SAVOY BROWN
WITCHY FEELIN
RUF RECORDS
WHY DID YOU HOODOO ME–LIVING ON THE BAYOU–I CAN’T STOP THE BLUES–WITCHY FEELIN–GUITAR SLINGER–VINTAGE MAN–STANDING IN A DOORWAY–MEMPHIS BLUES–CAN’T FIND PARADISE–THUNDER, LIGHTNING, AND RAIN–CLOSE TO MIDNIGHT
Kim Simmonds and Savoy Brown were one of the pioneers of the British Invasion blues bands during the Sixties, and, arguably, were the most successful, due to their brilliant original material and tireless work ethic. Simmonds’ original vision for this band was for them to become a British version of a Chicago blues band, and he holds to that ideal today, some fifty years further on up the road.
With more than thirty albums under the name Savoy Brown, we are proud to present our review for their latest, “Witchy Feelin,” for Ruf Records. Along with Kim on guitar and vocals, we have Pat Desalvo on bass, and Garnet Grimm on drums over the course of eleven original forays into the scorching blues-rock for which this band has long been noted.
Another thing that listeners will notice on this set are the cuts that deal with the hoodoo, voodoo, and all-around Crossroads vibe that permeate them. Check out the leadoff tale of a lover with a genuine “gypsy streak,” in “Why Did You Hoodoo Me?” A bit later, that question is answered when his lover up and leaves, and our hero “Can’t Stop The Blues, you been gone too long.” This one is augmented by snarling, call-and-response guitar lines. A greasy slide riff rocks “Memphis Blues,” as Kim is hell-bent on getting outta that town and leave all its bad memories behind.
We had several favorites. Kim jammed with Jimi back in the day, and, as we are amid the 50th anniversary of “Voodoo Chile,” Kim offers up his own eight-minute wah-wah workout, the brooding “Thunder, Lightning, And Rain.” Kim’s 1969 meeting with Rory Buchanan in a bar “on the back roads to nowhere” becomes the story of the “Guitar Slinger gettin’ down,” while “Vintage Man” is written for those who do not change as they age, from their ’57 Chevy to the soles of their blue suede shoes!
Kim Simmonds is always on the lookout for another mountain to scale, even after decades of doing what he loves. On “Witchy Feelin,” every note of every song seems like it fits just right, and the legacy of Savoy Brown continues to grow! Until next time…Sheryl and Don Crow, The Nashville Blues Society.
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