Hidden Masters - The Jess Roden Anthology Review

Jess Roden is a highly regarded English rock and “blue-eyed soul” singer who started out in the raunchy 1960s outfit, The Alan Bown Set. He went on to form several bands, including Bronco and The Butts Band with ex-Doors John Densmore and Robbie Krieger, before embarking on a solo career. He was also in-demand as a backing and guest vocalist and featured on The Who’s’ ‘Magic Bus’, several Mott The Hoople tracks and Paul Kossoff’s ‘Back Street Crawler’, along with Grace Jones’ 1981 hit, ‘Nightclubbing’.
This lavish 6-CD, 93-track set – curated by Neil Storey on the innovative Hidden Masters imprint – chronicles his entire career and includes rare studio takes and live cuts along with better known tracks. Of the early stuff ‘Baby Don’t Push Me’ attests to the scale of a fine talent in the making while his soulful tilt at ‘All Along The Watchtower’ from 1968 is arguably better than Hendrix’s version. Roden surrounded himself with some of the best musicians of the era. Credits here include Steve Winwood, Jim Capaldi, John “Rabbit” Bundrick lately of The Who and one time Face bassist Phil Chen.
It’s difficult to pick out highlights from such a wide-ranging collection, but his mid 1970s Island Records material sounds absolutely terrific. ‘What The Hell’ featuring Fee’s Simon Kirk on drums and a stunning version of ‘On Broadway’ stand out. Roden took his influences mainly from classic American soul and some of the strongest material was recorded in the US; for one, his album Jess Roden was mostly laid down in New Orleans and features the legendary Allen Toussaint at the helm. He also recorded in the famed Muscle Shoals in Alabama with session stalwarts Spooner Oldham, Barry Becket and Roger Hawkins. Roden was in his element on stage and there are several discs worth of live material included. Highly recommended.

Key Track: 'What The Hell'