Blues Matters 70

A very Happy New Year to you all!

We trust you had an enjoyable and reviving Christmas and are raring to go into 2013 with optimism and courage and of course a good dose of Blues of the musical variety.

Did you know that apparently there is an average of five arguments per family over the Christmas period? So did yours manage higher or lower?

Remember the most important part of this is to end up smiling!

Our resolution remains to bring you the best in Blues and we aim to continue to deliver that to you all as the best value in Blues publications with the Blues at heart.

The New Year already looks exciting; new regular feature(s)- KitChat, new design, new interviews, new releases, new Blues, anything we missed?

From the results of our Writers’ Poll although the astounding Lucy Zirins won the Best Newcomer section. Sadly although this meant she would be nominated to take part in the European Blues Challenge she has said that she is focused on her new album and therefore decided not to take part and has passed the mantle for the UK to the 2nd placed act Babajack who have grasped the baton with relish and we should all wish them well as the UK’s representatives and ambassadors at this event. We will keep you posted in future issues.

For a long time we’ve been asked about a Robin Trower interview and here he is at last in with another good mix of artists for your pleasure.

Somehow the ‘unfinished’ Gwyn Ashton interview (which had been prepared from the tapes of the interview) was used in our last issue, though it was not the final version. You will find the finished/edited version online. Apologies have already been made to Gwyn for this error.

Have a great 2013 full of Blues...

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Writers: liz aiken, roy bainton, andrew baldwin, adam bates, Duncan beattie, adrian blacklee, bob bonsey, eddy bonte, Colin Campbell, bob Chaffey, martin Cook, Norman Darwen, Dave Drury, sybil Gage, Nick Garner, Diane Gillard, stuart a. Hamilton, brian Harman, Natalie Harrap, Gareth Hayes, trevor Hodgett, billy Hutchinson, Peter Innes, Duncan Jameson, martin Knott, brian Kramer, Frank leigh, mike lightfoot, Geoff marston, Ian mcHugh, ben mcNair, michael messer, Christine moore, martin ‘Noggin’ Norris, merv Osborne, mike Owens, Frankie Pfeiffer, thomas rankin, Clive rawlings, Chris rowland, Paromita saha, Pete sargeant, Dave ‘the bishop’ scott, Graeme scott, andy snipper, Dave stone, steve swales, suzanne swanson, richard thomas, tom Walker, Dave Ward, Daryl Weale, Kevin Wharton, steve Yourglovich.

cOnTEnTs

REGULARs

04 happenin’

All the news that’s fit to print, plus Southern images, Blues DJs part 4 and guitar artistry with andy Solloway

20 kiTchaT claSSic Excelsior! Dave Stone tells us about the amplifier that matters to him.

22 blue blooD

New blues talent. Featuring: laura May, The Jar Family, wooden horse, 13 Stars, Dirty words and poplar Jake

34 blueS Top 10 lucy Zirins talks about the music that influenced her career.

fEATUREs

36 robin Trower

Talking Blues: Part one. Why a renowned guitar stylist turned to the Blues.

49 The MenTullS

A new band that’s taking the UK circuit by storm. Next stop, Brunswick Battle of the Bands!

52 blue To brown

One is a voiceover artist, the other plays with Duran Duran. An amazing father and son team that plays the Blues.

58 Julian SaS

66

The Dutch master talks about life, loss and his new album Bound to Roll.

MaTThew curry

The brilliant young Blues talent that’s taking on the world.

70 wilSon T king

Last of the Analogues – from the streets of New York and one to watch.

76 DaviD JackSon

Rocking Blues Out of Africa... The bornagain Bluesman talks to BM!.

82 paul FilipowicZ

Blues Under The Radar. The Wisconsin survivor that fights for his Blues.

88 STephen Dale peTiT

From busking the blues, to playing the 100 Club, presenting the one and only...

94 ron Sayer

Hard-touring Bluesman with a new album that’s winning them over.

98 blueS n’ Trouble

30 years on and still going strong. The Brit Blues evergreens are back for more.

REvIEws

103 albuMS

Including ben harper, bill wymans’s rhythm kings, black country communion, gwyn ashton, habib koite & eric bibb, John hiatt, Muddy waters, plus Chicago Soul, Santa’s Mojo, vintage electric Blues, contemporary sounds from bonny Scotland and the mother of all B.B. King box sets!

118 ShowTiMe!

Festival highlights from Carlisle, Frome and Tenby, plus great concerts from across the UK.

128

rMr blueS Top 50

Where only the music matters. The Roots Music Report independent airplay chart.

cOvER sTORy

JereMy Spencer

2012 saw the release of his new solo album Bend in the Road In this amazing interview Jeremy talks about fame, the future and those Fleetwood Mac re-union rumours.

GivinG Chelmsford The musiC iT deserves

The first event will be on Wednesday 19th December the place will be Hooga in Victoria Road Chelmsford the most salubrious of venues ideally suited to accommodating Blues in the City’s first regular event called Acoustic Blues and Roots Blues in the City will have some of the top acts from all across the UK, many never seen in Chelmsford before, we are really excited to be able to put this regular event on. Thanks to Jon and Mark from Hooga for giving us the opportunity and

having the vision. Our first night on Wed 19th Dec will see the amazing Roy Mette headline with, we hope, some surprises + Support from Happnin Boy and friends. All the gigs will start with the support act playing for 45mins from 8.45pm, and the main act playing for 90mins from 9.45pm and we will have the master DJ of blues and Roots Mike Lightfoot playing you great music in between and from 8pm.

Moving on to January we have the amazing Guy Tortora from California with Costa playing 16th January

Then we have the great Rag Mama Rag from France playing 27th Feb. March 13th sees Rosco Levee from Kent and his band play unplugged. April 17th sees the exciting Wille and the Bandits from Cornwall and yes it is spelt Wille. Then to end the first six months we have Wooden Horse from Worcester who recently supported Joan Armatrading and are about to support Sandi Thom. All these acts will have fantastic supports acts so giving a great nights entertainment. There will be a small entry charge starting from £3 and for the first six months not exceeding £5.

We have really fantastic acts lined up for the following six months; we have booked Rabbit Foot , Babajack (one of the UK’s most up and coming acts), Cherry Lee Mewis one of our performers in the UK and the fantastic Slim Chance for October . We are of course planning our Blues in the City festival again next year which will run from 26th to 29th September after the success of this year we can only get better as long as we have your help and support.

slowhandaT 35

CelebratING tH e ClaPtON ClassIC, Plus relI e F CONCert

new inTeracTive app

Universal Music has created an exciting new app to celebrate the release of Eric Clapton Slowhand 35th Anniversary Editions. The interactive Fender Tweed Amp allows you to explore the boxset and listen to exclusive tracks from the Live At Hammersmith Odeon Concert disc.

TalenT houSe ec guiTar conTeST

In celebration of the 35-year anniversary of the Slowhand album, Universal Music and Talent House are releasing the guitar tabs to Cocaine and asking aspiring guitarists to submit videos of their best instrumental cover version of the song via Talent House. All submissions will be compiled into an orchestral cover of the song and released through Eric Clapton’s official website: www.ericclapton.com and respective social media properties.

SlowhanD aT 35

raDio Special Host Dan Neer celebrates ‘Slowhand at 35’. Let Eric take you behind the scenes, along with Jamie Oldaker and Marcella Detroit. Listen to the show online at: www.ericclapton. com/eric-clapton-news/listen-eric-claptonradio-special-slowhand-35

The concerT For SanDy relieF

Eric Clapton and scores of musicians and celebrities took part last week in 12.12.12 ‘The Concert For Sandy

Relief’, raising tens of millions of funds to help rebuild 3 U.S. states devastated by Hurricane Sandy. A DVD will be released in early 2013.24 tracks, including two of EC’s three songs, are available now on iTunes, with proceeds going to the Robin Hood Relief Fund.

“we will have SoMe oF The Top acTS FroM all acroSS The uk”

blues foundaTion award ominees announCed

tH e b lues

FOu NDatION

NomiNee Contemporary Blues Album

aNNOu NCes 34tH

b lues m usIC

aWar D NOm IN ees

The Blues Foundation is pleased to announce the nominations for their annual Blues Music Awards, which the international organization will present at the Cook Convention Center in downtown Memphis, TN, on Thursday, May 9, 2013. The Blues Music Awards are universally recognized as the highest accolade afforded musicians and songwriters in Blues music. The annual Blues Music

bEsT Of ThE bLUEs: Those award nominees:

MacLeod, Eric Bibb, Harrison Kennedy, Paul Rishell

albuM

And Still I Rise - Heritage Blues Orchestra, Double Dynamite - The Mannish Boys, Show of StrengthMichael Burks, Son of the Seventh Son - Mud Morganfield, Stronger For It - Janiva Magness

acouSTic albuM

Billy Boy Arnold Sings Big Bill

Broonzy - Billy Boy Arnold, Blues on Solid Ground - John Primer, Deeper in the Well - Eric Bibb, Not AloneAnn Rabson with Bob Margolin

Talking Guitar - Paul Rishell

acouSTic arTiST

Carolina Chocolate Drops, Doug

b.b. king enTerTainer

Curtis Salgado, Janiva Magness, Joe Louis Walker, John Nemeth, Rick Estrin

banD

Lil’ Ed & the Blues Imperials, Phantom Blues Band, Rick Estrin & the Nightcats, Tedeschi Trucks Band, The Mannish Boys

beST new arTiST

DebuT

24 Hour Blues - Charles ‘CD’ Davis, They Call Me Big Llou - Big LLou

Johnson, Turning on the NaughtyPaula Harris, Uphill from AnywhereBrad Hatfield, Wanna Feel Somethin’ - Mary Bridget Davies

conTeMporary blueS

albuM

Blak & Blu - Gary Clark, Jr, Blues

Live - John Nemeth, Candy Store

Kid - Ian Siegal & the Mississippi

Mudbloods, Hellfire - Joe Louis

Walker, Show of Strength - Michael Burks, Stronger For It - Janiva Magness

conTeMporary blueS

FeMale arTiST

Awards ceremony is the premier event for Blues professionals, musicians, and fans from all over the world. The focus of this celebration is to recognize superior achievements in Blues performance, songwriting, and recording while honoring a rich cultural tradition.

Leading the list of nominees for the 34th Blues Music Awards

are Janiva Magness and John Nemeth, each with five nominations. Janiva is nominated in artist, album, entertainer and song categories on the strength of her CD Stronger for It, a moving and intimate declaration of independence after coming through an intensely difficult period in her life. John’s five nominations exceed the total previous nominations of his young career. John released two live albums in 2012, Blues Live and Soul Live, which pretty much sum up his twofold approach to music, whether on record or in performance. Each CD was nominated and John was nominated for entertainer of the year as well as in both contemporary and soul artist categories.

Alligator Records had a stellar year. Joining Janiva, Alligator artists Curtis Salgado, Joe Louis Walker and the late Michael ‘Iron Man’ Burks each received four nominations. Rick Estrin and the Nightcats received three nods and Lil’ Ed and the Blues Imperials

received two nominations. Each was nominated for their 2012 release as well as in artist, band, entertainer or instrumentalist categories.

The husband-wife team of Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks teamed for four nominations, either individually or as a band. Other blues acts with three nominations are guitarist Joe

Bettye LaVette, Janiva Magness, Shakura S’Aida, Shemekia Copeland, Susan Tedeschi

conTeMporary blueS

Male arTiST

Gary Clark, Jr., Joe Louis Walker, Michael Burks, Robert Cray, Tab Benoit

DvD

Blackbird Music/55 for Arts Club

Production for The Lucky Peterson Band feat. Tamara, Peterson: Live at the 55 Arts Club Berlin by Lucky Peterson, Cat Head Delta Blues & Folk Art/Broke & Hungry Records for We Juke Up in Here!

Mississippi’s Juke Joint Culture at the Crossroads, Delta Groove Music for That’s My Thing - Elvin

Bishop Live in Concert by Elvin

Bishop, Eagle Rock Entertainment for Live at Checkerboard Lounge by Muddy Waters & The Rolling

Stones, J&R Adventures for Beacon Theatre - Live from New York by Joe Bonamassa

gibSon guiTar

Derek Trucks, Joe Bonamassa, Joe Louis Walker, Kid Andersen, Michael Burks

hiSTorical albuM

Bear Family Records for Plug It In! Turn It Up! Electric Blues by Various Artists, Real Gone Music for Complete Hit Singles A’s & B’s by Little Willie John, Rock Beat Records for Raw Blues: Magic Sam Live 1969 by Magic Sam, Silk City Records for Someday... by Otis Spann, Universal Music Group for Ladies & Gentlemen... Mr. B.B. King by B.B. King

inSTruMenTaliSTDruMS

Cedric Burnside, Cody Dickinson, Jimi

Bott, Kenny Smith, Tony Braunagel

inSTruMenTaliST-baSS

Bill Stuve, Bob Stroger, Patrick Rynn, Richard Cousins, Scot Sutherland, Willie J. Campbell

inSTruMenTaliSTharMonica

Billy Boy Arnold, Bob Corritore, John Nemeth, Kim Wilson, Mark Hummel, Rick Estrin

inSTruMenTaliSThorn

Al Basile, Big James Montgomery, Eddie Shaw, Kaz Kazanoff, Terry Hanck

koko

Taylor awarD (TraDiTional blueS FeMale)

Diunna Greenleaf, Jewel Brown,

NomiNee Band

ed & the Blues imperials

Photo: jeff DU nas

Happenin’ nEws

Bonamassa, soul blues man Mighty Sam McClain, Muddy Waters’ son Mud Morganfield and Delta Groove’s supergroup The Mannish Boys. (The full nominee list is below.)

‘It is not uncommon in any arts genre for beloved artists with strong releases to pull in a number of nominations, and that is one of the factors at work this year,’ Jay Sieleman, The Blues Foundation’s

President said. ‘Yet there are also more than a dozen first-time nominees, plus the six Best New Artist nominees. It is gratifying to see both groups rewarded – those who have been near the top for a while and those who are getting the recognition they have been long seeking.’

Tickets for the Award show go on sale December 13. Members receive seating preference at the Awards show. Voting is underway. Blues Foundation members are the only fans who vote to decide which nominees will actually take home the Blues Music Award. Of course, anyone can become a member!

as well as membership, voting, ticket and host hotel information can be found at The Blues Foundation’s website – www.blues.org. For more information, call 901.527.2583.

For the seventh consecutive year, The Blues Music Awards will be broadcast live in their entirety on Sirius XM’s B.B. King’s Bluesville –the next best thing to being there. They will be subsequently broadcast on public television.

‘Blak & Blu’ gary Clark, Jr

Maria Muldaur, Ruthie Foster, Tracy Nelson

rock blueS albuM

Blues for the Modern Daze - Walter Trout, Driving Towards the Daylight - Joe Bonamassa, Everybody’s

Talkin’ - Tedeschi Trucks Band, Here

I Am - Nick Moss, Royal Southern Brotherhood - Royal Southern Brotherhood

pineTop perkinS

piano player

Barrelhouse Chuck, Chuck Leavell, David Maxwell, Deanna Bogart, Mike

Finnegan, Victor Wainwright

Song

I Won’t Cry - Janiva Magness & Dave Darling - Stronger for

It - Janiva Magness, Lemon PieJohn Hahn & Oliver Wood - 331/3

- Shemekia Copeland, She Didn’t

Cut Me Loose written by Curtis

Every year, the Blues Music Awards ceremony itself proves to be one of the best shows of the year. After all, almost every nominee not only attends, but also performs –creating a lineup comprised of the best of the best in blues all in one evening. A complete nominee list,

The Blues Music Awards are universally recognized as the highest honor given to Blues artists. Major funding is provided by ArtsMemphis and the Tennessee Arts Commission. The 34rd Blues Music Awards are also sponsored by BMI, Blue Mountain Artists, Catfood Records, Eagle Rock Entertainment, FedEx, First Tennessee Foundation, Gibson Foundation, Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise, Memphis Convention and Visitors Bureau, Sierra Nevada Brewing Company and Sony/Legacy.

Salgado, Marlon McClain & Dave Duncan on Soul Shot by Curtis Salgado, The Devil Ain’t Got No Music - written by Matthew Skoller & Lurrie, Bell on The Devil Ain’t Got No Music by Lurrie Bell, Too Much Jesus (Not Enough Whiskey) written by Sam McClain & Pat Herlehy on Too Much Jesus (Not Enough Whiskey) by Mighty Sam McClain

Soul blueS albuM

Blues Heart - Dorothy Moore, Soul Live - John Nemeth , Soul Shot - Curtis Salgado, Soul Survivor - Johnny Rawls, Too Much Jesus (Not Enough Whiskey) - Mighty Sam McClain

Soul blueS

FeMale arTiST

Barbara Carr, Denise LaSalle, Dorothy Moore, Irma Thomas, Sista Monica

Soul blueS

Male arTiST

Bobby Rush, Curtis Salgado, John Nemeth, Johnny Rawls, Mighty Sam McClain

TraDiTional blueS albuM And Still I Rise - Heritage Blues Orchestra, Double Dynamite - The Mannish Boys, Milton Hopkins with Jewel Brown - Milton Hopkins with Jewel Brown, Son of the Seventh SonMud Morganfield, Spider Eating Preacher - Eddie C. Campbell

TraDiTional blueS Male arTiST

Bob Margolin, John Primer, Lil’ Ed, Magic Slim, Mud Morganfield

NomiNee Contemporary Blues Album

The Blues Foundation is Memphis-based, but world-renowned as THE organization dedicated to preserving our blues music history, celebrating recording and performance excellence, supporting blues education and ensuring the future of this uniquely American art form. Founded in 1980, The Blues Foundation has 4500 individual

members and 200 affiliated local blues societies representing another 50,000 fans and professionals around the world. Its signature honors and events--the Blues Music Awards, Blues Hall of Fame, International Blues Challenge and Keeping the Blues Alive Awards – make it the international center of blues music. Its HART Fund provides the blues community with medical assistance while its Sound Healthcare program offers musicians health insurance access. Blues in the Schools programs and Generation Blues scholarships expose new generations to blues music. Throughout the year, the Foundation staff serves the worldwide Blues community with answers, contact information and news.

Online V Oting Open nO w; ticket Sale S Open December 13. awar DS tO be helD in m emphi S O n may 9th 2013 – m emphi S, tn (December 12, 2012) FO r m O re in FO rmati O n, lO g O ntO www.blue S O rg.

cAnDy sTORE KID GAIns bLUEs MUsIc AwARDs

Ian Siegal is the only European artist nominated in the 2013 Blues Music Awards to be announced in Memphis on May 9th. This is the second consecutive year that Ian has been nominated in the awards. Last year his album The Skinny was similarly nominated in the Contemporary album category. The Blues are recognized as highest accolade musicians and songwriters in Blues music.

NomiNee Rock Blues Album

‘Blues For the modern daze’ Walter trout

ThE EnD Of An ERA

bM!: you’ve spent 7 years working with paul, how do you see the show has changed in that time?

PL: A lot has changed. We moved from 8pm on Thursdays to 7pm on Mondays, which initially was not well received by the audience, but the audience figures have grown consistently and dramatically since then. Musicians and gig-goers are more likely to be in and able to listen on Mondays (with the notable exception of the Famous Monday Blues in Oxford!). The programme has become more interactive - with web site features, bonus tracks, the

podcast, emails, FaceBook page and the much-wanted by music buyers online playlist. Also we have moved to covering the live scene more, giving more profile to artists on the road in this country, as live music is the lifeblood of the blues for me. Musically I think it is perhaps a broader church than it used to be, but that’s harder to quantify.

on average how long does a show take to pull together and how demanding have you been on each other for the content etc? Paul has said that he worked harder

on the programme with me than he had done for other producers. I don’t know if that’s the case, but I have always been impressed by Paul’s

“nuMber one woulD have To be The live SeSSionS we have Done wiTh Joe bonaMaSSa”

session best: joe bonamassa

dedication to the show and his love of finding new music and artists as much as celebrating the classics. Paul does a large amount of listening to new records as he drives around on tour. Some shows come together quickly and we are always trying to fit in as much as we can, sometimes having to make hard decisions about what suits the show or what we have time for on a one hour a week programme. Some sessions are planned many months in advance to fit into days off on international artists’ tours. Programmes such as the one celebrating Paul’s 25th anniversary on Radio 2, or festival coverage can be a year in the planning. I also spend a lot of time going to check out bands live, to see whether they really have something going for them. Also, there are hundreds of unsolicited CDs to go through - I listen (however briefly) to everything that comes in. There is the occasion gem, so you can’t neglect this part of the job.

how do you see listeners’ tastes have changed in your time on the show?

