Hello There Big Boy!

Infobox Album |
Name = Hello There Big Boy!
Type = Album
Artist = Danny Kirwan

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Released = 1979
Recorded = January 1979
Genre = Rock
Length =
Label = DJM
Producer = Clifford Davis
Reviews =
* Allmusic Rating|4|5 [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:efuf6j3h71e0 link]
Last album = "Midnight In San Juan" (1976)
This album = "Hello There Big Boy" (1979)
Next album = "Ram Jam City" (2000)

"Hello There Big Boy!" is an album by British blues rock musician Danny Kirwan, who was a member of Fleetwood Mac from 1968-72. Released in 1979 (see 1979 in music) on the DJM Records label, this was his last solo album. It was finally released on CD in February 2006, albeit only in Japan.

Relative to his other albums, few of the tracks on the album were written by Kirwan himself, though Randy Edelman's "You" was the only 'outside' cover. Backing vocalist Tony Rivers provided one; guitarist Kirby Gregory another, and Dana Gillespie co-wrote one with manager / producer Clifford Davis (under his usual pseudonym of Clifford Adams) as well as singing a duet on one of Danny's own songs.

"Only You" was an old Fleetwood Mac song given an update - Mac's version had not yet been released at that point, though it can now be found on the Volume 1 of the triple Live In Boston set and the Live At The BBC 2CD set released in 1995. "Caroline" is another of the highlights, written about Danny's ex-wife, [Richard Hogan, DJM press release for "Hello There Big Boy!", 1979.] and a sad insight into his state of mind at the time.

It is not clear how much of the guitar on the album was played by Kirwan, with Gregory and Bob Weston playing on several tracks, although a press release for the album states that Kirwan took the acoustic guitar solo on "Summer Days and Summer Nights". Producer Davis added the work of some 87 outside musicians to the recording, after Kirwan had laid down the basic tracks. On hearing the finished album, Kirwan told Davis that he thought it was "the best thing" he had done. [Richard Hogan, DJM press release for "Hello There Big Boy!", 1979.] Davis said of the album some years later that it was "so bad...he had to finish it for contractual reasons. I even picked the songs." ["Bob Brunning - Fleetwood Mac: Behind The Masks", Hodder & Stoughton, 1990.]

Track listing

#"Wings Of A Dove" (Kirwan) – 2:52
#"Gettin' The Feelin'" (Rivers) – 3:46
#"End Up Crying" (Gregory) – 3:51
#"Caroline" (Kirwan/Adams) – 3:08
#"You" (Edelman) – 3:42
#"Only You" (Kirwan) – 3:52
#"California" (Adams/Gillespie) – 2:35
#"Spaceman" (Kirwan) – 3:18
#"Summer Days And Summer Nights" (Kirwan) – 3:32

Personnel

*Danny Kirwan - Guitars, vocals
*Kirby Gregory - Guitars
*Bob Weston - Lead guitar on tracks 2 and 5
*Tex Comer - Bass
*Fran Byrne - Drums
*John Cook - Keyboards
*Kevin Kitchen - Electric piano
*Chris Fletcher - Percussion
*Dana Gillespie - Duet vocal on track 9
*Tony Rivers, Stuart Calver, John Perry - Backing vocals

*Arrangements by Clifford Davis and Tony White

Production

*Producer: Clifford Davis
*Engineer: Louie Austin
*2nd Engineer: Bob Broglia
*Photography & Sleeve Design: Seabrook Graves Aslett

*Recorded at Kingsway Recorders during January 1979
*Mixed at DJM Studio by Louie Austin

Release Information

* UK ~ DJM DJF20555 ~ 21st March 1979 (LP & Cassette)
* USA ~ DJM DJM-22 ~ 25th April 1979 (LP, Cassette & 8-Track)
* Canada ~ DJM 9238-22 ~ 1979 (LP & Cassette)
* Peru ~ MAG LPN-2583 ~ 1979 (LP)
* Japan ~ AMR Archive AIRAC-1177 ~ 22nd February 2006 (CD)

The Japanese CD release came in a cardboard sleeve.

References