"Juicy Lucy/Lie Back And Enjoy It/Get A Whiff A This" by JUICY LUCY – September 1969, October 1970 and August 1971 UK Albums on Vertigo and Bronze Records (June 2021 UK Beat Goes On Compilation – 3LPs Plus Two Bonus Tracks Remastered Onto 2CDs – Andrew Thompson Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...Returning To Zelda's Plums..."

In many respects, this is a clever and smart reissue from England's Beat Goes On.

Juicy Lucy's first three studio albums have been CD-reissued before – first by Castle of the UK and Repertoire of Germany in the Nineties and then by Cherry Red's UK label Esoteric Recordings in October 2010 (first two) and April 2013 (for the third) - but they're all deleted now and have been picking up nasty secondhand price tags for years. Their fourth LP "Pieces" from 1972 on Polydor Records issued before they disbanded is not included in this BGO compilation and is also hard to find on CD.

Both the debut "Juicy Lucy" and their second "Lie Back And Enjoy It" were originally issued on the now famous Vertigo label - the first in September 1969 (UK charted April 1970 on the strength of the February 1970 "Who Do You Love" single - a fantastic slashing slide-guitar cover of the Bo Diddley classic) - whilst "Lie Back And Enjoy It" was rush-released for October 1970 – only to chart for one week and clock-up disappointing sales. By the third platter and its cheesy farting/drugs artwork, Juicy Lucy weren't shifting zip let alone doing zippy licks and would bother the charts no more.

So what do you get this time around? This April 2021 UK compilation lumps together the first three albums of their catalogue with two quality non-album B-sides as Bonuses onto two CDs, remasters the lot, puts on a nice-looking (if not suitably garish like their original artwork) card slipcase on the outside and adds a chunky 24-page booklet inside - the whole shebang for under eleven quid new in most digital depots.

Truth and time has told us that the albums are all patchy - especially the spent-force third outing "Get A Whiff A This" from August 1971 originally on Bronze Records. But I've always loved them – had a soft spot for a band that were nailed down by one storming 45 that the mother albums never matched (Ashton, Gardner & Dyke were the same). Juicy Lucy were a band that could have been huge, but fell apart with ever increasing personnel changes and shifts away from the original musical vision.

So with Zelda Plum's modesty covered up by squished apples, pears and (ahem) humungous melons, let's return to the Blues Rock, Country Rock, Gilded Splinters and Bo Diddley Guitar Mania of JUICY LUCY. Here are fruity details...

UK released April 2021 - "Juicy Lucy/Lie Back And Enjoy It/Get A Whiff A This" by JUICY LUCY on Beat Goes On BGOCD1441 (Barcode 5017261214416) offers 3LPs Remastered onto 2CDs with Two Non-Album B-sides as Bonus Tracks and plays out as follows:

CD1 (41:09 minutes):

1. Mississippi Woman

2. Who Do You Love?

3. She’s Mine, She’s Yours

4. Just One Time

5. Chicago North-Western

6. Train

7. Nadine

8. Are You Satisfied

Tracks 1 to 8 are the debut album "Juicy Lucy" - released September 1969 in the UK on Vertigo VO 2 (874 901 VTY) and March 1970 in the USA on Atco SD 33-325. Band was Ray Owens on Lead Vocals, Glenn Ross Campbell on Steel Guitar, Mandolin, Marimbas and Vocals, Neil Hubbard on Electric and Acoustic Guitars, Chris Mercer on Saxophone and Keyboards, Keith Ellis on Bass and Vocals with Pete Dobson on Drums.

BONUS TRACK:

9. Walking Down The Highway - non-album B-side to their debut 7" 45-single "Who Do You Love" (Track 2 on Side 1). It was released 6 February 1970 in the UK on Vertigo V 1 and entered the UK singles chart in late March 1970 at number 28 - eventually rising to Number 14 in mid April. On the strength of that popular rocker the album also belatedly charted in the UK in April 1970 - rising to Number 41.

CD2 (74:07 minutes):

1. Thinking Of My Life [Side 1]

2. Built For Comfort

3. Pretty Woman

4. Whisky In My Jar

5. Hello L.A. Bye Bye Birmingham [Side 2]

6. Changed My Mind, Changed My Sign

7. That Woman’s Got Something

8 and 9. Willie The Pimp/Lie Back And Enjoy It Medley

Tracks 1 to 9 are the album "Lie Back And Enjoy It" released October 1970 in the UK on Vertigo 6360 014 and November 1970 in the USA on Atco SD 33-345. The album charted at number 53 on the UK LP charts for one week in November 1970. Band was Paul Williams on Lead Vocals, Piano and Congas, Glenn Ross Campbell on Steel Guitar and Mandolin, Micky Moody on Lead Guitar (later with Snafu and Whitesnake), Chris Mercer on Saxophone and Keyboards, Keith Ellis on Bass with Rod Coombes on Drums.

BONUS TRACK:

10. I'm A Thief (Mono) - Non-album B-side to their second UK 7" 45-single "Pretty Woman" (Track 3 on Side 1). It was released September 1970 in the UK on Vertigo 6059 015 (also on the Spiral label) and peaked at No. 44.

