Description
The expanded & remastered edition of Chris Wilson’s Live at the Continental is now available on double LP and double CD re-released at what would have been Chris’ 65th birthday on the 24th Jan this year.
Originally recorded and released in 1994 after Chris had released his first solo album on Mushroom’s Aurora label, Live at the Continental is an intimate recording, made at a beloved venue, of the Melbourne blues, country, folk and roots-rock master, accompanied only by long-time sideman Shane O’Mara on guitar, and Australian jazz luminary Jex Saarelaht on piano. The album holds a singular place in a singular career. It is an Australian classic and was the subject of a documentary film that premiered in 2017 at the St Kilda Film Festiva
The original nine-song CD was expanded with extra material in a low-key fifteen-song independently released double CD back in 2007 . That edition has now been remastered with an additional unreleased 2 tracks – for a new double CD, and, for the first time ever, a vinyl edition.
Melbourne’s master blues & roots singer/songwriter/instrumentalist, Wilson was known for his classic solo work as well as his band Crown of Thorns and performances with Paul Kelly & the Coloured Girls, Diesel, Hunters & Collectors, Crowded House, Harem Scarem and punk stalwarts X.
Chris Wilson was a giant of Australian blues and roots music. A big man with a big voice and an even bigger heart, he followed in the footsteps of early pioneers like Dutch Tilders, Matt Taylor and Broderick Smith (and led the way for the likes of Jeff Lang, Ash Grunwald and the Teskey Brothers) and took his feeling for blues into the rock and punk worlds, eventually becoming the heart and soul of Melbourne’s legendary thriving live scene.
We were all so shocked & saddened by his early passing at just 63 over 2 years ago. His legacy lives on in his magnificent music & the many lives he touched so positively, and of course in the wonderfully talented sons of he & his beloved wife SARAH CARROLL, FENN & GEORGE WILSON…of whom we was so very proud.
Chris Wilson – vocals, harmonica
Shane O’Mara – guitars
Jex Saarelaht – piano, organ
