The Pirates - Shakin' at the Beeb, BBC Sessions 1976-1978 [2 CD, Remastered]

Pick of the Pirates.

There is no doubt that the this legendary threesome made the Pirate sound their own. Whilst still performing to this day, this album contains some of their best work both live and in studio sessions at the BBC. It is full of energy, passion and excitement and is high quality, blistering no nonsense British rock'n'roll!

Any fan of The Pirates should add this to their collection. [user review from amazon-co-uk]

Two CDs of rock and roll heaven!

Something magic happens when these three get together. They all know telepathically each others style and ability and the result is just that, magic. Frank Farley and Johnny Spence put down that concrete foundation for Mick Green to show his amazing guitar playing and Spence's rough bar blues voice caps it off. This band should be elevated far higher in the rock n roll hall of fame than they are.

There's BBC studio recordings including some rarities (live at the BBC could mean live in the studio as well as in concert) and concerts from the 1976-78 period. There's even a brief interview with Stuart Coleman explaining how they got back together.

This is exactly what it says, a bunch of varied BBC recordings that exhibit one of London's greatest rock n roll bands at their height. Fanbloodytastic! [user review from amazon-co-uk]

Forgotten Treasure.

At the height of the punk era not many 'established' bands managed to be accepted across the board. When I went to see the Pirates in 1978, the audience was a mix of young and old, punk and rocker - the band commanded respect. These 3 guys were so tight you couldn't get a sheet of bible paper between them. Drummer Frank Farley and Bassist/Singer Johnny Spence provided the solid underpinning and Mick Green spun guitar magic over the top. Green is such an under-rated guitarist - he influenced people like Pete Townsend and is one of the few guitarists who actually managed to combine lead and rhythm at the same time when playing live. When you hear him play live - or rather watch him - you can't believe one man can make a guitar sound like two. The thing is, he never over-cooks it, his solid rock'n'roll background means the song comes first. Johnny Spence is the other reason Mick gets to do his stuff, Johnny's singing is no nonsense and his bass playing is a lesson in precision. And Frank never lets a beat escape - these guys were thorough professionals and their live performances showed just how competent they were.

Anyway, the album. Only fours star cause I still think 'Skull Wars' is the band's finest moment. And, although the BBC very generously put absolutely everything on this double CD, some of the recordings don't do the band justice - even the sleeve notes admit this. Mind you, you get an amazing 46 tracks - true, some are repeated a few times at different venues, but you can't beat this for value and I think the Beeb shoud be commended for giving the fan and listener the choice. Personally, I think the second disc is the better - live in Penzance is how I remember them sounding - and all the classics are there. In fact all the live material is better than the John Peel session stuff on these discs, I think the band needed an audience to bring out the best in them.

While many of the band's comtemporaries from the early 60's started to become sad tribute versions of themselves during the 80's, The Pirates never sank to that level and kept it real. Rock'n'roll doesn't get more genuine than this, it still amazes me that they have never had greater recognition. [user review from amazon-co-uk]

The Pirates' two late '70s comeback albums for Warner Bros. were good, but they don't do the band full justice. The live stuff is what you have to hear – and this turbo-charged, no-frills rock 'n' roll played tightly by three old vets does the trick. Remember, in the late '70s most rock 'n' rollers from the pre-Beatle generation were playing oldies shows, but no package tour could contain these savages. Similar to the vibe on Muddy Waters' Hard Again (although Muddy hadn't been away), these rabid Brits are hell bent on showing the younger generation how it's done – and do they ever. This is straight to the soundboard – warts, sweat, outbursts, banter and all. Even better, these guys could really play and work up a storm as tight as anyone out there. Mick Green upholds his exalted reputation as a rock guitar god, while Johnny Spence grunts it up on vocals and plays bass in perfect sync with drummer Frank Farley. This – along with all the great punk bands on both sides of the Atlantic – is what the late '70s should really have been about, not all that disco and sanitized AOR/classic rock B.S. Swashbuckling! Cool! A ton of fun! Woo Who!! [user review from calcuttaglobalchat-net]


This band brought new playing techniques, and a high energy approach to the music. This band along with Dr. Feelgood, ZZ Top, and Foghat, typlify what a Rock & Roll Bar Band could/should be, hard driving, high energy, music that makes you move out of your chair and on to the dance floor or the around the kitchen table. The music transends time and is as fresh today as when it was first released. It just doesn't get much better than this! If you are a collector this is a "Must Have". Rock 'n' roll savages! Yeah! [user review from calcuttaglobalchat-net]