"Keeping the Blues Alive Award" Achievement for Blues on the Internet Presented by The Blues Foundation
The Yardbirds are probably best remembered for launching three of Britain's most influential guitarist: Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page. While the bands revolving door would prove to be beneficial for the three guitar players, it would limit US success and the group formally disbanded in 1968. While they were together, they created some of the most influential music of the time. Like the Rolling Stones, their music resonated from artists such as Muddy Waters, Willie Dixon, and Sonny Boy Williams.
Now 35 years after Jimmy Page left the group to form Led Zeppelin, founding members Chris Dreja and Jim McCarty have reformed the band. Now the Yardbirds consist of Gypie Mayo (formally of Dr. Feelgood) on lead guitar, John Idan on bass and vocals and Alan Glen (who has worked with Little Axe and is a former member of the band Nine Below Zero) on harmonica. On the newly formed bands' first release, Birdland, the enlist the help from some of the artists they impacted such as Brian May (formally of Queen), Slash (formally of Guns & Roses), Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, and Jeff "Skunk" Baxter.
As expected, the new incarnation of the legendary Yardbirds dust off a few of their best known songs: "Train Kept A Rollin" (with Santriani), "Shapes of Things To Come" (with Vai), "Mr. You're a Better Man Than I" (with May), and For Your Love with the Goo Goo Dolls Johnny Rzeznik on lead vocals. Not content with being labeled an oldies act, the group laid down 7 new tracks, most notably "My Blind Life" on which former member Jeff Beck lends his signature guitar pillaging. Even though there are only two original members (the original lead singer, Keith Relf was tragically killed 1976) the Yardbirds sound as fresh as they did during the British invasion of the 1960's.
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