SOMETHING ELSE FROM THE MOVE

Aspiring rock and roll stars performing live

Throughout their career, The Move were first and foremost a singles band. Roy Wood had quickly developed a knack for writing highly appealing pop songs which headed straight for the charts as soon as they were released. Albums were a different story though and only their debut, which was largely a collection of singles and b-sides, troubled the album charts in the UK.

Between the band's first and second albums, this live EP appeared as a sort of stopgap. An EP was actually a highly appropriate format, as this collection sits neatly mid-way between the appealing singles and the more challenging "Shazam" album. Taking a leaf out of Vanilla Fudge's book, this EP contains five imaginative covers of familiar songs. The tracks were all recorded live in London, UK in 1968. It should be said up front that the sound quality of the recordings is not that great, especially by today's standards. The recordings do however offer a rare opportunity to get a flavour of the excitement of a live gig by the band.

We kick off with a rendition of The Byrds' "So you wanna be a rock and roll star". This interpretation draws out the heavy aspects of the song but overall it is not that different to the "Untitled" original. Love's "Stephanie Knows Who" on the other hand balances the psychedelic aspects of the original with a Stones like hamming up of the song.

Eddie Cochrane's oft covered standard "Something else" becomes a heavy driving number, with the band clearly having a lot of fun. The oddest choice of song is country singer Cowboy Jack Clement's "It'll be me". The song has been recorded by a wide variety of artists including Richard & Linda Thompson and Jerry Lee Lewis, the version here being closer to the latter's. It was reportedly Cliff Richard's version of the song though which inspired the band to pick it up. The final song is Spooky Tooth's "Sunshine Help Me", another reasonably faithful interpretation featuring some good bass work.

In 1999 a CD version of the EP was released which included further songs from the same gig. Three of these are recordings not heard previously, while the fourth is an extended version of "Sunshine help me". The extension reinstates parts of the guitar solo cut from the original EP, including a brief diversion by Roy Wood into "Strangers in the night". The additional songs are further covers including the Erma Franklin/Janis Joplin standard "Piece of my heart" and the Jackie Wilson standard "(Your love keeps lifting me) Higher and Higher". The set is completed by Denny Laine's "Too much in love" (Laine worked with Bev Bevan in The Diplomats before joining the Moody Blues).

In view of the fact that no live albums by The Move are officially (or unofficially?) available, this EP is unique in capturing the excitement of their performances outside the studio. The sound quality is a definite negative, but fans of The Move/ELO are really missing out if this set is not part of their collection. These days, the entire extended EP can be found on the excellent. "Movements" box set.

THE MOVE had unexpected success with their debut eponymous album and although their fortune was limited to their native UK, the band had stacked up four top 10 hits and were eager to keep the fire burning. And that's exactly what they did by releasing this quick follow up in the form of a live EP titled SOMETHING ELSE FROM THE MOVE just a few months later. This was the perfect type of material to fill the slot between albums and showcased THE MOVE's energetic and electrifying live sets. The album was recorded live on February 27, 1968 at the famous London Marquee Club. The original release consisted of only five tracks and were mixed exclusively in mono however many more tracks were recorded and subsequently released as bonus tracks on future extended releases as well as being released in stereo. They are all also available as bonus tracks on the 1998 remastered reissue of the "Shazam" album.

While one would expect the performances to be material from the band's debut release, it actually contains nothing but covers of some of the band's favorite tracks beginning with The Byrd's "So You Want To Be A Rock 'N' Roll Star." Immediately one is struck by how much more raw and rocking this is compared to the carefully crafted and perfectly polished psychedelic pop of the debut release. The beauty of these live performances is it shows THE MOVE in full on stage regalia delivering a rock 'n' roll energy level that isn't always present on the studio albums. The selection of tracks is quite pleasant as they all seem to morph perfectly into one another despite being mined from quite a diverse catalogue of artists. The folk rock intro suddenly leaps into the psychedelic garage rock Love song "Stephanie Knows Who" and then off to the world of rockabilly with Eddie Cochran's "Somethin' Else." Also on board is the Jerry Lee Lewis track "It'll Be Me" and even an excellent cover of Spooky Tooth's "Sunshine Help Me" complete with groovy blues guitar riffs and solos matching the splendor of the original.

The album was released in 1999 on CD and from then on includes the Erma Franklin / Janis Joplin classic "Piece Of My Heart" and three other tracks by Denny Lane, Jackie Wilson and an additional unedited version of "Sunshine Help Me." This EP while not exactly essential is quite a pleasant listening experience as it fully conveys what THE MOVE was all about in a live setting and how well they could adapt their own particular style of playing around a varying set list of songs. The album has been remastered and reissued in its own right with varying amounts of bonus tracks tacked onto the end. It is really a treat to hear the band in their early days before the more progressive elements were added on "Shazam" and how well they could master the vast array of influences on board. While not quite reaching the heights of essential releases, it is nonetheless a very enjoyable little tidbit that fills the cracks of the time between the first two albums.

3.5 rounded down