Back in the days of the British Invasion of the USA bands from the UK took back to America their own music. It had been modified and fed through a British filter but the music was essential what the youth of the UK had heard on the imported records they managed to get their hands on. The music was the sound of black America: the Blues, R&B, Soul, Motown and a mix of Country, Rockabilly and Rock'n'Roll. Not what the record companies were trying to sell to the majority white audience they pandered to. The new sound caught on with the American teenagers and before long bands were playing the new sounds in every garage across suburbia. The UK groups soon realized that they could not keep reproducing this music forever and started writing their own songs.
Along came the Hippies with Flower Power, and mind expanding drugs. The drugs were said to help with creativity and suddenly the music changed from feet tapping, limb shaking dance to what became known as Psychedelic.
Some bands went down this path and we were treated to the likes of Sgt. Pepper's, Their Satanic Majesties Request, Ogdens' Nut Gone Flake, or The Piper at the Gates of Dawn and many others. Other bands stuck to the roots music of jazz, blues and soul music of black America. Strawberry Records through Cherry Red have released a new 3 CD compilation to celebrate those UK bands that kept the faith. Called Feelin' Alright: Mod, Rock, Funky Prog & Heavy Jazz 1967-1972, there is just under 4 hours of music from 64 tracks from the likes of Deep Purple, Sharon Tandy (backed by Fleur De Lys), Small Faces, Faces, Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac, Jeff Beck (with Rod Stewart & Ronnie Wood), Georgie Fame, Stevie Winwood with both The Spencer Davis Group and Traffic, Mighty Baby, Julie Driscoll, Brian Auger & The Trinity, Blodwyn Pig and Graham Bond. The music transcends the genres from British Blues of John Mayll to the Jazz Rock of Manfred Mann Chapter Three and the soul and R&B of Rod Stewart and Stevie Winwood. Practically every track is a gem of UK music.
As always with these retrospectives from Cherry Red it comes with a multi-page booklet giving details about each selection and an introduction from Jon Harrington.
You can hear some tracks from the collection in The Groove Yard visit 171
For a full track listing and other information go to the Cherry Red Records website.