King, Paul: A Baker’s Dozen

As its name suggests A Baker’s Dozen gathers together thirteen tracks (+ two bonus numbers) from one-time Mungo Jerry - best known for the smash hit single “In The Summertime� - man Paul King. And with five brand new, live in the studio cuts, augmenting eight culled from King’s sporadic solo work, the album is something of a celebration of the 50th anniversary of his old band’s biggest track. However, with King himself not the writing force behind “…Summertime� that very intention is slightly skewed by its lack of appearance here, but what arrives in its place is varied and interesting. After all, who can argue with the shuffling, upbeat blues of “Have You Seen My Gal�, or the stripped back jangle of “Sugarcane�? Admittedly this pair, as much of the compilation side of this album does, spans a twenty-plus year timespan and as such reveals different styles, outlooks and maybe most apparently, recording situations as some tracks sound clear as a bell and others are less sonically sparkling. That, however, doesn’t alter the fact that even the worst effected cuts in terms of sound, such as “Houdini�, remain great fun as a wood-block clacking, harmonica honking country rock stomp reminds in ways of Gerry Rafferty at his quirkiest. The guitar work here also hits home with a clean picked solo standing tall and the acoustic strumming proving really rather irresistible, while the more recent “Visions Of You� (2005) arguably hits home in a more (intentionally) naive fashion.

Spread out across the album, the five new cuts really do draw you in, “Will You Kiss Will You Dance� a lovelorn lament that pulls at the heartstrings, while “Came The Man With The News� honks and tonks with a real carefree abandon. Add in the the grittier guitar tones of “Dressed To Kill� and arguably it’s actually these new cuts that make their presence most strongly felt here. Especially with the fun times of “Money For Rope� proving to be a less than serious sing along of the finest tradition. In all honesty there’s not much on Baker’s Dozen that could ever be considered cutting edge or daring and yet when bluesy, country infused rock comes from the heart it can still make a real impact. That, thankfully, is exactly the case with A Baker’s Dozen.

Track Listing
1. Will You Kiss Will You Dance
2. Wind of Change
3. Came The Man With The News
4. Comin’ Home
5. Sugarcane
6. Busker’s Dawn
7. Saturday Matinee
8. Dressed to Kill
9. Gypsy Davey
10. No One To Phone
11. Have You Seen My Gal
12. Vision Of You
13. Voodoo
14. Money For Rope (Bonus Track)
15. Houdini (Bonus Track)

Added: July 19th 2020
Reviewer: Steven Reid
Score:
Related Link: Paul King online
Hits: 929
Language: english

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