Customer Reviews
BBC Collection a Real Treat - By: SF Sorrow, 22 Jan 2003 
Alexis Korner called him his favorite singer & without question, Power was one of the greatest vocalist to come out of the 1960s. After a false start recording trepid covers of American hits of the day, Power discovered the blues & transformed himself into one of its most passionate vocalists. For some reason, much of the material he recordedin the mid-sixties was not considered commercial enough & so it was unreleasedin its day. Years later, when his recordings made with the likes of John McLaughlin, Jack Bruce, Danny Thompson & Terry Cox surfaced, it reinforced what many suspected all along-that Power is a major talent who should have been huge.
I have the three previous CD?s issued of Power & they are all worth owning for different reasons. This collection of BBC recordings is also most welcome.
Purchase & enjoy a true master.
rare and mesmerising gems from the vaults! - By: colinaharper@hotmail.com, 29 May 2002 Although featuring 19 performances recorded for BBC radio sessions between 1968 - 1973 (plus one session, reprising sixties material, for the Paul Jones R2 showin 1994), none of these tracks come direct from the Beeb - who have erased their entire Power sessionography - but from a network of conscientious fans & producers. Luckily, via the internet, the phone book & a bit of serendipity the bulk of Power's work for Radio 1 has been retrieved from oblivion & adds enormously to his reputation as a singer & writer from the British blues era yet pushing always at its boundaries - with folk, pop, jazz & prog-rock just some of the labels one could try to stick on these recordings. Accompaniments range from mentor Alexis Korner (and his band, with Danny Thompson, Terry Cox & others on the amazing '68 Radio 3 take (!) of 'Gin House') to pianist Mike Hall on three cuts, a full scale blistering rock band on the '73 Peel session tracks & legendary sax man Dick Heckstall-Smith on three others. Yet it is probably the handful of Power solo tracks - mostly from a 1970 Mike Raven session, preserved on master tape by its producer - that are the true highlights. As Folk Roots editor Ian Anderson has stated, seeing Power live at Soho clubsin the mid-sixties was the closest British kids could imagine getting to the experience of seeing & hearing the likes of Robert Johnsonin the flesh. From blues-wailing monsters to achingly beautiful love songs, the gamut of Power's genius is all here! A God-send release from an artist who recorded much less than he should havein the commercial arena. Take a chance on it!
