One of the cultural advantages of subscribing to SiriusXM is listening to Little Steven’s Underground Garage. The mix of rock and R&B over the decades is much greater than anything I’d ever experienced on my old transistor radios. Thanks to a steady diet of Lenny Kaye’s Subterranean Basement and Chris Carter’s British Invasion, I have heard a bunch of bands that I’d only read about in ancient issues of the Trouser Press. One of my favorite finds is Dr. Feelgood. They were a nearly complete mystery to me except for two things. They are often mentioned in articles giving a quick summary of the brief “Pub Rock” era that came between Prog and Punk. Dr. Feelgood were part of a scene with Brinsley Schwarz, Bees Make Honey, Eggs Over Easy, Chilli Willi and the Red Hot Peppers, Ducks Deluxe and Rockpile. What was Pub Rock? They were bands that were playing a circuit of pubs instead of being bloated prog rock bands playing arenas. The second reason I heard of them was because Wilko Johnson played the silent executioner on Game of Thrones. Even though they had been around since the mid-70s, I never heard them until a few years ago when they were played on the Underground Garage. I immediately found myself looking up their old live footage online. I wanted to see a documentary about the band and turns out there was one except it wasn’t available in America. Now Oil City Confidential has arrived on DVD that gives the essence of the band that skittered so punk rock could pogo.
Normally when I watch a documentary about a band, the part where the director focuses on their childhood and where they grew up is rather a drag. However when it comes to the Dr. Feelgood, the tale of life in Canvey Island is riveting. This is an island in the delta of the Thames River. Sure most English bands from the ’60s and ’70s have tales of growing up during World War II or playing in the devastation of German bombings. But these four guys survived the time Canvey flooded. Beyond the flood, they had to witness their lovely island get overrun by oil refineries and massive holding tanks. Thus is became “Oil City.” When singer Lee Brilleaux, guitarist Wilko Johnson, John Martin and bassist John B. Sparkes aka Sparko unite, you get a sense that they aren’t just posh English boys playing blues. They discover the pub rock scene is happening in London. They begin to drive a van a little over an hour from their homes to the pubs to rock that crowd. They also had to drive home after the gig so they could be at their day jobs on time. They wore non-regal suits on stage and looked like mobsters from Michael Caine’s Get Carter. On stage, singer Lee Brilleaux was singing between smokes and drinks. His rough voice worked well with Wilko’s unique guitar sound. Wilko has this no pick strum method on his Fender Telecaster that makes me realize that a song is Dr. Feelgood. He also is in constantly motion around the stage with a skitter motion. Not to mention his stare which came in handy for Game of Thrones. The rhythm section is tight. They were the exact opposite of the spacey prog rock and freakish fashion glam rock that had claimed the early ’70s in England. Dr. Feelgood hit that stage ready to rock. I’ll include a video from 1975 of them playing so you can get a taste of why they were important.
The movie shows how the group found themselves embraced by the scene. Princess Diana (pre-royal) was coming to see them at a local pub. Another fan was John Mortimer best known in America for writing Rumpole of the Bailey that aired on PBS in America. Even before they had signed with a label, the band claimed the cover of NME. It helps that Lee and Wilko were great characters for photos. They were either going to be rock stars or notorious felons.
Quite a few icons testify to the greatness of Dr. Feelgood. This includes Jools Holland of Squeeze, Glen Matlock of The Sex Pistols and Alison Moyet of Yaz. The late Clem Burke drummer testifies to the power of Dr. Feelgood’s Malpractice album from when he played it at a party in New York City and everyone kept flipping it over to hear it again. The Feelgoods did come to New York City and had The Ramones open for them at CBGB’s. While the band didn’t break in America, their third album hit number one in the UK. What’s interesting is that Dr. Feelgood isn’t talked about being an early punk band. Yet there’s a tale of their fans smashing up a venue one night like punk fans would do in a few months. The movie covers the schism when Wilko and Lee broke during their fourth album.
While the movie features an interview with Lee, he doesn’t take part in the “reunion” with Wilko Johnson, John Martin and Sparko. This is because Lee passed away from lymphoma in 1994 at the young age of 41. The documentary was released in England in 2010. Wilko passed away in 2022. It’s good that this film exists so they can each tell their tale of Dr. Feelgood.
Julian Temple has made quite a few great documentaries about bands from this moment with the Sex Pistols in The Filth and The Fury and Joe Strummer: The Future Is Unwritten. Temple also made The Ecstasy of Wilko Johnson about the guitarist collaborating with Roger Daltry of The Who. To me Oil City Confidential is the best of the batch simply because no one has tried to tell the story of Dr. Feelgood to this extent. Who talks about Dr. Feelgood? They deserve to be heard musically and biographically. By the time it is over, you get a sense of the bond between Wilko and Lee. It hurts when it shatters at the end.
The Video is 1.78:1 anamorphic. There’s a mix of new footage with lots of great archival concert tape. The quality is good. The Audio is Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo. You’ll want to crank up the volume when Dr. Feelgood take the stage.
Director Commentary has Julien Temple talk about working with Wilko. Points out he had to use a wide-angle lens because he moves so much while talking. He talks about doing his best to build the story from the bottom up. He didn’t find the great video footage of Lee talking. It was found in a barn in Essex.
Lee Interview (48:14) is the video footage that provided a majority of Lee’s talking time in the movie.
Wilko Out-Takes (20:44) has the guitarist giving more information about the band, his life and Canvey Island. He shows off Bo Diddley’s signature on his guitar.
Cadiz Music presents Oil City Confidential. Directed by Julien Temple. Starring Lee Brilleaux, Wilko Johnson, John Martin, John B. Sparkes and Christopher Fenwick. Running Time: 107 minute. Rating: Unrated. Release Date: September 4, 2026.