There will always be those who just want to hear what they perceive to be the ‘classics’, but we have had great reaction to the rocky end of the blues with artists such as Joe Bonamassa and Walter Trout, acoustic artists such as Eric Bibb and Doug Macleod, Soul blues such as Earl Thomas, Jazz and New Orleans influences from Jon Cleary or wacky cross-polinations such as Hazmat Modine. I think the audience’s taste can be as wide as ours, but we will always get comments from people who say that whatever we have just played is not the blues! I have been quoted as saying that I regard the blues as an emotion rather than just a chord sequence and I stand by that belief (although I can’t speak for Paul).

We try and balance the programmes out over time - if we feel we’ve been a bit rock or jazz one week, we try to even that out with, say, acoustic or gospel the next. We do

have to try and attract new listeners and gain people’s interest in the new music, sometimes with its wider range of influences, or risk becoming a preservation society with dwindling appeal. One thing I do find heartening is the sheer number of young people playing blues-based music now, although it’s not always reflected by seeing a younger audience in the clubs.

a few of your personal favourite moments please Number one would have to be the live sessions we have done with Joe Bonamassa - perhaps the Maida Vale session we filmed with a small audience at the time of the Black Rock album - absolute magic in the air from one of the new geniuses of blues-based music. Also meeting people like Booker T Jones, Van Morrison, Robert Cray, Chris Barber, Jeff Beck and many more musicians I’ve listened to through my life - and having to try and concentrate on my job! I was pleased to do the trip to Memphis with Paul when he received the Lifetime Achievement Award for ‘Keeping The Blues Alive’. But some of the best times have been in the Maida Vale Studios with a new young artist in session and discovering something very special indeed - a few spring to mind, such as Oli Brown, Chantel McGregor, Dani Wilde, Marcus Bonfanti.

highlights for the show may not be the same as your own so what are some of the best for the show?

I think the Festival coverage of Maryport, Colne, Notodden and BluesFest - getting out in the community and meeting lots of blues fans as well as artists. The programme for Paul’s 25th anniversary was great because we were able to look back over 25 years of archive, but also celebrate the wealth of talent in the UK today and for the future. A big highlight for the programme itself was the move to Monday evening,

enabling us to find and keep a whole new audience.

any you’d rather forget? Not really, there’s always going to be something you think you might have done better or would have done differently. One tinge of regret might be the only day I was able to spend with Michael Burks, who had come into Maida Vale straight from the airport and was virtually asleep at the microphone. To his credit he did the session, which got great audience reaction, but if I had called it off maybe he would have felt better about doing it another time. Sadly, that other time was not meant to be - it’s not that I’d rather forget it, but I just wish we’d had a chance to do it again and make it more fun.

anyone you would have liked to get on the show that did not make it?

Eric Clapton and Buddy Guy. We have done a series of one hour Specials, based around a session and interview with Paul and those two would be top of my list. Although I won’t be producing the programme, I will continue to produce the Maida Vale sessions and live music for the show, so it could still happen.

Thanks for your kind words and although I am sad not to be producing the programme any more, I know Mark is a great producer and an enthusiastic music lover. I’m looking forward to your changes in the magazine, especially as I’ve just taken out a subscription!

“i know (new proDucer) Mark iS a greaT proDucer anD an enThuSiaSTic MuSic lover”

beautiful south

the cotton plant is synonymous with b lues music and very well documented, but spanish m oss and cypress trees also conjure up the area of the world where the b lues began. h ere’s a little information on these organic southern mainstays would broaden ‘the b lues experience’ for bm readers

V E rb A ls: b illy h utchinson Visu A ls: m arion Post Wolcott

Natchez, Mississippi, august 1940

spanish moss

A ghostly transformation to a tree, a waterfall of dusty fibres, a seasonlong Halloween decoration and ZZ Top beards. All the aforementioned come to mind when I think about and look at Spanish moss.

First, “Spanish moss” is a misnomer. It is neither Spanish nor moss. The “Spanish” tag is referring to folklore. One tale tells of a 1700’s traveller and his Spanish fiancée who built a plantation just outside Charleston, South Carolina. Being Spanish the young woman was blessed with luscious, long dark hair. While the couple were taking a walk across their plantation planning their life, they were ambushed by Cherokee Indians who considered the land belonged to their tribe. The story goes that they gave warning by cutting off the fair maiden’s long dark hair, and threw it into a live oak tree. The hair dried up and turned grey in time, spreading from tree to tree, and over the years spreading to many other Southern states.

Spanish moss is a member of the family of Bromeliads. Botanists believe it traps airborne nutrients as well as water from its host’s exterior, along with taking up of vital minerals leeched from its benefactor’s leaves. Seldom does it harm its host, generally frequenting American Live Oak and Bald Cypress trees, though occasionally found on Sweet gums and Crape myrtles. Spanish moss is used in floral displays, and in the past provided a source of insulation, as well as padding and mulch. It also harbours chiggers (skin irritating mites) and in thick outcrops, warblers, bats, amphibians and snakes. What is less well known is that it produces tiny flowers, and in turn tiny fruit whose seeds are scattered by birds. Though the plant is associated with hot, humid weather, it can tolerate dry areas. Traditionally, it has been confined in an area from Virginia down into the South American continent, and

across from Texas to Florida. Man has transplanted it in Hawaii and Australia. As often as not in nature, some years are more abundant than others.

Cypress trees

The Southern Bald Cypress tree is as eerie as Spanish moss, and when coupled with it, even more so. It is very appropriate that one of the most eerie-sounding Blues songs about the Cypress should come from the genre’s most eerie-sounding singer – Nehemiah Curtis ‘Skip’ James (‘Cypress Grove Blues’). When viewed in a waterlogged setting it is part of a primeval world. Wide clump trunks that diminish as they rise out of their boggy habitats, with pneumatophores, commonly called “knees” (short upright stumps that stick out of the water from the trees’ roots) that give added structural foundations.

I have seen a servant’s balustrade to the rear of an antebellum home that was as sound that day as it must have been during its construction, due to the wood’s anti-rotting nature. The characteristics of the lumber include being very resistant to decay, durable, medium hard and with a strong close grain. The colour of Cypress boards varies according to region. As a useful timber, it can be machined, nailed, screwed and glued well, and, having natural preserving oils, oil based primers and or an appropriate sealer are required. These trees are to the South, what the Sequoia is to California, they live to an incredible age and an impressive height. A single specimen in Bladen County, Virginia is over 1,620 years old. It is a deciduous softwood, so loses its leaves in winter, hence the term Bald Cypress. It haunts the Alluvial Plains, and, though it thrives with its feet in water, it cannot survive in a permanently

submerged environment, and cannot survive in salt water. With silt and partial waterlogged ground being its preferred habitat, seeds can germinate and be transported via squirrels and flood waters, and when the seeds are not in the right spot to germinate, they can stand dormant for 30 months in stasis.

The Bald Cypress can also spawn sprouts, but these do not grow into long-lived vigorous trees. Though they are resistant to water rotting, fungus can cause rotting, and Cypress flea beetle can devastate foliage, and therefore shorten the tree’s life. Although the species can grow in a far wider planetary area than Spanish moss, it is adaptable to drier as well as swampy areas. Also closely related is the Pond Cypress, as this indicates, it seems happier for long periods of submerging, and the Bald Cypress has a thinner bark that’s more susceptible to fire damage. Detrimental to the trees, but beneficial to man, the Spanish moss infested Cypresses are a welcome speed controller during hurricane season. The Bald Cypress is the official state tree of Louisiana, and a fundamental element in the Wetlands conservation programme. You should be aware that although Cypress swamps are home to nonthreatening wildlife such as birds, snapping turtle and deer, predators such as bobcats, black bear, alligator and various types of snakes frequent also.

“The SouThern Bald CypreSS Tree iS aS eerie aS SpaniSh moSS”

On the air : i an mch ugh

V E rb A ls: Darren Weale

iAn mcHuGH is a dj who, like victoria smith, plays in a band as well as being a dj. this issue, we welcome ian to our pool of respected writers. we asked him to introduce himself. this is what he told bm !...

i‘discovered the blues by chance. I had, aged 15, found a desire to play guitar. Possibly I thought girls would be more interested in me if I was a musician. A friend suggested I listen to Eric Clapton and I bought a compilation called

Backtracking. When I got to the track Have You Ever Loved a Woman, I was literally floored by it! I had to sit down. I was shocked by the passion and fire in the music. That started a voyage of discovery, following Eric’s influences to their source and then all the web

of artists that form blues history.’ ‘My interest in guitar playing grew as I was learning the blues, leading me to play on stage in various bands, one of them including the wonderful Will Johns, culminating with my current outfit, Blues is Truth www.reverbnation.com/ bluesistruth. Starting that band, about eight years ago, meant a fruitful musical partnership with bassist, Brian Soundy. Brian and I share a passion for music, a sense of humor and our belief that blues is as vital now as it always has been.’

‘Blues is Truth doesn’t gig as often as we should, but the camaraderie is still very strong. Brian contacted me when he started a web-based jazz radio station, www. ukjazzradio.com, focussing on his other great musical passion. He didn’t have a blues show in place at first. I had no broadcasting experience, just a large record collection, an excess of knowledge and the ability to talk the hind legs off a herd of donkeys. My first show was probably a bit of a disaster. I was learning the software, no one had told me of the upper limit of -3dbfs (audio nerds will understand), and that the time had to be exactly 54 minutes per hour of broadcast. Also that talking to you seems like the oddest thing at first, but I got another go. The Blues is the Truth show became more like the radio I like, conversational and relaxed. It earned a second hour and a strong international listener base, and eventually a podcast with the main show, to give extra exposure to the new music I receive monthly.’

‘Now there’s an active Facebook group, and my blog, tonemonkey.tumblr.com, features reviews and articles along with my pick of the best blues videos and photos on the web. I’m getting known on the scene, which led to me joining the nominating committee for the 2012 British Blues Awards and being asked to contribute to Classic Rock’s the Blues magazine, and now writing for the most respected blues magazine in the UK, Blues Matters!’

‘I’m rather opinionated, and not shy about saying how the blues industry and community are doing. I will welcome your feedback. With blues as a community it’s the dialogue that will keep us alive. A listener who really knows her blues once told me I’m right 80% of the time. She still hasn’t told me which 80%. I guess that it’s up to you to let me know.’

What’s happenin’ in issue 71

we’ve loads in the pipeline this year. here’s what’s coming up next...

inTerviewS:

Joe Bonamassa, Bettye lavette, Jo harmen, robin Trower – Part 2, eddie Blue, matt Taylor, albany down, robben Ford, devon allman, plus andy Fraser – Part 2 and more!

FeaTureS:

Kitchat, Johnson to Bonamassa, radio dJs, Blues and Jazz TV.

Blue Blood:

The best up and coming Blues acts.

BlueS newS: All the Blues that’s fit to print!

pluS: CD reviews, Gig reviews, Festival reviews and more!

issue 71: aPril – may 2013 on sale: 29th march 2013

‘BlueS iS TruTh doeSn’T gig aS oFTen aS we Should, BuT The Camaraderie iS STill very STrong”

Guitar artist: andy solloWay

bm ! has been in touch with a guitar builder in the yorkshire dales who has just turned a hobby into a career. Andy sollowAy from skipton has been building and converting solid body guitars to electric resonator guitars and has now decided to switch to this full time, bm ! contacted him to find out more...

Bm!: hi andy, i understand that you have just completed guitar no 92?

AS: Yes, it should have been christened at a Blues Jam night by now!

when i first saw the guitars on your web site, i thought that you were making Tele copies, and wondered how Fender were going to take to that?

These are not strictly new guitars, but rather conversions, the body shape of Leo’s first design is ideally suited to resonator conversions due to the slab body, lack of contouring and the physical dimensions.

I have converted other similar style bodies, even some Gretsch and Danelectro models, but the guitars from Fender and Squier make great conversions. I am careful not to refer to Telecasters on my website.

you have just decided to go full time, how long does it take to build a typical guitar?

It will vary depending upon the specification, a standard conversion from a straightforward donor guitar is between 10 to 12 hours. If I have to refinish or do any special orders, it will take 2 or 3 hours longer

although solid bodied electric resonators are not unknown, they aren’t that common either, how did you come up with the idea to start building your guitars?

I have nearly always played Telecasters, both Fender and Squier. As you say, I didn’t come up with the idea, but I took it a stage further by fitting Continental cones, and using sound holes in the back of some of them.

For the sake of our non-guitar-playing

V E rb A ls: Dave s tone

Mr sollophoNic: aNdy solloway

readers, can you explain what you mean by a Continental cone?

Continental cones are made in Germany, unlike cones in cheaper resonators, they are spun rather than simply pressed out, and are made of better quality thinner aluminium, hence they have a better tone response.

I make guitars with either a chicken foot or sieve pattern coverplate, but I am planning to start making my own aluminium coverplates in the near future.

have you ever fitted a Tricone to one of your guitars?

No, a tricone won’t fit into my usual Sollophonic guitars, the assembly of a tricone is a bit too deep for a slab bodied design, but I may do this, using a custom-made and thicker body, but it would be quite a bit heavier.

Can you run through the process of getting a guitar from you, assuming that i have a battered Squier?

I don’t convert customers own guitars anymore, I prefer to make Sollophonics from donor guitars that I know will make good conversions. I have converted many Squiers though, they make a good conversion, I currently have a stock of donor bodies and other parts.

So i can just order a complete guitar from you?

Oh yes, I much prefer to do it that way I either make them

on spec and put them on my web site for sale, or I take pre-ordered ones with a deposit. I can convert guitars to more personal specifications, such as string gauge, action, pick ups, and even colour schemes if required. Depending upon the availability of donor bits, and the particular specification, turnaround is about three weeks from initial order, sometimes less.

what are the features of your guitars that you would like us to pass on?

They are versatile in the extreme as they can be played acoustically, being quieter than a standard resonator, but they can be plugged in and cranked up as loud as you can stand. They are starting to become known as Sollophonics, and you will sometimes see them advertised as such on EBay, so they are beginning to have their own identity.

All Sollophonic guitA r S A re A v A il A ble direct through the web S ite www.S ollophonicguitA r S.co.uk, or p hone 01756 793568 or 07971 590742 to A rr A nge to vi S it A ndY At 17 Sunmoor d rive, Skipton, n orth York S hire, bd23 2JS. there i S A l S o A S ollophonic fA cebbok pA ge: www.fA cebook.com/pA ge S /Sollophonic-g uitA r S /140078739387649

“i preFer To maKe SollophoniCS From donor guiTarS”

Classic: excelsior!

Those of you who have owned one will know what I mean, it comes in as one of Fenders heaviest valve amps, but it has a sound to die for. I had tried various modelling amps, but none of them could give me that indefinable something that comes with a warmed up all valve amp, it is somehow alive. I had determined that I would get a Fender Blues Junior, an all valve amp with a single 15inch speaker that was the closest to the sound that I was after, and a hell of a lot lighter, but the dollar kept going up and so did the amps!

I started off by looking at £350 but they are now over £500 and rising, so I scoured the small ads for second hand amps, and always kept an eye open in all the local music shops, and that is how I came across the Fender Excelsior. Imagine a pristine condition amp from the Fifties, with brown vinyl covering, golden mesh grille cloth in the shape of an E on the front, and a badge of crossed swords with the word Excelsior across them, and nowhere visible on the front or the top control panel is there any sign of a Fender badge. Being honest, I would probably have bought it for its looks, as it is the sort of amp that I can leave in the lounge without any complaints from the other half, it looks like a piece of furniture. It

is however an all valve amp, made for Fender in China, it has a single 15inch Fender speaker and 2 no 6V6 output valves and 2 no 12AX7 preamp valves, it also has a tremolo control and a small switch labelled Bright and Dark. Unusually for a Fender valve amp, there is no standby switch.

When I had finished dribbling over the looks of this pretty little box, I asked to try it, and within seconds of striking the first chord, I knew that I had to have it! This very simple amp has that fabulous clear bell-like Fender sound, and the tremolo will take you from a gentle effect to sonic hiccups! For a 13 watt output amp it is incredibly loud, and will certainly hold its own in any gig that I am likely to play in. The dark/ bright switch is like a single tone control, taking the amp from that crystal clear tone to a slightly duller sound, as though a cloth has been draped over the speaker. There are three separate inputs labelled guitar, mike and accordion, and according to the manual, they can be used in

conjunction with each other (you can plug three things in!) , so it can also double as a self-contained PA if you are a one man outfit. Each input is adjusted to the anticipated source, but I tried my guitar through each one and if I am honest, I couldn’t really tell any difference.

tube screAmer

The amp starts to break up at around 60% volume, or you can of course feed it through a floor pedal or other effects, my own set up is rather basic, consisting normally of delay, Tube screamer, Boss Blues driver and a Wah pedal. I found that with the tremolo on, I was rarely using the delay. Last but not least, this delightful small box of Fender magic can be yours for around £230, although it is listed at nearly £400. If you favour a clean tone and want an amp that won’t break your back or your bank, then I recommend that you give this beauty a try! I bought mine the same day.

V E rb A ls A nd V isu A ls: Dave Stone

I was lookI ng for a replacement for my late sIxtI es fender twI n, not that there Is anyth I ng wrong wIth It, It stI ll sounds gorgeous, It’s just that I am not gettI ng any younger and the twI n Isn’t gettI ng any lIghter!

Laura-MaY

l aura-may g I bson Is a sI nger from the east coast of scotland. b lues Is a genre that comes to her so naturally that It Is a fI rst love... and second nature.

Where might we find a great, as opposed to just a good, singer?

The east coast of Scotland.Abides there a young twentysix year old lady by the name of Laura-May. She is a great singer. She is not too bad on the old guitar either.

For how long has the young lady named LauraMay been singing?

Twenty-three years. She could sing before she could talk, she could swing before she could walk. She grew up in a family for whom music forms the landscape of the mind, for whom the ears are the entrance to the soul. All kinds of music entered the imagination of the girl with the magical voice. She has variety. She tames genre. One genre means more than all the others. The Blues are her ‘First Love’, singing is ‘Second Nature.’

What is the secret ingredient that makes her prodigious talent move us?

Empathy. When her voice aches, we cry for all the loss in the world. When the voice longs, we run to it with open arms. When the voice soothes we are comforted but when it screams in our face we are terrified yet exhilarated by our own collision with catharsis. You must hear this lady sing. Your life may depend on it.

What does a great blues singer need?

An audience, and a guitar. Where there is no group of musicians she stands alone. The voice is Queen of the aural space. Great bands often accompany her glorious vocal presence. Laura-May and the Bel-Airs. Laura-May’s Blue Rays. Jump Jive Rhythm ‘n’ Blues. These are some of the bands that Laura-May currently performs with.

Wherever she goes; from Glasgow to Dundee, from Edinburgh to Aberdeen, musicians are queuing up to play with her. Listen up wide world. Laura-May sings the blues.

For the latest news on laura may, check out www.reverbnation.com/ lauramaygibson

Visu A ls: robin carrie

the jar faMiLY

the jar fam I ly are an I ndustr Ial folk collectIve from hartlepool, who have the lyr Ical swagger of pete doherty, the folk spI r It of m umford and sons and the raucous splendor of early pogues... all met wIth the poIgnant romantIcIsm of lI fe I n the north east of e ngland.

aving amassed a sizeable collection of songs, we decamped from our site in Cambridge, where we had spent nine months living in caravans to concentrate on our writing, to the seminal Sawmill Studio to record The Jar Family Album in June 2011. Produced by Keith Wilkinson, the album was then mixed by the legendary John Cornfield (Muse, Supergrass, Razorlight, Oasis, Athlete) and also features Paul Carrack on Hammond organ.

In addition to being very well received by the national music press and radio alike, our debut single, Poolie Strut became the most requested song in Radio Hartlepool’s history, and has since been played at all of Hartlepool United’s home matches, leading to the home faithful chanting the song on the stadium terraces.

u pcoming single b roken m inded is set F or release on January 14th through Jar r ecords. check out www.the J ar Family.com

wooden horse

the last year has been very busy for the roots blues duo wooden horse. It Is hard to quantI fy how we are doI ng (you can’t always belI eve facebook), all we want to do Is really see more and more people at the g Igs and really g Ive the people who come to lIsten a great n Ight out.

ooden Horse have had to move onto a different level of venue because people who want to listen to us don’t really want to compete with a whole lot off other ‘distractions’ – so that feels great, that people do want to come out especially to see us play and we appreciate it.

Wooden Horse started life with the often ridiculed story of us meeting at our kids swimming lessons. It is hardly the stuff of rock legend, but at least it is true! After our first jam we knew we had something worth pursuing.

Songwriting is very important to us and it is normally a mixture of us playing out some new riffs and singing

along at the same time! I suppose that’s how it always happens. We always write together, it just sounds like Wooden Horse then. For inspirations, it changes all the time, let’s just say Ry Cooder, JJ Cale, Muddy Waters and The Everley Brothers for now.

