Yardbirds - The Yardbirds Story (2007)

Spread over four generously filled discs, this set contains every released recording The Yardbirds made under Giorgio Gomelsky's (the legendary original manager of The Rolling Stones) mentorship. In addition to several rarities & alternate takes, it also contains outtakes from two recording sessions from 1966, which give a fascinating insight into the group's creative process in the studio. Including their four smash top ten hits, 'Shapes Of Things', 'For Your Love', 'Still I'm Sad' & 'Heart Full Of Soul', the set traces the group's development from hesitant Chicago R&B copyists with Eric Clapton on lead guitar to the swaggering, ear-bending psychedelic rock of the Jeff Beck-fronted line-up. Digitally remastered from the best available audio sources, these seminal recordings have never sounded better. Housed in deluxe hard-back book-style format & meticulously researched & compiled by Yardbird's

Disc One: 72 Minutes, live December 1963.
These are the earliest known Yardbird recordings. Eleven of these tracks feature blues legend, Sonny Boy Williamson on vocals and harp with the Yardbirds as his backing band. With Eric Clapton featured as guitar/soloist, these are historic recordings. As the past: {Sonny Boy} hands the reigns, over to the new kids: {The Yardbirds} who represent the future of the blues. These are raw sounding tapes of something different, a British beat group that plays delta/Chicago style American blues. Six songs feature The Yardbirds without Sonny Boy, and they show the Band at this early part of their musical journey as an already tight unit. This is a great sounding Disc, when you consider the age of these recordings, there is no way that these tapes should sound this good. The rave-ups are here as the band plays with their trademark ferocious frenzy. The Yardbirds 'Style' is well established here, these early shows display a band of confidence and power.

Disc Two: 79 Minutes, live & studio tracks 1964.
Making records in 1964, The Yardbirds are playing their favorite Songs; "Boom,Boom", "Honey in Your Hips", "Smokestack Lightning", "Good Morning, Little Schoolgirl", "I'm A Man", "Here T'is" and "I Ain't Got You". This disc includes; "The Five Live Yardbirds" LP and the band's first two single releases. Again, the sound is wonderful, these recordings have been remastered with much care, and they have never sounded better.

Disc Three: 74 Minutes, the hits of 1965-1966.
With: "For You Love", the single of March 1965, two things happened to The Yardbirds, they had a hit single, and Eric Clapton quit the group, as he was not going to play pop songs. With Jeff Beck onboard on lead guitar, the 'Birds' changed from strictly a blues band to a rock group that now played blues. The 1965-1966 years were the peak, the band had major success in The UK and The USA. Recording and touring filled almost every day of these two years. The Yardbirds were riding the crest of the wave here. With: "Heart Full Of Soul","Evil Hearted You", "Still I'm Sad", "Shapes Of Things", "Mister You're a Better Man Than I" and 'I'm a Man", the hits kept coming and everything got bigger. Jeff Beck, is going for broke here, as he just about re-invents guitar playing during this era.

Disc Four: 66 Minutes, from Jeff to Jimmy 1966-1967.
This last CD covers the end of the Jeff Beck era into early 1967 when Jimmy Page takes over lead guitar duties. As there are multiple takes of many songs; "Jeff's Blues", "Someone To Love" and "What Do You Want", this CD is my least favorite of the box. But there is good stuff to be found here as well. "Chris' Number" is an only take, and a great find, "Stroll On", will tell the tale of just WHO is playing lead guitar here…Is it Jeff? Is it Jimmy? Is it a roadie? This disc, closes with two live tracks from Germany in 1967 with Jimmy Page now at the controls of the band.

As This: "Yarbirds Story" ends in early 1967, it would take a few more CD's to complete the tale, until that happens this is the most complete document of this great band that you are gonna find.

