This set, attributed to
the Pretty Things-Yardbird Blues Band, is really more
Pretty Things (thanks to strong vocal work by
Phil May and some striking lead guitar from
Dick Taylor, the two cornerstones of
the Pretty Things) than the
Yardbirds (although former
Yardbirds drummer
Jim McCarty is on hand), and it doesn’t add much to the legacy of either band, really, although it is a strikingly good outing. The tracks collected here originated when
May and
Taylor teamed up with
McCarty and guitarist and blue harpist
Studebaker John and bassist
Richard Hite for two
George Paulus-produced albums recorded in Chicago in 1991. The sound is very good, and these weren’t throwaway sessions, with the blended band tackling classic songs like “Spoonful,” “You Can’t Judge a Book by the Cover,” “Time Is on My Side” (
Taylor was briefly a guitarist for
the Rolling Stones early in that group’s career), “Ain’t Got You,” and “Chain of Fools,” among others. Again, nothing here adds much to the legacy of either
the Pretty Things or
the Yardbirds, but fans of either or both bands will undoubtedly love this interesting curio.