Wizz Jones is an English folk guitarist and singer who began his career in the 1950s, and has been recording since the mid 1960s. He has worked with British folk guitarists such as John Renbourn and Bert Jansch, the latter of whom is one of my favorite guitarists at the moment, while I’ve never really listened to much of the former outside of his works with Jansch in the Pentangle, which I dig a lot as well. This album, Wizz Jones (1969), is Jones’ debut solo album, and contains many tunes written by Alan Tunbridge, a friend of Jones’ from the time period, though there are covers and some originals by Jones himself mixed throughout. I’ve been on a bit of a folk rock run lately, so I figured I might as well continue the trend and check out this album tonight. I’m excited to give this one a listen, so with that said, I’m going to jump on into the music.
“Teapot Blues” starts out with a super jangly sounding folk guitar that seems to remind me a bit of psychedelic folk from the time period a bit, especially with the interesting percussion combined with the continuing lines of twangy acoustic guitar. Oh wow, I really dig this tune. Oh wow, there’s an instrument that sounds like some mixture of a muted trumpet, a guttural blues vocal, and a strange clean electric guitar, and I really dig it. Great track, and I’m excited to hear the rest of the album.
“Shall I Wake You From Your Sleep” starts out with some very pleasant folk guitar, with a style that reminds me a fair deal of Bert Jansch’s version of “Rosemary Lane” from Jansch’s album, Rosemary Lane (1971). Oh wow, I really dig this track quite a bit; there seems to be a mixture of tradition British folk sounds with the sound of the British folk revival of the 1960s. Great tune.
Oh wow, “A Common Or Garden Mystery” nearly has a bit of farm in the countryside sort of folksy sound, at times nearly having a bluegrass sound with the notes from the fiddle, but those notes sound more of British origin as the tune continues. I’m really digging this album so far. The guitar reminds me a bit of Jansch again, while the vocals seem to remind me of Bob Dylan in a very roundabout way. Great track.
Oh wow, “I’ve Got a Woman With One Leg” has a bit of whimsical folksy sound with the vocals and guitar, while there’s a bit of a New Orleans-sounding sort of horn at different times. This tune almost sounds like it could be a children’s folk tune of sorts with the playfulness of the track, and I’m really digging that sound. Super sweet tune.
Oh wow, “Shuckin’ Sugar Blues” has a bit of a combination of British folk with a heavy dosage of delta blues, which reminds me of both Bert Jansch and Richard Thompson with the combination. Oh wow, the acoustic guitar playing hits some super flavorful bluesy notes, and nearly sounds as though Jones is playing in an open tuning. There sounds like there’s two separate acoustic guitars playing completely different parts, but serving the tune in different ways, but Jones is the only person recorded on the album, which makes me think he might be playing all of that at the same time with one guitar, super sweet. Great track.
Oh wow, “Earls Court Breakdown” has a bit of that whimsical feel from a couple of tracks prior to this one, combined with that delta blues sound from the previous tune between the different horns, rollicking parlor piano, and the bluesy guitar licks in the track. Oh wow, there’s even an electric guitar mixed into the track that adds some really flavorful accentuations. Great tune.
Oh wow, “O My Friend” has a super weighty feel in a track that sounds like a traditional British folk tune that seems handed down throughout generations and modernized a bit during the revival with passionate vocals and acoustic guitar playing, which are both accompanied by some super sweet orchestral arrangement of what sound to be flutes and violins, and possibly some woodwinds too. Wow, the momentum within the tune feels massive by the time the song comes to an end. Super sweet track.
Oh wow, “Blues and Trouble” comes in with some super flavorful blues licks on what sounds to be two different acoustic guitars. The tune has a great bluesy feel that reminds me a bit of old delta blues songs at a bit of a quicker tempo. Oh wow, the different acoustic guitars keep adding more flavorful licks into the tune as the song progresses, and demonstrates a traditional bluesy sound with some relatively fresh lines. Super sweet tune.
“Can’t Stop Thinking About It” starts grooving right away with a mixture of acoustic guitar, bass, electric guitar, drums, and vocals, which all seem to come together for a bit of a dirge of a folk tune with the tone of the music, but the tune keeps grooving onward and doesn’t let up throughout the duration of the song. Great track.
“Dazzling Stranger” starts out with some super sweet vocals from Jones, and is soon joined by some acoustic guitar that increases the sweetness of the tune. I’m really digging this tune at the moment; the sound seems to be that of an old folk tune that was once caught in the wind and retrieved by Jones for the record. Oh wow, the tone of the song stays consistent throughout, and I really dig it. Great tune.
“At the Junction” starts bopping along right away with a rhythm from the bass guitar and drums that almost has a bit of trudging, nearly garage rock quality as the tune continues along. The acoustic guitar adds some interesting accentuations that seem to nearly be a separate entity from the rest of the instrumentation, and serves the song quite well by doing so. Great track.
“American Land” is a tune written by Pete Seeger, and has an interesting air about the tune, which reminds me a bit of Phil Ochs in the somewhat mysterious sound in this recording, created by the matter-of-fact tone of the vocals, and the repetitious folksy acoustic guitar that adds a ton of flavor to the track as the notes seem to encourage the narrator, the listener, or both, to continue on a personal journey of their own. Great tune.
Oh wow, “I Wanna See the Manager” picks up that whimsical sound again with the parlor piano sound accompanied by what sounds to be some interesting banjo and some Mardi Gras-sounding horns, all while an acoustic guitar strums some chords in the background to keep the rhythm of the song grooving forward. I really dig the feel of this tune. Great track.
“Corinn” picks up with a bit of bluesy folk sort of sound with the acoustic guitar lines, and some vocals that seem to remind me a bit of Bob Dylan’s “Corrina, Corrina”. I’m really digging the mixture of folksy sounds and bluesy sounds in the acoustic guitar work in this one. Great tune.
“Grapes of Life” starts out with a gradual bopping feel from the staccato’d chords on the acoustic guitar, while the pleasant flute seems to invite you into the soundscape. The feel of the tune at first nearly reminds me of some psychedelic folk from the era. The track seems to gradually pick up a bit of bluesy inflection as the song progresses with the guitar work. I really dig the style of the acoustic guitar in this track; the staccato’d chords seem to build and release a seemingly equal amount of tension as the track progresses, keeping things steady as the tune comes to an end. Great track.
“Guitar Shuffle” feels like a classic jug band guitar track with the combination of the bluesy and folksy flavors from the acoustic guitar work. This instrumental track feels like a very natural finish for the album with that jug band style. Great tune, and a really sweet way to finish the album.
Wow, after listening to this album I now want to check out more of Wizz Jones’ discography. The combination of the British folk with the sort of delta blues stylings created a sound that could be both whimsical or serious in different ways, and really does remind me a fair deal of some of his contemporaries like Bert Jansch or Richard Thompson. If you dig bluesy folk or British folk music, you might want to consider checking out this album. If you do decide to give this one a listen, I sincerely do hope that you enjoy the listening experience at least as much as I did.
-A