Man, when I bought this LP on vinyl, back in '74 - I played the living hell out of it. The first time I went to hear Elvin Bishop play out live, he was touring in support of this album in the summer of 1975 and it was one of the most memorable nights I've ever spent. I went to the hall where he was going to play right after lunchtime and with a phony press pass that I'd put together, I got myself and a friend a pair of promised seats right up in the front row. We were just told to be back at the hall that afternoon, two hours before show time.
No problem, boss! We'll be there!
Elvin and his band, fronted by that amazing guitarist John Vernazza (a.k.a. "Johnny V" in those days) blew our minds. They just played everything on that great old album and dug into a bunch of blues standards while they were at it. I caught Elvin again in '79 on a double bill with the Marshall Tucker Band and while that was a time (both bands joined together for a good long jam on Will the Circle Be Unbroken for the encore), it didn't touch that night in '75.
Here are the particulars for Let It Flow:
TRACKLIST:
Sunshine Special
Ground Hog
Honey Babe
Stealin' Watermelons
Travelin' Shoes
Let It Flow
Hey, Good Lookin'
Fishin'
Can't Go Back
I Can't Hold Myself in Line
Bourbon Street
PERSONNEL:
Dickey Betts: Guitar
Elvin Bishop: Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar, Guitar (Electric), Vocals, Slide Guitar
Stephen Miller: Piano
Mickey Thomas: Vocals, Vocals (bckgr)
Toy Caldwell: Guitar (Steel)
Philip Aaberg: Piano, Keyboards, Clavinet
Jo Baker: Percussion, Vocals, Vocals (bckgr)
Randall Bramblett: Saxophone
David Brown: Saxophone
Debbie Cathey: Vocals
Charlie Daniels: Guitar (Acoustic), Fiddle, Guitar, Violin, Vocals, Vocals (bckgr), Washboard
Vassar Clements: Strings
Gideon Daniels: Vocals, Vocals (bckgr)
Paul Hornsby: Organ, Keyboards
Jerome Joseph: Conductor, Conga
Bill Meeker: Drums
Annie Sampson: Vocals, Vocals (bckgr)
Johnny Sandlin: Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar, Percussion, Guitar (Electric), Tambourine
Sylvester "Sly Stone" Stewart: Organ, Keyboards
John Vernazza: Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar, Guitar (Electric), Vocals (bckgr), Slide Guitar
David Walshaw: Percussion, Tambourine
Harold "Ivory" Williams: Saxophone
Donny Baldwin: Drums, Vocals, Vocals (bckgr)
Michael Brooks: Bass, Guitar (Bass)
Not too shabby, eh? This is a release you might want to hunt down.
The most remarkable tune off that album was Travelin' Shoes.
This is TRAVELIN' SHOES from a 1974 edition of the the TV show ABC In Concert. It features Elvin's touring band from the Let It Flow release. Check out the heavy "Shoulder Shakin' Shit" going on at the 2:09 mark. Ah, but weren't the 1970s a funny time?
