Doctors Orders

Demo - Take Your Medicine

Play 90 second soundbite of 'Jelly jelly Jelly' @ 'CD quality'

Five tracks of slinky blues done in typically British style, 'Take Your Medicine' gives a good insight into this band's live world. Doctors Orders are John Bridger (guitars & backing vocals), Martyn Davies (guitar, vocals & harmonica), Dave Wiggins (bass & backing vocals) and Chris Houghton (drums & backing vocals). This, their first, demo demonstrates their collective musical talents through four great blues toons and one slightly out of place sounding swing piece. Their choice of material here is generally pretty damn good with the instrumental 'Hideaway' opening things up followed by a great version of 'You Don't Love Me', the up-tempo 'Tube Snake Boogie' and a slow, mournful, excellent 'Jelly Jelly Jelly' to finish. For me, the oddball choice sits bang slap in the middle; it's the rather strange choice of 'Let There Be Love'. My problem with this track is not in its performance but its ill-fit within the blues numbers. If the guys are targeting Blues Clubs and specialist music venues then this track just doesn't work here. Although showing their flexibility, 'Let There Be Love' would be more at home in the Workingman's clubs where there's more of a cabaret feel. That said, that's the only real negative aspect to this demo and when all's said and done they do advertise themselves as performing 'The Blues but with a little twist of jazz, funk, rock and swing. Nat King Cole to Led Zeppelin...'.

The four more credible tracks all have a smooth chilled out feel that only British blues bands seem to be able to achieve. The 'live' recording emphasises the heart and the soul of the band; instrumentally they remind me very much of early Ten Years After mixed with very early Savoy Brown Blues Band. Doctors Orders perform with a slick tightness resulting in a cool, easy feel appropriate for their chosen genre. They seem to play very much for each other; the solo's are never over-long and they seem to be a closely knit outfit that really enjoy what they're doing. This is a pretty good work out really!!

Given the right sort of venue Doctors Orders are sure to provide just the right medicine to cure all ills and send their audiences home feeling refreshed and much better!

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