CoronaVinyl Day 56 (Scottish): AWB by Average White Band

For an explanation of CoronaVinyl, click here.

I've always been a bit of a Scotophile.  When I was relatively young, I declared to my family that I was Scottish, since I assumed anyone named Andrew must be Scottish.  My mother and aunt have chastised me about this since then, but thanks to some genealogy research, it turns out I was right -- at least somewhere around 1-2% right.  The Scottish accent has always been my favorite accent, and for a year or so after Braveheart, my inner monologue was, in fact, with a Scottish accent.

Given this, you would think my record collection would be teeming with the likes of Nazareth, Bay City Rollers, and The Proclaimers, but alas, I don't have much in the way of Scottish music on vinyl.  Also, I hate The Proclaimers, though I only know one song by them.

I do have a Harry Lauder comedy album (somehow), but that's not music, so I'm going to go with Average White Band's 1974 second studio album, AWB.  You may be saying to yourself, "All these fucking years, and I never realized Average White Band was Scottish.  They're just so damned funky."  Agreed on all accounts.  But a quick look at the band members' names is all you need to know.  In addition to guys whose last names are McIntyre and McIntosh, there's a guy named Hamish in the band.

While their first studio album, 1973's Show Your Hand, didn't make much noise on the charts in either the U.S. or the UK, with AWB, Average White Band had themselves a smash hit.  It went to #1 on the Billboard album chart and #6 on the UK album chart, thanks in large part to the funky instrumental "Pick Up the Pieces."  Those of us of a certain age became acquainted with the song because of its inclusion in the movie Swingers, but it was a massive hit around the world when it was released, hitting #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, #4 on the Canadian pop chart, and #6 on the UK pop chart.  It would prove to be the band's biggest hit of their career.

Another interesting tidbit about the song:  It was big enough of a hit that James Brown's backing band, The J.B.'s recorded a response song called "Pick Up the Pieces, One by One", under the name AABB -- "Above Average Black Band."  

Anywho, overall AWB is a nice little piece of mid-'70s funk and soul, with some pop and good old-fashioned love-makin' music mixed in.  My only knock is that when they sing, they don't have Scottish accents.

Favorite song from Side 1:  "Work To Do"
While I love "Pick Up the Pieces," the band has other good stuff on Side 1, including their cover of The Isley Brothers' "Work To Do."  This is a catchy, funky ditty that makes you want to do some work.

Favorite song from Side 2:  "I Just Can't Give You Up"
This song has a definite Philadelphia soul feel to it and could easily have been on an O'Jays or Spinners record.  Hamish Stuart not only delivers some impassioned vocals, but also busts out a nice little guitar solo.