We have a new EP out now called You’re In My Heart. We did it to offer our supporters something new (our album came out in 2011) and to get the single You’re in My heart out there. It is an upbeat country tune really, they also took the chance to add a few covers and make an EP.

you buy the new woodenhorse e.p. (and their album) From www.woodenhorsemusic.co.uk. it looks really pretty too!

V E rb A ls: woo D en hor S e

13 stars

cumbr Ia band 13 stars don’t take the I r name from the flag of the confederate south, but from a flag made by patr Iot b etsy ross, at the behest of g eorge wash I ngton, for the fledglI ng u n Ited states about the tI me of the revolutIonary war.

s such, 13 Stars also style themselves as rebels, adjusting their playing styles and repertoire to avoid being pigeon-holed as a particular genre of band; segueing between Skynyrd-esque southern rock, blues, balladetic and occasionally folk rock, and on into hard rock territory. They cover a lot of ground styles and they will tailor the performance to suit the gig, even going as far as playing acoustic sets based around songs from their earlier album.

They are slick players, and with a wealth of original material to call on are getting a great audience response across the country, making it onto local radio this year, which has helped spread the word. They make no bones about being readily available, so it’s an ideal opportunity for venues with spots to fill. With tour credits for supporting Fish, John Waite, Dan Reed and It Bites, not forgetting Festival appearances, they have, it’s needless to say, a lot of experience. A notable recent event was a massive set of an hour and 40 minutes at the 2011 Maryport Blues Festival, followed up at this year’s Maryport Blues Festival with two knock-out sets, the second one headlining the outdoor family stage on the final day.

The band was formed in 2010, and with recent line-up changes now features founder Matt ‘Hoss’ Thompson on vocals, guitar and keyboards, Jax Sedgwick on guitar, Matty Eden on bass and vocals and Andy Bates (late of Feed Me) on drums – (Jax and Matty were formerly with Cumbrian rockers

‘Tropical Fruit Disaster’ ). The Band’s first album was the self-titled album 13 Stars, which was mainly folk and heavily acoustic, moving more towards southern rock at the second outing, titled North-Northwest

Their recently-released third album is a much heavier prospect titled Way Dju. Picking just a few of the tracks from this album; Hinterland has that slow build Southern Rock feel to it underlined with a thumping rhythm support and a familiar piece of wah-wah pedal guitar that will find great favour with Skynyrd fans; Turandot which is aimed squarely at wilful girlfriends has a very open almost ZZ Top feel to it; whereas New 45 and Red Hot Fever are pulsating heavy blues.

For the latest news on 13 stars, check out www.13stars.co.uk

daVid MiGden and the dirtY words

we are all workIng musIcIans and musIc tutors so, whIlst we took the musIc serIously, we dIdn’t have tIme or resources to promote the records or our career untIl now

hen Mark Ede who manages Jo Harman, happened to stumble across our music and he started championing us as the sort of artists that should be spearheading fresh interest in the British blues scene. I think we thought ‘well if he and the people he’s introduced our music too like it that much, maybe we should start giving more attention to making it more of a priority ourselves!’

Collectively we are all influenced by a range of genres and artists and I think - I hope - that comes through in our music. I guess my voice is naturally very much in the classic ‘Blues and Americana’ (in its widest sense) territory so that will always be at the core of what we do at some level. Certainly, being ‘real’ and ‘rootsy’ as opposed to being in any way ‘trend chasing’ or ‘contrived’

is important to us, and these give us a certain classic sound. But I do hope that we have or own identity and character within that and I feel it’s important to feel liberated artistically.

Killing It is our new album and it is something that we are very proud of. To some extent it reflects the twisted American roots music that we love to listen to and play. We hope it achieves the aim of being a wide dynamic beast which keeps the listener engaged throughout, its certainly getting airplay so that’s a good sign. There’s more to come though; I feel we’re really only scratching the surface in terms of creative ideas.

For the latest news on dm&tdw, check out www.davidmigdenandthedirtywords.comco.uk

VErbAls: DaviD miGDen anD the Dirty worDS

popL ar jake

It has been a busy year, I’ve been very lucky wIth aI rplay, and I’ve done some festIval dates th Is summer, and that really helped to lI ft the profI le a b It

ust now I’m busy in the studio getting a full-length album together. There’s demand for a full album, and for original material. So that’s what I’m doing. A highlight of the last year was playing at Hebden Bridge. Finally I felt like I was in real company, sharing a bill with people who have a genuine commitment to the blues. It changed the way I do things. I was working hard before, but after Hebden I was a lot more committed.

The modern blues scene has plenty of young players coming through, so that’s positive. The music’s not gonna die any time soon. These guys will end up tracing the roots of that music, and learning its history. The role of people like me is to keep the older tradition alive so that there’s still some kind of reference for that. Between

us all, we get the job done. If I could play with anyone, I would love to be able to sit down with Leadbelly or Blind Willie McTell. 12 strings are an absolute gift – rich, full, bright and bassy all at the same time. I’d really like to do more with it.

The biggest influence on my music is my life! What else? I think my heritage has a lot to do with it. I come from Cockney stock on one hand and Yorkshire on the other – old-school, working people.

There’s a whole lot of stubbornness in there! To perform honestly and without compromise, that kind of idealism has kept me going. A lot of that stuff comes from family.

For the latest news on poplar J ake, check out www.poplar J ake.com

V E rb A ls: jake

lucy Zirins

w inn E r of the b lue S m atter S Poll ‘be S t newcomer’

she haI ls from the small town of b urnley, near manchester. and pIcked up the gu Itar aged just 12. she’s been playI ng for e Ight years and g Igg I ng sI nce she was 16. lucy zirins talks about the musIc that I nfluences her

ombining a mix of Blues, Soul, Folk and Gospel numbers in her set and increasingly performing original material, Lucy is fast making a name for herself on the acoustic scene and as a songwriter. In 2010 Lucy was chosen as one of the “Class of 2010” singer-songwriters by PRS for Music and featured in a high profile event in London set up to recognise and support the UK’s most promising young talent. She was one of the youngest musicians in Britain ever to receive a royalty cheque from the PRS. At the age of 15 Lucy was chosen by the European Blues Association to receive the Sam Mitchell Scholarship for slide guitar, for which she received a week’s tuition under the watchful eye of Michael Messer. She returned the following year on the John Jackson Scholarship. In 2012 Lucy was runner-up in the ‘British Young Artist’ category at The British Blues Awards and was winner of the ‘Best Newcomer’ category in the ‘Blues Matters’ Writers’ Poll and runner-up to in the Best Solo Artist category. Having recorded her first EP at 16, Lucy has just finished recording her debut album at Liam Watson’s ToeRag Studios in London, with Michael Messer as producer and featuring some of Britain’s finest session musicians.

Eva Cassidy

Blues In The nIghT

I can still remember the first time I heard Eva Cassidy on the radio. I was sat in the car and I remember my ears pricking upand sitting there, listening, being absolutely mesmerized by the sound of her voice. Such beauty in her softer songs, but real power in her voice too. The notes she hits in this track are unbelievable. I love the instrumentation too; it has great brass and string arrangement. Eva still remains one of my biggest influences. Her voice, the intimacy in her performances, and her ability to arrange songs and make them her own is inspirational.

arEtha Frankin

Today I’m sIngIng The Blues

The first Aretha song I ever heard was in the music room

at school. My music teacher was a real Aretha fan. I was hooked from the minute I heard her voice and much like the first time I heard Eva, hearing her stopped me in my tracks. I love the piano on this track as well as the vocal that captures the pain of the lover perfectly. It was hard to choose between this and Aretha’s cover of ‘Dark End of the Street.’ She was magical on any song she touched.

JiMi hEndrix

FIre

The first Hendrix song I ever heard was ‘Fire’. 2:44 of pure energy! Mitch Mitchell’s drumming on this track is insane, as well as the guitar work. I love Jimi. He was an incredible musician and writer. His music is groovy, clever and so innovative even in the present day. No one will ever sound like him. As well as being a great guitar player he had a voice that could make you melt! I always wonder about the music he would have made if he’d lived longer.

Otis rEdding

I’ve Been lovIng you Too long

I love everything about this song, written by Otis and soul artist Jerry Butler. It appears on Otis Redding’s ‘Blue’ album is one of my all-timefavorites. The simple arpeggio piano, Steve Cropper’s guitar part and the amazinghorn parts make this song. But what I like best is that the lyrics are beautifully sad and simple and it’s Otis’s delivery that pulls at your heart strings. He had such a raw power in his vocal.

CarOL king

Way over yonder

This song is a beautiful tune with a gospel sentiment. It’s hopeful, and echoes a lot of older Blues and Gospel songs in its lyrics. “I know when I get there, the first thing I’ll see, is the sun shinin’ golden, shinin’ right down on me. Then trouble’s gonna lose me, worry, leave me behind, and I’ll stand up proudly in true peace of mind”. It reminds me of ‘Trouble In Mind’ which I like to play an arrangement of in my set sometimes. Carol King’s ‘Tapestry’ is my top all time album, it is incredibly well written and the songs will last forever. So many artists, including Aretha Franklin, have covered her songs. I aspire to be as good a songwriter as her.

BLind WiLLiE JOhnsOn

dark Was The nIghT (Cold Was The ground)

I’ve noticed this piece of music being used in a lot of films recently. It is so utterly haunting, beautiful and stunning. There’s no lyrics in the song, just humming and slide guitar and for me the beauty is in that simplicity. I found it hard to pick one particular slide song so I chose this as it’s a song that showed me a lot about how melodic and emotive slide

could be. There are no more words for it, just go listen and be stunned for yourself.

JOhn

MayEr

Who dId you ThInk I Was (lIve In los angeles)

I love this song! There are a lot of John Mayer songs I could have picked, particularly off his ‘Continuum’ album but I decided to go with this off his live record. It’s an example of a modern bluesy, groovy, Hendrix like song, with a great riff and fast paced drums. I love the lyrics too – it’s Mayer’s rebellion against those that tried to box him into a category. He decided to write a fast paced blues to juxtapose his softer singer songwriter stuff. “Am I the one who sings the quiet songs, am I the one who turns the ladies on?” Mayer is a great writer in all styles, country, blues, rock, pop as well as a fantastic singer and guitar player.

BOnniE raitt

noBody’s gIrl

Probably more Americana and Country than Blues, but for me a good song is a good song no matter what the genre. I got compared to Bonnie Raitt a lot in my younger years of gigging (mainly because of my hair colour and the fact I played some slide in my set), but I didn’t really know about her music until later on. This song was one that really stood out for me. It’s the lament of a man in love with a girl who does her own thing and confuses the heck of out him! It’s an incredibly well written song, with beautiful lyrics. Bonnie is amazing. I love hearing her doing acoustic stuff.

Etta JaMEs all I Could do Was Cry

It would be easy to pick ‘I’d Rather Go Blind’ or ‘At Last’ but I love this song. Etta echoes so many of the older female Blues singerswith her growl, belting tone and conveys emotion so well. It is such a sad song about her watching the one that got away get married. It interested me recently to see the Adele song ‘Someone Like You’ do so well, which has a similar sentiment. The blues and soul music are such an integral part of modern music.

nOrah JOnEs

Turn me on

‘Turn Me On’is off Norah Jones debut album ‘Come Away With Me’. I love the whole album; it encompasses country, jazz, blues, soul into fantastic songs and became a massive ‘pop’ record. I love this song for the gospel Hammond and piano playing and the growl in Norah’s voice on the first line. It’s a sexy, modern song from an amazing female writer and musician.

robin trower

Talking b lues – ParT One

With reno W ned guitar stylist r obin tro W er about to release his nod to the blues album, roots and branches bm! met up W ith the artist to talk about the project and all manner of other topics.

Since Robin’s original stint with the Paramounts and subsequently Procol Harum he has produced original exciting, but most of all, atmospheric music inspiring many guitar players along the way. Born in south east London he is North American success has led to him spending a lot of time Stateside. Thoughtful, gracious and forthcoming, Trower is an ideal interviewee though clearly not at all concerned with the glitz of stardom.

BM: I wonder you realise how much of an influential guitar player you have been to your generation, mine right behind you and ever since! What are your thoughts?

RT: I’ve not given a lot of thought, although it’s been said to me before. I try and think about it. But I’m not hearing it particularly out there, but you just never know. If people say they’ve been influenced by you that’s good enough for me. I’m not really hearing anything out there that’s near to what I do.

This leads me straight into something that I wanted to talk about. I link creative arts together in how I see them. And lets run this past you. If we were looking at painters, the Bosch’s and Breugel’s would be the great players like Steve Vai and Joe Satriani who tend to be quite busy and… ...and technically adept!

I would say you are more akin to Monet and Gauguin. Well that’s a lovely thought isn’t it? [Laughs]

Yes that’s a lovely thought. Obviously my whole style and everything I do is trying to get an emotional depth to it. I’m very, very influenced by blues and black music. Various black players. I’ve always thought my playing is as much about my writing as it is about being a guitar player. Because I think it’s a lot to do with what I’m trying to create compositionally and that includes the guitar as well.

I wouldn’t say that you’re the only person with that ability to be, almost, a guitar impressionist. The other players that I like personally are Randy California of Spirit and Tommy Bolin, not with Deep Purple but when he was playing with Billy Cobham and Alphonse Mouzon. What we’re talking about is atmosphere, the ability to paint a picture and mood. My nickname for you is Dr Dreamscape. (Laughs) Well I like it! Some of my favourite things are the more ethereal; those are some of the favourite things I’ve done.

It’s easier to stamp your own style on things that are slower than fast choppier material. Yeah! I think that’s right. I’m always trying to get that very earthy thing combined with the ethereal. The ones that I feel do that, the tracks that do that are usually my favourites. But it’s still very much in touch with my roots.

This takes us very much into this new album you’ve

made, Roots and Branches. I looked at the track list (it includes Hound Dog, Thrill Is Gone, That’s Alright Mama and other familiar songs along with some brand new originals – PS) and I thought “my goodness, how’s he going to put a twist on these numbers”

That’s what my manager said when I told him I was going to do it!

But he said “Robin usually has a plan and he knows what he’s doing!”

I set out to do a covers album.

When you say ‘covers’ you mean ‘versions’, don’t you?

Yes, I mean versions of some of my favourite songs. I’d like to have done a whole album, of some of my favourite stuff that has influenced me, has fed into what I do. But I couldn’t come up with what I would call my own take on enough of them to have a whole album’s worth. That was the cut-off point, I would use the song as just the skeleton that I would completely flesh out in my own way. I was really

struggling, I got to about five or six I think and just couldn’t come up with more stuff. That’s why I added in some of my own material.

It sounds as though you’ve taken black and white drawings and coloured them in your way. That’s what I wanted to do. I don’t think it is worth doing a version of, say, Hound Dog unless you could really do something with it. And there are other songs I looked at, I was trying to have a go at James Brown’s ‘Think’ and come up with something for that but I could not. There wasn’t quite enough of a song there, when you really break it down, it’s all about his vocal and the feel.

I’m quite glad, in a way, that you didn’t have a go at All Shook Up. I think the Jeff Beck version is… Oh yeah, quite right!

What you’ve ended up with is a record of versions and own stuff which is almost your equivalent of Beckola. Really?!

Which does the same thing. Beckola is half versions, half originals. What I think you may be doing is really underrating these own compositions. And I said that to Alan [Robinson, RT’s manager] because without any bull**** the last two tracks on this are as good as anything you’ve done.

I have to say, I’m really pleased with the way they turned out, and it’s quite hard to write material like that. You don’t often come up with stuff like that. Especially ‘See My Life’ which is really a rock and roll version of a blues song that I’ve written. To get that to translate from that blues song, without losing any of that feeling, into a full rock and roll or blues rock as you like to call it version. But what I tried to do is set the template with the versions of other people’s songs and then I tried to re-work the material I had of my own so that they would all gel together and they would all seem like they had the same attempt at getting to a place.

But it’s not really a looking back-forwards thing which would be a legitimate concept, because you haven’t done re-treads of Hound Dog or The Thrill Is Gone. You’ve coloured in the black and white outline. If I had [musically] picked up the coloured pens it would be different, wouldn’t it? We might be doing the same song but taking it somewhere quite different. Yeah!

And Chris Rea or [Jeff] Beck would take it somewhere different. I fear you may be underrating the impact of these own songs. Let’s talk about Blues artists; obviously Blues Matters tries to cover Blues players, everyone from Robert Johnson, through to [Joe] Bonamassa and everything in between. Did you see the blues artists that were around when you started playing music?

I did see some, in the early 60s. I remember going to Fairfield Hall to see what I think was a Chess package, Muddy...

Sonny Boy Williamson?

Yeah, and certainly Willie Dixon, and the piano player Otis Spann.

Muddy’s ‘cousin’!

Yeah sort of. I wasn’t knocked out with it. I don’t why, I was just so into the records. These records had such a power to them and I think that was a little disappointing, it didn’t come over with that raw power. They were recorded ten years earlier or even earlier than that. My favourite Muddy Waters track is Still a Fool

I was doing She Moves Me at a gig last night! (laughs) Great! I did see Albert King in the 80s in America and he was the best guitar player I’d ever seen. Still is the best guitar player I’ve ever seen. What reason isn’t there to rate him? The most soulful phrases, notes, vibratos and bends and every phrase he plays is a great melody.

I saw him on a tour with the J Geils Band, he had a second guitar player with him, and it must have been Don Kinsey of the Kinsey Family. Amazing player, flying V!

That tone as well!

No Albert King, no ‘Strange Brew’... That’s right. Crosscut Saw thing, wasn’t it?

Albert King. The next greatest guitar player that I saw was obviously Hendrix, I only saw him once, and that was when I was in Procol Harum we played on the bill with him in Germany. That was amazing as well. And then below that, BB King. I was on the bill with him when I was with Procol Harum at a festival, bloody amazing performance. At the time in the 60s he was at his peak, he really was hot stuff. He had that great voice too.

And at that time, he had Gerry Gemmot on bass, a very sprightly player. One of my favourite albums, might even be my

favourite album was him playing live at The Regal. That was like a bible to me back in the 60s. I had it on all the time.

Albert King’s Blue Power was the one for me. Blues Power? Yeah, the live one, there’s some lovely playing on that, isn’t there. The trouble is the band is crap.

A lot of these guys they would play with whoever was around. I was lucky enough to see Howlin Wolf backed by the Groundhogs, with Dave Kelly, that worked really well. That’s the first time I saw Wolf. Then later John Lee Hooker also backed by the Groundhogs. They so loved him they called their band after one of his songs. Did you ever see Freddie King? I wasn’t a Freddie King fan. No really into Freddie King at all.

He had a lovely fluid style about him. I never got into him, I don’t know why. Something a bit light about the music. He could play, you know, great player, but for me something light about the music.

I’d say he was as much an entertainer as he was a musician.

It’s a bit like BB King after he got further into his career, it became more like cabaret than blues, do you know what I mean? But his earlier stuff is gutsy, gets you really where you live.

Your own playing, yes there’s plenty of bite there, for example on Too Rolling Stoned, but you’ve also got all this other impressionist feel. Let’s just talk briefly about the song Bridge of Sighs. The way it was layered… Mendelsohn came to mind. You know more about it than I do, Pete - I don’t know anything about Mendelsohn!

I did strike me the regal sound that you got on Bridge of Sighs was classically influenced, the layering and counterpoint. It’s not, though...

Where did it come from, if it’s not from there?

That’s the thing - I have definitely got some sort of gift for creativity because I’m writing all the time. And I think that’s it, it’s just a creative gift. People used to say to me, especially in America in the 70s, “when we heard Bridge Of Sighs we thought you must have been stoned out of your mind when you made it”. [laughs]

To me what they are saying is it’s a great release of creativity, somehow. I think they mix up the ethereal side of the music with being spaced/trippy.

You’re talking to someone who’s never taken a drug in his life! That’s one reason why you’re more influential than you realise. Can we just talk through some of the tracks? Hound Dog… Which version of that are you most fond of?

The original. Big Momma Thornton. It just blew me away that. I know there’s nothing to it but it’s such a great song.

Have you been to Sun Studios in Memphis? No, but I’ve seen many documentaries about it.

The Thrill Is Gone. These days I’ve heard everybody do that, the only version I really like is Chris Duarte’s. But now this one, what have you done to it?

I purposely did not listen to the original and I hadn’t heard it for donkey’s years. I liked the idea of doing something in that minor key. I actually love the mood of those changes. Minor key, minor seventh - the turnaround at the end I particularly like that, it’s the same as one of the other songs on there I Believe To My Soul.

Little Red Rooster, that’s happy memories for me, but what are yours?