Disc: 1
01. Smokestack Lightning
02. You Can't Judge a Book by Looking at the Cover
03. Let It Rock
04. I Wish You Would
05. Who Do You Love?
06. Honey in Your Hips
07. Bye, Bye, Bird - Sonny Boy Williamson & The Yardbirds
08. Mister Downchild - Sonny Boy Williamson & The Yardbirds
09. River Rhine - Sonny Boy Williamson, The Yardbirds
10. 23 Hours Too Long - Sonny Boy Williamson & The Yardbirds
11. Lost Care - Sonny Boy Williamson & The Yardbirds
12. Pontiac Blues - Sonny Boy Williamson & The Yardbirds
13. Take It Easy, Baby - Sonny Boy Williamson & The Yardbirds
14. Out on the Water Coast - Sonny Boy Williamson, The Yardbirds
15. Western Arizona - Sonny Boy Williamson & The Yardbirds
16. Take It Easy, Baby - Sonny Boy Williamson & The Yardbirds
17. Do the Weston - Sonny Boy Williamson & The Yardbirds
18. Baby, What's Wrong [Studio Demo]

Disc: 2
01. Boom, Boom
02. Honey in Your Hips
03. Talkin' 'Bout You
04. I Wish You Would [Demo Version]
05. Certain Girl [Demo Version]
06. Slow Walk - Sonny Boy Williamson & The Yardbirds
07. Highway 69 - Sonny Boy Williamson & The Yardbirds
08. My Little Cabin - Sonny Boy Williamson & The Yardbirds
09. Too Much Monkey Business
10. Got Love If You Want It
11. Smokestack Lightning
12. Good Morning, Little Schoolgirl
13. Respectable
14. Five Long Years
15. Pretty Girl
16. Louise
17. I'm a Man
18. Here 'Tis
19. I Wish You Would
20. Certain Girl
21. Good Morning, Little Schoolgirl [Backing Track]
22. Good Morning, Little Schoolgirl [Backing Track Plus Harmonica][Instrumental]
23. Good Morning, Little Schoolgirl [Master]
24. I Ain't Got You

Disc: 3
01. For Your Love
02. Got to Hurry [Take 2, False Start]
03. Got to Hurry [Take 3, Master]
04. Got to Hurry [Take 4]
05. Putty (In Your Hands)
06. Sweet Music [Take 3]
07. Sweet Music [Take 4]
08. I'm Not Talkin'
09. I Ain't Done Wrong
10. My Girl Sloopy
11. Heart Full of Soul [Sitar Version]
12. Heart Full of Soul
13. Steeled Blues
14. Evil Hearted You
15. Still I'm Sad
16. Shapes of Things
17. Shapes of Things [Alternative Mix][Alternate Take]
18. You're a Better Man Than I
19. I'm a Man
20. New York City Blues
21. Train Kept A-Rollin'
22. Paff…Bum
23. Questa Volta
24. Mr. Zero - Keith Relf
25. Knowing - Keith Relf
26. New York City Blues [Stereo Remix]

Disc: 4
01. Jeff's Blues [Take 1]
02. Jeff's Blues [Take 1]
03. Someone to Love, Pt. 1 [Take 2, Instr.][Instrumental]
04. Someone to Love, Pt. 1 [Take 4, Instr.][Instrumental]
05. Someone to Love, Pt. 1 [Take 14, Instr.]
06. Someone to Love, Pt. 1 [Take 15, Vocal]
07. Someone to Love, Pt. 2
08. Like Jimmy Reed Again
09. Chris' Number [Take 1]
10. Pounds and Stomps (Xyz)
11. Pounds and Stomps
12. What Do You Want [Take 1]
13. What Do You Want [Take 2]
14. What Do You Want [Take 3]
15. What Do You Want [Take 4]
16. Here 'Tis [Stereo Instrumental Version]
17. Here 'Tis [Version for "Ready, Steady, Go! " TV Show]
18. Crimson Curtain [Edit of Take One and Insert]
19. Stroll On
20. I'm a Man [Live in Germany, 1967]
21. Shapes of Things [Live in Germany, 1967]


thanks to the ripper!