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So much more than “a historical document”, this is extremely entertaining and well worth your

attention.

Norman Darwen

(www.joharman.com)

King Size Taylor—Dr. Feelgood (the Brits Are Rocking Vol. 3)
—Bear Family BCD17603

King Size Taylor And The Dominoes were one of the pioneers of

Merseybeat, later made famous by The Beatles and many others
of course. In fact, ‘Money’ and ‘Twist And Shout’ are very close to
the versions recorded by the “moptops” early in their career.

Here though are 31 tracks, mostly recorded in 1963 or ’64 though
with the last four titles originating from a demo made in 1958.
The material is overwhelmingly R’n’B based, some of it from

rock and roll, other such as Benny Spellman’s ‘The Fortune
Teller’, covers of recent material.

The band itself comprises Edward “King Size” Taylor on vocals and lead guitar, plus bass, drums,
piano and sax. There are plenty of covers of Little Richard material, alongside others from Larry
Williams, Chuck Berry, Fats Domino, Big Joe Turner and Solomon Burke. There are also occasional
pop numbers like Chan Romero’s ‘Hippy Hippy Shake’ and rockabilly with Carl Perkins’ (version of)

‘Matchbox’.

So yes, this is historic material, an excellent insight into the influence and popularity of rhythm
and blues in the early 60s. More than that though, these are not only enthusiastic performances,
but they are also well worth a listen.

Norman Darwen

(www.bear-family.com)

Shawn Pittman—Stompin’ Solo—Must Have Music CD109

Oklahoma-born Shawn spent a lot of time in Texas - Dallas and
Austin — absorbing the blues sound of the Lone Star State,
playing plenty of gigs and starting his recording career there in
the mid-90s, though he has now returned to his home state. He
has made several fine albums, and although sometimes dubbed a
blues-rocker, he does tend towards a more traditional electric

Texas sound.

As the title of this set suggests though, this is a solo set, due to
the pandemic, of course. Mind you, a very fine one it is too, with
Shawn drawing on both his own and borrowed material, and
displaying influences from the likes of Lightnin’ Hopkins, Mance Lipscomb, Lil’ Son Jackson,
Frankie Lee Sims, Juke Boy Bonner, and others. Try ‘Mance’s Rock’, or ‘Ode To Texas’, or for a less

strictly Texas approach, the early John Lee Hooker sound of ‘Pressin Your Luck’ or the Bukka
White-inspired ‘Early In The Mornin’ for good examples.