Bman's Blues Report

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, I Need A Star In My Life , from Humble Pie and it's good to hear Mr. Marriott on some new tracks. Opening with Sam Cooke's Shake , Marriott and Clem Clempson lay down a solid rock and roll riff and Marriott has at it vocally with Greg Ridley on bass and Ian Wallace on drums. Lloyd Price's Send Me Some Lovin' features Tim Hinkley on lead vocal who does a really nice job, also contributing piano and organ which really sets it off nicely. Marriott's Street Rat has a real Humble Pie feel with trademark vocals and a driving beat. High and Happy is reminiscent of Hot n Nasty with just a little more R&B groove. Marriott truely has one of the best rock soul vocals of all time. Marriott's Louisiana Blues is really sweet with wild vocals and a potent bottom. Clempson and Marriott get a chance to rip a bit on guitar, complimented by Wallace on drums. Cocaine , a Pie composition, gets that funky, Pie, gr...

In an exclusive interview with the Musical Times, local blues singer, composer and harmonica player, Simon ‘Honeyboy’ Hickling, talks about the three years when legendary Small Faces & Humble Pie genius, Steve Marriott, worked with his midland’s blues band, the DTs. Three years that preceded Marriott’s untimely death by fire. The DTs, comprising of myself, Simon 'Honeyboy' Hickling on harmonica and vocals, Craig Ring on bass, Steve Walwyn on guitar and Chas Chaplin on drums, had been gigging semi-professionally for the last half of the 70s. In the 80s we went professional and gigged all over England. Consequently we found ourselves on the same bill as Steve Marriott and the Packet of Three on a number of occasions. Down on his luck Steve had come back to England from the States and was down on his luck. In America, after the collapse of Humble Pie - which had been even bigger after Frampton had left - with about four or five big albums over there - Marriott's s...

Alexis Korner (19 April 1928 — 1 January 1984) was a blues musician and radio broadcaster, who has sometimes been referred to as "a Founding Father of British Blues". A major influence on the sound of the British music scene in the 1960s, Korner was instrumental in bringing together various English blues musicians. Alexis Andrew Nicholas Koerner was born in Paris to an Austrian Jewish father and a half-Turkish half-Greek mother, and spent his childhood in France, Switzerland and North Africa. He arrived in London in 1940 at the start of World War II. One memory of his youth was listening to a record by black pianist Jimmy Yancey during a German air raid. Korner said, "From then on all I wanted to do was play the blues." After the war, he played piano and guitar (his first guitar was built by friend and author Sydney Hopkins, who wrote Mister God, This Is Anna), and in 1949 joined Chris Barber's Jazz Band where he met blues harmonica player Cyril Davies. They...

Stephen Peter "Steve" Marriott (30 January 1947 – 20 April 1991) was an English musician, songwriter and frontman of several notable rock and roll bands, spanning over two decades. Marriott is remembered for his powerful singing voice which belied his small stature, and for his aggressive approach as a guitarist in the mod rock bands- the Small Faces (1965–1969) and Humble Pie (1969–1975 and 1980–1981). Marriott was inducted posthumously into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2012 as a member of the Small Faces. In Britain, Marriott became a popular, often-photographed mod style icon through his role as lead singer and guitarist with the Small Faces in the mid to late 1960s. Marriott was influenced from an early age by his heroes including Buddy Holly, Booker T & the MG's, Ray Charles, Otis Redding, Muddy Waters and Bobby Bland. In later life Marriott became disillusioned with the music industry and turned his back on the big record companies, remaining in relative ob...

Anyone who has been reading my report for any period of time knows that I think Steve was one of the best vocalists of current times. Just came across this video... had to share!! It's later in his career but he could still sing!! Write on our Facebook Wall or post your Photos of great blues events! -  ”LIKE”

Alexis Korner (19 April 1928 — 1 January 1984) was a blues musician and radio broadcaster, who has sometimes been referred to as "a Founding Father of British Blues". A major influence on the sound of the British music scene in the 1960s, Korner was instrumental in bringing together various English blues musicians. In 1961, Korner and Davies formed Blues Incorporated, initially a loose-knit group of musicians with a shared love of electric blues and R&B music. The group included, at various times, such influential musicians as Charlie Watts, Jack Bruce, Ginger Baker, Long John Baldry, Graham Bond, Danny Thompson and Dick Heckstall-Smith. It also attracted a wider crowd of mostly younger fans, some of whom occasionally performed with the group, including Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Brian Jones, Geoff Bradford, Rod Stewart, John Mayall and Jimmy Page. One story is that The Rolling Stones went to stay at Korner's house late one night, in the early 1960s, after a per...

Stephen Peter Marriott (30 January 1947 – 20 April 1991), popularly known as Steve Marriott, was an English musician, songwriter, and frontman of several notable rock and roll bands, spanning over two decades. Marriott is remembered for his powerful singing voice which belied his small stature, and for his aggressive approach as a guitarist in the mod rock bands- the Small Faces (1965–1969) and Humble Pie (1969–1975 and 1980–1981). In Britain, Marriott became a popular, often-photographed mod style icon through his role as lead singer and guitarist with the Small Faces in the mid to late sixties. Marriott was influenced from an early age by his heroes including Buddy Holly, Booker T & the MG's, Ray Charles, Otis Redding, Muddy Waters and Bobby Bland. In later life Marriott became disillusioned with the music industry and turned his back on the big record companies, remaining in relative obscurity. He returned to his music roots playing the pubs and clubs around London and Essex...

Sorry... don't know of a worthwhile version of this with real video but you can see what a change has been made in the interpretation of this song... terrific! Humble Pie!! This band was so under rated!! The little guy has the big voice and plays both rhythm guitar and harmonica. If you don't have this album "Smokin" you owe it to yourself! The studio track of this song is extended and very clean!

Humble Pie with the core unit intact playing Honky Tonk Women. Too bad there isn't more good footage of this great band! This studio album is a must have! This was Humble Pie's first album after the departure of Peter Frampton, which put singer and co-founder Steve Marriott at its artistic centre. Smokin' is the band's best-selling album. It includes dramatically slowed down versions of Eddie Cochran's "C'mon Everybody", Junior Walker's "Road Runner", and the wah-wah laden slow blues "The Fixer". "You're So Good for Me", which begins as a delicate acoustic number, ultimately mutates into a full-bore gospel music rave-up, an element that would later influence bands like The Black Crowes. Alexis Korner guests on the track "Old Time Feelin'", Marriott's vocals take a back seat as the main vocals are provided by Greg Ridley and Korner who also plays a Martin Tipple, mandolin-type guitar. Its s...

Steve Marriott is the voice of the blues for the 70-80's. Regretfully most of his best stuff with Humble Pie is not available on Video. I will repeat, Smokin' is a must have cd!!

Certainly one of my favorites. How can you beat a blues classic sung by possibly one of the best blues voices of the generation and with guitar by Clem Clemson. Although the video is just a collage, and I can't find a terrific substitute, I elected to post this because I believe that it is so significant. Clem Clemson, resident guitar player with Colosseum for a few years was tapped as lead guitar player for this band after their first few albums. Humble Pie was Peter Framptons band and he had asked friend Steve Marriott to leave his own band, Small Faces and join. Steve just has one of the best blues voices of modern times.No need to ramble on about this. Enjoy the tune