself would make a superb stand-alone release. And it's just dropped in price too. Here are the finite details...
Released 16 April 2012 in the UK - and taking its title from a track on their debut LP - "All Through The City (With Wilko 1974-1977)" is a 3CD + 1DVD box set on EMI 5099955980524 and breaks down as follows:
Disc 1 (79:11 minutes):
Tracks 1 to 13 are their debut album "Down By The Jetty" - released in the UK in January 1975 on United Artists UAS 29717
Tracks 14 to 24 are their 2nd album "Malpractice" - released in the UK in October 1975 on United Artists UAS 29880
Disc 2 (73:27 minutes):
Tracks 1 to 13 are their 3rd album - the live set "Stupidity" - released in the UK in September 1976 on United Artists UAS 29990
Tracks 14 to 23 are their 4th album "Sneakin' Suspicion" (and last with original guitarist Wilko Johnson) - released in the UK in May 1977 on United Artists UAS 30075
Disc 3 (72:41 minutes):
Tracks 1 to 13 and 18 to 20 are PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED
Track 14 is "(Get Your Kicks On) Route 66" and is the non-album B-side of their 1st UK 7" single "Roxette" released November 1974 on United Artists UP 35760
Tracks 15, 16 and 17 are "I'm A Hog For You Baby", "Stupidity" and "She Said Alright" and are all album outakes from the "Down By The Jetty" sessions.
They were first issued on the May 2006 2CD 'Collector's Edition' of "Down By The Jetty"
Track 21 is "Keep It Out Of Sight (Live)" and is a non-album B-side of their 4th UK 7" single "Roxette (Live)" released October 1976 on United Artists UP 36171
Original copies of the live set "Stupidity" came with a free collector's 7" single [FEEL 1] - two extra live tracks - "Riot In Cell Block No.9" b/w "Johnny B. Goode".
They are Tracks 22 and 23 on Disc 3.
NOTES - EXCLUSIONS - INCLUSIONS:
Even though the catalogue number for "Down By The Jetty" uses the UA code for Stereo (UAS) - the album was famously recorded and released in MONO - and that MONO remaster is what's included on this box set (the 2006 version).
The 'STEREO' mix is on the 2CD "Down By The Jetty - Collector's Edition" released in June 2006 - both versions remastered (like this box set) by PETER MEW at Abbey Road Studios in London.
Track 13 on Disc 1 is a duo of cover versions "Bonie Moronie/Tequila" and was recorded live in London's Dingwalls in July 1974. Six more tracks from that concert are on Disc 2 of the 'Collector's Edition' of "Down By The Jetty" and are NOT on this box set.
The only officially released track from the period that is NOT on here is "I'm A Man (Live)" - it was the non-album B-side to "Back In The Night" - their 3rd UK 7" single released September 1975 on United Artists UP 35857. Its exclusion here is probably an error. If you want the track (and many other non-album B-sides) - it's on the "Singled Out" 3CD set issued by EMI UK in 2001.
"Malpractice", "Stupidity" and "Sneakin' Suspicion" have all been available before on CD on Grand Records in the Nineties - but this 2012 box set offers properly remastered versions of them for the first time.
PACKAGING:
Wilko Johnson had always adored Johnny Kidd & The Pirates and especially their guitar player Mick Green - and tucked away on the B-side of their 1964 hit "Always & Forever" on HMV Records POP 1269 was an obscure cover version of a Piano Red song from 1962 on Okeh Records called "Doctor Feelgood" (Red's group was actually called Dr. Feelgood & The Interns). Wilko chose this apt name for his new rockin' band from Canvey Island in Essex - and a kick ass British Rhythm 'n' Blues legend was born. I mention all of this because the single is pictured on Page 3 of the superb booklet centred in the hardback pack - along with interviews with Wilko (December 2011), liner notes by HUGO WILLIAMS, discography details that picture the albums, comic book strips, trade adverts, 7" singles on United Artists, NME and Melody Maker reviews and all the usual memorabilia associated with a retrospective like this.
A very, very smart move is the inclusion of a non-region-coded 23-track DVD (22 songs and 1 interview). Recorded in England (20 cuts from 1974) and Finland (2 cuts from 1975) - the Concert/TV appearances show the full-on thrill of a Dr. Feelgood live show in their prime.