I think it’s just one of my favourite Howlin Wolf tracks. I’m a big Howlin Wolf fan.

I do tributes to him!

He’s a giant. I had a look at the song, had a play about with it, see if I could come up with something. I had to comfortable that I was being creative around that tune. That was one of the ones that came off. It must have been about 15 songs I was looking at, playing around with for months and months, years even, trying to come up with something of my own. It isn’t easy around a twelve bar to come up with something fresh, but you know I really like my version of it. It’s not Howlin Wolf and it’s never going to be!

When I saw the Rolling Stones do that on Top Of The Pops, I jumped up and punched the air because I’d seen Howlin Wolf on a folk show and that really turned me on to the blues. And here they were putting that song in the public domain.

That’s right! A good version of it too! It was just a cover of the original though, and I didn’t want to do that. I wanted to bring something of my own to it.

I Believe To My Soul?

Yeah that’s just one of my favourite Ray Charles tracks. Again, that minor key with those changes. It’s a great song, what a great song! But again his version is completely different to that, I just used it as a skeleton to create a subtle guitar blues thing.

Yeah you can’t cut Ray on the vocal, can you? That’s Alright Mama?

Yeah, it’s just one of those 15 songs that I came up with a different way of doing it. Don’t think anyone has ever done it as a shuffle. I thought it up on one of my walks I suddenly felt the vocal in that groove, you know? So I started from there to build the guitar parts up. It’s mostly worked out all the guitars through that. Which is what I call a proper arrangement. If you hear me play it live, it’ll be exactly the same.

It’s kind of a weave though isn’t it? In that you’ve got a cycle going there. A lot of Albert King’s songs have the guitar ‘commenting’. I was thinking of the Elvis, Scotty Moore kind of vibe. You’d have the Elvis’ line and then you’d have Scotty Moore do a bit of something. I was thinking of trying to create that.

When young players ask me what the feel of a shuffle is I tell them get a groove going and try playing every note twice. That’s a shuffle!

The hardest thing for me there was to come up with a bass part that wasn’t a cliché. Because that tempo, most bass players play a ba-bom babom thing. I had to work quite hard on getting the bass part right on that. Without it being like someone in a pub playing. They are very sticky tempos and if you can’t come up with something, they sound a bit white!

A bit meat and potatoes. Born Under A Bad Sign? Most

“Most people want to hear tracks froM Bridge of sighs”

These

Former

people know the Cream version. It’s one of my favourite Albert King songs. I felt after I’d done it, I shouldn’t have done it, but I was so happy to have come up with that arrangement for it, the guitar riff, I thought it’s a great guitar riff, it can go on the album. Bit different, you know.

It’s not a re-tread it’s a re-approach. Yep, definitely.

I was quite relieved when Save Your Love was not Renée and Renato! (RT forces Pete to sing the cheesy pop song and laughs)

I’m always very, very pleased to write an original blues, to write an original twelve bar is great! That song helped define what a lot of the album is about. I’d written a song that could’ve been written thirty or forty years ago.

If someone asked me to play a track off the new Robin Trower album I’d play that. You get this, you get what he’s doing here. Is that fair?

Yeah I think so! I’d be hard pushed to name one that I favour more. I think the guitar playing, the feeling of it, the song, you know, it just all came together.

I would’ve started the record with that. Put that as lead track.

Super! That’s what I would hope. For me it shows that there is life left in blues. There’s still life to be put into it.

There wouldn’t be 17, 18 year olds playing blues, unless there wasn’t some magic, something enduring. The point I’m saying is there, the greats are the greats and that they will always be great, but what I hope is that it proves that you can put something down that is still blues but is new. You know what I mean? I must admit I was daunted a little bit because you can’t really compete with the classic stuff, the stuff that inspired you. You can’t compete with it. So, you sort of think, ‘I’m going to look pale by comparison’.

I know what you mean, you couldn’t write a modern blues number now about forgetting your PIN number. It would sound stupid! Let’s talk about See My Life. It sounds like an album title. Again, it’s the first line that I came up with and started to write. That does give you the story straight away, you know. ‘See My Life as one long day’.

May I say, I don’t think I’ve heard you sing better than on this record.

Thank you very much, I appreciate that! I do enjoy singing, I know I haven’t got quite THE singing voice but I really enjoy doing it because when I hear it back, I like to hear the feel of the voice and the guitar being in the same… territory.

I know what you mean because when I was really young, I loved Captain Beefheart, his voice was very boomy, very Howlin Wolf but the guitar arrangements are very spikey and very jerky and that roaring voice, it really did work, the juxtaposition with the guitars. Incredibly powerful voice that!

But over a smooth, L.A. airbrushed type of backing it would’ve sounded terrible. That’s right.

It had to be in that edge of chaotic guitar arrangement. It was super charged Country-Blues, the Ry Cooder slide n’ all. There’s a lot of young bands around now where the vocals really let them down.

Mercury Rev, fantastic players, but the singer doesn’t connect with me at all.

I find that with a lot of stuff these days. It’s important that the end product, the thing I listen to is trying to create something that is a whole thing that works as one idea.

So, if you’ve got Roots And Branches coming out, you intend to, presumably, feature that on your upcoming tour. How are you going to approach this, Robin, are you going to have a set of that or are you going to mix it with other material?

The last live work I did, in Germany, earlier in the year, we did That’s Alright Mamma which Richard [Watts] sings, I did See My Life and Little Red Rooster so I think that’s enough new stuff. People will still be coming to hear a lot of the classics.

I had a great chat with Ernie Isley once and I said “how do you choose a set list?”. He said “You can’t pick everyone’s favourite. We made how many albums? 70, 80? We do our best!”

You can’t play ‘em all! Most people want to hear tracks from Bridge Of Sighs, especially in America.

part tW o, r obin talks to p ete about j ack b ruce, j ames d e W ar and much more. d on’t miss it!

“the studio is where i find an inexhaustiBle energy!”

jeremy spencer

e arlier this year j eremy s pencer teamed up W ith a group of talented young musicians to release his latest album, bend in the road. i n a recent revie W, bm! described it as ‘an intimate journey that W ill connect profoundly W ith the listener.’ absolutely right...

BM: Hello Jeremy, thanks for agreeing to answer a few questions for our readers at Blues Matters! I have been listening to your recent CD, Bend in the Road, and I have to say how much I have been enjoying it. The word that keeps popping into my head when it’s on is ‘warmth’. The tunes just seem to wrap themselves around you.

JS: Thank you Steve, music to my ears! That is exactly the feeling I wished to transmit on this session (and any sessions actually), all the way through to the mastering process – no overenhancing. It’s a fight to maintain warmth in digital recording today with its ‘loudness wars’!

Did you set out to achieve a specific sound or style on this release?

Not consciously. I had material I wanted to record, but I have seen that the ingredients: the musicians, the interplay, the songs and tunes themselves, and even the studio and its ambience, dictated the ‘mix’ as we went along. We all agreed from the onset, that we wanted to keep it sparse, though. No fluff.

You’ve recorded versions of some classic Elmore James tracks on this, Cry For Me Baby, Stranger Blues and The Sun Is Shining and the Homesick James signature tune, Homesick. That era and style has always been strongly associated with you, in your opinion what gives these compositions such an enduring influence?

Maybe it’s nostalgia, but I still have a soft spot for that 50s era of music, even though it was before my ‘time’ when kids usually get into listening to music! That applies to other musical styles besides blues, like country and rockabilly.

As well as some wonderfully constructed new compositions, you’ve also re-visited some older pieces like Refugee (a re-working of the ‘79 numberFlee). It feels as if working with the talented young musicians you’ve assembled for this work has really fired up the creative juices. Do you feel that way?

I do. I have found it greatly inspiring to work with like-minded young musicians who are tired of the screaming racket so prevalent nowadays and want to play sensitive, heartfelt music.

Brett Lucas in particular, is a very gifted young artist. You are fulsome with your praise for him on the sleeve notes.

He deserves recognition. He’s good.

The fact he has toured recently as part of Bettye LaVette’s band underlines his credentials. Is it true he came to your attention initially as part of a Fleetwood Mac tribute band?

Yes, but what clinched it for me was when a friend in Detroit sent me a video clip of him playing a slow, sensitive blues solo –no pyrotechnics!

There are some superb instrumental pieces on this album, including Merciful Sea, on which you play piano. Is this a side of your performing we might expect to see and hear more of in the future?

I very much hope so. It was Brett’s and the rest of the musicians’ encouragement that spurred me on to stretch out and use that talent on the album! I now feel much more

confident about playing the piano in the recording studio.

Are there any further plans to have any live performances with the guys assembled on the album?

If and when I obtain a work visa for the States, (Homeland Security is being a pain in the … neck), there are possibilities that we would perform live there. It would prove a little costly to bring them over to Europe at the moment!

Most of our readers will be more familiar with Jeremy Spencer as a member of Fleetwood Mac. Is being an important part of the history of such a well loved band generally a benefit or a nuisance to what you are trying to achieve as an artist now?

It can be a burden as well as a blessing. While I am grateful for the opportunity that being in FM has granted me musically, it only represents three-and-a-half years of my life!

Some people just don’t let you move forward as a musician, and only want and prefer the old.

I take comfort in knowing that Eric Clapton and Mark Knopfler have to deal with this dilemma. ‘Come on, Eric. Quit messin’ about –pull out yer Les Paul and Marshall stack and give us some o’ that old stuff!’

‘Hey Mark, when is Dire Straits getting back together?’

Fortunately, what encourages me is discovering that many younger people, who have little knowledge and certainly no memory of my association with Fleetwood Mac, enjoy my music for what it is today.

You were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1998 for your part in Fleetwood Mac. That must have been a very proud moment. Is it possible that you will perform with the other original band members publicly again one day?

To be inducted into the R&R Hall of Fame is indeed an honour. Despite recent controversy over their choice of what members should have been included and/or left out from FM’s various line-ups, I have to admit that the Hall’s reasoning – which I gather was for us having made a significant impact on rock music -holds true regarding the original line-up and that of the band’s Rumours era.

There is little chance, if any, to publicly perform with the original band members due to personnel, logistics, capabilities and desires. It would be rather uninspiring for me, as we would be required (understandably) to play

mainly the old hits, which would naturally take up most of the set.

I would be up for doing a recording though, as it would be a chance to create new material, which I am always ready for!

What plans do you have career-wise for the future, both short and long term?

I would love to do more recording. The studio is where I find an inexhaustible energy! It’s uncanny. I have so much more I want to record, that I pray for the years, ability and opportunity to do so! (although, by the time I have done so, I’d probably have a ton more!). I’d love to record some tracks for a meaningful movie. I love to write, and I have loads of stories I’d like to see published. I have boxes of my comic book originals drawn over the last 30 or so years that I would like to see adapted for today.

Looking back over your career, what have been the highlights, and would you change anything?

With the exception of a couple of misinformed and misguided ventures, my life has been musically rewarding. But I would say my highlights have been recording with J. T. Brown (Elmore’s saxophone player) back in 1969, recording Precious Little with the Norwegian team and a recent one has been playing and recording with a young French guitarist, Mick Ravassat and his Blue Team (a bass player and girl drummer) all half my age! I hope and plan to do more with them.

As far as changing anything, I would have taken greater advantage of the creative recording opportunities available to me during the Fleetwood Mac days.

Any advice for aspiring guitarists out there ?

Don’t worry if a certain strange style or sound you hear and want to play is regarded as weird or even wimpy, sentimental, dated or uncool or not in vogue. Never allow peer pressure to snuff out your enthusiasm.

Don’t minimise those early morning, or middle of the night (or anytime) musical ‘whispers’ of ideas. Develop them, because they can lead to some wonderful things!

And play from your heart.

Thanks again for taking the time to talk to us Jeremy. Hope this is good for you, Steve.

bend in the road is available from WWW.propelzrecords.com

“to Be inducted into the r&r hall of faMe is indeed an honour”

Come along to the nal of the New Brunswick Battle of the Blues on 26th March to see and hear some of Britain’s best-unsigned Blues artists and discover whom Tourism New Brunswick will be taking to play at the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival in New Brunswick, Canada later this year.

Six great acts will take to the stage and will play some of their own original material in front of an international panel of judges.

So join us on the 26th March at:

Scala, 275 Pentonville Road, King´s Cross, London N1 9NL

Admission is £7 in advance or £10 at the door. This event is sure to be popular so buy your tickets now from the Scala Box Office or www.ticketweb.com.

All proceeds from the ticket sales will be donated to charity, details of which will be announced on the night.

To learn more about the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival, or more about the New Brunswick Battle of the Blues visit: www.tourismnewbrunswick.co.uk www.facebook.com/newbrunswickbattleoftheblues or twitter @newbrunswickblu

t he mentulls

c

They are well known in the North East which is a hot bed of winners this year as GrooveA-Matics won the New Brunswick Battle of the Band jetting off in September to Canada to fulfil winners duties. Plus recent XFactor (I know what your all saying but it’s popular) winner James Arthur who has just won this show. Can’t help but say I think this band have just as much chance as these to be winners. Make sure you catch them somewhere and check out the music. By the time you have read this they will have played JAKS at Butlins Rock and Blues weekend in January where they are sure to make their mark.

Blues Matters!: Because of your tender ages the most obvious question every wants to know is how long you have been together as a band?

JP: Well, the current lineup has been together

since May 2009; Andrew Pipe (guitar and vocals), Jamie Pipe (keyboards) and Nick Colman (drums). But my brother Andrew and I had been playing together and gigging as a duo under the name The Mentulls for a while before that.

NC: The band was looking for a drummer; they saw me play at a concert and were impressed so they asked me to join. The first couple of rehearsals went very well, we seemed to play well together and have the same taste of music and so it didn’t take long for us to bond as friends and musicians. We have never looked back since.

Who, what, or why did you call yourselves “The Mentulls” was it a joint decision after hours of discussion, or did someone suggest it?

AP: A good question as we have been asked this many times over the years. The clue is in the name! We wanted a unique name that would make us stand out from the crowd. As for the Tull bit Jamie and I grew up as kids listening to Jethro Tull and other blues/rock music and we thought The Mentulls had a nice ring to it, so we went for it.

What inspired you to start play was it music you hear in the home or TV or a band you saw or festival you went to?

AP: My Dad’s record collection and DVD’s of blues and rock artists. Martin Barre guitar player of Jethro Tull inspired me to pick up the guitar after watching some Tull DVD’s.

JP: It was the music from my Dad and Uncle so it’s all thanks to them really. Dad used to play Jethro Tull albums in the car and my Uncle in Scarborough got us in to Wishbone Ash.

onsisting of a ndre W p ipe on l ead g uitar, b rother j amie p ipe on keyboards and n ick c olman on drums. this is a very young band that are starting to make a name for themselves in the W ider blues circuit.

NC: From a very young age whenever I would listen to music on the radio or when my parents were listening to music, I always found myself drawn to the sound of the drums, the backbone of the song, the heartbeat. My parents tell me that I used to get pots and pans out of the kitchen cupboards and bang on them with wooden spoons. I can’t really remember why I wanted to start having drum lessons but nevertheless I began learning how to play and have loved every second since. I have definitely been inspired by my parents taste in music; I have grown up listening to the sounds of Meat Loaf and Dire Straits and so listening to and enjoying this type of music has definitely influenced the way that I play the drums.

How much time do you get to practice and how many gigs do you have on your schedule?

AP: We don’t practice that much due to us playing quite a lot. In 2013 we have gigs booked in many new venues and in some old favourites. JP: Well, we play and gig quite a lot so we don’t really need to practice on a regular basis but if we have a month’s gap we would normally add

in a rehearsal.

NC: We try to get a practice as much as we can and when we need to. As for gigs it is going really well, there are more coming in with already 18 gigs booked for the first half of 2013 and more that our manager is working on.

Have any of you had formal musical training?

AP: Yes we all have had music lessons, but most of the stuff I do with the band is from watching DVD’s and copying what I see.

JP: I had piano and singing lessons as a child and they were all classical music and after a while I decided to teach myself.

NC: I have been having drum lessons from a local drum teacher named Paul Tilley since I was 7 years old and still continue to.

Andrew I know you have done some guest appearances with guitarists, if I pushed you which one would be your favourite experience?

AP: It has been an honour and a pleasure to get up on stage and play guitar with many great musicians and bands many of which are my heroes and have become my friends. It would

be very difficult for me to pick one occasion out as every time I play it is a different experience. Playing with Sherman Robertson was a real highlight for me and it is also great to have played with so many young guitarists such as Mitch Laddie, Travis Feaster, Virgil McMahon and Alex McKown. One of my guitar heroes is Andy Powell of Wishbone Ash so playing with them was a privilege.

Andrew, another question for you. You must have been pleased to be nominated by The British Blues Awards this year?

AP: It was a real honour and privilege to be nominated as the awards are very important within the music industry. There are many great blues people who have been nominated over the years and to be included was fantastic. It is something that I never thought would happen.

Where would you all like to play in the future? Do you have a major stadium in mind, a festival in the UK or Europe or do you have ambitions to go to the USA?

AP: I have always wanted to play the Royal Albert Hall, somewhere with a lot of history. Also we would like to play more theatres and other blues festivals. We would love to play in the USA sometime. After all that’s where the blues was born and they have some brilliant venues there.

JP: I would love to play at the Royal Albert Hall.I love playing small gigs and places that have atmosphere like for example Newcastle City Hall. I also love playing intimate venues such as blues clubs.

NC: Personally I would like to take The Mentulls as far as possible, I would like to be playing stadiums and arenas all around the world because I can’t imagine there being a better job in the world, doing something I love doing, with two of my closest friends in front of thousands of people. But I think an ambition for us all is for us to play at the Royal Albert Hall.

How likely is it that you believe you will all be together in 10 years from now?

AP: We really hope the band will be playing together with the same musicians in 10 years’ time. Each member provides so much and we all enjoy the music we play and we are keen for success in whatever we do.

JP: I believe and hope that we will be together in 20 years’ time never mind 10 years as we all love the music and are all passionate about what we do.

NC: I think that it is very likely that we will still be together and performing 10 years from now because all three of us get on brilliantly and we all love making music together.

What are all your ambitions for the future is it in the music field or elsewhere?

AP: To keep playing music that we enjoy both recording new material and performing live. We all get such a thrill playing to people who come to our shows and listen to the music we play.

JP: Just in music and the band and live performances as I don’t want to do anything else – music is my baby!!

NC: I would like to be a professional musician touring full time with The Mentulls.

By the time this goes to print you will already have played the Rock and Blues Festival at Butlins Skegness on Blues Matters! stage in JAKS bar. What experience do you expect to gain from this?

AP: This is one of the most important gigs we will do and we are all looking forward to it. Playing in front of a big and appreciative crowd is always good especially people who will have come from all over the UK. We have heard lots of great stories from other musicians who have played at Skegness and in particular on The Blues Matters Stage. It’s important to gain experience from every gig and learn from it and this will be no exception. Bring it on!!

JP: I am really looking forward to playing at Skegness as it should be a great festival. The venue looks great and we should hopefully get some new fans. Thank you for inviting us to play there.

NC: I can’t wait to play the rock and blues festival at Skegness, I have never been before so this will be my first experience of it, but I have heard very good things about it and I think it will be a fantastic gig.

Blues Matters! Wishes you all the very best for your future in the Blues, may it be a long and happy experience.

AP: Thank you very much. Blues Matters has always supported The Mentulls. Keep up the good work about spreading the word of many great artists in the world of blues.

JP: Thanks for interviewing us, love your magazine.

NC: Thank you.

f or the latest ne W s on the m entulls, check out https://sites. google.com/site/thementulls/

blue to brown

e ngland’s father-and-son blues rock duo b lue to b ro W n, comprising r ob

b ro W n and son d om, talk about their backgrounds, their influences and their spirited ne W album.

There are a few ‘dad&lad’ outfits on the music circuit at present, some in folk and some in blues and not to mention the rock legacy that dear departed ace Pirates guitarist Mick Green’s boys are maintaining with great aplomb. But the Browns are particularly interesting to your scribe as they are making their blues music, as well as working in other strands of entertainment and music. We meet in Soho for one of Pete’s infamous lunches on a Sunday, before another busy week for us all.

BM: We are just talking now about running a band, never easy at the best of times – do you find it an easy call, Rob or is it a can of worms?

RB: It’s a can of worms! For example, if you gotta get your album out then get it played to the public what happens is that people say ‘We’ll give you a gig… when you’ve got the press’. Well we’ve got press coming, we hope, and we have PR on the album, so we are in a kind of hiatus, but we are NOT ‘organised’ because I tend to be disorganised. Dom’s much better.

