"…Gimme Some Lovin'…"
Twelve seven-inch singles, a
cackle of four-track EPs and three albums worth of quality Sixties music is not
a bad haul in any man’s books. But when it’s by THE SPENCER DAVIS GROUP fronted
by the voice of STEVE WINWOOD – then that compilation starts to smack of a
must-own. Let’s run down those details…
UK released March 1996 – "Eight Gigs A Week: The Steve Winwood Years" by THE SPENCER DAVIS GROUP on
Island/Chronicles CRNCD5 / 524 180-2 (Barcode 731452418029) gives you 51 tracks
across 2 CDs (71:48 and 79:05 minutes). It breaks down into 49 studio songs
(all in Mono) supplemented by two Previously Unreleased live versions of
“Kansas City” and “Oh! Pretty Woman”(Tracks 9 and 20 on Disc 1).
As pages 2 and 3 of the
booklet only list song titles without any Discography – here’s how to line up every
SPENCER DAVIS GROUP vinyl release between August 1964 and June 1967 using this
compilation to do it - [11/1] = Track 11 on Disc 1, [1/2] = Track 1 on Disc 2
etc
UK 7” SINGLES and EP’s:
1. Dimples [1/1] b/w Sittin'
And Thinkin' [11/1] – August 1964 UK debut 7” single on Fontana TF 471
2. I Can’t Stand It [2/1]
b/w Midnight Train [6/1] – October 1964 2nd UK 7” on Fontana TF 499
3. Every Little Bit Hurts
[10/1] b/w It Hurts Me So [19/1] – January 1965 3rd UK 7” on Fontana TF 530
4. Strong Love [17/1] b/w
This Hammer [22/1] – May 1965 4th UK 7” on Fontana TF 571
5. You Put The Hurt On Me EP
– June 1965 UK 1st 7” 4-Track Extended Play on Fontana TE 17444
A1. She Put The Hurt On Me
[13/1] - A2. I’m Getting Better [15/1]
B1. I’ll Drown In My Own
Tears [14/1] - B2. Goodbye Stevie [16/1]
6. Every Little Bit Hurts EP
– August 1965 UK 2nd 7” 4-Track Extended Play on Fontana TE 17450
A1. Every Little Bit Hurts
[10/1] – A2. It Hurts Me So [19/1]
B1. I Can’t Stand It [2/1] –
B2. Midnight Train [6/1]
7. Keep On Running [24/1]
b/w High Time Baby [6/2] – November 1965 5th UK 7” on Fontana TF 632
8. Somebody Help Me [1/2]
b/w Stevie’s Blues [17/2] – March 1966 6th UK 7” on Fontana TF 679
9. Sittin' And Thinkin' EP –
June 1966 UK 3rd 7” 4-Track Extended Play on Fontana TE 17463
A1. Sittin' And Thinkin'
[11/1] – A2. Jump Back [3/1]
B1. Dimples [1/1] – B2.
Searchin’ [5/1]
10.When I Come Home [5/2]
b/w Trampoline [10/2] – August 1966 7th UK 7” on Fontana TF 739
11. Gimme Some Lovin' [23/2]
b/w Blues In F [26/2] – October 1966 8th UK 7” on Fontana TF 762
12. I'm A Man [25/2] b/w I
Can’t Get Enough Of It [20/2] – January 1967 9th UK 7” on Fontana TF 785
UK ALBUMS:
“Their First LP” – released
July 1965 in Mono on Fontana TL 5242
Side 1:
1. My Babe [8/1]
2. Dimples [1/1]
3. Searchin' [5/1]
4. Every Little Bit Hurts
[10/1]
5. I’m Blue (Gong Gong Song)
[12/1]
6. Sittin' And Thinkin'
[11/1]
Side 2:
1. I Can’t Stand It [2/1]
2. Here Right Now [4/1]
3. Jump Back [3/1]
4. It’s Gonna Work Out Fine
[7/1]
5. Midnight Train [6/1]
6. It Hurst Me So [19/1]
“The Second Album” –
released January 1966 in Mono on Fontana TL 5295
Side 1:
1. Look Away [21/1]
2. Keep On Running [24/1]
3. This Hammer [22/1]
4. Georgia On My Mind [18/1]
5. Please Do Something
[23/1]
6. Let Me Down Easy [25/1]
Side 2:
1. Strong Love [17/1]
2. I Washed My Hands In
Muddy Waters [8/2]
3. Since I Met You Baby
[11/2]
4. You Must Believe Me [9/2]
5. Hey Darling [7/2]
7. Watch Your Step [2/2]
“Autumn '66” – released
September 1966 in Mono on Fontana TL 5359
Side 1:
1. Together Till The End Of
Time [22/2]
2. Take This Hurt Off Me
[18/2]
3. Nobody Knows You When
You’re Down And Out [3/2]
4. Midnight Special [4/2]
5. When A Man Loves A Woman
[14/2]
6. When I Come Home [5/2]
Side 2:
1. Mean Woman Blues [12/2]
2. Dust My Blues [13/2]