They were little short of sensational and regularly annihilated most other bands in their path. Their manic no-nonsense fast and furious songs were also beloved by Rock 'n' Rollers and even pre-dated Punk by two years. I can't stress enough how the DVD adds so much to the 3CDs of rocking mania - remastered to perfection by PETER MEW at Abbey Road.
MUSIC:
I know people rave about the debut with "She Does It Right", "Roxette" and so many more (and quite rightly so) - but for me the follow-up "Malpractice" is the absolute balls too. I wore out the 2nd track "Going Back Home" on my original vinyl copy. Co-written with Wilko's guitar hero and mentor Mick Green - it has the most fantastic Lee Brilleaux harmonica solo. I also love the Bo Diddley cover "I Can Tell" and their menacing version of Bobby Parker's "Watch Your Step". Original gems include "Another Man", the sleazy "Don't Let Your Daddy Know" and the chugging "Because You're Mine" (co-written with Big Figure and Nick Lowe). The remastered sound too - what a punch. Love it...
It all came to a frenzied head on the live "Stupidity" set when the British public fell completely for their charms and put it on the Number 1 spot in October 1976. Again - I'd forgotten how good it is - frantic - urgent - "Walking The Dog" and "I'm A Hog For You Baby" sounding so exciting and huge. Following that pinnacle was always going to be difficult and I remember at the time 1977's "Sneakin' Suspicion" was met with disappointment - like the band was threading water - and their sound was now limiting instead of being fresh. But relistening to the cracking title track (the only single off the album), "Walking On The Edge" and especially what should have been the follow up single "Paradise" (all Wilko originals) - they're fantastic (lyrics above). I also so dig their take on the Eddie Fontaine hit "Nothing Shaking (But The Leaves On The Trees)" with Lee's harmonica tearing through your speakers. The Lew Lewis cover "Lucky Seven" and the Willie Dixon/Howlin' Wolf take on "You'll Be Mine" are great fun too.
UNRELEASED:
I had expected the unreleased stuff on Disc 3 to be workmanlike - and some of it is - but there are shockingly good studio outtakes that will get fans animated in the trouser area. It opens with a rough and ready take on Piano Red's "Dr. Feelgood" which is very good - but it ups a whole different notch with "Everybody's Carrying A Gun", "I'm A Hog For You Baby" and "Time And The Devil" studio recordings from January and August 1976. They're brill. Less successful is a weedy demo of "Sneakin' Suspicion" and a limp instrumental called "Malamut" which features Mick Green on guitar. Better by far is a cover of Alvin Johnson's "Casting My Spell On You" which is pure Wilko Feelgoods - it's brilliant. The crudely recorded cover of Chuck Berry's "I'm Talking About You" is good too with a great chucking beat and again they hit you with another nugget - a properly rocking version of "My Girl Josephine" by Fats Domino. The live stuff is very much in the vein of "Stupidity". Very tasty indeed...
To sum up - I've loved working my way through this sonic blast – this memory chest - and now at a bargain price of twenty-eight pounds new - it's time to don the sharp suit music lovers and do the leg-splits boogie. In fact mention Dr. Feelgood to those who saw the band in their prime and a manic grin will fill their wrinkled visage that no cigarette-smoking scalpel-wielding surgeon will be able to remove.
On a more personal note - I once glimpsed Lee Brilleaux in 1989 clacking his way down Berwick Street in his steel-heeled leather shoes - looking like a cross between Arthur Daley and a man ready to blow a demonically possessed harmonica no matter what the cost. I wished I'd stopped him, shook his hand and just said thanks. Well this is for you Lee - Wilko - and all the boys in the band.
Bootiful my son...
