LONG JOHN BALDRY
It Ain’t Easy
Both Stony Plain / Warner Brothers
LONG JOHN BALDRY
Everything Stops For Tea
Both Stony Plain / Warner Brothers
· Lanky Canadian immigrant’s 1971 and 1972 LPs receive an overdue reissue.
Long John Baldry, who died in Vancouver this year at age 64, figured into the history of countless British rock and blues notables, including Elton John and Rod Stewart. Although emphasis placed on these associations grew tiresome for Baldry, his most well-regarded albums – reissued by Alberta label Stony Plain – were jointly produced by John and Stewart, whose careers overshadowed both Baldry and the freewheeling approach of records of this kind. For one thing, every notable blues source (Willie Dixon, Baldry favourite Leadbelly) is countered by an equally unorthodox choice (Randy Newman, the Fugs’ Tuli Kupferberg on It Ain’t Easy, an unreleased take of Neil Young’s "Only Love Can Break Your Heart" on Everything Stops for Tea). Similarly, the albums contrast Baldry’s plummy spoken tones – fuelled by cognac, especially on the Bonzo Dog Band-esque "Everything Stops for Tea" – with his roaring vocals, especially on "Don’t Try to Lay No Boogie Woogie on the King Of Rock & Roll." Nirvana fans are directed to his blowtorch take of "Black Girl" (a.k.a. "Where Did You Sleep Last Night"). Both are found on It Ain’t Easy, which is the Thriller to Everything Stops For Tea’s Bad, but the latter does include a version of "Iko Iko" that was a hit in Thailand (the things you learn from CD reissues) and a duet with Stewart on the traditional "Mother Ain’t Dead" may expunge the pitch-corrected hell that is the Great American Songbook. Baldry may have been fortunate to avoid the compromises connected with success on the level of Stewart or John and these records serve as confirmation of a maverick talent.
IT AIN’T EASY 4/5
EVERYTHING STOPS FOR TEA 3/5
DAVID BOYLE
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