Wednesday, 16 March 2016

From Past Archives #1:- Fleetwood Mac - Kiln House

My fairly recent return to the joys of collecting vinyl records has enabled me to listen to albums that I have either long since lost or that simply passed me by when they were originally released. Falling into that latter category is, the 1970 Fleetwood Mac album, 'Kiln House'.


I was a fan of the Peter Green incarnation of Fleetwood Mac and when he left the band after the wonderful 'Then Play On', I must have made the decision to stop buying and listening to their albums. Of course all that changed with the 1975 release of 'Fleetwood Mac' the precursor to the earth shatteringly successful 'Rumours'. I then revisited some of those so-called  "wilderness years" Fleetwood Mac albums but somehow 'Kiln House' always evaded my attention.

Perhaps it was the reviews at the time which were not terribly complimentary about the album. With 'Then Play On'. Jeremy Spencer had been in competition with the songwriting skills of Peter Green and Danny Kirwan. He lost the battle and consequently played only a minor role on that album. The departure of Green enabled Spencer to take more of a leading role and for 'Kiln House'; the writing credits are divided fairly evenly between him and Kirwan (aided by the other band members). Once he had overcome his Elmore James obsession, Spencer turned his attention to 1950's rock and roll and a popular part of the Fleetwood Mac live act involved him doing a very passable imitation of Elvis Presley. This is carried onto 'Kiln House' from the opening number 'This is a Rock' which recreates the sound of the young Elvis during his Sun Records period. The country ballad, 'Blood on the Floor' could also be Elvis and the Side 2 opener 'Buddy's Song' is little more than a list of Buddy Holly quotes set to the melody of 'Peggy Sue Got Married'. Despite being written by Spencer, it gets credited on the album cover to Ella Holley, the mother of Buddy.


The Jeremy Spencer compositions are all pleasant enough but it is the writing of Danny Kirwan that really give this album a lift. 'Station Man' fades in very gradually and is a gentle rocker featuring nice slide guitar and some fine drumming from Mick Fleetwood. It was a song that Fleetwood Mac would return to and perform live during the early Buckingham/Nicks years.

Side One of the album ends with 'Jewel Eyed Judy' which is credited to Kirwan, Mick Fleetwood and John McVie though Fleetwood later claimed that the words were actually written by his wife Jenny and Christine McVie about a close friend of the band, Judy Wong who later married Jethro Tull bassist Glenn Cornick.. It is one of the most beautiful pieces on the album with a gorgeous melody and a catchy refrain. The track was issued as a single backed by 'Station Man' but incredibly failed to chart. Incidentally, Jenny Fleetwood was the former Jenny Boyd, a sister of Patti Boyd who famously married George Harrison and Eric Clapton and inspired songs by both. Patti clearly wasn't the only muse in the Boyd family as the Donovan song 'Jennifer Juniper' was written for Jenny. 

Kirwan also demonstrates with 'Lady Gray' (sic)  that he can write an instrumental to rival the beautiful Peter Green number one hit, 'Albatross'. Another highlight of the album is the final Danny Kirwan track 'Tell Me All The Things You Do' which allows the band to really rock out and features some great guitar work but also demonstrates what a fantastic rhythm section Fleetwood and McVie were. Try listening to this without your feet tapping and if they don't, check that they aren't nailed to the floor.

Although uncredited on the album, Christine McVie (formerly Christine Perfect) was recruited on piano and she would subsequently become a full member of the band, being of course the wife of John McVie. She also created the striking artwork that adorns the cover of the album. It would appear that someone bought her felt pens and crayons for Christmas that year.

This album was the first release by the band on which they totally abandoned the blues that had dominated their earlier recordings. Neither Spencer nor Kirwan would last that much longer in the line-up but with 'Kiln House' they had clearly pointed the direction in which the band would move en route to the massive commercial success they would ultimately enjoy with 'Rumours'.

I have been listening to the album a lot over the past few weeks and have been thoroughly enjoying the experience.  I now wonder how it took me 45 years.

1 comment:

  1. kiln and next 2 albumns are the best product of the band.

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