PS:
This box set will allow fans to sequence their first 5 x 7” singles as follows:
1. Roxette [Disc 1/ Track 4] b/w (Get Your Kicks On) Route 66 [Disc 3/Track 14]
November 1974 on United Artists UP 35760
2. She Does It Right [Disc 1/Track 1] b/w I Don’t Mind [Disc 1/Track 7]
March 1975 on United Artists UP 35815
3. Back In The Night [Disc 1/Track 16] b/w I’m A Man (Live) [NOT ON BOX]
September 1975 on United Artists UP 35857
4. Roxette (Live) [Disc 2/Track 13] b/w Keep It Out Of Sight (Live) [Disc 3/Track 21]
October 1976 on United Artists UP 36171
5. Sneakin’ Suspicion [Disc 2/Track 14] b/w Lights Out [Disc 2/Track 18]
BIOGRAPHY
by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Dr. Feelgood was the ultimate working band. From their formation in 1971 to lead vocalist Lee Brilleaux's untimely death in 1994, the band never left the road, playing hundreds of gigs every year. Throughout their entire career, Dr. Feelgood never left simple, hard-driving rock & roll behind, and their devotion to the blues and R&B earned them a devoted fan base. That following first emerged in the mid-'70s, when Dr. Feelgood became the leader of the second wave of pub rockers. Unlike Brinsley Schwarz, the laid-back leaders of the pub rock scene, Dr. Feelgood was devoted to edgy, Stonesy rock & roll, and their sweaty live shows -- powered by Brilleaux's intense singing and guitarist Wilko Johnson's muscular leads -- became legendary. While the group's stripped-down, energetic sound paved the way for English punk rock in the late '70s, their back-to-basics style was overshadowed by the dominance of punk and new wave, and the group had retreated to cult status by the early '80s.
Brilleaux (vocals, harmonica), Johnson (guitar), and John B. Sparks (bass) had all played in several blues-based bar bands around Canvey Island, England before forming Dr. Feelgood in 1971. Taking their name from a Johnny Kidd & the Pirates song, the group was dedicated to playing old-fashioned R&B and rock & roll, including both covers and originals by Johnson. John Martin (drums), a former member of Finian's Rainbow, was added to the lineup, and the group began playing the pub rock circuit. By the end of 1973, Dr. Feelgood's dynamic live act had made them the most popular group on the pub rock circuit, and several labels were interested in signing them. They settled for United Artists, and they released their debut album, Down by the Jetty, in 1974.
According to legend, Down by the Jetty was recorded in mono and consisted almost entirely of first takes. While it was in fact recorded in stereo, the rumor added significantly to Dr. Feelgood's purist image, and the album became a cult hit. The following year, the group released Malpractice -- also their first U.S. release -- which climbed into the U.K. Top 20 on the strength of the band's live performances and positive reviews. In 1976, the band released the live album Stupidity, which became a smash hit in Britain, topping the album charts. Despite its thriving British success, Dr. Feelgood was unable to find an audience in the States. One other American album, Sneakin' Suspicion, followed in 1977 before the band gave up on the States; they never released another record in the U.S.
Sneakin' Suspicion didn't replicate the success of Stupidity, partially because of its slick production, but mainly because the flourishing punk rock movement overshadowed Dr. Feelgood's edgy roots rock. Wilko Johnson left the band at the end of 1977 to form the Solid Senders; he later joined Ian Dury's Blockheads. Henry McCullough played on Feelgood's 1977 tour before John "Gypie" Mayo became the group's full-time lead guitarist. Nick Lowe produced 1978's Be Seeing You, Mayo's full-length debut with Dr. Feelgood. The album generated the 1979 Top Ten hit "Milk and Alcohol," as well as the Top 40 hit "As Long as the Price Is Right." Two albums, As It Happens and Let It Roll, followed in 1979, and Mayo left the band in 1980. He was replaced by Johnny Guitar in 1980, who debuted on A Case of the Shakes, which was also produced by Nick Lowe.
During their first decade together, Dr. Feelgood never left the road, which was part of the reason founding members John Martin and John Sparks left the band in 1982. Lee Brilleaux replaced them with Buzz Barwell and Pat McMullen, and continued touring. Throughout the '80s, Brilleaux continued to lead various incarnations of Dr. Feelgood, settling on the rhythm section of bassist Phil Mitchell and drummer Kevin Morris in the mid-'80s. The band occasionally made records -- including Brilleaux, one of the last albums on Stiff Records, in 1976 -- but concentrated primarily on live performances. Dr. Feelgood continued to perform to large audiences into the early '90s, when Brilleaux was struck by cancer. He died in April of 1994, three months after he recorded the band's final album, Down at the Doctor's. The remaining members of Dr. Feelgood hired vocalist Pete Gage and continued to tour under the band's name. Former Feelgoods Gypie Mayo, John Sparks, and John Martin formed the Practice in the mid-'80s, and they occasionally performed under the name Dr. Feelgood's Practice.
