line up 1 (1968-70)

- John Best -- bass

- Paul Butler -- vocals, guitar

- Chris Waters -- drums, percussion

- Pete Wingfield --vocals, keyboards

  line up 2 (1970-71)

- John Best -- bass

- Paul Butler -- vocals, guitar

NEW - Rick Haywood (aka Rick Birkett) (RIP 2012) -- guitar

  (replaced Pete Wingfield)

NEW - Kenny Lamb --drums, percussion (replaced Chris Waters)

  line up 3 (1971-72)

- Paul Butler -- vocals, guitar

NEW - Rick Haywood (aka Rick Birkett) (RIP 2012) -- guitar

  (replaced Pete Wingfield)

- The Accent (Rick Birkett)

- Band of Gold (Pete Wingfield)

- The Big Easy (Rick Birkett)

- Paul Butler (solo efforts)

- Chicken Shack (Paul Butler)

- Keef Hartley Band (Pete Wingfield)

- Rick Heywood (solo efforts)

- The Hollies (Pete Wingfield)

- Key Largo (Kenny Lamb)

- A Little Uneasy (Rick Birkett)

- Livin' Blues (Kenny Lamb)

- Long Tall Ernie and the Shakers (Kenny Lamb)

- Olympic Runners (Pete Wingfield)

- Christine Perfect (Rick Birkett)

- Variations (Kenny Lamb)

- Pete Wingfield (solo efforts)

- The Zombies (Rick Birkett)

Genre: blues-rock

Rating: *** stars

Title: First Slice

Company: Blue Horizon

Catalog: BH 4801
Year: 1970

Country/State: Sussex, UK

Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+

Comments: US pressing

Available: 1

Catalog ID: --

Price: $40.00

One of hundreds of late-'60s English blues bands, Jellybread traces it's roots to bass player John Best.  Best was attending the University of Sussex as an engineering candidate when he decided he wanted to form a band.  He put up flyers announcing auditions and eventually recruited singer/guitarist Paul Butrler, drummer Chris Waters and singer/keyboardist Pete Wingfield.   Hoping to earn a little spending money the four started playing local dances and clubs, moving on the college student unions.  John Holbrook was one of WIngfield's buddies, having played in a number of bands with him,  Holbrook was working for IBC Studios and in early 1969 let the band record a couple of tracks after hours.  The band printed up about 100 copies of their album and started selling them at school and after shows.  Demand saw them see out and print additional copies which eventually captured the attention of Mike Vernon's blues-oriented Blue Horizons label.  

Signed by the label, their 1969 debut "First Slice" teamed the quartet with producer Mike Vernon.  Split between blues covers and blues originals, the album served as a prime example of late-'60s English blues-rock.  That meant if you liked bands like earl Fleetwood Mac, Keef Hartley, The Savoy Blues Bands, or Ten Years After you were going to be happy with the results.  Personally I'd ask why you weren't simply going to the original source materials - note Percy Mayfield was represented on the album by a pair of covers.  I'm not a big fan of the genre, but I found the album to be proficient and never less than listenable.  Both Butler and Wingfield had nice voices (Butler handled the majority of songs), and all four proved capable musicians;  Wingfield's keyboards the most prominent and impressive of the four players.  Easy to see why Keef Hartley promptly recruited him. Unfortunatey tracks like the bluesy ballad 'Evening', 'I've Got To Forget You' and 'Rusty Blade' were professional, if not particularly original.  On the other hand, if you liked you music with more of a pop, or rock sheen then you were liable to find this album bland and predictable.  My biggest problem with the album stemmed from the collection's lack of variety - blues, blues and more blues.  The notable exceptions were the weird jazzy instrumental 'Chairman Mao's Boogaloo' and a soulful cover of Deadric Malone's 'I've Got To Forget You'.  Terry Noonan's string arrangements didn't really help anything.  Finally, whereas tracks like 'I've Got To Forget You' showcased Wingfield's laconic voice, Butler occasionally mistook Janis Joplin-styled power for quality.   

