Alvin Lee - Tennesee

Alvin Lee doesn't make some half-baked attempt (ala Aerosmith & Clapton) to record some "faux-roots" album; he heads to the home studio of famed Elvis Presley guitarist Scotty Moore in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S.A. and to put it simply, let's it rip.
This is a "old-time", toe tapping, foot stomping rock 'n' roll album, ya' know, the kind Seger used to sing about. Along for the ride are famed drummer D.J. Fontana and of course Scotty Moore. Fontana's drumming and Lee's playing are nothing short of phenomenal. The songs are all written in the classic 50's rock 'n' roll style (aka the Ten Years After song "Choo Choo Mama"). Elvis, Jerry Lee, Little Richard, Eddie Cochran all would feel right at home listening to this cd; and smiling too.
And as you browse the track list saying to yourself "Another version of 'I'm Going Home', gimme a break...", do not be too hasty to dismiss this as another "Woodstock Rerun". The version of "I'm Going Home" recorded here with the aid of Fontana's killer drumming, sounds so fresh and alive, I would even say it may even top the version recorded at Woodstock. The downer is that many songs are a little too long and grow tiring after awhile. Most rock 'n' roll tunes of the era this album is trying to recapture log in at 2 to 3 minutes tops, while many of the songs here stretch out to 5 or 6 minutes. I would have liked to see Alvin cut his teeth on a few cover versions too; the fact all the songs are Alvin Lee compostions actually are a "semi-negative". But these points are really my own personal nit-picking.
If you enjoyed Ten Years After jamming to the likes of "Baby won't you let me rock and roll you" and "Rock and Roll Music to the World" then this offering is for you.

01. Let's Boogie 02. Rock & Roll Girls 03. Take My Time 04. I'm Gonna Make It 05. Something's Gonna Get You 06. Why Did You Do It 07. Getting Nowhere Fast 08. How Do You Do It 09. Let's Get It On 10. Tell Me Why 11. I'm Going Home

alltnrr