Dave Edmunds represents what might have been if rock and roll history moved in a linear fashion. It is more or less a straight line from Hank Williams to Elvis to Dion to Bob Seger and then Graham Parker.

History doesn’t usually work in straight lines, though, and the history of rock and roll has more than its fair share of side streets, detours and dead ends. By 1977, those variations added up to so many stylistic choices that a rock and roll road map would look more like a close up of varicose veins.

On “Get It”, Dave Edmunds performs a public service by clearing the artery and letting the blood flow straight from 1950 to 1977. In his hands, it is easy to see the relationship between all of these songs, despite whatever perceived stylistic titles might have eventually been assigned to them. “Here Comes the Weekend” is a direct descendent of “My Baby Left Me”, not some twice-removed second cousin. All of these songs feel as though they share the exact same bloodline, which is a public service because it helps a younger generation to make the necessary connections with the past. Like all good music, rock and roll has roots. Otherwise, it would be as fleeting as a Chia plant. These songs span decades but on “Get It”, every song sounds contemporary and fresh.

Edmunds had plenty of time to practice at studying rock and roll history. Growing up in Cardiff, he played in bands since he was fourteen, and started fronting them when he reached his twenties. By the late ‘60s, he developed into a talented guitarist and vocalist who knew enough about recording to also work as a producer. Like a lot of other musicians, Edmunds noted that technology may have made it easier to achieve certain things, but he also noticed that some things were also lost. He wanted to understand why earlier records had a better feel and sound to them than contemporary recordings.

After some modest success with the band Love Sculpture, he started to experiment with his own arrangements of early rock and roll songs, and found himself with a surprise hit when his recording of Smiley Lewis’ “I Hear You Knocking” reached number one in Great Britain.

Edmunds’ method was intense and methodical. He would spend days layering various takes and sounds on top of one another, trying to achieve an effect that was unique and yet worthy of the original recording. In 1975, he released an entire album of his creative reinventions, entitled “Subtle as a Flying Mallet.” His work was incredible, but since Edmunds played nearly all instruments, the record lacked the lively sense of interplay that can only happen with a real live band.

An affiliation with Nick Lowe and drummer Terry Williams led to the formation of a band called Rockpile. As a trio, they provided a number of original songs and a few rhythm tracks for Edmunds’ next album. Set against a few of Edmunds’ solo productions, the live rhythmic feel added variety and a raw energy that captured the spirit of early rock and roll records.

“Get It” ran roughshod through rock and roll history, with new songs that could have been written twenty years earlier (“Little Darlin’”, Here Comes the Weekend”) standing next to twenty year-old songs that sounded brand new (Let’s Talk About Us”, “Ju Ju Man”). The album is pure joy as it celebrates our musical heritage without rendering it as if it were a museum piece. These recordings jump at you and make you want to dance. It might have been odd timing to release “Get It” at the same time that punk rock was attempting to dismantle rock and roll, but history now shows us how this record continued the linearity from Jerry Lee Lewis to Johnny Rotten, without disowning any of it.

Featured Tracks

Get Out of Denver

I Knew the Bride

Back to School Days

Here Comes the Weekend

Worn Out Suits, Brand New Pockets

Where or When

Ju Ju Man

Get It

Let's Talk About Us

Hey Good Lookin'

What Did I Do Last Night?

Little Darlin'

My Baby Left Me

April 1977 - Billboard Charted #209