Tell us a little about your background because you’re not just a singer of blues and soul and we’ve all heard your voice, but speaking …

RB: I was a teacher until very recently. I have been a blues singer for what seems like forever, and I was in a band called Gets Loose, for a very long time. George McFall (late Irish promoter, lyricist and drummer and a very close friend of mine PS) was involved with that band, and it was a four piece with a guy called Rob on acoustic and slide guitar and in the early and later days Peter Hope-Evans on mouth organ – he won’t allow it to be called a harmonica or harp – half of Medicine Head and associate of Pete Townshend.and Mick Mahoney (singer and songwriter and at time of writing, hospitalised with various problems) on bass and me beating congas til I bled, and, er, shouting. That went on for years. One year we did 120 gigs!

Where did you play ?

RB: Well Blues West 14 was a regular place, there was a little club at The Railway in Teddington

Did you play The Station Tavern ( just up from Shepherds Bush Green)?

RB: I think we did, yeah.

I used to pay slide there, with Shakey Vick.

RB: Oh wow, I remember Shakey Vick! (Graham Vickery, the harp maestro) but that the background as regards to music. Mick Mahoney was the person who educated me, musically, in the 70s. I knew I liked music, I knew I liked blues and he put me onto many, many things –particularly and most importantly working with a band. And in terms of my income, I combined being a teacher, with ‘Gets Loose’ shows with voiceover work, in the last twenty years.

Where might we have heard your dark and dulcet tones, Rob ?

RB: (Sighs) Everywhere! Adverts? Lynx adverts, Adidas, anyone who’s interested in that should go to my website which is robbrownvoice.com and there’s music on there, examples of my work, most recently I have been the main voice on VIVA the TV channel. We won a gold medal at ProMax which is the body of the promotions industry. (chuckles) and kids in the teens and

Interview blue to brown

twenties when they hear I’m Mr VIVA man, they’re incredibly impressed! Most people older than that have never even heard of VIVA!..

(Sargeant Jnr was certainly taken with meeting Rob, so this is very true – PS) So that’s quite a good job. Plus I’ve got stuff on Radio 2 at the moment. The trouble with voiceover work is that people look over your shoulder expecting to see a Porsche throbbing in the gutter! But it isn’t like that, you’ve got to work a lot, a number of times a week to make a living, but an advert – I do the Pokemon advert, oh and Nintendo … well a bunch of those will keep you going. I was the main voice on Sky 1 for a long time, probably too much on air … I’m just a tart! but I do really enjoy the work. (At this point the sons have returned from ordering the food downstairs, the guitar star of the act is now available to contribute).

So Dom – we turn to you and you have a double, treble life … you co-write and play guitar with your dad and organise the group, but Dom Brown: Yes Pete – my ‘day job’ is playing guitar in Duran Duran.

Live touring band?

DB: Correct, and co-writer on their new stuff as needed, eg. the last album, the Mark Ronson album, a great experience that was, we are on a bit of a break at the moment. (2011 saw several DD tour dates recorded and the cuts include a breathtakingly florid Dom Brown guitar break on the poprock veteran’s excellent song Ordinary World, as evidenced on a live album and a DVD of the tour – PS).

BM: Next DD album plans?

DB: We start work on that in March.

BM: Now this interests me – from a guitar player’s point of view, which I know well from backing all sorts of people, you adapt to the singer’s voice. You have your father’s voice which is deep, gravelly, Staxlabel influenced and you have Simon’s ( Lebon) higher range which is slightly more nasal and poppy..how do you adapt your playing?

DB: To be honest with you, originally I had to study and take on Andy Taylor’s guitar parts and riffs..he had kind of set the sound and tone of what was needed. So the first job was to learn his style, in essence. I had two days to learn the entire set. So at that time you can’t put your own stamp on it, you get to the nuts and bolts of it. But over the last few years I have been

encouraged to put my own stamp on it, still keeping to the songs’ shapes, structures, all the melodies, and adding my own flair..

RB: And people have noticed this and commented.

Reviewers of the last set feel you are becoming more and more your own man on phrasing, approach, which presumably is fine with the Duran camp?

DB: (Emphatically) Yeah absolutely which is why they keep me on, they feel I’m quite integral to their set-up now.

I saw them in an acoustic era when they had Warren on guitar (from Zappa’s band) and apart from the songs’ ID-DNA figures, he was doing an original thing throughout the set. Rhodes and LeBon seemed very OK with that.

DB: Yes, they are obviously open to all that, they are with me.

You’re quite lucky to be in an established band and have that element of freedom, still.

DB: (Pauses) I think Duran are quite different to a lot of bands really – whilst they are not an improvisation group per se, live, we do stretch things out for the audience.

With, say, Sheryl Crow, you recognize the songs and the arrangements, but she gives her players a lot of freedom within that.

DB: They are a rock/pop band.

An ENDURING rock/pop band.

DB: Exactly! and still doing good shows, last year we headlined Madison Square, which is not a bad place to be doing (North American readers – this is classic English understatement).

Your new (family) album – let’s pitch you in here, Dom – right from the opener Blue Boy with the cruising tempo, the guitar tone conjures up a picture of a lad of about fourteen fired up by Stevie Ray Vaughn and K Wayne Shepherd – guilty or not?

DB: (thinks) Stevie Ray, yes – one of my biggest influences, as for Kenny Wayne, to be honest I haven’t ever really listened to him, but I’m very aware of who he is.

The main features of the album are the clarity of the vocals, the words and the lively guitar arrangements, is that fair?

DB/RB: Yeah.

The combination of those makes it somewhat

different from other albums I have had through to review lately.

DB: So you think the vocals come across well?

They’re very clear and they’re punchy. So who writes the lyrics?

RB: We both do … there’s probably 60/40 weight in my favour, overall, we do work together –largely because I am so lazy, he has to get me round, for us to work together.

So we’re not always talking your lyrics and poems, Rob, set to music by Dom?

RB: No – in fact, we finished off one song using texts, the talking blues.

Track 5

RB: (Ponders) Who died that night? one of the really big guys in music.

Hubert Sumlin ? Les Paul?

DB: Les Paul..the second part of the song came line by line.

RB: And another one that was done by text was the duo with Kat.

That’s

The Heat Has Gone?

RB: That’s – for lyrics - me on a hill in Devon trying to get a signal and Dom in London and we got quite a few words for that song, by text.

DB: That was worked on very late at night.

RB: See, that song was a very different number at one point, it was a song that I thought was absolutely hilarious, and, er, apparently it isn’t.

DB: Songs have to take those transitions sometimes.

The album sounds very surefooted, it doesn’t sound over-rehearsed, it does know what it’s doing, it’s not a jam.

DB: That’s right – there’s a lot of improvisational sections mixed in there however.

It doesn’t sound as though it’s feeling its way, it sounds crisp, usually that’s the result of a load of gigs OR a mindset that’s going for that.

RB: Ah well we have done a load of gigs together, but not that material unfortunately!

DB: It’s great fun to play.

Going Down But Not Slow – a grainy horn sound, reminds me of early Kool & The Gang, the guitar sound very like Buddy Guy on this cut.

DB: He’s a big influence on me!

Got ya there, then, but the song itself is maybe more Bobby Bland territory?

DB: Well, time to mention the contribution of Martin Winning, he worked with me on some of the tracks including this one.

RB: Yes they started writing stuff to reflect the Howlin’ Wolf element of my live performances.

Bad Boy has slide acoustic on it, Cooder / Kottke tinge, any inspiration behind that song?

DB: That was one of the last songs we wrote for the album, we had realised that having recorded and produced some numbers, they wouldn’t actually fit in as well as others.

That’s why it sounds sure-footed ! as an album. That thought process is there

DB: I thought we should go for something really simple here, and let rip on the vocal, there’s the softer build-up on the verses.

Sounds like a live set highlight

DB: Yes – it does go down very well live

I Get Loaded is a Texas strut..SRV/Duarte style, now there’s a great vocal on that, plus an understated Hammond part.

DB: That’s actually the oldest song on the album.

RB: One that Dom wrote on his own, a LONG time ago.

DB: True – written about fifteen years ago, in fact.

But how did you get through that without tapping on the wahwah pedal though?

DB: That song works really really well live, the build up.

A crowd-pleaser tempo, vocally that’s the cut I’d play to someone new to your act, now Talkin’ Blues is a classic blues tread, are you using fairly heavy strings?

DB: I went through a stage of using twelves, having read that Stevie Ray used fourteens

Telegraph wires. Trower told me that having less than twelves on a Strat won’t get all the tones.

DB: Well I’m using elevens, so …

But he tunes down to D, two semitones down DB: Ah! There you go.

‘Sweet Mercy’ – electric slide and the handclap, the mood of this is such that it’s a good illustration of the essence of the album, but what is the inspiration?

DB: Hmm. Once again a song that took on a whole different light, that was a song called Killing Blues.

RB: And it was a horrible, aggressive lyric!

Dom, you came up with a riff for that in a hotel room, no?

DB: That song I recorded with drums and bass, a three piece thing, but it didn’t work. Didn’t gel. So it needed to be stripped back down to a more basic sound.

Now it’s almost a European, Taj Mahal effect. Now, there’s a blissful progression on Please, Please and it’s as far ‘South’ as the album goes, New Orleans mood. I think it’s a lovely inclusion – you ?

DB: Yes, we think it was worth including it. That song is the one that most people would say is the most ‘poppy’ on the album.

It’s like a Louisiana bar jukebox flipside

DB: Yes, a throwback to the Fifties almost..John Taylor when he heard the album said that this song seemed to him to be the most commercial.. maybe a famous artist could cover that song

It would suit Imelda May, for a start! The Heat is Gone – I thought it might be a BB King parody, in fact when I first played it and not looking at the sleeve, I thought it was about a used car problem – The Heater’s Gone (this sets Rob Brown off laughing) some neat piano on that.

DB: The other vocal is by Kat Pearson who is a blues singer, works in London

RB: She’s got a band called Kat & Co., she’s from Los Angeles, lives next door to Snoop Dogg.

DB: That song’s got quite an interesting arrangement going on, though I say it myself.

Love Another Day – more Texas feel here, country more and an upwards turnaround.

DB: Has it? Well yes it has.

And this is the closest, Rob, that you sound like Captain Beefheart

DB: Yeah there’s a bit of distortion on his vocal there, deliberately, a useful tool.

RB: Gets Loose days, we used to do New Electric Ride.

You should do Plastic Factory!

Any live shows to promote this?

RB: Yes! Several of the venues we had earmarked in town are no longer available. Blues Kitchen’s a possible… the Bedford too. We feel the album is the album, but we have to be experienced live, that’s where we will come across best. With thanks to Alan and to Glenn Sargeant.

the blue to broWn album is best hunted do W n per remedy records and should be released online f ebruary 2013.

juliAn sAs

VErbAls: sTeVe yOurgliVch

julian sas is a dutch-born blues rock guitarist and singer Who earlier this year released his eighth album, bound to roll. the general consensus is that this is the best album of his career.

In BM65 our own Frank Leigh sang its praises, describing Julian as Europe’s answer to Joe Bonamassa. We wanted the opportunity to find out a little bit more. The band should be playing their first ever UK and US shows soon and the album is about to get its US release on the specialist Grooveyard Records label.

BM: Julian, earlier this year you released a new CD, Bound To Roll. On the sleeve notes you say this is a very personal album based on true, emotional experiences. Are you able to elaborate at all, and how do you feel it has turned out?

JS: For me this is my most personal album ever. It’s about a period in my life where I have lost a child. I tried to write songs about what you go through in this period. It’s all deep emotional stuff and there are days that you can cry and days that you can laugh, and this I did together with my wife. Lots of songs on the album like Burning Bridges and How Could I Have Been So Blind are about this time. It took me two and a half years to write the songs that I really want to share with the world and my fans.

I wrote between 30 or 40 songs, but in the end these are what came onto the album, these are the best songs so I am happy with the end result, yes.

We are so sorry to hear of your loss Julian. This must have been an incredibly dark and difficult period for you to go through.

Yes it was, but it was also a time to go through and learn life’s lessons, things to look back on and things to look forward to. I am a very positive person and so is my wife, so we went through this together. It came out well, at the end of the day we have a new son, Joshua, so in the end it’s all positive again. Joshua is 26 months old and in love with my Gibson..

You’ve shared some very personal things with us. We wouldn’t want to publish anything that could cause any pain to you or your family.

If I tell you it, please write it. The music that I play is honest music and I’m sharing my feelings for the music. There is no hidden messages, it’s just better to explain, then people understand the music better. Wherever I play I meet people who have been through the same things. People come and talk about this with me after shows. This makes me happy because the more you can talk about it, the less painful it will be in the end. So for me it’s a sort of spiritual healing, so please write whatever we talk about.

I think that this is your best release to date, there seems a strong Southern rock element mixed in with the blues. Is this a deliberate blend that you hope to continue?

I just write songs that I feel have to be written at the time. I don’t write in a special style. That’s what I love about Rory Gallagher, all of his albums are different, the songs are different. If you listen to Calling Card it is totally different to Photo Finish for instance. For me music comes when it comes. I have been listening to bands like The Outlaws, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Gov’t Mule for a long time so that influence will always be there, but perhaps this time it’s out there a little more but it’s not like I planned to write in that style, it just happened.

For me, music is a 24 hour-a-day job. I’m always listening to albums, playing, jamming etc, so the music never stops. I don’t always just play the blues, but if the blues feel is in the music its OK with me. I grew up listening to Peter Green and some of his music wasn’t blues, but when he hit that note it was incredible.

Bound to Roll the new album

9 originals and 3 superb covers; Rory Gallagher’s Shadow Play, Bob Dylan’s Highway 61 Revisited and Humble Pie’s 30 Days In The Hole.

... whole heartedly gets my highest rating of 5 . Music this great just doesn’t happen everyday ...

(BLUES UNDERGROUND NETWORK - USA)

... one of Julian’s best to date ... This guy could be Europe’s answer to Mr. Bonamassa on this form ...

(BLUES MATTERS - UK)

www.juliansas.com • www.cavalier-musicmanagement.com

AVAILABLE FROM ALL GOOD RECORD STORES

OR FROM: PROPER MUSIC DISTRIBUTION

When we decided to record a version of 30 Days In The Hole many of my friends said maybe it’s too heavy for the album, but for me it’s just a good song. I love Steve Marriott. Now we play it live and it goes down amazingly because of the feeling and emotion in there.

You also do a cover of Highway61on the album which I really enjoyed.

Yes, I love Dylan, but it’s very hard to sing. It’s like five couplets long and then some guitar playing. I love to play it live. It’s a personal dedication to Johnny Winter who was a huge influence on my guitar playing.

The songwriting and the vocals on this album sound so much stronger than before. We’ve talked a bit about the songwriting but are the vocals something you’ve worked, on or is it just down to experience?

I think it has to do with being more experienced and knowing what I can do in the studio. I have to say I honestly enjoy singing more now than I did before. About five years ago I was focused on being a better guitar player with more flashy slide work, but today I’m more into combining the two. But for me, I think what helps the vocals most on this album is that it’s such a personal album and the lyrics meant so much I just wanted to sing them in the best way possible.

Like many younger blues rock guitarists you started out listening to hard rock bands and from there got into blues players. Which classic guitarists have had the biggest influence?

I grew up with the British blues from the 60s. Peter Green, Mick Taylor, John Mayall and everyone connected from his bands, Alexis Korner was a big influence.

Van Morrison and Them were important and of course, Rory. A very important album to me was Chicago Blues Session by Fleetwood Mac. From that I found out about Howlin’ Wolf, Muddy Waters and Buddy Guy. My favourite blues player of all time is John Lee Hooker.

There was also a link to bands like Chris Farlowe, Colosseum, Clem Clepson and Cream. It was like throwing a stone into the water, the music got wider and wider. When I was about 13 or 14, I was listening to Freddie King and Frank Zappa a lot. When it comes to heavy rock AC/DC, Motorhead, Judas Priest and Iron Maiden. But I’m also a traditionalist, I like Blind Willie McTell, Robert Johnson and Charley Patton. I was like a

cOnTinues OVer...

sponge absorbing everything I heard. Later on I discovered bands like Jethro Tull and Yes.

You have certainly taken influences from a wide spectrum of music, not just the blues. Blues fans can be very narrow. Lemmy and Angus Young have been as much an influence on me. People like Howlin’ Wolf and Hound Dog Taylor were playing the heavy music of their time. It could be very dark music. The first time I heard Howlin’Wolf I thought ‘Wow, this is the real deal’.

When I saw Buddy Guy live in 1991 his support act was John Campbell and he had all the voodoo image.I saw him about five times in Holland and the emotion with which he played was incredible, very spooky. I think his acoustic playing was outstanding. I am a big fan, he had an immense style of his own.

What about the newer younger players, who do you think are having a big impact, and you admire?

I think Ian Siegal is amazing. I’ve played with him a couple of times. I was lucky enough to do a jam session with Matt Schofield, a wonderful guitar player and very interesting musician. From America my favourite is Derek Trucks. His band sound like they could be the new Allman Brothers or Grateful Dead. The feel was there, the family feel. He is really the man right now.

I notice that you have played some acoustic gigs. Do you enjoy those and how different are they to perform? I love doing acoustic gigs because it’s just the audience and me, and it’s bare naked playing. I’ve always had a love of acoustic blues players since I was 10 years old. To be a good electric guitar player you also have to be a good acoustic player. I think playing acoustic shows are more difficult. I usually play those in Holland at small theatres, but it’s only about three or four times a year.

Your band members, Tenny Tahamata and Rob Heijne have been with you for a long time now. Apart from being great players, what do they bring to the package? Tenny has been with me for eleven years and Rob for almost seven.

Tenny brings in quite an influence, he is very down to earth. He loves jazz bass players, he can play lots of different styles. Rob is a powerhouse drummer, very rock based. He is very enthusiastic in everything he does, he has very high energy levels. Tenny is the glue that keeps it all together, he stops us going over the top, he keeps us on the tracks.

“in Brazil there are Julian sas triBute Bands’

What about songwriting?

It’s a very democratic process. I write all of the lyrics and bring the guitar riffs, they then play what they feel is right at that moment. Most often that turns out to be the best.

You are known as an incredibly hard working guy. I know you are hoping to arrange some shows in the UK in the early part of 2013. What other plans are there for the year ahead?

We should be playing in Germany, France, Poland and Scandinavia. I have been talking to a promoter about possibly playing at a festival in Brazil. Hopefully as well we could be performing in Texas for some gigs. We have never played in either the UK or USA before so they will be a first for us.

In Brazil there are Julian Sas tribute bands doing our stuff, they send me tapes and DVDS!

The new album is your 8th, so you have a lot of material. How do you decide what makes it into your live shows?

Most of the time we go into a rehearsal room and we each write a list of 25 songs than check out what we have all written. We always play a few covers and a few old ones. Hey Joe is a cover we play that never sounds the same twice. When we took it out once the fans demanded it back. We have to play Sugarcup Boogie from the first album, its an old favourite, as are Blues For J and Lost And Found Burning Bridges is becoming a live favourite from the new album.

You first got into guitar at a very early age and you are now considered one of Europe’s top blues rock guitarists. What advice do you give to aspiring players?

First of all believe in yourself. And second just do it out of love for the music, not to be famous or make lots of money. Whatever decisions you have to take let it be for the music you play. That is how I did it. Get a good basic start and never forget who you are or where you came from.

f or the latest ne W s on julian sas, check out WWW.juliansas.com

Bluesland Productions, Ruf Records & Rhino Agency Presents

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Butlin, Skegness Rock & Blues Festival

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mAtthew curry

VErbAls: frank leigh VisuAls: eric ransOm

mattheW curry (& the fury) talked to bm! about his rise as one of the best youngsters to emerge into the World blues scene as a serious name to keep an eye on, and a discerning ear out for.

Matthew is not yet old enough to go buy his own beer and so many will ask how come this youngster can play the Blues this way, and just where did he get that voice that is so much older than his years? He’s had great success in the International Songwriters Competition in 2011 and has released (what I will call) a stunning debut album that has gained worthy critical acclaim, and has been cited by musicians including (the man who is everywhere like Zorro or was it the Scarlet Pimpernel?) Joe Bonamassa himself, Ronnie Baker Brookes and Brent Johnson.

Matthew has the voice and depth that displays genuine Blues in his blood and soul and that is rare these days. There are many that can ‘play’ Blues but not that ‘have’ the Blues. Another such is Davy Knowles who is that bit older than Matthew. So what makes him tick?

Let’s find out shall we…

BM: Matthew, we must ask, how is school going?

Matthew: School is going okay. I’m a senior so I just have a few months left. I am not an honours student, so I guess I would consider myself average in school. But it’s fun, they say high school is supposed to be some the best years of your life, and I am really enjoying it! Most of the students at my high school don’t really know about my playing since they mostly listen to other pop music, rap or hip-hop.