''ALL THROUGH THE CITY (WITH WILKO JOHNSON 1974-1977), DISC ONE''
APRIL 16 2012
225:26
DISC ONE
1 /She Does it Right
Wilko Johnson 3:25
2 /Boom Boom
John Lee Hooker 2:45
3 /The More I Give
Wilko Johnson 3:27
4 /Roxette
Wilko Johnson 2:58
5 /One Weekend
Wilko Johnson 2:18
6 /That Ain't the Way to Behave
Wilko Johnson 4:00
7 /I Don't Mind
Wilko Johnson 2:39
8 /Twenty Yards Behind
Wilko Johnson 2:13
9 /Keep it Out of Sight
Wilko Johnson 3:03
10 /All Through the City
Wilko Johnson 3:08
11 /Cheque Book 4:08
12 /Oyeh!
Michael Greco / Mike Maxfield / Robin McDonald 2:32
13 /Bonie Moronie/Tequila
Chuck Rio 4:52
14 /I Can Tell
Ellis McDaniels / Samuel Smith 2:45
15 /Going Back Home
Mick Green / Wilko Johnson 4:01
16 /Back in the Night
Wilko Johnson 3:18
17 /Another Man
Wilko Johnson 2:55
18 /Rolling and Tumbling 3:12
19 /Don't Let Your Daddy Know
Wilko Johnson 2:57
20 /Watch Your Step 3:23
21 /Don't You Just Know it
Huey "Piano" Smith 3:52
22 /Riot in Cell Block Number Nine
Jerry Leiber / Mike Stoller 3:40
23 /Because You're Mine
Nick Lowe 4:54
24 /You Shouldn't Call the Doctor (If You Can't Afford the Bills)
Wilko Johnson 2:34
DISC TWO
1 /I'm Talking About You
Chuck Berry 1:59
2 /Twenty Yards Behind
Wilko Johnson 2:06
3 /Stupidity
Solomon Burke 2:20
4 /All Through the City
Wilko Johnson 2:54
5 /I'm a Man 5:10
6 /Walking the Dog
Rufus Thomas 2:57
7 /She Does it Right
Wilko Johnson 3:04
8 /Going Back Home
Mick Green / Wilko Johnson 3:47
9 /I Don't Mind
Wilko Johnson 2:13
10 /Back in the Night
Wilko Johnson 3:09
11 /I'm a Hog for You Baby
Jerry Leiber / Mike Stoller 3:17
12 /Checkin' Up on My Baby
Sonny Boy Williamson II 3:17
13 /Roxette
Wilko Johnson 3:04
14 /Sneakin' Suspicion
Wilko Johnson 3:53
15 /Paradise
Wilko Johnson 4:06
16 /Nothin' Shakin' (But the Leaves on the Trees)
Cirino Colacrai / Eddie Fontaine / Diane Lambert 3:29
17 /Time and the Devil
Wilko Johnson 3:01
18 /Lights Out
Seth David / Malcolm Rebennack 1:55
19 /Lucky Seven
Lew Lewis 2:48
20 /All My Love
Wilko Johnson 3:49
21 /You'll Be Mine
Willie Dixon 3:20
22 /Walking on the Edge
Wilko Johnson 3:41
23 /Hey Mama Keep Your Big Mouth Shut 3:57
DISC THREE
1 /Dr. Feelgood 2:23
2 /Everybody's Carrying a Gun
Wilko Johnson 2:27
3 /I'm a Hog for You Baby
Jerry Leiber / Mike Stoller 3:10
4 /Time and the Devil
Wilko Johnson 2:49
5 /Lights Out
Seth David / Malcolm Rebennack 1:48
6 /Everybody's Carrying a Gun
Wilko Johnson 8:30
7 /Sneakin' Suspicion
Wilko Johnson 3:43
8 /Malamut feat: The Big Figure / Mick Green / Wilko Johnson / Phil Thumpston
Mick Green / Wilko Johnson 4:34
9 /Casting My Spell on You feat: The Big Figure / Mick Green / Wilko Johnson / Phil Thumpston
Alvin Johnson / Edwin Johnson 2:30
10 /Comin' Home Baby feat: The Big Figure / Mick Green / Wilko Johnson / Phil Thumpston 2:24
11 /I'm Talking About You
Chuck Berry 2:04
12 /My Girl Josephine
Dave Bartholomew / Fats Domino 2:09
13 /Small Gains Corner 2:52
14 /(Get Your Kicks On) Route 66
Bobby Troup 3:23
15 /I'm a Hog for You Baby
Jerry Leiber / Mike Stoller 3:06
16 /Stupidity
Solomon Burke 2:04
17 /She Said Alright
Wilko Johnson 3:40
18 /All Through the City
Wilko Johnson 3:04
19 /Roxette
Wilko Johnson 2:23
20 /Boom Boom
