Mr. Wonderful - Analyze Your Least Favorites

[MacShadowsBall]

Moving on now to Mr. Wonderful...

Worst Lyrics -

The "used to likes" -

Songs that could have been better -

Everybody's favorite but not mine -

Much better performed live -

Overall least favorite -

[dino]

C'mon...
Ok, Mr Wonderful has too many Elmore James numbers, that's it.

[chriskisn]

Originally Posted by dino

C'mon...
Ok, Mr Wonderful has too many Elmore James numbers, that's it.

...and when we get to Then Play On, it won't have enough

[jbrownsjr]

Originally Posted by chriskisn

...and when we get to Then Play On, it won't have enough

haha!!

[GJK]

Originally Posted by dino

C'mon...
Ok, Mr Wonderful has too many Elmore James numbers, that's it.

It had almost 2 Elmore James numbers on it: "Coming home" and "Dust my broom", the latter one was essentially stolen from Robert Johnson.
Unfortunately, Jeremy did sound 'Doctor Brown' (written by Wayman Glasco) and his own 'Need your love tonight' too much alike...

About 30 years ago, in the at that time very popular Dutch radio show 'Arbeidsvitaminen', they played (by mistake, I'm sure) 'Need your love tonight' instead of 'Need your love so bad'.
This got me really interested in the 'old' Fleetwood Mac, and since then I really got hooked on blues music.

GJK (quite drunk and almost 45)...

[Wouter Vuijk]

Originally Posted by GJK

GJK (quite drunk and almost 45)...

Not (yet) drunk and 59

[zoork_1]

Originally Posted by Wouter Vuijk

Not (yet) drunk and 59

Working on it now...

[michelej1]

45 Years Ago: Fleetwood Mac Release ‘Mr. Wonderful’

http://www.radioio.com/2013/08/45-ye...-mr-wonderful/

Blue Horizon Records

As the U.K. blues-rock boom of the late ’60s escalated, Fleetwood Mac were in the thick of it with their second album, ‘Mr. Wonderful,’ which was released in August 1968. Having just put out their debut at the start of the year, the Mac were rolling full steam ahead.

And much like that self-titled first LP, ‘Mr. Wonderful’ features a mix of blues covers and originals mostly written by guitarists Peter Green and Jeremy Spencer. The rhythm section of drummer Mick Fleetwood and bassist John McVie anchor the music, with the guitarists free to roam where they choose.

Still, there’s something missing here. “It was recorded in four days, and it sounds like it,” Fleetwood recalled in his autobiography ‘Fleetwood: My Life and Adventures in Fleetwood Mac.’ “Ragged low-down blues by the seat of the pants,” he calls it, and the album kicks off with a fiery example: Green’s ‘Stop Messin Round,’ which picks up where the debut left off but with one difference. Producer Mike Heron decided to bring in horns and a piano player to augment the band’s naturally raw sound. (The pianist, by the way, was Christine Perfect, who later became Christine McVie, on loan from the band Chicken Shack.)

The band’s take on down-and-out blues continues in varying degrees throughout ‘Mr. Wonderful.’ The bluesy stomp of Elmore James’ ‘Dust My Broom’ gets it right, with a raw vocal performance and some ace slide-guitar playing by Spencer. But Green’s ‘Love That Burns’ includes a horn arrangement that dilutes the soul-searing blues the band could be so good at and ultimately distracts from the desperation at hand.

Still, the horns and piano occasionally add a sweet jazzy flavor to the mix. The entire album sounds homemade, which works both for and against it in the end. Songs like ‘If You Be My Baby’ and ‘Lazy Poker Blues’ stomp in brash fashion, while ‘Evenin’ Boogie’ features a solid jump blues with excellent horns. And the closing track, ‘Tryin’ So Hard to Forget,’ is stripped bare, with only guitar, vocal and harmonica. It’s the purest blues on the album and a highlight, basking in its haunting darkness.

Curiously, even with all of the traditional blues sounds found on ‘Mr. Wonderful,’ the album was preceded by one of Fleetwood Mac’s most significant singles, ‘Black Magic Woman,’ a non-LP track that revealed their versatility. Likewise, they followed ‘Mr. Wonderful’ with two more landmark hit singles, ‘Albatross’ and ‘Man of the World,’ which steer away from the blues while still using the music as a jumping-off point. A sign of things to come.

[doodyhead]

Whoever wrote this review does not check his own work.

The producer in his article is "Mike Heron". I did not know that The Incredible String Band had anything to do with "Mr Wonderful".

What does he know about blues. The horns are great atmosphere for Love That Burns. This was recorded live on purpose to get the live feel. At least he reviewed the album. It does prove the old axiom: Any press is good press as long as they spell your name right

doodyhead

[dino]

The net makes everyone a journalist, irrespective of subject knowledge or writing skills.

[becca]

A lot of people are abusive about it, but I liked the cover photo of Mr. Wonderful (rural companion to the English Rose no doubt)... it made me laff! Now Pious Bird's cover... that's depressing (a nun in a quarry).

[chiliD]

Originally Posted by dino

C'mon...
Ok, Mr Wonderful has too many Elmore James numbers, that's it.

Pretty much verbatim to what I would've posted.

But then, I prefer the US released English Rose over the non-US release Mr. Wonderful. Only because I heard English Rose in its entirety before I ever heard Mr. Wonderful. Kind of the same train of thought as hearing the US Beatle albums before I heard the UK counterparts. The UK versions just seemed weird, but after I finally understood the UK versions were "how they were meant to be", I grew to prefer them. But, in the case of English Rose & Mr Wonderful, I've chosen to unapologetically prefer the US release. To me it just makes a better album with "Black Magic Woman", "Albatross" & Danny Kirwan's tunes.

[doodyhead]

I first Heard English Rose in 1970 after first buying "Then Play On" without Oh Well on it and The Fleetwood Mac in Chicago release.
I bought it in the double package with "Dog and Dustbin. I liked English Rose better than the first release. It was not until the release of the Blue Horizon boxed set came out in 2004? that I heard Mr Wonderful. While I understand that the release f the Danny Kirwin songs (Jigsaw Puzzle) and Black Magic Woman and Albatross make for a better listening album, I did not hear the Rolling Man studio cut until thirty years later, and to me, that was the jem of the album besides Love That Burns. I too would have dropped one of the Jeremy Spencer tunes if I had a choice or as Johnny Winter did in second Winter decide about sound volume over length. ( In pressing vinyl ,the longer the recording is the lower the volume and depth of recording. In that case you would have a longer record at a lower volume level.

vinnie