Going Back Home
Upon learning he had 10 months to live in 2013, Dr. Feelgood’s lead guitarist, Wilko Johnson, went out on a final tour and survived it. Old pal Roger Daltrey invited him into the studio, and for a week Johnson and the Who singer bashed out whatever Johnson had in mind. Dr. Feelgood songs get new treatments here, while Johnson also had a few new originals and a desire to cover Bob Dylan’s “Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window.” The sound is focused, with Johnson’s guitar cutting a nasty figure and Daltrey fully aware of his limits but getting the job done nonetheless. Together, they cut through the songs with youthful energy and a veteran’s know-how to get the most from the performances. The Dylan cover rolls past with an ease that finds plenty of space for the drums to pound, the harmonica to scream, and the guitars to blare. It’s a major moment that’s met with moments of equal and even stronger power with “Ice on the Motorway” and “I Keep It to Myself.” The ballad “Turned 21” is haunting, but there aren’t many reflective moments. It’s mostly hard rock played as if they had all the time in the world.
This collaboration between the Who's frontman and Dr Feelgood's guitarist is a winner, writes <strong>Molloy Woodcraft</strong>
This collaboration between the Who's frontman and Dr Feelgood's guitarist is a winner, writes <strong>Molloy Woodcraft</strong>
The Who frontman and the former Dr Feelgood guitar hero team up for a blistering set of British R&B, writes <strong>Jon Dennis</strong>
The Who frontman and the former Dr Feelgood guitar hero team up for a blistering set of British R&B, writes <strong>Jon Dennis</strong>
Wilko Johnson's final album is a ballsy bash through his back catalogue and the licks bleed out with liquid heat, says Helen Brown
Wilko Johnson's final album is a ballsy bash through his back catalogue and the licks bleed out with liquid heat, says Helen Brown
Talk about not going gentle into that good night. In the year or so since Wilko Johnson announced he had terminal cancer, he has stunned doctors and fans alike by giving a string of blistering concerts and candid interviews. But Going Back Home - a retrospective LP featuring Roger Daltrey on vocals – is, surely, his final parting shot. It's also an ambition fulfilled. For the two men have long admired each other and Daltrey remarked in a recent interview how they were inspired by the same American R’n’B.
Talk about not going gentle into that good night. In the year or so since Wilko Johnson announced he had terminal cancer, he has stunned doctors and fans alike by giving a string of blistering concerts and candid interviews. But Going Back Home - a retrospective LP featuring Roger Daltrey on vocals – is, surely, his final parting shot. It's also an ambition fulfilled. For the two men have long admired each other and Daltrey remarked in a recent interview how they were inspired by the same American R’n’B.