John Lee Hooker 2:42
21 /Keep it Out of Sight
Wilko Johnson 2:57
22 /Riot in Cell Block No. 9 3:48
23 /Johnny B Goode
Chuck Berry 4:00
REVIEW
by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Hard work was hardwired into Dr. Feelgood's DNA. They never left the road, not even after the death of their lead singer Lee Brilleaux in 1994. Nearly two decades after his demise, a lineup of Dr. Feelgood containing no original members continues to grind out gigs across the United Kingdom, a testament to the band's take-no-prisoners aesthetic, even if their presence tends to obscure what made the Feelgoods so special in the mid-'70s. It took Julien Temple's 2009 documentary Oil City Confidential to remind the world at large about Dr. Feelgood's crucial place in history, how they turned pub rock into something tougher, harder, leaner, and meaner, something that paved the way for punk rock just a few years later. Oil City Confidential told the story, but it's All Through the City (With Wilko 1974-1977) that provides the supporting evidence. A four-CD/one-DVD box chronicling everything that the original lineup of Brilleaux, guitarist Wilko Johnson, bassist John B. Sparks, and drummer John "The Big Figure" Martin recorded during their four years together, All Through the City contains all the vital music Dr. Feelgood ever recorded. They'd make other good records -- 1978's Private Practice and its hit single "Milk & Alcohol," for instance -- but this is the music that made the band's legacy, and it still packs a wallop: this is intense, gritty, hard rock & roll, its love of old R&B tying it somewhat to the past but the vicious vigor of the performances still feeling modern. This lacerating energy is best felt on the live performances -- their hit album Stupidity and the television performances collected on the DVD -- but their first two LPs, Down by the Jetty and Malpractice contain much of the same nervy spirit, conveyed by Wilko's slashing cubist guitar and Brilleaux's growl. On the welcome disc of rarities that concludes this set, some of the thought behind the band's evolution is evident -- an early version of "Roxette" betrays some deep doo wop roots that the group defiantly shook off just a year later -- but that only strengthens the case for Dr. Feelgood. They knew precisely how to trim away the fat, they knew what mattered: the hard angular riffs, the throttling rhythms, the sense of malicious malevolence that pervades even the love songs. All of that is showcased on All Through the City, a box set that captures Dr. Feelgood in all of their rage and glory.
REVIEW
By MarkBarry
"…All Your Lovin’…Thrills Me So…”
As you've no doubt already guessed from the avalanche of five-star reviews this Dr. Feelgood retrospective has already received - "All Through The City" is frankly a bit of a box set barnstormer.
Covering the Wilko Johnson/Lee Brilleaux/John Sparks/Big Figure years - it features 4 full album's worth and a large haul of previously unreleased studio outtakes and live cuts from the time.
There's even a lengthy DVD that in itself would make a superb stand-alone release. And it's just dropped in price too. Here are the finite details...
