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Woody Kern formed in 1967 as a Nottingham powertrio comprised of bassist Mike Wheat, drummer Steve Harris, and guitarist–keyboardist and singer Rik Kenton, a then-bespectacled eccentric (often mistaken as “Woody” by audience members).
Kenton (b. October 31, 1945) worked beforehand as a casino croupier and played in The Houndogs, a Nottingham beat combo. Harris toured Europe for two years prior with a soul band.
Wheat took up bass at fourteen and toured the continent in a band with multi-instrumentalist John Sanderson (violin, flute, tenor saxophone) who played in the touring bands of visiting US singers Irma Thomas and Screaming Jay Hawkins. Woody Kern welcomed Sanderson as a fourth member.
Woody Kern played the Union Club on the River Trent and gigged the East Midlands circuit of Working Men’s Clubs. They played at Birmingham’s Marquee Dance Club, where a representative from the Inter City Artists agency signed Woody Kern and pitched them to Pye Records as part of a bundle (along with Brummie psychsters Velvett Fogg) geared for the psychedelic underground.
Pye linked both bands with Jack Dorsey, a veteran producer–arranger who recently oversaw psychedelic pop singles by Tuesday’s Children and West Coast Consortium.
Tracks:
All tracks written Steve Harris, John Sanderson, Mike Wheat and Rik Kenton except where noted.
01. Biography - 00:00
02. The Blues Keep Falling (trad., arr.by Jack Dorsey) -04:40
03. That's Wrong Little Mama (B.B.King) - 10:45
04. Tell You I'm Gone - 13:47
05. Xoanan Bay - 17:59
06. Uncle John - 22:33
07. Gramophone Man (Ed Cassidy, Jay Ferguson, John Locke, Randy California, Mark Andes) - 28:55
08. Fair Maiden - 32:57
09. Vile Lynn - 37:46
10. Mean Old World (Walter Jacobs) - 43:35
11. Vegetable - 46:17
Personnel:
- Rik Kenton - guitar, keyboards, vocals
- John Sanderson - tenor saxophone, flute, clarinet, violin
- Mike Wheat - bass
- Steve Harris - drums, percussion
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- Jack Dorsey - producer