into the west

Still very much a hidden gem of British music, Bryn Haworth is celebrating his birthday today (29th July). So I thought I’d pay tribute to one of our greatest guitar players by looking back on his legendary work Sunny Side Of The Street.

It’s certainly a ‘classic’ for Bryn fans. More significantly, it’s ‘classic’ because it was that important second solo album from one of the leading ‘musician’s musicians’ on the 70s scene. It was a tasteful blend of faith and rock. And it was a cracker.

I remember pulling out one LP after another from the racks in our local independent record store, and finding Bryn’s name somewhere in the credits. He would get phone calls out of the blue to fly out to some studio somewhere and put down a few licks on somebody’s album. Chris de Burgh, Joan Armatrading, Carol Grimes and Gerry Rafferty are just some of those performers who hired this consummate guitarist.

When Sunny Side came out, my mate Andy Morris bought a copy. I think it was from a record shop in Liverpool. The rest of us drooled over the arty image, with its tasteful white border. It looked so cool. It could’ve been from a gallery. But it was from that groovy label, Island Records.

The opening track Good Job was a feel-good gospel stomp. The title track was sheer boogie. There was even a spooky old American love story Darlin’ Cory. And the whole lot ended with a folky benediction Thank The Lord. A galaxy of stars backed him in the studio. Pete Wingfield played honky-tonk piano. Mel Collins supplied the horns. Dave Swarbrick played fiddle. Dave Mattacks drummed. Many of the big 70s session players squeezed onto this recording and made it rock.

Bryn had become a Christian by this stage, and was very open about his new-found faith. But in making Sunny Side, he showed how a musician could be simple and straightforward about personal belief, yet allow it to flavour their art without losing any credibility or quality.

In that way he was similar to George Harrison, who had done the same thing with his eastern mysticism. Remember this was well before U2’s Christian statements. We all appreciated the intensity of Eric Clapton’s blues. But Bryn Haworth was different. There was an uplifting, foot-stomping swing that always brought a smile to our faces.

Bryn ended up playing tracks from this album on John Peel’s sessions. Sunny Side’s success paved the way for his excellent follow-ups Grand Arrival and Keep The Ball Rolling, and he went on to tour with other artists like Traffic, Bad Company, Gallagher and Lyle and Fairport Convention. 

Happy birthday, Bryn!