Released 16 April 2012 in the UK - and taking its title from a track on their debut LP - "All Through The City (With Wilko 1974-1977)" is a 3CD + 1DVD box set on EMI 5099955980524 and breaks down as follows:
Disc 1 (79:11 minutes):
Tracks 1 to 13 are their debut album "Down By The Jetty" - released in the UK in January 1975 on United Artists UAS 29717
Tracks 14 to 24 are their 2nd album "Malpractice" - released in the UK in October 1975 on United Artists UAS 29880
Disc 2 (73:27 minutes):
Tracks 1 to 13 are their 3rd album - the live set "Stupidity" - released in the UK in September 1976 on United Artists UAS 29990
Tracks 14 to 23 are their 4th album "Sneakin' Suspicion" (and last with original guitarist Wilko Johnson) - released in the UK in May 1977 on United Artists UAS 30075
Disc 3 (72:41 minutes):
Tracks 1 to 13 and 18 to 20 are PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED
Track 14 is "(Get Your Kicks On) Route 66" and is the non-album B-side of their 1st UK 7" single "Roxette" released November 1974 on United Artists UP 35760
Tracks 15, 16 and 17 are "I'm A Hog For You Baby", "Stupidity" and "She Said Alright" and are all album outakes from the "Down By The Jetty" sessions.
They were first issued on the May 2006 2CD 'Collector's Edition' of "Down By The Jetty"
Track 21 is "Keep It Out Of Sight (Live)" and is a non-album B-side of their 4th UK 7" single "Roxette (Live)" released October 1976 on United Artists UP 36171
Original copies of the live set "Stupidity" came with a free collector's 7" single [FEEL 1] - two extra live tracks - "Riot In Cell Block No.9" b/w "Johnny B. Goode".
They are Tracks 22 and 23 on Disc 3.
NOTES - EXCLUSIONS - INCLUSIONS:
Even though the catalogue number for "Down By The Jetty" uses the UA code for Stereo (UAS) - the album was famously recorded and released in MONO - and that MONO remaster is what's included on this box set (the 2006 version).
The 'STEREO' mix is on the 2CD "Down By The Jetty - Collector's Edition" released in June 2006 - both versions remastered (like this box set) by PETER MEW at Abbey Road Studios in London.
Track 13 on Disc 1 is a duo of cover versions "Bonie Moronie/Tequila" and was recorded live in London's Dingwalls in July 1974. Six more tracks from that concert are on Disc 2 of the 'Collector's Edition' of "Down By The Jetty" and are NOT on this box set.
The only officially released track from the period that is NOT on here is "I'm A Man (Live)" - it was the non-album B-side to "Back In The Night" - their 3rd UK 7" single released September 1975 on United Artists UP 35857. Its exclusion here is probably an error. If you want the track (and many other non-album B-sides) - it's on the "Singled Out" 3CD set issued by EMI UK in 2001.
"Malpractice", "Stupidity" and "Sneakin' Suspicion" have all been available before on CD on Grand Records in the Nineties - but this 2012 box set offers properly remastered versions of them for the first time.
PACKAGING:
Wilko Johnson had always adored Johnny Kidd & The Pirates and especially their guitar player Mick Green - and tucked away on the B-side of their 1964 hit "Always & Forever" on HMV Records POP 1269 was an obscure cover version of a Piano Red song from 1962 on Okeh Records called "Doctor Feelgood" (Red's group was actually called Dr. Feelgood & The Interns). Wilko chose this apt name for his new rockin' band from Canvey Island in Essex - and a kick ass British Rhythm 'n' Blues legend was born. I mention all of this because the single is pictured on Page 3 of the superb booklet centred in the hardback pack - along with interviews with Wilko (December 2011), liner notes by HUGO WILLIAMS, discography details that picture the albums, comic book strips, trade adverts, 7" singles on United Artists, NME and Melody Maker reviews and all the usual memorabilia associated with a retrospective like this.
A very, very smart move is the inclusion of a non-region-coded 23-track DVD (22 songs and 1 interview). Recorded in England (20 cuts from 1974) and Finland (2 cuts from 1975) - the Concert/TV appearances show the full-on thrill of a Dr. Feelgood live show in their prime.
They were little short of sensational and regularly annihilated most other bands in their path. Their manic no-nonsense fast and furious songs were also beloved by Rock 'n' Rollers and even pre-dated Punk by two years. I can't stress enough how the DVD adds so much to the 3CDs of rocking mania - remastered to perfection by PETER MEW at Abbey Road.
