The Early Birds "The Early Birds" (Stereo Sound Records, 1963) (EP)
This four-song EP featured an early lineup of a group that had kind of an odd, checkered history, spanning several decades. Here they emulated the rollicking skiffle sound that had animated the British folk and early rock scenes, covering American tunes such as "Railroad Bum" and "Streets Of Baltimore," with a modest quartet made up of Siebren Bangma (rhythm guitar), Koene Paulusma (drums), Albert Veld (bass) and Hendrik ("Henk") Warringa on vocals and lead guitar. I'm not sure about the other guys, but Warringa seems to have been a driving force in the band's future incarnations. In the late 'Sixties they took on the name Little Ben And His Drivers, recording a folk-oriented album in 1969, followed by a similar set that came out in several different editions, in several different countries, under several different band names -- Billy Rider & His Cowboys, Bill West & His Wild Riders, and Rudi And Trudi -- with some other releases that are a bit hard to pin down. When they returned to the Early Birds person in the late 1970s, it was as a full-fledge country twang band, very much influenced by the American country-rock scene of the times. (See below.)
Early Bird "First Flight" (Killroy Favoriet Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Fred Limpens & John van de Ven)
A late-edition lineup of the same old band, with founding members Henk Waringa and Albert Velt still on board, but with a new musical direction. As they reclaimed their Early Bird(s) name in the late 'Seventies, the band fully embraced modern country music, in contrast to the folk and bluegrass repertoire of their various earlier incarnations during the late 'Sixties and early 'Seventies. Covering Merle Haggard, Delbert McClinton, Buck Owens and David Allan Coe, Early Bird band was clearly embracing the outlaw scene and the uptempo vibe of the Bakersfield Sound, though they also made space for more mainstream Nashville material from the likes of Dolly Parton, Porter Wagoner and Jack Rhodes (covering his oldie-but-goodie, "Silver Threads And Golden Needles"). There are also a few new originals, including a couple of tunes from Henk Waringa, "Mamma Played The Dobro" and "Shadow Side Of Life," as well as one from steel player Sjoerd-Jan de Wit called "White's Waltz." I'm not sure if the liner notes included all the musicians on this album, but the few I was able to make out were Henk Waringa as lead singer, as well as Sjoerd-Jan de Wit (dobro and steel guitar), Martin Kootje (guitar) and Albert Veld (bass), and possibly Johnny Hoes on lead guitar.
Early Bird "Fly Away" (Killroy Favoriet Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Theo Breuls)
Early Bird "The Sound Of Country Music" (CNR Records, 1983) (LP)
(Produced by Ben Schouten)
Early Bird "On The Wing" (Road Records, 1994)
Teddy Edelmann "Det Er Bare Mig" (Netto Music, 1989) (LP)
(Produced by Charlie McCoy & Nils Tuxen)
Danish rockabilly pioneer Teddy Edelmann (1941-2018) wore a few different hats -- in the early 1960s he was one of Denmark's earliest rockers, in the early 'Seventies he got into country, and he also had a day job as a schalger/showband pop artist. He's recorded a ton of records under different names and with different bands, and -- not speaking that much Danish -- I'm not able to say which of his albums belong in which of his various genres. This one stands out, though, as it comes from a foray to Nashville, taken with his pal, Nils Tuxen, who co-produced the album. Edelman is the lead singer while Tuxen playing lead and steel guitar, accompanied by a few well-selected Nashville pros: steel player Russ Hicks, Kenny Malone (drums) Charlie McCoy (bass and harmonica), Hargus Robbins (piano), Buddy Spicher (fiddle) and Vip Vipperman on guitar. It's a mix of covers (of American country classics) and original Scandinavian twang.
Emsland Hillbillies "Endlich" (Metronome Records, 1977) (LP)
Founded Aschendorf, West Germany back in 1973, the Emsland Hillbillies were the first band of country singer Hermann Lammers Meyer, with various editions of the group backing him on projects throughout his decades-long career, including accompanying him to several trips to America. This was their first album, packed with original material, and later reissued (along with their second album) as a twofer CD on the German-based Bear Family Records.
Emsland Hillbillies "Bauer Barnes Muhle" (Ahorn Records, 1979) (LP)
Emsland Hillbillies/Clay Blaker "The Texas Country Road Show Back In Town" (Ja Records, 1981) (LP)
A semi-split LP featuring alles von Emsland und alzo Texas cowboy Clay Blaker and his group, The Texas Honky Tonk Band. This may have been Blaker's first album!
Anne Engh "Anne Engh" (Tonep Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Bruno Glenmark)
Norwegian country gal Anne Engh appeared on a couple of albums by the Country Snakes band, and appeared with them when they played Wembley Stadium in April of 1980. She also was a featured artist on the Snakes-related Country Saloon album in 1983, though she seems to have faded from sight after that. On this Norwegian-language solo set, she is backed by a modest crew which included drummer Rolf Alex, Sam Bengtsson (bass), Anders Glenmark (percussion), Bruno Glenmark (synthesizer), Janne Lindgren (steel guitar), Kjell Ohman (piano), Hasse Rosen (acoustic guitar), and Lasse Wellander playing electric guitar -- many of whom had stronger backgrounds as pop/rock/schlager musicians.
Est "Sundgauer Country Boy" (Studio Omega, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Michel Schmitt & Andre Muller)
We're going really far afield on this one, all the way to Strasbourg, France, where in the late '70s a group of longhaired European twangfans recorded this odd album -- intended, they said, as an homage to the American country-rock band Poco. There's a strong undercurrent of prog-psych underneath many of these cosmic cowboy tunes, but you can hear the hippiebilly influences loud and clear, and there's some particularly good pedal steel work and lively banjo picking as well. The copy of this album I found has the added charm of a long inscription written by bandmember Pierre Speckler (presumably written to a DJ or music critic?) in which he explains that Est was about the only country-rock band in France at the time, and that the album was "recorded in not too good conditions" (although it sounds great to me!) The Alsatian band seems to be mainly made up of guys of German-Swiss ancestry, which perhaps helps explain their affinity for American country music... They sing in French, English and Alsatian, and really the only weak part of the album is when they sing in English, which inhibits their phrasing and fluidity, even though it is charming as well. All in all, a very interesting album from a band that charted a unique course amid a contemporary musical landscape dominated by '70s rock, prog and jazz.
Country music is everywhere, even in the erudite intellectual aeries of Europe... In fact, there's so much of the stuff, I barely know a fraction of it. This section includes a bunch of random bluegrass and country bands from across the European continent, although I'm aware there are many, many other artists and albums not currently on my radar. Also, separate sections exist for Germany and The United Kingdom and Ireland which have their own large, impressive country scenes, though many of those albums may also be included here. And trust me, once I crack the code and find all the records, France, Croatia and Lichtenstein will all get their own twang guides, too! (PS: I apologize for not being able to support umlauts and schwas and other special characters and for making all your languages look so very not right. I'm just not smart enough for all that technical-type stuff!)
