Fleetwood Mac - The Pious Bird Of Good Omen
Peter Green (g, voc)
Jeremy Spencer (g, p, voc)
Danny Kirwan (g)
Eddie Boyd (p, voc)
Big Walter Horton (hca)
John McVie (b)
Mick Fleetwood (dr) [click here to see more vinyl featuring Mick Fleetwood]
Written by Little Willie John (A1), E. James (A2, A5, A6), P. A. Green (A3, B1, B2, B5, B6), E. Boyd (A4, B3), C. G. Adams (B6)
1 LP, standard sleeve
Original analog Master tape : YES
Heavy Press : 180g
Record color : black
Speed : 33 RPM
Record Press : Pallas
Label : Speakers Corner
Original Label : Blue Horizon
Recorded between September 1967 and October 1968 by Mike Ross
Production: Mike Vernon
Originall released in 1969
Reissued in June 2007
Tracks :
Side A :
- Need Your Love So Bad
- Comin' Home
- Rambling Pony
- The Big Boat
- I Believe My Time Ain't Long
- The Sun Is Shining
Side B :
- Albatross
- Black Magic Woman
- Just The Blues
- Jigsaw Puzzle Blues
- Looking For Somebody
- Stop Messin' Round
Reviews :
« With songs taken from Fleetwood Mac and Mr. Wonderful, Pious Bird of Good Omen serves as a worthy 12-track compilation of the band's early Peter Green days. Climbing to number 18 in the U.K., the album managed to catapult Fleetwood Mac's version of Little Willie John's "Need Your Love So Bad" into the English charts for the third time, resting at number 42. The album itself was released by Blue Horizon after the group's contract with them had expired, making it one of the best routes in which to explore their mingling of Chicago and British blues. "Albatross," "Black Magic Woman," and "I Believe My Time Ain't Long" are timeless Fleetwood Mac standards, representing some of the band's best pre-Rumours work. Anyone who isn't familiar with Fleetwood Mac's origins should use Pious Bird of Good Omen as a starting point in investigating the first wave of the band, which will almost certainly lead to further interests into albums such as English Rose, Then Play On, and Kiln House, and then into later albums like Bare Trees and Penguin, which reveal subtle yet effective changes in the band's blues sound. But even aside from its purpose as a collection, Pious Bird of Good Omen makes for a terrific laid-back stroll through some of the best British blues music ever made. » AllMusic Review by Mike DeGagne
After the break-up of John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers in the summer of 1967, the time seemed ripe for Peter Green, John McVie and Mick Fleetwood to take their leave from raw British rock ’n’ roll. The newly established band Fleetwood Mac first turned to black blues, and their art of playing was so similar to that of other groups that the magazine Eye criticised them for their »almost ridiculous mimicry«. However, their choice of performance style took them in the right direction and in 1969, the year in which "The Pious Bird Of Good Omen" appeared, they landed at the top end of the pop charts, even ahead of The Beatles and Stevie Wonder.
Of course, in the cover version of Little Willie John’s "Need Your Love So Bad", which is treated with a velvety string sound, and other bluesy songs, the American influence still makes itself heard, but not without success! The highly individual sound of the group comes best through in the now legendary numbers such as the weightless, gliding "Albatross" and "Black Magic Woman" with its Latin and blues elements. Judged the best British blues ever to be played (allmusic.com), one can now sit back and enjoy this great album.
Ratings :
Allmusic : 4.5 / 5 , Discogs : Rate Your Music :