"Autumn '66" was the third album from the Spencer Davis Group. It
includes the chart-topping "Somebody Help Me" which had reached
number one in the UK charts in the Spring of 1966. At this stage, the
group was not writing much original material. However, the seventh single
"When I Come Home" marked the songwriting debut (with Jackie Edwards)
of Steve Winwood, the outstanding talent in the band. Many of the songs on
"Autumn '66" are covers of standards. "Take This Hurt Off Me"
was also covered by The Small Faces, "When a Man Loves a Woman "is
the Percy Sledge song and is ideally suited to Steve Winwood's soulful
voice. Indeed Steve Winwood shows that he ranks alongside Steve Marriott
and the Action's Reggie King as England's top soul singers at the time.
Autumn '66 is another transitional album like "Revolver", "the
Small Faces "(Immediate) or "Aftermath" in that it represents a
crossroads in the career of the band. In this case, it represents a move
away from the band's roots in blues towards a more commercial sound as
shown in the single "Somebody Help Me". There is also a move away
from the blues harmonica towards more tracks featuring Steve Winwood's
Organ playing. What is clear though is that the band enjoyed making this
record. "Midnight Special" is a standard that Spencer Davis used to
play on street corners across Europe during his days as a student. "On
the Green Light" is a studio improvisation, the green light being the
recording light. "Together 'Til The End of Time" starts the album on
a slow note and it represents an excellent showcase for Winwood's vocals.
"Dust My Blues" is another standard and there is also a Yardbirds
version of this. The album finishes with the single "Somebody Help
Me". This helps to confirm the fact that the Spencer Davis Group made
some excellent singles. It ranks alongside "Gimme Some Lovin'" and
"Keep on Running". |