MUSIC:
I know people rave about the debut with "She Does It Right", "Roxette" and so many more (and quite rightly so) - but for me the follow-up "Malpractice" is the absolute balls too. I wore out the 2nd track "Going Back Home" on my original vinyl copy. Co-written with Wilko's guitar hero and mentor Mick Green - it has the most fantastic Lee Brilleaux harmonica solo. I also love the Bo Diddley cover "I Can Tell" and their menacing version of Bobby Parker's "Watch Your Step". Original gems include "Another Man", the sleazy "Don't Let Your Daddy Know" and the chugging "Because You're Mine" (co-written with Big Figure and Nick Lowe). The remastered sound too - what a punch. Love it...
It all came to a frenzied head on the live "Stupidity" set when the British public fell completely for their charms and put it on the Number 1 spot in October 1976. Again - I'd forgotten how good it is - frantic - urgent - "Walking The Dog" and "I'm A Hog For You Baby" sounding so exciting and huge. Following that pinnacle was always going to be difficult and I remember at the time 1977's "Sneakin' Suspicion" was met with disappointment - like the band was threading water - and their sound was now limiting instead of being fresh. But relistening to the cracking title track (the only single off the album), "Walking On The Edge" and especially what should have been the follow up single "Paradise" (all Wilko originals) - they're fantastic (lyrics above). I also so dig their take on the Eddie Fontaine hit "Nothing Shaking (But The Leaves On The Trees)" with Lee's harmonica tearing through your speakers. The Lew Lewis cover "Lucky Seven" and the Willie Dixon/Howlin' Wolf take on "You'll Be Mine" are great fun too.
UNRELEASED:
I had expected the unreleased stuff on Disc 3 to be workmanlike - and some of it is - but there are shockingly good studio outtakes that will get fans animated in the trouser area. It opens with a rough and ready take on Piano Red's "Dr. Feelgood" which is very good - but it ups a whole different notch with "Everybody's Carrying A Gun", "I'm A Hog For You Baby" and "Time And The Devil" studio recordings from January and August 1976. They're brill. Less successful is a weedy demo of "Sneakin' Suspicion" and a limp instrumental called "Malamut" which features Mick Green on guitar. Better by far is a cover of Alvin Johnson's "Casting My Spell On You" which is pure Wilko Feelgoods - it's brilliant. The crudely recorded cover of Chuck Berry's "I'm Talking About You" is good too with a great chucking beat and again they hit you with another nugget - a properly rocking version of "My Girl Josephine" by Fats Domino. The live stuff is very much in the vein of "Stupidity". Very tasty indeed...
To sum up - I've loved working my way through this sonic blast – this memory chest - and now at a bargain price of twenty-eight pounds new - it's time to don the sharp suit music lovers and do the leg-splits boogie. In fact mention Dr. Feelgood to those who saw the band in their prime and a manic grin will fill their wrinkled visage that no cigarette-smoking scalpel-wielding surgeon will be able to remove.
On a more personal note - I once glimpsed Lee Brilleaux in 1989 clacking his way down Berwick Street in his steel-heeled leather shoes - looking like a cross between Arthur Daley and a man ready to blow a demonically possessed harmonica no matter what the cost. I wished I'd stopped him, shook his hand and just said thanks. Well this is for you Lee - Wilko - and all the boys in the band.
Bootiful my son...
