The First
Generation 1965–1974 is a 35-CD box set dedicated to the blues maven and
propagator John Mayall. As well as the discs, there are three books: one a
hardback, another reproducing fan club material, and the third a facsimile of
the press pack for his first album. Also included are two posters and a signed
photograph of Mayall. Five thousand copies have been made. As it sells for
£275, the 3.8 kilogram The First Generation will not be a casual purchase.
What’s
encompassed by The First Generation is not the well-defined narrative of a
standard band or musician. Mayall’s Sixties band Bluesbreakers had a lot of
churn, as much so as Fairport Convention or The Fall. Pete Frame’s book Rock
Family Trees records 15 different Bluesbreakers’s line-ups from January 1963 to
June 1970 (the final two were such in all-but name, even though Mayall operated
with a solo credit). Muddying the waters further, he also recorded solo.
But another
band hot-housed by Bluesbreakers didn't fit that bill. Jon Hiseman, Dick
Heckstall-Smith and Tony Reeves were with Mayall from April to August 1968.
After leaving Bluesbreakers, the trio formed pioneering British jazz-rockers
Colosseum. John Mayall indeed created a breeding ground, but it wasn’t just for
those who ran with the blues.
So how to
grapple with Mayall? The First Generation is undoubtedly about Mayall and his
relationship with blues, but it’s also about his capacity for using players as
a conduit for how he saw music. In Pete Frame’s book, Mayall says Jon Hiseman
knew nothing about blues and didn’t care about his music, but Mayall wanted him
to join Bluesbreakers as he admired his playing. In the spirit of aiming for
what he saw as the best, Mayall would summarily sack players if someone he
liked more came along – short-stay guitarist Jeff Kribbett was abruptly dumped
in favour of Peter Green. Later on, with Mick Fleetwood’s departure there
wasn’t a replacement waiting in the wings. The drummer was fired for drinking.
Despite who else is heard, The First Generation is ultimately about the will of
John Mayall.
Mayall
aficionados are going to have a lot of the first 26 discs already. Any decision
to buy will hinge on depths of pockets and the degree of yen for the rest: the
books, posters, the signed photo, the BBC and live discs. And as John Mayall
himself is involved with the release, that may be an influence on whether to purchase.
After the
first 26, the remaining nine discs are two dedicated to BBC radio recordings
(from 1965 to 1968: 29 tracks have never been out before), a comp of low-ish fi
but bracing audience recordings of tracks extracted from four Peter Green-era
1967 live shows (presumably all that survives of these shows) and a disc apiece
for six other live shows. There’s one full show with the John Mayall, Mick
Fleetwood, Peter Green, John McVie band. It’s another audience recording (in a
bootlegger’s A-/B+ sound quality), from Bromley Technical College at some point
in April or May 1967 (when this line-up was extant). Despite the audience
chatter, what’s heard is pretty hot – this was a tight, driving band. “Stand Back
Baby” is the stand-out as everyone is locked-in with each other.
But the box
is not all about the music. The books are a draw. The text in the 131-page
hardback incorporates interviews with Mayall: new and old. Dates are always
specific. Detail dominates. It’s nicely designed and broken up into logical
sections. The illustrations are great, as is the choice of who else beyond
Mayall to quote. All anyone needs to know is here. A fine, precise,
straightforward biography.
The facsimile
of the press pack for 1965’s live John Mayall Plays John Mayall album (recorded
live in December 1964) is great to have. Irrespective of any interest in
Mayall, it’s a terrific period piece. In it, Charlie Watts is quoted as saying
“John Mayall? Great! Quite an experience to hear and see him. That one-man
band, leaping about all over the place – mad!” Georgie Fame says “I’m pretty
sure he’s got no imitators with that triple harmonica-organ-piano rave up. It’s
a knockout.” The Kinks’s Pete Quaife is more measured, saying of the album that
“this disc generates a fair old bit of excitement.”
The book of
fan club material collects 128 pages of newsletters from early 1968 to July
1970. It’s a goldmine of raw material with detailed information on tours and
releases, and lengthy specially written contributions from band members
including Mayall. Mind-boggling stuff.
However, The First Generation 1965–1974 is an extraordinary tribute to a wilful, visionary British musician. A great enthusiast and a great propagator, John Mayall is important. But is this box set at £275 important? Five thousand copies have been released and, presumably, at least the same number of buyers will think it is that important.
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