3. On The Green Light [16/2]
4. Neighbour, Neighbour
[15/2]
5. High Time Baby [6/2]
6. Somebody Help Me [1/2]
The 2CDs come in card
slipcase which houses a slide-in 24-page oversized booklet - chockers with
album covers, rare foreign language picture sleeves for both singles and LPs,
trade adverts for Fontana releases and even a Pop Picture Library magazine cover
for the princely fee of one schilling. JOHN REED - then at the Record Collector
Magazine forming their famous Price Guides – has handled the liner notes. John
is one of the most knowledgeable and passionate writers on the Sixties (and the
Mod scene in particular) and his liner notes feature great reminiscences from
Muff Winwood (Stevie’s brother) who went on to be the main Promotions/A&R
Agent in Chris Blackwell’s Island Records. There are discussions on the making
of the huge hits – Spencer Davis’ huge R&B collection influencing the
direction of the band and of course the amazing vocal chops of a seventeen
year-old called Steve Winwood from near Birmingham England and not Birmingham
Alabama.
There are no mastering credits anywhere - but the Audio is wonderful - punchy MONO mixes rattling your speakers like they used to shake your transistor radio...
While all the huge hits like
“Gimme Some Lovin’”, “I’m A Man”, “Keep On Runnin’” and “Somebody Help Me” (the
last two went to Number 1) are all here - for me the knock-out stuff are those
throwaway B-sides – many of which were simply done in the studio as
instrumentals. “Stevie’s Blues” is the B-side of “Somebody Help Me” and sees
Winwood launch into some truly stunning Blues guitar – it’s heavy like Cream or
The Bluesbreakers. “Trampoline” is a cool-jaunty instrumental on the back of
the well-underrated “When I Come Home” while the band goes on Ramsey Lewis on
“Blues In F” – the flip of “Lovin’”.
Their affection for American
Soul, Rhythm ‘n’ Blues and Reggae determined so many of their cover version
choices, ”I’m Blue (Gong Gong Song)” (Ike Turner), “Since I Met You Baby”
(Ivory Joe Hunter), “Every Little Hurts” (Brenda Holloway), “Georgia On My
Mind” and I'll Drown In My Own Tears" (Ray Charles), “Dimples” (John Lee
Hooker), “Searchin’” (The Coasters) and three by Jackie Edwards on Islands
Records (“Keep On Running”, “When I Come Home” and “Back Into Life Again”). What’s
also obvious is the massive improvement in the band as they transitioned from
the first to the 2nd LP. “The Second Album” has a clever mixture of originals
and less obvious cover versions like “I Washed My Hands In Muddy Water”
(Charlie Rich), “You Must Believe Me” (The Impressions) and a mellow stab at
Betty Lavett’s “Let Me Down Easy” with Stevie already sounding decades ahead of
his actual age.
As many filmgoers will know
every time someone in a British Rom-Com is running to a church – the filmmakers
will invariably use “Keep On Running”. Cliché or not – it’s still a classy
single. But the big daddy of them all has to be the astonishing Motowneseque
power of “Gimme Some Lovin’” which to this day sends tingles up the spine. Like
Roy Orbison’s “Oh! Pretty Woman” (the live version here has screaming girls
wanting to do un-pretty things to the boys on stage) – “Gimme Some Lovin’” somehow
encapsulates the Sixties to a tee – exciting, fun and sexy down to it’s Mary
Quant lipstick and bottleneck winklepicker shoes.
So there you have it - tons
of cool stuff, cracking remasters and nice presentation.
The Chris Welch liner
notes on the back of “The Second Album" sleeve state in its last lines -
“...SDG fans will be completely satisfied with this package…”
On the money my musical son…