What do you regard as your best subjects, and do you have a message for other young musicians about education for the future?

My best subjects are probably my elective classes, the ones I get to choose. Those are the ones that are the most fun and interesting to me, so I tend to do a little better in them. I would tell other young musicians that no matter how much you want to play, make sure to balance the music and performance with the schooling. It is always good to have a back-up plan, like if the music career, as bad as you may want it, dosen’t work out. And if you do not take school as seriously as your music you may find yourself stuck in a pretty deep hole.

It must be difficult at this stage of your life and career to decide how far to go in education, so where do your thoughts lie so far?

For me, I am going to graduate high school and from there I want to pursue my music career. I hope and hope every night that the music thing works out for me. But, if it doesn’t, I will come home and go to college.

Is yours a musical family and what role have they played?

I think a lot of father’s family played music. He played guitar, and his father also played. My parents encouraged me all along, driving me to gigs and listening to me practice. I couldn’t have

Matthew Curry & The Fury: Greg Neville, Matthew Curry and Jeff Paxton

done any of this without them. They all show me so much support, and it means so much to me that I have such great people behind me!

So a pretty usual question now; who do you regard as your influences, and how did you come to hear them?

I have many influences. Probably so many that if I listed them all it would take up most of this interview! But I will talk about a few of the main ones. Bryan Lee is a main one. Bryan is one of the best blues singers there is. Joe Bonamassa is another, the way he incorporates every style of playing into his music and makes it his own is amazing. Of course all the old blues guys, Albert Collins, BB King, Albert King, Muddy Waters. Also Sonny Landeth, Derek Trucks, Warren Haynes, and the list goes on. I came to hear most all them through listening to blues radio since my father listened to a lot of blues and blues/rock music. He helped turn me on to a lot of the great music and musicians I listen to today.

What songs stand out to you and why?

Well good songs stand out to me. It doesn’t even have to only be blues songs either. If it’s good it stands out. Good lyrics, nice melody or catchy tune, interesting progressions.

Tell us about your first introductions to playing, what you had and how you learned, Matthew tell us about

your first guitar, where did it come from, how long did you play it, do you still own it now?

When I was Four years old my Mom and Dad bought me a little Walmart guitar, it was called a First Act. When they first handed it to me the first thing I did was turn it upside down. since I’m a lefty. My dad tried to make me play right handed but it just didnt feel right to me. So he re-strung it for me and I would sit on the floor and watch him play his acoustic guitar. I watched every little movement his fingers made and would try to mimic what he was doing. I played that little First Act guitar until I was about 6, then, when my parents realized how serious I was about it, they went out and bought me a full-sized Fender acoustic. I think I still have my first guitar sitting around in the basement somewhere, haha.

How old were you when you first took to the stage, where was it and how was it?

I was nine years old when I played my first live show. I played with a local rock band called Who Cares. We played a ZZ top song called Lagrange and a Jimi Hendrix song called Purple Haze. We played at this little bar down the street from my house called Slick Ricks. I remember being pretty nervous. I just stood on stage like a statue and did my thing. And the crowd loved it! cOnTinues

What is your favoured gear set up these days?

Right now my main guitar is a Custom Shop

Eric Clapton Fender Strat. My rig is a 1971 Fender Bandmaster through a 4x12 cab and a Peavey Classic 30 running through a 2x12 cab. I am looking to get a Marshall with another 4x12 cab pretty soon though. I don’t really use many pedals, a low gain boost and a wahwah sometimes but other than that, not too many pedals.

You’ve got a classic Jaguar E-type 1967 Series 1 FHC on the cover of your album. Are you a car nut, do you have your licence yet and so far what would be the car of your choice?

The Jag was at a car show and we just asked if it was okay for me to sit in it. There were some awesome cars there. I do have my license, and I kind of am a car nut! I love fast cars and lifted trucks. If I could have my car of choice, hands down it would be a 2012 Corvette ZR1.

You’ve got an experienced (and older, sorry guys) line-up behind you that really gel, just how did the band form and have time to bond into this tight unit? Well about three years ago I was in need of a band because I had a lot of shows lined up with my previous band that ended up splitting up because there was about an hour distance between us, which made it hard for practices and things. So we made a few phone calls and The Fury has been playing with me ever since! That’s Greg Neville, drums, Erik Nelson, keyboard, and Jeff Paxton, bass.

Often we hear an album and there are stand-out tracks, but in this case each track stands on it’s own. Do you have a ‘pet’ track and why? (outside of the two covers of Charlie Patton’s High Water Everywhere and Warren Haynes’ Soulshine which by the way are both seriously well done versions). What led to the choice of the two covers?

I don’t really have a favorite song off the CD. I like whichever one I happen to be listening to at the time. The covers came along because I really loved the songs and I wanted to kind of do my own little take on them. Soulshine is a real crowd favorite, and High Water Everywhere is different because I’m playing slide.

How long did it take you from penning the first song to completion of this first album?

Matthew: Well all the originals on the album I had already written, a few of them as early as

12 yrs old. So when we went into the studio, the album was complete in about a month.

You’ve shared the stage with Pat Travers, Sonny Landreth, Kenny Wayne Shepherd this last twelve months and played some good US festivals. What next?

After I graduate high school I really want to cross the big pond and come tour Europe. Share my music with you guys!

How do you feel being on the road with the ‘big guys’ (meaning headliners of many years in the blues community)? Any ‘special moments’ that have happened travelling with the blues legends we know of today?

It’s kind of intimidating at times. Sharing the stage with some of the big dogs in blues. But so far it’s been pretty awesome. There’s something to learn from everyone, and it’s really fun trading ideas and playing off different riffs. I’ve had the chance to meet and/or jam with have been extremely nice and encouraging people! Any plans for Europe yet although I’m guessing it will be exams first then see how they go? Well, there’s that, and I still have to get a passport!

OK, eager question then, how is work going for your second album?

It is really coming along great. We are working more as a band on this one instead of me writing all the songs alone. And I have to say it is a lot of fun, being able to collaborate with such great musicians, since we each have our own strengths to offer.

What are the main lessons you’ve learnt so far in this journey of yours into the Blues and the future?

I’ve learnded that you can’t give up. Humility is important too, but you have to be thick-skinned since not everyone you meet has your best interest in mind. Sometimes it gets rough and dirty in the music business but you have to keep pushing on.

Matthew thank you for taking the time with us, we wish you every success and look forward to hearing much more from you. Thank you for having me, it was my pleasure!

for the latest neWs on mattheW curry, check out WWW.mattheWcurry.com/home.cfm

wilson t. KinG

VErbAls: sTeVe yOurgliVch

Wilson t. king has been Widely cited as one to Watch in blues circles. he has just released his second album, the last of the analogues. it has been receiving rave revieWs all across the music press and media.

This is a blues-based album that isn’t afraid to add other elements and might just be the landmark album of 2012. I caught up with him just before Hurricane Sandy hit his New York base.

BM: The first thing that hits you about the new album is the stunning artwork. Who is the artist and was this piece commissioned for the album or was it a piece that you thought fitted what you were trying to achieve musically?

The chap who designed this is Giovanni Scavetta a super talented artist from Nottingham. When I saw this image it just seemed a perfect fit for the album title, which I already had.

The whole idea that we are the last analogue humans is something I believe to be true. We are seeing the digitization of life happening at an overwhelming rate with little discussion as to what this means for us as humans.

I listened to TLOTA back to back with your first album Follow Your First Mind, and it feels like a natural progression of what you set out then but with stronger songs and superb production. Do you agree with that, or do you feel this album comes from somewhere different?

The first album was me experimenting and trying to see if I could create the ‘Future Blues’ sound that was playing in the back of my mind. Obviously the critical success of that album gave me a lot of confidence to push the boundaries on the second album. I deliberately brought more of my songwriting and production skills into this record and in doing so discovered even

more spaces for the blues to breath in. I have no interest in regurgitating other people’s careers or sounds. As I have mentioned before, lyrical integrity and imagination are without doubt the key drivers in my approach, I can’t see the point in cutting any guitar unless those two are in place within the song.

All of the songs on TLOTA have a spacious, epic sound, but apart from Born Into This, which is around nine minutes, they all clock in between three to four and a half minutes. It must be quite a challenge to get those qualities into those timeframes. Do you deliberately try to keep the songs from becoming overlong?

I think that comes from my days as an indie-rock songwriter, I was the producer/guitarist and cowriter in a band called Fin from 2000–2004 and we toured like hell and wrote over 250 songs in the process, so I’m used to making sure every song has momentum in terms of the lyrical, musical and production moments. You cannot have any downtime in a song and every idea, lick, lyric; drum hit must be worthy of being in the tune.

Wayne Proctor is again on the drum stool. He has an incredible CV and must be a joy to work with. He also has production experience of his own. Does that mean he brings more to the table than just his drumming chops, impressive as they are?

I have known Wayne for nearly 20 years and we have played and recorded together for over 12 of those, so we know each other inside

out musically. We can and have had some super-intense ‘Spinal Tap’ moments in the studio debating drum parts and songs over the years, but I think Wayne will acknowledge my influence on him in terms of musical and production education especially in terms of context and sound. While Wayne is a stickler for excellence and has in many cases pushed me to creative heights I wouldn’t have reached. I do believe my records make Wayne play out of his skin; his playing on Born Into This is some of the best rock drums cut in the last 20 years. He should be playing arenas.

In the past you’ve often talked about your influences. Hendrix is an obvious one, and the three Kings get mentioned a lot, but your music is much broader, and whilst respecting what’s gone before always ads a modern twist. Who do you admire of the newer musicians?

This is a pertinent question as only the other night I noticed my music friends in NY all discussing Breaking Bad, Homeland, Game Of Thrones and the film Headhunters passionately. We never seem to discuss bands like that anymore? I do believe that for at least the last ten years there has not been one classic guitar album that stands up to what happened in the 90s and before. So my current listening is OK Computer, In Rainbows, Quadrophenia and Who’s Next along with Talk Talks’ Colour of Spring and Billy Cobhams Spectrum. These records are definitely influencing the 3rd album which guitar-wise is insane. I personally have not bought a ‘Blues Guitar Record’ since SRV’s last record. All the big name modern players are way too predictable and linear and have zero imagination or lyrical integrity. Although if Gary Clark Junior can write a few more tracks like Bright Lights we will have a new Blues Superstar. I would also love to see Jeff Beck team up with Flea and the drummer from the Mars Volta rather than what he is currently doing. In terms of guitar there is for me still so much to discover from Hendrix, Beck, Santana, Allman, Gilmour etc There are some off-the-wall players like Marc Ribot, Jonny Greenwood and the Edge’s 90s work I dig and Buddy Guy’s live playing in the late 60s and 70s is always close by, and of course Derek Trucks who is a true monster player.

I love tracks like BuryMeWithTheBible and Like TheTurquoiseinaCrashingWave, to me they sound timeless. You appear to be happy to be broadly

catagorised as a blues artist. Do you worry that this could be restrictive in getting your work heard by a wider audience?

Definitely, It’s hard when you’re trying to jumpstart the whole concept of the guitar solo and blues being artistically relevant and modern. I don’t think there is a current category that does justice to this record hence me labeling it Future Blues. For instance Like The Turquoise in a Crashing Wave is me colliding early Peter Green, Floyd and Radiohead, and Bury Me with the Bible started with a Massive Attack style bass line and Bonham Drums while vocally I went for a modern Dave Gahan feel while mixing in Mr Whitley’s Chainsaw Harmonica!

But the end result is very much WTK. That’s Future Blues, pushing the edges and finding new spaces for the blues to breath in.

When Follow Your First Mind came out you said you were spending half your time in New York and that the vibrancy of Manhattan had impacted on your writing. I know you still spend time in NY, are you there permanently or are there other geographical influences at work?

I lived in the countryside in the UK till 2009 so coming to NY was a huge shift, but NY is very similar to London in terms of the artistic community which is a great place to be.

Dan Whitley plays some mean harp on the album. His brother Chris was another blues-based guitarist who pushed the accepted boundaries a bit further. I know Dan toured and recorded with Chris. It must be very satisfying to have someone with his background on board?

Dan is a whirlwind of musical energy and his encouragement through these two records has been a huge help, his harmonica solo on Bury me with the Bible is one of the highlights of the

“ny is very siMilar to london in terMs of the artistic coMMunity”

album. A great guy. Chris Whitley’s song A Fire Road for Two is one the best songs of the 2000s. Also I should mention Brain Lucey, who masters the Black Keys and his work on this record for his encouragement and also the bass playing of Josh Lattanzi on a few tracks who is currently playing with Norah Jones.

I notice that on TLOTA you have added some keyboards. Did you feel that was an essential thing to do to move the music forward to another level? They just sounded right for the tracks, and supported the production. I love the sound I got on the end section of Born Into This which was a Kid A Radiohead keyboard sound sort of sent back to the Doors Studio. The bigger production decision however was to bring in the acoustics, which worked out great and gave tracks like Mountain of Fire and Born Into This that huge sound.

29.10.71 is a very significant date to Allman Brothers aficionados. How big an influence were they to you as a young guitarist learning your trade?

Live at the Fillmore East is an album I played religiously from being 5 years old, it’s probably one of the greatest albums ever. And Duane Allman for me is in the top 3 electric guitar players of all time. A stunning musician, the track 29.10.71 was me trying to remind people about his non-slide playing which on Going Down Slow and the BB. King Tribute is stupendous.

In almost everything written about you mention is made of your comments about ‘karaoke blues clichés’. It seems to me you are only voicing a widely held view of most of the sensible blues community. Do you think too much has been made of your comments, true as they are?

I’m quite happy to stand up and say that to see the blues and guitar community accept these Skynet/Agent Smith/ Terminator Blues clones as genuine musical talents is beyond belief. Just because you know every Clapton/SRV/Gary Moore lick and can play them twice as fast does not make you a great musician.

It seems musical and lyrical context are vague after-thoughts and these players’ output is comical. I can’t stress how much damage has been done to the Blues and art form of soloing by this Karaoke approach.

They all play in a predictable linear fashion and can’t seem to muster one original idea or lick between them. People have told me to lay

off the criticisms as it will hurt my releases but the Blues and Guitar are just too important to me to sit and let this pass. When Jimi cut Machine Gun he was smashing atoms, these guys sound like they’re making cup cakes or at best loaves of bread.

You can bring all the top producers and players in you like, but if you have no imagination and understanding of context it will still be a nothing record.

The album is available to download from Band camp. Will there be any physical CD copies available at any time?

I’m debating this as I had two runs done of CDs and hated the sound compared to what is on offer at Band Camp where you can download the actual Hi-Q Masters. The album is on ITunes/ Amazon as well but I can only stress that if you want to hear the album as it really sounds go to Band Camp! The only way to fight the free-tards is through quality so I’m a big fan of people downloading the Highest Quality Masters.

Will you be putting together a band and touring the album? If so any thoughts on dates or venues yet?

We are definitely going to cut a live studio DVD, my main problems are securing a good support and also the fact I’m running a company in the UK and two tech startups in the US while attempting to record the 3rd album and write a film pitch! I know Wayne wants us on the road as well as James Hartley the live bass player so hopefully in 2013 we will secure some dates.

for the latest neWs on Wilson t. king , check out WWW.bandcamp.com

GIOVANNI SCAVETTA’S ARTWORK FOR THE LAST OF THE ANALOGUES

THE DAVE JACKSON BAND

V E rb A ls: Darren Weale

Dave Jackson is a ‘Born a gain Bluesman’. This is also The TiTle of his auTo B iographical, BriTish Blues a war D s-nominaTe D song from The Dave Jackson Ban D’s firsT al B um, DJB. The al B um was an excellenT firsT recor D ing, showcasing some Bluesy, heavy songs, wiTh Jane T Jackson’s swif T-plucke D B ass an D r eg paTTen’s J azzy D rums overlai D By Dave’s D riving guiTar.

In issue 68, we interviewed the inventor of Hendrix’s Octavia foot pedal, Roger Mayer. Roger praised musicians who get on stage and go with their mood and interact with the audience. Dave is just such a musician, spontaneous and inventive. Thankfully for Dave, he has chosen to play with musicians with a touch of telepathy about them. Thus it is that as Dave wanders into his latest variation on the theme of one of his published songs, or a lengthy and compelling version of Sweet Home Chicago, the band is with him, tight, enjoying themselves and watching for Dave’s next move.

The cover story of our last issue was based on interviews with Mud Morganfield and John Lee Hooker Jr, two men who found their mojo more than usually late in life, after a long period of more ordinary, or in John Lee Jr’s case, drug-ruined and imprisoned, life. So it seems appropriate that following these rising sons of John Lee Hooker and Muddy Waters, we have Dave, who has spent so long at his own crossroads that the devil creeps into most of his best songs.

Now it is time to let Dave speak, and first we asked him about his own roots and influences.

‘I guess my earliest musical experiences were growing up in Kenya and playing with local musicians, basically jamming on African folk songs. I think that shows when we’re playing live, those early jams kick in and off I go …. I remember seeing Buddy Guy way back and it changed my life forever. I heard a music I would absolutely fall in love with, and would haunt me the rest of my days, but I can’t stand up and honestly say “I’m a blues artiste”, I can’t come from that place. I’ve travelled around the world and played in clubs from New Orleans to Rio and I’ve found a place of my own, but I feel it still falls short of true blues. I call myself a ‘blues influenced’ player. It’s really rock with blues, and those early African folk songs in there as well.’

‘My main influences in relation to The Dave Jackson Band are the great blues/rock bands of the late 60s, early 70s, like Free, Led Zeppelin, Hendrix, Cream, Taste, and a whole bunch of others, but you get the idea. As far as guitar goes, there’s two people on the top of my list – Paul Kossoff and Jimi Hendrix. Paul Kossoff for the sheer beauty of his playing, and it does keep me in check whenever I tend to ‘widdle’ too much. Hendrix was from somewhere else altogether, always coming up with something

new and his command of feedback and textures was, and still is, second to none. I’m happy with the way I play, but I still have a goal. One day … maybe … I’ll manage to play as beautiful as Kossoff and be as adventurous as Hendrix. Vocal-wise, it has to be Paul Rodgers; Steve Winwood, and of course, the great Steve Marriott. These guys could really sing. I wish Steve Marriott was still with us.’

journey up to ‘djb’

‘After leaving school, I went straight into having my own band at the Hilton Hotel, Nairobi. It wasn’t your typical hotel band to start with, we used to play Hendrix, Deep Purple and such, but they soon ground us down. This really was the beginning of my ‘wilderness years’. I’d taken a wrong turn and it would take many years and a chance meeting to get me back on track to where I am now. Musically, I hated it and don’t really like to talk about it. My heart was empty and my soul was nowhere to be found. I was on a downwards spiral and the only way I could get through an evening was to drink my way through it. Things hit rock bottom in New Orleans. I was playing piano on a boat going up the Mississippi. We used to stop in New Orleans for three days at a time, I used to grab my guitar and head on down to the French Quarter and jam with some of the best musicians I have ever heard. One of my three-day drunken bar crawls turned into weeks and I got left behind. I had a guitar, no money and had no real idea of where I was. I managed to get some work playing piano just to be able to sleep on the floor of the club when it closed and get something to eat, and, more importantly, something to drink. To this day, I’m not exactly sure how I managed to survive.

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“my earliest musical experiences were growing up in Kenya”

And how I ended up back in the UK is a bit of a mystery.’

‘I laid low for a while, then I had a call from an agent asking me if I’d like to go on the cruise ships. I thought “what the hell, I’ve tried everything else”. As it happened, I got sent to the wrong ship and as it also happened, Jan got sent to the wrong ship as well, and that’s where we met. From that first meeting, my life took on a new meaning. I played Jan a couple of songs I had written, Rick’s Cabaret from my New Orleans days, and an early rendition of Born Again Bluesman. I saw a look in Jan’s eyes... I couldn’t argue, and that was the beginnings of DJB.’

Listening to Dave’s music shows him to be more Bluesy (for his first album at least) than he gives himself credit for. It is significant that Dave had first-hand exposure to the African rhythms that fed the Blues and lived in a hub of the Blues in New Orleans. With that, and admiring artists like Free, Cream and Steve Marriott, it is no surprise that his autobiographical song is Born Again Bluesman and not Born Again Rock Guitar Hero.

What does Dave have to say about his first album?

‘I love the first album. It was just two afternoons of jamming and it wasn’t intended to be released, but we recorded it anyway. It’s raw and live and spontaneous, which is exactly what we’re about. Most of it is first takes. I guess it’s ‘unofficial’ title track is Born Again Bluesman, which of course, was nominated for a ‘British Blues Award’ and I’m very proud of that and of the song. I love Done Me Wrong... that was virtually written as it was played. Say It gets a lot of requests. Rick’s Cabaret I have a soft spot for, it was actually written during my time in New Orleans, which is another story... if only I could remember half of it. There’s an energy with this album that would have been lost if we hadn’t recorded it live. There were no strict arrangements, nothing written in stone, everyone brought their own thing to the table.’

