Search - Big Three :: Cavern Stomp: Complete Recordings

Must-have from the Mersey beat era

John D. Muir | Oglesby, Illinois | 02/16/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Big Three never got the hit they deserved. Although they made the lower reaches of the U.K. top 50, they just didn't find a good enough song to make a major impact. Still, this CD is a must for anyone who likes music of the Mersey beat era.



The main attraction is the first 4 tracks. They represent a reissue of 'At The Cavern', an EP of songs performed live from the home of the Beatles and so many other great Liverpool groups. Bob Wooler, the leading Liverpool DJ at the time, welcomes us to the "best of cellars" and proclaims that "We've got the hi-fi high and the lights down low, so here we go with the Big Three show!" Then the boys launch into a tear-it-up version of Ray Charles' 'What'd I Say". Three other great rock songs follow, all to a background of screams from the girl fans. These guys can really play and the singing, though not perhaps very sophisticated, is great for stirring up excitement. This is the only recording which gives the listener a feel for what The Cavern was like in its heyday and is an absolute must-have for devotees of that period..



The rest of the CD, though not measuring up to the first 4 tracks, is good, listenable pop and rock, very representative of the time. It's perhaps most like Gerry and the Pacemakers, though the Big Three had their own sound. This is a good UK band of the British Invasion years and although they didn't hit the big time, they're well worth listening to."