11. Mr. Skin [Side 1]

12. Midnight Sun

13. Midnight Rider

14. Harvest

15. Mr. A. Jones

16. Sunday Morning [Side 2]

17. Big Lil

18. Jessica

19. Future Days

Tracks 11 to 19 are their third studio album "Get A Whiff A This" - released August 1971 in the UK on Bronze Records ILPS 9157 and September 1971 in the USA on Atco Records SD 33-367. Produced by NIGEL THOMAS and JUICY LUCY – it didn't chart in either country. Band was same as the second LP except with Jim Leverton (ex Noel Redding's Fat Mattress) replaces Keith Ellis on Bass.

Although the players changed across all three albums, the JUICY JUCY line-ups had impressive chops from the get go - Paul Williams had been with Zoot Money's Big Band, Chris Mercer with John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and late comer Micky Moody was with Tramline, The Mike Cotton Sound and would later grace Snafu, Whitesnake and do duet work with Paul Williams on Blues Rock in the 90s. Ace axemen Glenn Ross Campbell had been with the much-loved Misunderstood while Neil Hubbard fretted for Graham Bond and Bluesology - only inexperienced but enthusiastic first album lead singer Ray Owens was new out of the box.

ROGER DOPSON gives us the new liner notes that include the latest recollections and 'changed' slants from founder member Glenn Ross Campbell - up to an including hard-hitting opinions on why they ultimately failed to capitalise on that "Who Do You Love" momentum and even the dodgy artwork for LP number three (fonder recollections on John Peel who discovered him wowing the crowds in The Misunderstood). Zelda Plum holds sway on the centre pages - the controversial but fun gatefold sleeve lady for "Juicy Lucy" - while most of the six-leaf foldout sleeve of the second LP is repro'd in the booklet too. There are trade reviews and magazine adverts in-between the text - it's a really decent stab at their recorded legacy. To the choons...

Even though you can't help thinking that at heart they really wanted to be a Blues Boogie band like say early ZZ Top - the first album is battling genres - several of their original songs flitting around Country Rock, New Orleans gumbo and even acoustic moments of Rock beauty (the ANDREW THOMPSON Remaster gorgeous for "Just One Time"). As well as their incendiary take on "Who Do You Love" made famous by Bo Diddley and subsequently by Ronnie Hawkins and The Hawks (that version featured a young Robbie Robertson of The Band on guitar while it was Campbell the slide genius on the Juicy Lucy revival), other covers include their good-time boozy R&B version of "Nadine" by Chuck Berry and a near six-minute fuzzed-up guitar stab at the Buddy Miles song "Train" from his 1968 debut album "Expressway To Your Skull" on Mercury Records.

The debut LP also opens strongly with the menace boogie and Beefheart growl of "Mississippi Woman" (dig that geetar) and I have had a five-decades long love affair with the Dr. John Night Tripper voodoo vibe permeating all of the finisher "Are You Satisfied" (beautifully clear Bass and Mandolin). "Walking Down The Highway" is a very cool B-side too – in fact the only thing you could say against the opening salvo album and single is Ray Owens, whose vocals feel strained and not convincing enough.

The Paul Williams penned "Pretty Woman" was released as the second album's only single and you can instantly hear why – catchy as a cold in Margate. The cover of the Willie Dixon song he gave to Howlin' Wolf "Built For Comfort" is less successful as is the awful version of Zappa's "Willy The Pimp", although it redeems itself at about 5 minutes 34 seconds in as it fades out and suddenly turns into a lovely 2-minute long piano instrumental - not surprisingly called "Lie Back And Enjoy It". But the track I dig the most is "This Woman's Got Something" which was co-written by Moody, Campbell and Williams - it's a bluesy builder with great axe work and has graced more than a few 70's FEST CDs I've made up.

"Get A Whiff A This" is the kind of difficult third album that's long forgotten - and unfortunately it's very easy to hear why. To start with it's stylistically all over the place. Steve Ellis had just left the line up to join Boxer - replaced by Jim Leverton on Bass from Noel Redding's Fat Mattress. Lead singer Paul Williams was on his 2nd Juicy Lucy LP ("Lie Back And Enjoy It" was his first) – and the presence of ace-axeman Glenn Ross Campbell who did the stunning "Who Do You Love" took a Pedal Steel backseat to the Lead Guitar of Micky Moody – later of course with Snafu and Whitesnake. Moody's playing has always been a thing of wonder and he's sessioned with huge numbers of artists - Roger Chapman of Family, Mike Oldfield, Graham Bonnet, Alan Squire of Lindisfarne, played Acoustic on Gerry Rafferty's "City To City" and in the 90s and 00's with Tony Ashton, David Coverdale, Walter Trout, Uriah Heep, Gary Fletcher, Bernie Marsden and many more. His playing throughout "Get A Whiff A This" is one of the reasons to keep listening - slide licks and zippy flicks. And on it goes...

In hindsight it is easy to hear why Juicy Lucy are a footnote in the annals of 60ts and 70ts Rock. And yet despite their output dips and directional shortcomings - I return to this underrated British band with an affection that refuses to listen to reason. Dated or no, Juicy Lucy were fun and for an old-fart like me, that'll do nicely.

2021's BGOCD1441 is a great twofer-CD compilation and blindingly good value for money into the bargain, making available again Classic Rock Album rarities that would otherwise cost you a pretty bitcoin, something Beat Goes On has become rather good at of late.

In short - all hail Zelda and her ample offerings because this is one Reissue I won't be getting whiffy about...