When released, the DJB album didn’t have any hype to live up to, but it should have had. Born Again Bluesman is an excellent song and Done Me Wrong is a great toe-tapper, a belting, jingly-jangly song with an insistent, pulsating beat.

Second album?

‘The new album follows on from the first. We’re looking to record it in the same way… live. I’m not a big fan of the studio and heavy production. When you end up spending so much time on each individual instrument and aspects of performance that you forget why you were there in the first plac… well that doesn’t produce albums that excite me. The tape rolls, we play. What we’ve got, we’ve got. I don’t think we’ll ever change, I’d hate to think what would happen if a record company got hold of us.’ [famous last words there, Dave].

‘Two tracks, Raise It Up and Light Don’t Shine, present some new challenges, at least

“the tape rolls, we play. what we’ve got, we’ve got”

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vocally. And then we’ve got They Got The Jump On You. Well, keeping that under ten minutes is hard. Of course, the ‘Devil’ crops up in a number of places, there’s a slow blues, Ain’t No Love No More, which has been received extremely well at shows. In fact, we’ve been trying quite a lot of new stuff live recently and it’s really working out well. Looking forward to releasing it (which is now looking like March), that is, if we can think of a title.’

Hmm, a title. From my knowledge of Dave and the band, I would recommend These Blues can’t be exorcised. I’ll get my coat... Safely clothed, I invited Dave to introduce the band.

Loving playing live, and helping chances for life

Dave, like many musicians, does his bit playing charity gigs, which rather unravels the ‘influenced by the Devil’ theme we could have developed. Phil Hargreaves of the 100 Club and charity fundraiser for the Teenage Cancer Trust (TCT) appreciates The Dave Jackson Band. Phil said, ‘I’ve been organising gigs in aid of Teenage Cancer Trust for five years and I’m also looking to introduce new bands prepared to play for free and to bring along a sizeable crowd. Dave introduced his band to me via Facebook and liking the free samples on his website I asked him to headline one of my concerts. More than any other pro band DJB

made a huge effort to sell tickets and put on a spellbinding set of hypnotic blues. You can’t help but get swept along with the groove this three piece produces. I’ve seen DJB at several gigs and remain equally impressed. I can’t wait to have them back at the 100 Club next May in TCT Rock Mayhem. I recently celebrated raising £100,000 for Teenage Cancer Trust and it was a pleasure to invite Dave and Janet along to be part of the celebrations.” See www.teenagecancertrust.org for more. At the moment, the thing to concentrate on with Dave is his first album, which we recommend.What we recommend even more is the live Dave Jackson Band experience, just as we did in a gig review in issue 64. Since then, Dave has added some songs from his album-inwaiting to his live set, and they are evidence that he has a quality production line. Dave, who clearly loves playing live, says, ‘It’s really the people that make a gig and we’ve been lucky to play to good people. So people, keep coming to gigs and tell your friends. For us, it’s all about playing ‘live.’

Blues Matters looks forward to seeing more of Dave live and to hearing his new album.

for The laTesT news on The Dave Jackson BanD check ouT www.DaveJacksonBanD.com, TwiTTer@DaveJacksonBanD

the dave jackson band

JANET CLARE JACKSON – bass. ‘Jan is my partner and soul mate. In terms of the Dave Jackson Band, basically it would not have happened if I had not met Jan. From conception until now, she’s been the driving force behind it. Her main influences are Andy Fraser and Jack Bruce. Her bass playing inspires. She’s so powerful and there’s a raw energy that just hits you and it pushes me to step into that unknown territory where all the magic happens. I could never imagine playing with another bass player.’

REG PATTEN – drums. ‘We met Reg at a blues jam. It’s pretty obvious where he’s coming from. He used to hang out down clubs like The Marquee, watching the greats, in particular, Mitch Mitchell. Reg never officially joined, and we never officially asked him, we just jammed at his place and it became the album and we basically ‘were’. He’s a very musical drummer.’

PAUL FILIPOWICZ

VErbAls: STeVe yOurGlIVch wisconsin is noT one of The TraDiTional cenTres associaTeD wiTh Blues music in The usa. iT’s proBaBly mosT famous on This siDe of The ponD as Being The home of harley-DaviDson moTorBikes. someTimes, however, There is a DifferenT kinD of roar coming from The BaDger sTaTe.

Paul Filipowicz, or Flip to friends and fans, is one of the most authentic exponents of real Chicago blues left playing anywhere today. His music is raw, undiluted, straight from the heart with no frills in sight, a bit like the man himself. Don’t for a minute think that means it’s without skill, dexterity or creativity. Flip is the real deal.

Once you become aware of Paul’s history none of this seems surprising. He was born in Chicago in 1950, his father and brother were both keen harmonica players and his sister played piano, so there was often music going on in the home. In his early teens Paul discovered the blues that were to change his life via the radio. By 14 Paul was exploring the Chicago South Side and started discovering the vibrant live scene of the classic mid-sixties urban blues. The first live artist Paul ever heard was Otis Rush, not a bad start by anyone’s standards. In those early years the first instrument he learned to play was harmonica. Paul recalls, ‘ I actually learned guitar from playing harp. My family always had guitars and junk instruments lying around’.

Paul recalls messing around playing on a beat up old guitar with only four strings at the age of eight or nine.

He must have blues harp pretty well, because as he became a regular around the South Side scene it wasn’t long before he was up on stage blowing for many legendary performers

including Hound Dog Taylor. Not surprisingly, Paul has fond memories of those times. He describes Taylor’s partner in crime Brewer Phillips as one of the most vicious guitarists he has ever seen, and laughingly says, ‘sometimes Hound Dog would even grunt at me’. Then there was the time Paul helped Pinetop Perkins lift his piano onto the stage before it went through it. Not forgetting partying with Lefty Dizz the day after he’d won a thousand bucks playing cards. An apprenticeship as a street musician was served before moving onto playing at parties and then into the clubs. Paul got to know Hound Dog much better later on as the house band at The Church Key in Madison, where as well as playing with Hound Dog’s Houserockers he opened for people like Mighty Joe Young, Son Seals and Fenton Robinson.

The experience that had the most profound effect was hearing Magic Sam playing on West Side Soul. Paul had been learning his trade by ear, listening to and watching his heroes. He recalls, ‘I had been playing without a pick and the first time I heard Sam it clicked. The phrasing was what I was hearing.’ Paul is still one of the few blues players around that never uses a pick. That’s where a lot of that authentic tone comes from. Paul is very proud to have counted among his closest friends Jimmy Dawkins and Luther Allison, who both took

paul’s career could have been ended by a FreaK accident

time to mentor the young guitarist. Paul credits Dawkins with teaching him a lot about how to perform on stage, how to be a frontman and lead a band. Later, in the 1980s, Paul became a member of Luther Allison’s touring band, and, indeed, for a while many of Luther’s band also backed Paul.

During the 1970s and early 80s Paul travelled and played extensively, while living in Los Angeles, Denver, Albuquerque and Wisconsin. By the mid-eighties Paul moved to Texas with a band he named the Hellhounds. He lived and played all around the Dallas and Fort Worth

areas. In this period Paul became good friends and regularly played with another underappreciated guitarist Will ‘Smokey’ Logg. Then Paul became a bit disillusioned with the constant touring and moved to Wisconsin to settle down with his wife and start a family. The performing got scaled back while Paul’s three sons were growing up. It has always been important to Paul to be able to provide for his family and for much of his life he has combined his music career with the physically demanding, tough job of roofing. Flip’s tough musical persona has always been backed up by his physical presence. A big barrel chested man, he tells me without a hint of irony that the work has left him at least an inch and a half shorter now than he once was. The following story shows just how strong physically and mentally the man is.

In 1995 Paul’s career could have been ended by a freak accident. Whilst driving a tractor, the seat snapped off throwing him backwards. Paul takes up the tale ‘I hit the draw bar and it ripped my jaw off, and the tractor, which was in reverse, drove over my spine and I

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heard all of my vertebrae popping as they got crushed. I managed to roll out of the way of the front wheels as they would’ve finished me. I then somehow got up and turned the tractor off and made it back to the house.’

As if that’s not enough, things didn’t improve once Paul got to hospital.

‘They put my lower jaw back on after five or six hours in the waiting room and they did such a shitty job that I took a pair of needle-nose pliers and rewired it back in place myself.’

His back was in a terrible mess and not so simple to fix. Years of agony led Paul into a hell of painkillers and booze which spiralled out of control. Since 2001, though, with help around him Paul has remained teetotal.

Around that time, 1995, a couple of events made Paul think about trying to play more again. Both Albert King and Albert Collins passed away which made him realize that none of the big blues players were getting any younger. The clincher though was meeting up with his dear friend Luther Allison shortly before he passed away. Luther told Paul, ‘You’re either a bluesman or you aren’t, and if you are, you know what you have to do.’

Re-motivated Paul has performed and recorded ever since whilst still keeping the roofing business going. Gila Records released Paul’s first three albums, Go For The Throat, What Have You Done For Me, and Never Had It So Good. All three albums received critical praise nationally. By 2001 and the release of Midnight at the Nairobi Room, Paul had set up his own label and distribution, Big Jake Records.

In 2004 the album Chinatown was released. This really put Paul on the blues map. Inspired by the area in Chicago near to the blues melting pot, Maxwell Street, of his youth and with a guest appearance by Ken Saydek, the album won Paul both album of the year and artist of the year from the Madison Music Awards, and was

voted number eight in polls of the year’s best releases by both Living Blues and Real Blues magazines.

A long awaited live album, Chickenwire, was released in 2007, again to huge critical acclaim.

Looking back, Paul told me recently, ‘After my last recording hit, my band couldn’t travel due to their day jobs and such, so that also made it difficult for road trips. My musical style is such that I can’t just pick up a bass player and drummer and do a show. I have more of a John Lee Hooker or Lightnin’ Hopkins approach, and if the band isn’t aware of my ‘feel’ they can get lost very quickly. It’s hard to get that ‘chemistry thing’. It really makes a lot of difference, my current line up is great, we have the telepathy going. They can and do travel with me. I had many offers after Chickenwire was released and reluctantly had to pass on some of them.’

I asked about those opportunities. The reply says a lot about Paul’s attitude to life, ‘One of the things I have learned is I can’t control the past so I put that stuff behind me. The fact is once I forget it, it can’t bother me anymore. I look at it as a blessing. I could just be forgetful though.’

The last time we spoke Paul had just finished recording nine new tracks for his new album to be released early in 2013. Entitled Saints And Sinners it will be available through CD Baby or via Paul’s website. Paul is also adding two tracks from a 1982 session with the members of Luther Allison’s old band that never got released.

Paul is excited about the new work. Two former band members are back on board for this. Drummer Brian Howard has returned after a spell away and on bass is Dave Remitz. Dave had been a member of Paul’s band in the 80s and has recently moved back into the area from Austin, Texas where he had worked with Kim Wilson and Jimmy Vaughan among others. Paul says, ‘Dave has a solid style and he can hold a counter melody for me to work from.’

Paul Filipowicz is a top class recording artist who has been under the radar for too long in the UK. Check out his new release and then his back catalogue. I’ll leave the final words to ‘Flip’, ‘Blues is supposed to be a living breathing organism. When I play songs they always end up a little different depending how I feel. That’s how real blues is, that’s where the spark comes from.’

chickenwire is availaBle from Big Jake recorDs www.paulfilipowicz.com or cDBaBy.com

re-motivated paul has perFormed and recorded ever since

STEPHEN DALE PETIT

Stephen Dale Petit has been a busker as well as a regular at the 100 Club and has done many sessions on the BBC. He plays regularly with Mick Taylor and was responsible for putting a show on last year to save the 100 Club from closing that featured Stephen, Mick Taylor, Ronnie Woods and Dick Taylor (on bass) as well as members of Stephen’s own band. He has recently put out an album recorded live at the High Voltage festival in 2010 on the Ronnie Lane Mobile that is exclusively available on vinyl and is due to release his new album, ‘Cracking The Code’ in the new year.

BM: Stephen, you have just come back from New Orleans to work with Dr John – were you working on tracks from the new album? What was the experience like?

SDP: Well, he’s the master. It was, well conjure any adjective you like – fantastic, inspiring.... joyous.

Had you always planned to work with him on the album or was this something that came up? I’d been speaking to him about it for most of this year. So it just took finding the right slot in his schedule and working it logistically because it needed a proper piano and a Hammond in fantastic working order.

Where did you work – in his studio or somewhere else? No, we worked in a little studio in New Orleans, a commercial studio called Music Shed just outside the French Quarter.

Were you working just with him or with his band?

No, we were working on my tracks, on my songs. We didn’t do anything from scratch, not this time, next time.

Are you planning on working with him again?

Yeah. He’s one of a kind. There are so few people that reach that stage of mastery and they are all one of a kind really. and he is a blast, mind blowing to play with.

Is there a story behind the new album or is this a collection of tracks that you have been writing over time or is there a statement you wanted to make? Well, there is a reason I chose the title, “Cracking The Code”, and it loosely describes what it is I have set out to do and hopefully what I have accomplished comes close. Making Blues music the way it has always been made and presenting it the way it has always been presented and using production values that have become stock in trade and some of the lyrics... is of no interest to me and I don’t believe the world needs another Blues band playing Blues the way it’s always been played but in saying that... making something new from the DNA of Blues is very interesting to me and that is what the term “Cracking The Code” really is referring to in that sense although you can read many other things into it. It is much like the way that they used Native Americans in WW1 and WWII because the Germans couldn’t understand them and there is that element of Blues that you can never really grasp – it comes at you, it is an essence, it is like bottling lightning, and you get

sTephen Dale p e TiT is a guiTarisT wiTh a wealTh of experience in all forms of The Blues. B m! caTches up wiTh him aT his home/sTu D io in h ampsTea D.

glimpses of it and, for me anyways, the more you get immersed into that and the more at stake and the more it starts to grow and so in that sense to be making something new from Blues – it’s gotta be each person’s experience of Blues: not something you can read from sheet music. That’s also “Cracking The Code”. There is something otherworldly about the music, there always has been, at its best, and I guess “Cracking The Code” is an affirmative statement rather than scratching your chin – no pondering – maybe a little arrogant I guess!

I think musicians are allowed a little arrogance You wouldn’t stand on stage unless you wanted to show off a little – you couldn’t do it.

You recorded the album primarily in Nashville? Yeah, we did the tracking in Nashville, the primary tracking and I did overdubs where they happened – I did Dr John in New Orleans, Hubert Sumlin in New Jersey, Chris Barber happened in this very place – in my home studio and the vocals have been done in London.

Why did you go to Nashville in the first place? Well, I wanted to work with Vance Powell, full stop. I’d been in rehearsals and written the tracks with the band and did a test of a studio to see what it felt to record there and I’d been in touch with Vance, we’d made the approach and he wanted to work with me, which is always great that someone you aspire to work with says “Yeah, I’m up for it”. This process started early last year and then we went over in August or September because it was really the only way to do it. He is a really busy man and the logistics of bringing him over here were daunting. Plus he had built Blackbird so there is another really good reason because he knows the place inside and out – a studio is a studio is a studio when you are talking about a certain quality of studio but if you built the place then you do know it inside and out plus I had never been to Nashville – always wanted to go even though it was never big on my hallowed ground list – I’d been to New Orleans, Mississippi, Chicago, it was really to work with Vance. He’s a genius. He is like Sam Phillips recording Howling Wolf at MRS, he’s a Tom Dowd or an Eddie Kramer.

Did he bring something new out of you?

He didn’t really bring anything out of me. It wasn’t that process. It wasn’t like the alpha producer who bullies you and breaks you down

until he gets what he wants out of you, it was more like I had sound pictures and a good idea of what I was looking for and he was able to achieve it and exceed my expectations – it was more that I had hoped for. In that sense maybe you get in a zone of magic where he is responsive and there is good collaboration. It wasn’t all... if something wasn’t working he’s got no compunction not to say “nuhuh this isn’t happening” and because I trusted him there was no moment where we had friction. Which is not so say that with different characters there wouldn’t be. By the time we were done with the second track – I mean I already wanted to work with him and I knew his work so I went in with some serious respect but when we were listening to the first couple of tracks he was already exceeding my expectations. I work on instinct – logic is important but in terms of music its instinct – if the music isn’t working then that’s the time to step back and bring the logic in and Vance really responds to that.

You had the chance to work with Hubert Sumlin, how did that come about?

I’d always wanted to work with Hubert and I’d been asking around – I’d asked Eric (Clapton), Ronnie (Woods) and I’d asked Mick (Taylor) and you get different stories – sometimes justified resentments come out towards white musicians and I knew Howling Wolf had a reputation –Hubert called him like his father actually – but Hubert had this unique tone and the lines he was playing were so unique and innovative and that was what captured me as a kid at thirteen or fourteen. So when we’d done the tracks in Nashville this though that I’d had to work with Hubert for years and I’d never thought I was worthy of and in the end the record company made an overture and they said yes and I think that unlike Mac who was on the road so much it happened pretty quickly.

So how was the session with him?

Kinda life changing really… He was ill and I had to help him up the stairs to his studio and down again. He was frail but he was lovely. I’d been staying with Mick before I flew out and I got to meet him on the phone before I met him in person so I knew he was a gentleman and a beautiful spirit and I’d already got that sense. I’d brought my guitar to show him and put it in his hands and he just lit up it was like a switch had gone on and suddenly he was as energetic as anyone in the studio.

Which guitar was this?

My SG.

He did the session with your guitar then?

Yeah. I brought it just to show him and initially he was confused because I guess when people bring him guitars they want him to sign them so he kinda looked up and down and looked at

me and said “Where do you want me to sign it” and I said “ No, I want you to play it!” So I let him play it for about half an hour, just routining the song, just getting his head around the song, and I asked him what he thought of it and he said “Oh, Mine”. He had this thick accent and I couldn’t understand at first so I asked him “What do you mean” and he said “Mine! Goin’ home with ME”. He liked it and that was the last guitar he played.”

Did you ever get it back from him?

I did yeah (chuckles).

So is it locked in a vault for safety? No, it’s one of my go to guitars – gets a lot of use.

Do you feel the ghost of Hubert in the guitar?

Like the basis of the Robert Johnson story – go to the crossroads and give your guitar to a big black man, he plays it, tunes it up and gives it back to you – Hubert was pretty tall” He died thirteen days later. I’ve been around death but there was something very different about Hubert’s countenance and bearing – the way he carried himself, his way of being. I’d never met someone before who was more spirit than being. He invited me to play at his birthday party but unfortunately it turned out to be his funeral.

How did the gig at the 100 Club come about?

The first gig I ever went to after I landed in England was at the 100 Club. It has this sense of history about it and I felt I had to go there. I heard about the likelihood that it was going to close and I was kinda shocked. I had a gig lined up anyway and so we decided to make it a benefit for the Club. A Lot of people were making all sorts of noises about its importance but not actually doing anything and so I called Mick and asked if he wanted to get involved. I got the idea that Ronnie (Woods) might want to be part of it so I called him and I knew Dick Taylor and he suggested Chris Barber and it went from there.

Was there any trouble in getting Ronnie involved? Well, I was able to call him directly so I didn’t have to go through the Stones office but even so there were a lot of restrictions such as not being allowed to advertise that he would be there and he wasn’t supposed to turn up for the sound check, although he did.

sTephen Dale peTiT aT high volTage is availa B le in a limiTe D vinylonly run of 1000 copies from www. sTephen D alepe TiT.com

“i’d always wanted to worK with hubert and i’d been asKing around”

RON SAYER JNR

2012 has Been a gooD year for ron sayer Jnr, his new alBum BeTTer siDe has Been collecTing an ever-increasing numBer of posiTive reviews. he has receiveD glowing enDorsemenTs on naTional raDio from no less Than paul Jones anD whispering BoB harris!

Other top notch blues guitarists like John Mayall, Buddy Whittington, Oli Brown and Popa Chubby are singing his praises. Yet until now I suppose it’s fair to say Ron and his band have been a closely guarded secret. A number of high profile shows including a confirmed spot at the Hebden Blues Festival and others in the pipeline should ensure an even better 2013 ahead. I took the opportunity to catch up with Ron at Norwich Waterfront where he was supporting Aynsley Lister.

BM: The new CD is getting lots of good reviews and generating a bit of a buzz. You must be really pleased with the feedback, are you surprised by the number of positive comments you are collecting ?

RS: I have to admit I am surprised,albeit very pleasantly, at the reception of the album. We haven’t had a bad reaction as yet, and plenty of jolly nice ones. I’m always like a kid at Christmas when reading what people have to say about the album! Thanks guys!