PS:
This box set will allow fans to sequence their first 5 x 7” singles as follows:
1. Roxette [Disc 1/ Track 4] b/w (Get Your Kicks On) Route 66 [Disc 3/Track 14]
November 1974 on United Artists UP 35760
2. She Does It Right [Disc 1/Track 1] b/w I Don’t Mind [Disc 1/Track 7]
March 1975 on United Artists UP 35815
3. Back In The Night [Disc 1/Track 16] b/w I’m A Man (Live) [NOT ON BOX]
September 1975 on United Artists UP 35857
4. Roxette (Live) [Disc 2/Track 13] b/w Keep It Out Of Sight (Live) [Disc 3/Track 21]
October 1976 on United Artists UP 36171
5. Sneakin’ Suspicion [Disc 2/Track 14] b/w Lights Out [Disc 2/Track 18]
BIOGRAPHY
by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Dr. Feelgood was the ultimate working band. From their formation in 1971 to lead vocalist Lee Brilleaux's untimely death in 1994, the band never left the road, playing hundreds of gigs every year. Throughout their entire career, Dr. Feelgood never left simple, hard-driving rock & roll behind, and their devotion to the blues and R&B earned them a devoted fan base. That following first emerged in the mid-'70s, when Dr. Feelgood became the leader of the second wave of pub rockers. Unlike Brinsley Schwarz, the laid-back leaders of the pub rock scene, Dr. Feelgood was devoted to edgy, Stonesy rock & roll, and their sweaty live shows -- powered by Brilleaux's intense singing and guitarist Wilko Johnson's muscular leads -- became legendary. While the group's stripped-down, energetic sound paved the way for English punk rock in the late '70s, their back-to-basics style was overshadowed by the dominance of punk and new wave, and the group had retreated to cult status by the early '80s.
Brilleaux (vocals, harmonica), Johnson (guitar), and John B. Sparks (bass) had all played in several blues-based bar bands around Canvey Island, England before forming Dr. Feelgood in 1971. Taking their name from a Johnny Kidd & the Pirates song, the group was dedicated to playing old-fashioned R&B and rock & roll, including both covers and originals by Johnson. John Martin (drums), a former member of Finian's Rainbow, was added to the lineup, and the group began playing the pub rock circuit. By the end of 1973, Dr. Feelgood's dynamic live act had made them the most popular group on the pub rock circuit, and several labels were interested in signing them. They settled for United Artists, and they released their debut album, Down by the Jetty, in 1974.
According to legend, Down by the Jetty was recorded in mono and consisted almost entirely of first takes. While it was in fact recorded in stereo, the rumor added significantly to Dr. Feelgood's purist image, and the album became a cult hit. The following year, the group released Malpractice -- also their first U.S. release -- which climbed into the U.K. Top 20 on the strength of the band's live performances and positive reviews. In 1976, the band released the live album Stupidity, which became a smash hit in Britain, topping the album charts. Despite its thriving British success, Dr. Feelgood was unable to find an audience in the States. One other American album, Sneakin' Suspicion, followed in 1977 before the band gave up on the States; they never released another record in the U.S.
Sneakin' Suspicion didn't replicate the success of Stupidity, partially because of its slick production, but mainly because the flourishing punk rock movement overshadowed Dr. Feelgood's edgy roots rock. Wilko Johnson left the band at the end of 1977 to form the Solid Senders; he later joined Ian Dury's Blockheads. Henry McCullough played on Feelgood's 1977 tour before John "Gypie" Mayo became the group's full-time lead guitarist. Nick Lowe produced 1978's Be Seeing You, Mayo's full-length debut with Dr. Feelgood. The album generated the 1979 Top Ten hit "Milk and Alcohol," as well as the Top 40 hit "As Long as the Price Is Right." Two albums, As It Happens and Let It Roll, followed in 1979, and Mayo left the band in 1980. He was replaced by Johnny Guitar in 1980, who debuted on A Case of the Shakes, which was also produced by Nick Lowe.
During their first decade together, Dr. Feelgood never left the road, which was part of the reason founding members John Martin and John Sparks left the band in 1982. Lee Brilleaux replaced them with Buzz Barwell and Pat McMullen, and continued touring. Throughout the '80s, Brilleaux continued to lead various incarnations of Dr. Feelgood, settling on the rhythm section of bassist Phil Mitchell and drummer Kevin Morris in the mid-'80s. The band occasionally made records -- including Brilleaux, one of the last albums on Stiff Records, in 1976 -- but concentrated primarily on live performances. Dr. Feelgood continued to perform to large audiences into the early '90s, when Brilleaux was struck by cancer. He died in April of 1994, three months after he recorded the band's final album, Down at the Doctor's. The remaining members of Dr. Feelgood hired vocalist Pete Gage and continued to tour under the band's name. Former Feelgoods Gypie Mayo, John Sparks, and John Martin formed the Practice in the mid-'80s, and they occasionally performed under the name Dr. Feelgood's Practice.
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