The Pious Bird of Good Omen is a compilation album by the British blues rock band Fleetwood Mac, released in 1969. It consists of their first four non-album UK singles and their B-sides, two other tracks from their previous album Mr. Wonderful, and two tracks by the blues artist Eddie Boyd with backing by members of Fleetwood Mac. These two tracks came from Boyd's album 7936 South Rhodes.
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The Pious Bird of Good Omen | ||||
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Compilation album by | ||||
Released | 15 August 1969 | |||
Recorded | September 1967, January–April & October 1968 | |||
Genre | Blues rock | |||
Length | 36:00 | |||
Label | Blue Horizon | |||
Producer | Mike Vernon | |||
Fleetwood Mac compilations chronology | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The New Rolling Stone Album Guide | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Blender | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The title of the album is a phrase found in an 1817 gloss (marginal note) to Samuel Taylor Coleridge's 1798 epic poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. The phrase refers to the albatross killed in the poem ("The ancient Mariner inhospitably killeth the pious bird of good omen"). Its use as an album title as well as the album art is a sly wink to the featuring of the band's number 1 UK hit "Albatross".
The US-only compilation English Rose was a similar package, sharing four songs with this album, and was released earlier in 1969.
In 2002, the tracks from this album were repackaged by Sony BMG and released as a new collection with cover art very closely resembling the Greatest Hits album (1971), but with the addition of "Shake Your Moneymaker" and "Love That Burns".
Reaction to the album has been highly positive. It was described as "excellent" by the Rolling Stone Album Guide.[2] TeamRock ranked the album in the "20 Greatest Blues Albums: 1967-70".[4]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Need Your Love So Bad" | Little Willie John, Mertis John Jr.[5] | 3:50 |
2. | "Comin' Home" | Elmore James | 2:38 |
3. | "Rambling Pony" | Peter Green | 2:40 |
4. | "The Big Boat" (with Eddie Boyd) | Eddie Boyd | 2:35 |
5. | "I Believe My Time Ain't Long" | James | 2:55 |
6. | "The Sun Is Shining" | James | 3:10 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Albatross" | Green | 3:10 |
2. | "Black Magic Woman" | Green | 2:46 |
3. | "Just the Blues" (with Eddie Boyd) | Boyd | 5:35 |
4. | "Jigsaw Puzzle Blues" | Danny Kirwan | 1:33 |
5. | "Looking for Somebody" | Green | 2:50 |
6. | "Stop Messin' Round" | Clifford Adams, Green | 2:18 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Need Your Love So Bad – Version No. 2 (Remake)" (Take 4 – complete master version/remix*) | John, John Jr. | 6:55 |
2. | "Rambling Pony" (Complete master version/remix*) | Green | 3:32 |
3. | "I Believe My Time Ain't Long" (Master version with studio talk/remix*) | Elmore James | 3:01 |
4. | "The Sun Is Shining" | James | 3:10 |
5. | "Albatross" | Green | 3:10 |
6. | "Black Magic Woman" | Green | 2:51 |
7. | "Jigsaw Puzzle Blues" | Kirwan | 1:33 |
8. | "Like Crying" (*) | Kirwan | 2:29 |
9. | "Need Your Love So Bad – Version No. 1" (Take 1 – false start*, take 2 – incomplete* and take 3*) | John, John Jr. | 11:33 |
10. | "Need Your Love So Bad – Version No. 2 (Remake)" (Take 1* and take 2*) | John, John Jr. | 13:06 |
11. | "Need Your Love So Bad – Version No. 2 (Remake)" (Take 3*) | John, John Jr. | 6:18 |
12. | "Need Your Love So Bad – USA Version" (*) | John, John Jr. | 6:18 |
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