The Pious Bird of Good Omen
The Pious Bird of Good Omen is a compilation album by the British blues rock band Fleetwood Mac, released in 1969. It consists of their first four non-album UK singles and their B-sides, two other tracks from their previous album Mr. Wonderful, and two tracks by the blues artist Eddie Boyd with backing by members of Fleetwood Mac. These two tracks came from Boyd's album 7936 South Rhodes.
| The Pious Bird of Good Omen | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Compilation album by | ||||
| Released | 15 August 1969 | |||
| Recorded | September 1967, January–April & October 1968 | |||
| Genre | Blues rock | |||
| Length | 36:00 | |||
| Label | Blue Horizon | |||
| Producer | Mike Vernon | |||
| Fleetwood Mac compilations chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Blender | [2] |
| The New Rolling Stone Album Guide | [3] |
The title of the album is a phrase found in an 1817 gloss (marginal note) to Samuel Taylor Coleridge's 1798 epic poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. The phrase refers to the albatross killed in the poem ("The ancient Mariner inhospitably killeth the pious bird of good omen"). Its use as an album title as well as the album art is a sly wink to the featuring of the band's number 1 UK hit "Albatross".
The US-only compilation English Rose was a similar package, sharing four songs with this album, and was released earlier in 1969.
In 2002, the tracks from this album were repackaged by Sony BMG and released as a new collection with cover art very closely resembling the Greatest Hits album (1971), but with the addition of "Shake Your Moneymaker" and "Love That Burns".
Reception
Reaction to the album has been highly positive. It was described as "excellent" by the Rolling Stone Album Guide.[3] TeamRock ranked the album in the "20 Greatest Blues Albums: 1967-70".[4]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Need Your Love So Bad" | Little Willie John, Mertis John Jr.[5] | 3:50 |
| 2. | "Comin' Home" | Elmore James | 2:38 |
| 3. | "Rambling Pony" | Peter Green | 2:40 |
| 4. | "The Big Boat" (with Eddie Boyd) | Eddie Boyd | 2:35 |
| 5. | "I Believe My Time Ain't Long" | James | 2:55 |
| 6. | "The Sun Is Shining" | James | 3:10 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Albatross" | Green | 3:10 |
| 2. | "Black Magic Woman" | Green | 2:46 |
| 3. | "Just the Blues" (with Eddie Boyd) | Boyd | 5:35 |
| 4. | "Jigsaw Puzzle Blues" | Danny Kirwan | 1:33 |
| 5. | "Looking for Somebody" | Green | 2:50 |
| 6. | "Stop Messin' Round" | Clifford Adams, Green | 2:18 |
2004 release
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Need Your Love So Bad – Version No. 2 (Remake)" (Take 4 – complete master version/remix*) | John, John Jr. | 6:55 |
| 2. | "Rambling Pony" (Complete master version/remix*) | Green | 3:32 |
| 3. | "I Believe My Time Ain't Long" (Master version with studio talk/remix*) | Elmore James | 3:01 |
| 4. | "The Sun Is Shining" | James | 3:10 |
| 5. | "Albatross" | Green | 3:10 |
| 6. | "Black Magic Woman" | Green | 2:51 |
| 7. | "Jigsaw Puzzle Blues" | Kirwan | 1:33 |
| 8. | "Like Crying" (*) | Kirwan | 2:29 |
| 9. | "Need Your Love So Bad – Version No. 1" (Take 1 – false start*, take 2 – incomplete* and take 3*) | John, John Jr. | 11:33 |
| 10. | "Need Your Love So Bad – Version No. 2 (Remake)" (Take 1* and take 2*) | John, John Jr. | 13:06 |
| 11. | "Need Your Love So Bad – Version No. 2 (Remake)" (Take 3*) | John, John Jr. | 6:18 |
| 12. | "Need Your Love So Bad – USA Version" (*) | John, John Jr. | 6:18 |
- * Bonus track
Credits
Fleetwood Mac
- Peter Green – vocals, guitar, harmonica
- Jeremy Spencer – vocals, slide guitar, piano
- Danny Kirwan – vocals, electric guitar (on side 2, tracks 1 and 4)
- John McVie – bass guitar
- Mick Fleetwood – drums
Additional musicians
- Eddie Boyd – vocals, piano (on side 1, track 4 and side 2, track 3)
Technical staff
- Mike Vernon – producer
- Mike Ross – engineer
2004 release
Fleetwood Mac
- Peter Green – vocals (except on tracks 3, 4, 5, and 7), guitar (except on tracks 3 and 4), harmonica (on tracks 2 and 3)
- Jeremy Spencer – vocals (on tracks 3 and 4), guitar (on tracks 3 and 4), piano (on track 4)
- Danny Kirwan – vocals (on track 8), guitar (on track 5, 7, and 8)
- John McVie – bass guitar (except on track 2, 3, and 8)
- Mick Fleetwood – drums (except on track 8)
- Bob Brunning – bass guitar (on track 3)
Additional musicians
- Mickey "Guitar" Baker – string arrangement (on track 1)
- Steve Gregory – tenor saxophone (on track 10 and 11)
- Christine Perfect – piano (on tracks 9, 10, and 11)
- Terry Noonan – director of unidentified strings and horns (on track 1)
Technical staff
- Mike Vernon – producer
- Mike Ross – engineer
Charts
| Chart (1969) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Albums (OCC)[6] | 18 |
References
- Gifford, Barry (10 August 1968). "Records". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2 October 2013.
- "Blender :: Guide". blender.com. Archived from the original on 26 November 2005. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
- Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian David (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. ISBN 9780743201698. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
- "The 20 Greatest British Blues Albums: 1967 – 1970 - Blues". Teamrock. 18 July 2016. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
- "Need Your Love So Bad (Legal Title)". BMI. Archived from the original on 30 January 2016. Retrieved 22 April 2011. Credited on the album to Little Willie John, but in fact written by both brothers.
- "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 23 December 2022.
