Album Review: Little Feat – ‘The Best of Little Feat’

By Jeff Swindoll Nov 6, 2006, 16:16 GMT

Little Feat was a band formed by Frank Zappa, though not directly.  Lowell George was a band member of Zappa’s Mothers in Invention.  However, Zappa fired George because he thought that George’s lyrics for ‘Willin’ (Give me weed, whites, and wine) promoted drug use. 

The other side of that “legend” coin is that Zappa told George that he was talented enough to go out on his own and start another band.  The “weed, whites, and wine” version just seems to play better…you know, print the legend.  Whatever the case, George left and took Roy Estrada with him. They formed Little Feat in 1969 along with Bill Payne and Richie Hayward. 

Estrada left after their second album and then added Paul Barrere, Kenny Gradney, and Sam Clayton.  The band split up after George’s death in 1979 but reemerged in the 80’s and added Fred Tackett and Shaun Murphy.  This collection spans 1970-1998 and gathers together 15 “best of” tracks.  I’ve noticed (not being too familiar with the band) that the term “best of” is subjective since some fans have voiced opinions that some “best” songs are not on this album. 

Whatever the case, this album includes the songs “Willin,” “Dixie Chicken,” and “Fat Man in the Bathtub.”  It also has live versions of “All that You Dream” and “Oh Atlanta.”  The album is a good chance for the casual fan to gather an instant collection of Little Feat.  Perhaps that’s what it’s meant for.

When I popped the disc out of the case there were ads for some of the other reissues.  “Waiting for Columbus” is a two disc deluxe edition (medium sized fan) and “Hotcakes and Outtakes: 30 Years of Little Feat” is a 4 disc boxed set (supersized ‘Fat Man in the Bathtub’ fan). 

If you’re just a casual fan then you can’t go to wrong purchasing this “best of”, though if you’re a bigger fan then you might want to consider one of the other sets.  Whatever your size, there’s a Little Feat album out there for you.  Feats don’t fail me now. 

‘The Best of Little Feat’ is now available at Amazon. Visit the music database for more information.