"First Slice" track listing:
(side 1)

1.) River's Invitation (Percy Mayfield) - 2:20 rating: *** stars

Geez, it takes some guts to cover an R&B classic that's been recorded by the likes of Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, James  Cotton, Freddie Robinson and Bobby Rush.  The first of two Percy Mayfield tunes, I'll have to admit their cover wasn't bad.  Their arrangement kept things low-keyed, short (under two and a half minutes) and I loved Best stand up bass work.   

2.) I Pity The Fool (Deadric. Malone) - 4:46  rating: *** stars

So here's another one where their cover of a blues classic puts them in competition with the likes of Bobby "Blue" Bland and Ann Peebles. This time out their cover is a little more energetic with Butler opting to cut lose on vocals.  This time the results weren't shreaky (not always the case) so I'm okay with the cover.

3.) Never Say No (Percy Mayfield) - 4:18 rating: *** stars

Obviously the Percy Mayfield original shreds their cover, but hearing their smoky, pseudo-jazzy cover of 'Never Say No' I can start to understand why they were such a popular act on English college campuses.

4.) Chairman Mao's Boogaloo (instrumental) (Pete Wingfield) - 2:08 rating: *** stars

The album's first instrumental, 'Chairman Mao's Boogaloo' has always reminded me of something the late Vince Guaraldi might have recorded for a Peanuts sountrack.  It was bouncy and energetic, but sounded sort of out of place on the album.  It certainly made for an odd choice as an English single.

- 1969's 'Chairman Mao's Boogaloo' b/w 'No One Else' (Blue Horizon catalog number 57-3162\)

5.) Evening (Chris Waters - John Best - Paul Butler - Pete Wingfield) - 7:12 rating: *** stars

The group composition 'Evening' was a pretty, bluesy ballad.  The album's longest performance, the song gave Wingfield and Butler opportunities to step into the spotlight. Unfortunately the song had two things going against it - Terry Noonan's MOR string arrangement sounded hopelessly out of place and Butler seemed to think trying to power his way through the vocals equated to a more authentic blues sound.  It didn't. 

(side 2)
1.) I've Got To Forget You (Deadric Malone) - 2:50 rating: *** stars

Featuring Wingfield on lead vocals, 'I've Got To Forget You' swerved away from blues towards a Southern soul feeling.  Back by some Stax-styled horn charts, it was certainly one of the set's more commercial performances.

2.) Boogie Sandwich (instrumental) (Pete. Wingfield) - 1:52 rating: ** stars

The brief instrumental 'Boogie Sandwich' served as a showcase for Wingfield's boogie woogie keyboards. Technically it may have been impressive, but otherwise it was boring.

3.) Rusty Blade (Chris Waters - John. Best - Paul Butler - Pete Wingfield) - 4:18  rating: ** stars

'Rusty Blade' was a good example of why I'm not a big fan of English blues.  With Butler on vocals and lead guitar the performance was technically competent, but every note sounded like something you'd heard on dozens of other English blues albums.

4.) No Brag Just Fact (Pts. 1 & 2) (instrumental) (Chris Waters - John Best - Paul Butler - Pete Wingfield) -3:58  rating: *** stars

Powered by Wingfield's piano, the instrumental 'No Brag Just Fact (Pts. 1 & 2)' was another track that reminded me of something out of  Vince Guaraldi's soul-jazz catalog.  Part 1 was a pleasant slice of background music. Part 2  finally gave Butler and Best a chance to showcase their guitar and bass chops making for the album's closest brush with commercial rock.

5.) No One Else (Paul Butler - Pete Wingfield) - 3:38  rating: *** stars

Another blues ballad with Butler contiuting a nice blues solo.

6.) Don't Pay Them No Mind (Pete Wingfield) - 3:15 rating: *** stars

A breezy, but forgettable blues number, hearing Wingfield's performance on 'Don't Pay Them No Mind' always makes me smile trying to figure out how a young guy from Surrey, UK could sound like a seasoned American R&B singer.  

 © Scott R. Blackerby December, 2024