Top Qs
Timeline
Chat
Perspective
George Thorogood and the Destroyers (album)
1977 studio album by George Thorogood and the Destroyers From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Remove ads
George Thorogood and the Destroyers is the self-titled debut studio album by American blues rock band George Thorogood and the Destroyers. It was released in 1977 by the label Rounder Records.[1] Consisting mostly of covers of blues hits, it includes a medley of John Lee Hooker's "House Rent Boogie" and "One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer",[2] the latter a song written by Rudy Toombs for Amos Milburn, and later covered by Hooker.
Remove ads
In 2015 Rounder Records released a new remix of the original album under the name George Thorogood and the Delaware Destroyers.[3]
Remove ads
Content
Summarize
Perspective
The album mostly consists of old blues hits, but contains two originals, written by Thorogood.
"You Got To Lose" was written by Earl Hooker, while "Madison Blues" and "Can't Stop Lovin'", were written by Elmore James. The song is titled "One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer", but is a medley of that song preceded by "House Rent Boogie", also called "John L's House Rent Boogie". The songwriter is credited as John Lee Hooker, who was indeed the author of "House Rent Boogie". John Lee Hooker's version of the "One Bourbon" half of the medley was used by Thorogood and Rudy Toombs, the writer of the original "One Bourbon" was not credited on the album. "Kind Hearted Woman", written by Robert Johnson, is a country-blues ballad with acoustic guitar and mournful vocals.
Side two opens with "Ride On Josephine", written by Ellas McDaniel, better known as Bo Diddley. "Homesick Blues" is one of the two originals, written by Thorogood. "John Hardy" is a traditional song, based on the real-life killing of a man named Thomas Drews, after he got into an argument with a man named John Hardy. "I'll Change My Style" is a ballad written by William Parker and Manuel Villa. The album's closer is "Delaware Slide" the second original by Thorogood.[4][5]
Remove ads
Release
Rounder Records released George Thorogood and the Destroyers on August 16, 1977.[1][6] The album eventually sold more than 600,000 copies.[7] Three tracks from the album were released as singles.
2015 remix
In 2015 Rounder released George Thorogood and the Delaware Destroyers,[8] a new remix of the album featuring the three-piece band as originally recorded and mixed. It omits the bass overdubs by Billy Blough, which were added after the original recording sessions. It also adds the previously unreleased Elmore James track "Goodbye Baby".[3]
Remove ads
Critical reception
Summarize
Perspective
George Thorogood and the Destroyers received positive reviews from critics.
A Cashbox reviewer wrote "Thorogood deals strongly in early '50s style rock and timeless blues and this album captures him at his slidin', pickin', wailin' best."[17] Billboard magazine wrote "Rocking rhythm and blues, accented by the slide guitar, gives the album a nostalgic '60s sound. Rhythm section backup is tight while the vocals, though somewhat strained, are distinctive enough to stand out."[18]
AllMusic`s Stephen Thomas Erlewine says "this album isn't about groove and it's certainly not about virtuosity -- it's about bashing out the blues at a punishing volume, and their lack of subtlety is why this 1977 debut still sounds powerful years after its release."[19] David Bowling of Daily Vault wrote "George Thorogood And The Destroyers did not change the course of American blues or rock ‘n’ roll but it made them a bit more enjoyable. It is an album for the beer hall or smoky night club."[20]
Track listing
Summarize
Perspective
Original release
George Thorogood and the Delaware Destroyers (2015)
(*) Tracks omitted from the vinyl release[21]
Remove ads
Personnel
Musicians
- George Thorogood – lead guitar, slide guitar, vocals; harmonica on "John Hardy"
- Ron "Roadblock" Smith – rhythm guitar
- Billy Blough – bass guitar
- Jeff Simon – drums
Technical
- Ken Irwin – producer
- John Nagy – engineer
- Susan Marsh – design
- Henry Horenstein – photography (front cover)
- Sam Clover – photography (back cover)
Charts
Certifications and sales
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
References
Wikiwand - on
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.
Remove ads