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East-West ReviewThere are many albums which have introduced a new combined style of music to the masses (e.g. "Are You Experienced", "Sargent Peppers", "Johnny Winter" and "Texas Flood" are some). This set was way ahead of its time. The Butterfield Blues Band had made a name for itself on their first, self-titled, LP as great exponents of the revived Blues Power. The edge this band had was, say unlike Canned Heat, they had two Black musicians from Howlin Wolf's band. Sam Lay, the drummer, is still considered to be one the best Chicago Blues drummers ever and bassist Jerome Arnold. This lineup was impressive. Unlike John Mayall, whose album fired interest in the Blues from the far side of the Atlantic with its pre-Hendrix like overdriven sound and up front guitar. However, the PBBB had people from Chicago, the home of urban blues, who had grown up and played with all the greats. Butterfield, originally a flutist, is probably, along with Charlie Musselwhite, the greatest ever white harp player-his style of single note playing (listen to the record) is very unique and gives it a true horn sound. He had met Elvin Bishop at the University of Chicago and started jamming. Bishop, a native Oklahoman, was a Blues fanatic from the start. He played traditional blues styles on his Gibson 335 in the Freddie King, Eddie Taylor, Luther Tucker and Otis Rush tradition.
Mike Bloomfield, whose father owned a club in Chicago, had only been playing about 10 years when he made this record. He played jazz, blues and fingerpicking styles well. Mike took up slide on a Fender Telecaster and became known around town for his fabluous technqiue-similar to Elmore James. He was hired to play slide in the initial album on "Shake Your Moneymaker" and joined the band. (However, he was in and out the whole time-I saw the PBBB several times growing up in NY and Bloomfield was never in the line up). On East-West Bloomfield switched to the Gibson Les Paul (Like Clapton) and history was made. His lines are clear and many of his runs are virtually seamless. And amazing effort-one he himself never duplicated- like Eric Clapton on the Bluesbreakers first LP. Mark Naftalin does a great job on the keyboards. And Jerome Arnold plays bass with soul (especially notice his work on "The Work Song" similar to Duck Dunn of the MGs).
This band was interracial, a great thing for the Blues Revival that they helped start (Like SRV in the 1980s). They were the Blues Booker T and the MGs. This set combines all genres of music but basically shows the world what Willie Dixon always said "The Blues is the Roots, Everything else is the Fruits!". They do impressive and updated (at the time) versions of many types of tunes. "Walking Blues" is of course a Robert Johnson tune and was probably done because Clapton had done "Ramblin On My Mind" on the Mayall LP. "Mary, Mary" was a tune by the Monkees!!!!!!Can you believe it!
"I Got A Mind To Give Up Living" was a B.B. King tune (redone many times with many different titles). Which to me always has been the highlight of the record. It's a blues, but a new wave type of feel and arrangement. Butterfield sings, but plays no harp! Bloomfield produced his best ever blues solos- slightly understated and perfect, especially the intro. "Two Trains Running" has a funky feel and is nothing like Muddy Waters original or the Danny Kalb and the Blues Project's slow version on "Projections". This one rocks and the intro to the guitar solo is fantastic with its tension and build up.
The title track is no less interesting. It featured ragas from India with a basic jazz background. Bloomfield and Butterfield's playing is fantastic and highly original. This was the start of the Grateful Dead style psychedelic rock that came in the late 60s. (I can remember playing in bands in 1967 where we did "Gloria" and "Light My Fire" for a half hour each!!!) This track was 13 minutes long and a milestone for the time- the Door's The End was 11 minutes!
The Work Song is a powerful jazz-fusion number that has Bloomfield's best solos ever. This was someone at the height of their creative powers. The whole tune is solid and explores the jazz potential of the basic blues pentatonic scale. I feel this was Butterfield's instrumental masterpiece.
It is unfortunate that the Blues gave way to soul and country in the 1970s. Butterfield's subsequent work (although some was excellent) never sold well (either did John Mayall's as well). Butterfield and Bloomfield had drug addictions which ultimately killed them both. Bishop continues to play and had chart success in the seventies. Naftalin played with Otis Rush and others and Sam Lay is still a Chicago institution (see him on the Howlin Wolf DVD and The Godfathers and Sons DVD in the Blues series, 2003).
This is an essential recording in the history of American Music and should be in everyone's collection.
East-West OverviewOne of the greatest guitar albums of all time and a real '60s classic, with Elvin Bishop and Mike Bloomfield trading licks on the mind-bending title cut in particular.
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