Fat Mattress - II
LP TDP54055
BARCODE: 5060672880558
Noel Redding made a big splash as bassist with the Jimi Hendrix Experience, but he was really a
guitarist, having played with singer-songwriter Neil Landon in the Brunettes as a teenager. When
Redding left the Experience, and Landon quit Engelbert Humperdinck’s band, the pair formed
Fat Mattress with Humperdinck’s drummer, Eric Dillon, and bassist Jim Leverton, signing to
Polydor for the self-titled debut album in 1969. Second album Fat Mattress II benefits from the
presence of expressive keyboardist Mick Weaver, aka Wynder K Frogg, and on some tracks,
Quartermass guitarist Steve Hammond, but Redding remains the major draw, as heard on the
songs ‘Highway,’ ‘At The Ball’ and ‘People’. As with its predecessor, the album is based largely on the
pleasantly-melodic shades of psychedelic folk rock, with a few rough rock edges along the way;
this edition has a rare album outtake, ‘Hall Of Kings,’ and 1970 single B-side ‘Black Sheep Of The
Family' as bonus tracks. The album emphasizes that Redding was a superb guitarist as well as a fine
songwriter, giving a different perspective on his contributions in Jimi’s band and beyond.
SIDE ONE
The Storm
Anyway You Want
Leafy Lane
Naturally
Roamin’
Happy My Love
Childhood Dream
She
SIDE TWO
Highball
At The Ball
People
Hall Of Kings (Bonus track)
Black Sheep Of The Family
(Bonus track)
