Peter Green & The Madness of Recording of The Robert Johnson Songbook Album.. You Can Read The Full Story in Kenny Denton's memoir "There Ain't No Rules In Rock n Roll"

Peter Green and the Splinter Group

In the 90s I owned my own recording studio in West London. It was here I received a call from my close friend Stuart Taylor, who was managing a band named The Splinter Group featuring Peter Green. He wanted to schedule studio time to mix a recording of their instrumental track, “Walk Don't Run.” This recording had been initially produced by the renowned drummer, Cozy Powell at a different studio but Cozy had grown dissatisfied with the band's overall situation and decided to part company. As a long-time admirer of Peter Green, the opportunity for me to collaborate with him was a genuine honour. Despite my knowledge of Peter's eventful history, I was genuinely taken aback when I met him. Instead of the image of a legendary guitarist, he resembled Mr. Smee from Peter Pan. His wispy sideburns peeked out from beneath a tightly fastened bandana around his head and his clothes, draped over his slightly overweight torso, looked like they had been discarded by Oxfam. Initially, engaging in conversation with Peter was quite challenging for me but, as our acquaintance deepened, I encountered a remarkable individual with a genuinely warm and gentle character. He had a profound passion for music as well as a mind deeply immersed in a world of his own creation. I couldn't help but develop a deep admiration for him. His constant musings on life always fascinated me. I once asked Peter whether he believed in an afterlife. After a lengthy silence, during which he gazed at the ceiling, he responded, “I'm not certain I believe in this one.” My initial responsibility as the engineer was to prepare the multi-track for mixing. The first ten tracks were dedicated to drums, bass and rhythm guitar, all of which where in good shape. Peter had recorded various takes of his guitar solos, so I meticulously listened to each one and selected the most exceptional sections. I then combined these sections into a single cohesive guitar solo. With the backing track sounding complete, I began to integrate Peter's guitar into the mix. While adding reverb to the guitar using one of my many electronic effects units, Peter inquired, “How many different types of echoes does the module have?” I replied, “There’s over 200 in this one.” Peter decided he wanted to hear every one of them. So, with the multi-track machine set to loop, playing the track repeatedly, I changed the reverb setting every ten or 15 seconds. We carefully listened to every variation, noting down the ones Peter favoured. After a thorough exploration of reverb options, Peter settled on his preferred choice. I then carefully balanced the level of his guitar with the rest of the instruments. Following this adjustment, Peter remarked, “The drums are too loud.” I promptly reduced the drum volume. He continued, “Now the bass is too loud, can we lower it?” I complied and decreased the bass level. Then he mentioned, “The rhythm guitar is too loud, please bring it down.” At this point, Peter's lead guitar dominated the mix. As a result of the changes he wanted me to make, he soon realised that his guitar was excessively loud, prompting us to backtrack on all our previous adjustments. As time progressed, I pulled Stuart aside, and together we discreetly devised a plan to reach a settlement. We would finish this mix with Peter then, later I would remix the track again by myself. When the finalised master was delivered, everyone appeared more than happy with the result. “Not long after, Stuart approached me once more with a proposal. He asked if I would consider producing an album featuring Robert Johnson songs for Snapper Records.

You Can Read The Full Story in Kenny Denton's memoir "There Ain't No Rules In Rock n Roll"