For those unaware, Anthology (out via Silverwolf Records) is a specially priced 4CD career retrospective of one of London’s finest rock guitarists, the late, great Henry McCullough.

He is most known for his recording and touring with Joe Cocker & The Original Grease Band, including Woodstock, as well as Paul McCartney’s Wings.

He also toured and recorded with Spookey Tooth, Frankie Miller, Donavan, Roy Harpur, Marianne Faithful and the soundtrack to Jesus Christ Super Star.

His guitar work has influenced many and this set represents some of his finest solo recordings.

Having been a fan of his work, I can honestly say that the career of Henry McCullough cuts through just about every conceivable facet of rock music, and touches upon some of its most glorious moments. Growing up in the seaside resort of Portstewart, Henry’s first musical venture was as guitarist with Irish showband The Skyrockets and the years to follow found him doing the dance hall circuit with similar outfits, including the popular Gene and the Gents.

When the blues boom hit Ireland, Henry became involved with the rougher side of music through the outfit that were to become Eire Apparent. Managed for a time by Chas Chandler, Eire Apparent were one of the many bands to take part in package tours of Britain, alongside groups like The Move, Pink Floyd, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, and Amen Corner.

After an untimely exit from the band, Henry nailed down some of the finest mix of traditional and rock with his work as part of the legendary Sweeney’s Men. It is said that this line-up more or less invented the concept of Folk-Rock.

He then drifted to London where he became steeped in the blues scene, rubbing shoulders with some of the greats of the genre who were just coming to the attention of the British revivalists. An encounter with a young Sheffield singer led to a job and Henry’s first brush with the real big time - as part of Joe Cocker’s Grease Band. Tours and albums followed quickly, including an appearance at Woodstock and a lengthy period of work in the States.

Breaking with Cocker, Henry and The Grease Band continued to mine a gritty blues vein that made them a live favorite that has rarely been equaled. He found himself auditioning for a gig with ex-Beatle Paul McCartney. Henry, along with Denny Seiwell, Denny Laine and Linda McCartney were the first - and many say best incarnation of Wings. He embellished the single My Love with a graceful solo that is one of the all-time guitar gems and shows once and for all the expressive power of the instrument.

Indeed, at one Wings session at Abbey Road when Pink Floyd were in the studio next door, Henry even made a spoken contribution to the classic Dark Side of the Moon.

But musical differences with the headstrong Macca followed, and Henry made the decision to leave. Following his instinct for rock he ended up in some very good company, playing guitar and gigging with the Roy Harper, Marianne Faithfull, Ronnie Lane, Donovan, Frankie Miller, Eric Burdon, Viola Wills, Spooky Tooth, et al.

During a visit back home to see his family in the early 80’s, an accident with a knife almost cost Henry his livelihood, severing tendons in his playing hand. The enforced lay-off allowed Henry to re-evaluate his life and his career, and he took the decision to stay at home in Ireland.

The road to recovery was almost complete when Henry started sitting in with the Fleadh Cowboys for their now legendary Sunday afternoon residency in The Lower Deck in Dublin. It soon became apparent that Henry’s contribution was an attraction in itself, so he formed his own band and toured Ireland in 1988.

In the 90’s Henry moved back to Portstewart and formed a new band with Percy Robinson on pedal steel and Roe Butcher on bass and Liam Bradley on drums. More recently the band has featured James Delaney on keys, Chrissy Stewart (Frankie Miller Band) on bass, Chris Probst on guitar and Tony Phillips on Drums.

In 1998 he went to Poland, where he rehearsed a band of Polish session musicians for a tour. At the end of the tour, they went into a studio and played ‘live’ for an afternoon. A resulting CD, Blue Sunset was consequently released in Poland, and was followed up by a further successful Polish tour.

On returning home, Henry decided that it was time to do record a few studio tracks. With help and encouragement from his many friends, he released Failed Christian, a harrowing self-penned song that has since been covered by Nick Lowe on his quite brilliant album, Dig My Mood.

In the summer of ‘99 Henry was devastated when his beloved 1963 cherry red Gibson ES335 went missing from a British Midlands flight between Warsaw and Heathrow. However, he still has his gold-top Les Paul that he played at Woodstock.

And thus, as I hope you can all now see, Henry McCullough is justifiably one of rock’s most legendary figures and it has been my pleasure to follow his career down through the decades.

Disc 1:
The Last of The Bluesmen; Josie’s In The Garden; Kuschty Rye; Belfast To Boston; I Couldn’t Sleep For Thinking Of Hank Williams; Ould Piece Of Wood; Big Barn Bed; Peacocks’ Waltz; Hollis Brown; I’d Rather Die Young; Let The Four Winds Blow; Drunken Nights In The City; Tumble Dry; Failed Christian

Disc 2:
The Burial Ground; Big Old River; I’ve Gor A Secret; Too Late To Worry; Poor Man’s Moon; Walk With Me; Belfast Train; Skin & Bone; Fix Me Up Jesus; All Gone Crazy; Time To Put The Snakes To Bed; Poor Man’s Moon

Disc 3:
Old Black Coat; You Can’t Do That; Hi Ya Folks; Down In The Amusement; Sick and Tired; Murder In My Heart; Mess Of Blues; I Can’t Help Falling In Love; Belfast To Boston

Disc 4:
Here We Go Again; Tears On Your Face; Can’t Help Falling In Love; Shining Star; Whispering Love; Down In The Amusement; Foolish Hearts; Too Upset To Say Goodbye; Just Because; Cold Cold Heart; Couldn’t Sleep For Thinking Of Hank Williams

Official Purchase Link