A common thread is that many of the reviewers were not that familiar with your solo work but a quick look at the biog on your web site reveals you have been playing and touring for a while. The list of artists you’ve performed with is very impressive. Could you give us a short history of the path your career has taken?

Well, in short my career has been a varied one ranging from session work, writing

instrumental music for different companies, to blues workshops, clinics & lecturing at colleges & universities. It was only relatively recently that I thought ‘Wait a minute! I have this head full of bluesy songs that people may just like’Hehe! Plus I thought my guitar playing may be just about good enough by now!

You have a Grade 8 in guitar and bass, and have worked extensively as an examiner and teacher. It’s clear you can play fluidly in many styles, what is it about blues based music that attracts you? Because the blues is the key! It’s the building blocks of everything we consider popular music these days. I give lectures to music post grads in blues improvisation and enjoy immensely seeing these classical guys play from the heart, often for the first time, and loving the blues! I gravitate toward blues because it’s a simple, honest form of music that you have a canvas for more harmonically adventurous stuff, or to put it another way I get to show off more!

I notice your CV includes being an examiner for Rockschool and having a live concert broadcast on Tommy Vance’s Friday Rock Show, how did they come about ? Seems a bit off the blues track. Ha! I told you my career was long and varied! When I took my grades in guitar and bass guitar they asked if I was interested in

VErbAls: STeVe yOurGlIVch VisuAls: laurence harVey / peTer TarleTOn

becoming an examiner. It seemed rude not to accept! The Tommy Vance thing was because of a band I was in back in the early 90s when spandex was still legal and I was able to headbang without haemorrhaging. As you mention, it does seem off the blues track, but strangely enough one of the broadcast tracks What Would You Do went on to sit snugly on my current album two decades later, albeit in a more bluesy arrangement. With most songs it’s just how you approach them from a production point of view.

What I really like about Better Side is that there is a real quality about it in every facet. Not only the guitar playing but the vocals, arrangements and the strong song writing. The whole band is tight and solid. How long has it taken to create the band and record the album?

Thanks. In truth the whole thing existed pretty specifically inside my head, so I had a good idea how it would sound, but was recorded fairly rapidly without extensive rehearsals. The band were just great players from my locale that I’d worked with on and off for years. Paul Wooden, our lovely drummer has played in my band for the last 10 years so there was definitely a rapport! We pretty much laid the basic tracks down live, so with overdubs and mixing etc. it only took ten days in total. Quick and simple, how I like it.

The Sunday Express no less, described your vocals as Paul Rodgers-like. Are your vocals natural or has it required hard work to get there?

That was a nice review, I was understandably very pleased with that comparison. Actually I still think of myself as a guitarist that sings, rather than a ‘real’ singer.My wife Charlotte has an amazing voice and is a trained singing teacher, not to mention a grade 8 pianist, and

she has been a huge help in improving my dodgy vocal technique, haha!

Checking through your web site again, you have a number of prestigious support slots coming up. Any plans for an extensive Ron Sayer tour? And more are to follow! Lots of gigs in the pipeline including a plethora of festivals. All very confidential at the moment (I could tell you, but I’d have to kill you). I’m always searching for more gigs, and thankfully it’s getting to the point where venues and promoters are starting to hear about the band and giving us dates without me actually begging/crying on the phone!

I think to your credit that I’ve seen your playing compared to so many different players including B.B. King and Rory Gallagher, but also some more modern guys like Audley Freed. Who are the guitarists you most admire, old and not so old ? That would be a long list, but I have a debt of gratitude to the champs BB King, Buddy Guy, Rory Gallagher & Albert Collins, purely because of the body of work they laid down for all players to follow. That said, I would say my favourite players are/were Greg Koch, Sean Costello, Tommy Emmanuel, Jim Campilongo, Sol Philcox, Brent Mason, Danny Gatton & Matt Schofield. Any guitarist worth his sodium chloride who hasn’t heard of all these guys should be hit with a soft cushion till they at least get on YouTube and start typing!

A lot of people will know you from working with Oli Brown. That must have been an enjoyable stint, any plans to link up with Oli again in the future? Well Oli and I go way back. He used to turn up at my gigs with this weird looking pointy metal guitar and jam through 12 bars with us. It was a live recording of him with my band sent to Blind Dog Smokin’ that kicked off his first sojourn to the US. Teaching Oli was a real joy, I recorded his first vocal performance Stormy Monday after having to literally drag him in front of a microphone, and listen to that voice now! Touring with Oli & Wayne was hugely enjoyable and, of course, if the situation arose to play with either again I would jump at it.

The CD cover shows you with a wonderful Fender Telecaster. Is that your instrument of choice? You were once the winner of the Guitarist Of The Year

“blues is the Key! it’s the building blocKs oF popular music”

award, any tips for aspiring players in our readership ?

Yes, that Tele is a wonderful instrument and my main guitar for many years now. For me a Telecaster is able to cover every style, and I do like to flit bat-like between musical genres. The Guitarist Of The Year was a great accolade to get, but Charlotte (who incidentally came second in the acoustic category) basically nagged me to enter because initially I was having none of it! So one tip is, have faith in your playing and get it out there. The other tip I would offer is to not get wrapped up in emulating the style of one player, try and absorb the best bits of lots of players. Like they told me at university ‘Stealing from one source is plagiarism, stealing from lots is research’.

As well as some impressive blues playing you also demonstrate on the album some jazzy influences, and the music at times is quite soulful. Is it a worry

to you to become pigeonholed as a blues performer?

I don’t have any worries about being pigeonholed as long as people want to listen to my music, the blues gives me ample freedom to do what I want to do because that’s where the heart of the music is. I’ve already gotten away with funk, soul, fusion, rock and even elements of calypso on Better Side (just don’t tell anybody okay?)

Is there a Ron Sayer Jnr. Masterplan and if there is are you prepared to share it ?

Of course! My plan all along has been “don’t shoot until you see the whites of their eyes”! If there is a master plan it’s just to keep at it, gigging, recording and basically getting in front of as many people as possible. For every gig we do we garner more CD sales and more gigs, so I’m hoping for a snowball effect. Watch out blues fans, no one is safe!

BeTTer siDe is availaBle from www.ron.sayer.co.uk

BLUES ‘N’ TROUBLE

The n ew year marks The 30Th anniversary of Blues ‘n’ Trou B le’s esTa B lishmenT as a Touring B lues an D B oogie B an D. w iTh a new al B um ouT an D a re Toole D an D re J uvenaTe D line-up, B m! Takes a look aTTheir new al B um, The highs an D lows of The lasT 30 years an D The currenT B lues scene.

Tim Elliott was once described by Paul Jones as the most convincing blues vocalist this country has produced. However, when asked whether he would have imagined the band would still be active 30 years later after they first started touring, his response was simply ‘of course’. Although the hard touring days have been scaled back, there has been no talk of retirement. In fact with the release of Try

Anything Twice, the band is as keen as ever to get back out on the road.

Yet those awaiting a follow-up to 2003’s Devils Tricks have had to be patient. The band, now comprising of Elliott, Tweeddale, Angus Rose (keyboards/guitar), Rod Kennard (bass) and Andy Munro (drums), had been keen to record some new songs. The financial costs of the new album were resolved by recording

Try Anything Twice in Munro’s home studio, with Rose taking over much of the album’s mastering. As Elliott explained, they originally contemplated recording 4-6 songs for use as a promotional demo. However, they soon found they had an abundance of material and even considered releasing a double album. Some of the songs, such as the title track, have been performed by the band over several years and been well rehearsed over that period, while others, such as Waiting have come together within the sessions. Historically, many of Blues ‘N’ Trouble’s albums were recorded in two or three days. On this occasion they had the luxury to record over a longer period of time and give hard consideration to the mixing. The final release includes 9 original recordings, and 4 covers of songs by Sonny Boy Williamson II and Slim Harpo.

Preconceptions about how the album sounds should be pushed aside. Both Elliott and Tweeddale were keen to point out there was no attempt to re-tread over familiar ground. The album includes a reinterpretation of Bo Diddley’s Cadillac, a song which the band had released as a single back in 1984. However Elliott justifies the new version by stating that it is played in a less frantic manner and in its original key with additional layered Dobro playing from Tweeddale. Overall the album includes some hitherto untouched musical stylings including a flirtation with psychedelia and an intriguing interpretation of Count Five’s Psychotic Reaction. Both Elliott and Tweeddale credit the introduction of Angus Rose into the band as having a major influence on their sound. Indeed some of the songs have taken on a different dimension and changed arrangements with his contribution.

While Blues ‘N’ Trouble have mainly been recognised for their two lead guitarists, the addition of Rose, primarily a keyboard player, but also adept at guitar, has given the band greater flexibility. Elliott was keen to mention how Rose’s contributions on the album include the piano playing of the title track, but also his guitar work has prominence on songs such as his co-write Waiting. As Tweeddale continues, this offers wider flexibility for the band in a live setting, where they can now appear with their first permanent keyboard player since Lou Martin, and yet also perform their material with two lead guitars.

Tweeddale believes that the album is still very much a British blues band, with the same

1960s feel. Elliott was keen to agree. Despite a great admiration for the blues masters, his own influences were primarily those who first interpreted versions of their songs such as The Pretty Things and the Rolling Stones. While acknowledging there was more rigidity within the music played more on the beat rather than the backbeat, this is the style he likes Blues ‘N’ Trouble to encompass.

When asked if Blues ‘N’ Trouble is still relevant in 2013, Elliott was in little doubt. He knows the band have a strong ‘cult following’ which extends into Europe, and affirms that many younger American bands are fans of the band. The timing also appears good, as the band detect a pickup in blues and blues-based bands, seeing that music trends often revolve. Elliott believes there is always a freedom within the blues that is attractive to musicians. It is one absent in other genres of music. They firmly believe that these new opening for the blues, can also be new openings for Blues ‘N’ Trouble.

Blues ‘N’ Trouble has always been a melting pot of styles. When asked if this was the best line up of Blues ‘N’ Trouble, Elliott replied coyly to say each line up of the band was the best line up … at that time. In truth, the variations in lineup have always added something to the band. As Elliott states, the band has always been lucky to have great musicians, particularly guitar players, which have included founding members John Bruce with his Chuck Berry influences, and the late Jimmy Brown, who was particularly inspired by Little Feat. Subsequently, Telecaster Dave added a rockabilly flavour. Long-serving guitarist Mike Park was the band’s answer to James Burton, Tweeddale, by contrast, was brought up on Big Bill Broonzy and now there’s Rose, whose guitar playing Elliott jokingly compares to Gary Moore! Elliott modestly refers to himself as a good ‘feel merchant’ rather

Tim EllioTT PhoTo: marc mamiE

Blues Under the Radar blues ‘n’ trouble

than a great musician. Back in the 1980s and early 1990s, Blues ‘N’ Trouble was one of the busiest acts in the UK. Elliott estimated that they played in the region of 280 shows a year. He believes very few bands tour so regularly now. While Joe Bonamassa may do, he suspects he rests in far more comfort than they ever did. They travelled day and night in a van, would sleep on pub floors or wherever was offered or available. Sometimes they would perform on occasions twice in one day, and then sleep in the van which would take them to the next show as they could not afford accommodation. He recalled that on their first visit to London, when drummer Sean Scott had just celebrated his 21st birthday, as the rest of the band had no money, Sean had to spend his birthday money in order for them to buy food.

The number of shows did drop down to about 150 shows, partly due to Elliott contracting pneumonia. Being an asthmatic also caused problems, particularly as most of the rest of the band were heavy smokers. A wakeup call for Elliott was their van going down the embankment of the M6 at 70 miles an hour when their driver fell asleep. The band had been travelling back to Edinburgh for another show after a performance for freshers at Birmingham University. Luckily all emerged shaken but unscathed. This was another indication that the heavy touring was taking its toll. As were incidents of drunken antics, particularly in Norway, which were probably best not retold!

An early highlight for the band was winning a supporting slot with BB King. The blues legend would often watch the band from the wings, and would complement the band, which by Elliott’s own admission were not that great at the time. Nonetheless BB King once remarked that Blues ‘N’ Trouble were the best white blues band in the world. The tour was very significant for the band as the tour caught the attention of English and European promoters, who then offered the band far better shows, than those they had been accustomed to.

Working with Lazy Lester was another significant period for the band. Having produced their third album Hatrick, renowned British producer Mike Vernon suggested they record Lester’s comeback album. Lester had been traced having been out of the music business for several years, and had been working as a taxi driver. Elliott recalls how happy he was to be out of the States for a while. Indeed he spent several days in Elliot’s West Lothian home and would

regularly cook his favourite Louisiana recipes. Lester’s Rides Again was recorded in a cow shed, as per Hatrick reel to reel, and went on to win a WC Handy Award. It was re-released in 2011 with some bonus tracks which Elliott was delighted had seen the light of day. Lester and the band remain in touch and performed some shows, including an appearance at Colne.

Robert Cray, Pinetop Perkins and Charlie Musselwhiteare three other US acts that Blues’ N’ Trouble performed with. Indeed Cray appeared on ‘No Minor Keys’ the band’s second album, which also featured the sixth Rolling Stone member Ian Stewart in his last recordings before his death. Elliott recalls fondly their tour with Musselwhite who was a formative influence on his own harmonica playing. By this point Musselwhite was overcoming his career-long drinking problem and Elliott was in awe of his wife, who kept him on the straight and narrow.

stripped back

Tim Elliott has immense pride in his work with Blues ‘N’ Trouble and names Down To The Shuffle as his favourite of their early releases. Released by Dutch record company, Tramp, it won a British Blues Connection Award in 1991. Having heard some of the country blues segments on the album, Tramp then approached Elliott to enquire if he would like to record more songs in that vein. Keen to take up the offer, he travelled to Amsterdam to record Tim Elliott & The Troublemakers. The album featured Elliott playing blues and gospel in a stripped back atmosphere with backing from then Blues ‘N’ Trouble keyboard player Lou Martin on piano and Gary Martin on harmonica and guitar. This allowed Elliott to record without the inevitable compromises of being in a band. Furthermore it enabled him to indulge in some varying blues styles such as that of John Lee Hooker, whose early recording works he has always admired.

Two further albums under the title Tim Elliott & The Troublemakers followed and it was at one of these sessions than Elliott first met future Blues ‘N’ Trouble guitarist Sandy Tweeddale. Long-time collaborator Gary Martin had invited Tweeddale to their studio in Stirling and the initial results were very impressive. Together they laid down a very true to the original recording of Jimmy Reed’s Honest I Do. Elliott and Tweeddale discussed at the time recording a collaborative album of Jimmy Reed’s songs. Although the idea was shelved, they did

perform a set of Jimmy Reed’s material at the Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival with the same musicians who now make up the current version of Blues ‘N’ Trouble. Tweeddale became a member of the band in 2001. Having been taken aback by the volume of the band at that time, he added a tube screamer guitar overdrive pedal to his equipment. Nowadays the band are a quieter band than they have been for years, and this is something Elliott appreciates as it does make singing audible vocal lines an easier task.

In recent years Blues ‘N’ Trouble has performed on occasion with Scottish singer Maggie Bell. When asked how this came about, Tweeddale advised this had been the idea of Little Blues Festival director, Patrick van Speybrock. Following an appearance at the festival, van Speybrock outlined his hope that they might return with Bell. Tweeddale, who had only met Bell on one previous occasion, eventually obtained a phone number for him, and he was keen on the idea. The band did appear with Bell at Lille, and since then at several blues festivals in Scotland. Bell is kept busy, working with the Hamburg Blues Band and the British Blues Quartet and with each line-up keeps a fairly rigid set list. The band had discussed performing some of Bell’s earlier material with Stone The Crowes, yet these so far have been put in check by a lack of preparation time, and perhaps also Bell’s attachment to the songs she recorded with the late Les Harvey. Blues ‘N’ Trouble maintains a keen interest in the Scottish blues scene. They contributed the title track of their new album to the second volume of the compilation of Scottish blues, Jock’s Juke Joint. Both Elliott and Tweeddale gave special mention to a fellow musician, Jed Potts. Potts has performed in an extended line up of Blues ‘N’ Trouble on several occasions, but leads his own trio, Jed Potts & the Hillman Hunters. Tweeddale recalled that he was blown away when he first saw Jed performing a Johnny Guitar Watson song. Not only was the choice of material a surprise (as opposed to the more predictable choices), but also the manner of his fine delivery. Elliott also praised the quality of Stevey Hay’s recent album (as reviewed in BM! issue 68). He believes having formed a band with ex Tam White guitarist Neil Warden, Hay has found a fellow musician who can not only bring the best out of him musically, but also help him boost his profile. Dave Arcari received admiration for his hard work and in Tweeddale’s views is as integral to Scottish

blues as the Nimmos. Tweeddale also credited issue 68 interviewee Lewis Hamilton for the strength of his blues playing, and compiling two very strong compilation albums under the Jock’s Juke Joint series. Elliott summarised that Scotland does have some excellent blues acts, observing less of a dominance of the rockier guitar heavy trios south of the border. However for various reasons they do not receive the same level of press.

When asked whether he would like to discuss anything further, Elliott mentioned that Try Anything Twice was dedicated to three late associates of the band. Gerry Calderhead worked as sound engineer for the band over many years. Jimmy Brown was the band’s original guitarist, alongside John Bruce, who took the decision to remain in Edinburgh in his secure job when the rest of the band went full time. Lou Martin who passed away in August 2012 was in the band at the height of their fame. He was located playing in a cocktail bar by Bruce, and his presence was an added attraction for the band. This was particularly in countries such as Germany where he would include samples of his recordings with Rory Gallagher within his solos, leading to great applause. Martin was a classically trained musician who, whenever he spotted a piano in their hotel, would balance his wine glass on top and sit down to play music from Chopin and Beethoven. This was about as far from his style as you could imagine!

p lease visiT www.B luesnTrou B le.co.uk for The laTesT news an D forThcoming Tour D aTes.

WEll WorTh ThE WaiT: Try anyThing TWicE

AYOUCANCATCH BSOLUTION ONTHEJAKSSTAGEAT BUTLINSROCK’N’BLUES2013 Introducing... Kross Border Rekords

A bright new label for British Blues...

The White Knuckle Blues Band, feat. Steve Roux

This former Virgin records/pointblank recording artist returns with a stunning new album and is taking the festival scene by storm.

‘Anyone wanting Blues in their face will like this. Just twiddle with the volume knob’

Gareth Hayes - Blues Matters! magazine - June 2012

Absolution

‘Absolution are... a group that could go places. With a great rhythm sound and scintillating guitar behind fine vocals, this trio are a complete and very tight rock/blues package.’ Maverick magazine - January 2012

‘Blues flawlessness...these guys are incredible musicians (with) an incredible album that requires many listens!’

9/10 - www.bluesrockreview.com (USA) - January 2012

Both Released 15th October, via Proper Distribution

albums

th Is Issue’s selectIoN INcludes: be N har Per, b I ll WYmaNs’s rhYthm KINGs, blacK cou NtrY commu NIoN, GWYN ashtoN, hab I b KoIte & er Ic b I bb, Joe boNamassa, Joh N h Iatt, J ulIaN sas, muddY Waters aN d much more!

ALEX HAYNES

Last train Independent

This reviewer’s album of the month comes in the shape of inspirational and off-the-wall blues by Alex Haynes and pals on what is really only an EP as it just hosts six tracks. However, once in the machine, whether car or hi-fi or chosen format, it’s very difficult to turn off the hypnosis. Derivative of old-fashioned traditional blues, Haynes’ work primarily stretches into the regions usually paraded by the curious mix of, say, Alabama 3, Skip McDonald, Rocco Deluca and maybe even Lenny Kravitz on downers. Well, there is plenty to distract and engage. The powerful Shake ‘Em On Down is feverish and urban, the rhythmic Last Train is predictable to a degree (rolling beats inevitable) but still proves innovative, and Crawl No More is John Lee Hooker meats Bauhaus. Strikingly original, this is neologism blues for those wishing to extend the boundary.

Gareth hayes

ALFREDO GARCIA-NAVAS

Back i n B Lues

extraplatte

Well, if you ever had any doubts about blues being an international language, then this CD ought to put you right. See, Alfredo Garcia-Navas was born in Caracas, Venezuela where he

studied music at the conservatory, before getting a scholarship to the Hochschule für Musik in Wien (University of Music, Vienna, Austria). Since then he’s given solo concerts across Europe as well as working with various chamber music ensembles and also at the Opera House of Vienna. And now, here he is, with an album of cover versions, dedicated to Gary Moore! It may not be grits and roadhouses, but it’s certainly an interesting journey, as they say on every reality TV show. The music is less so. Now there is no doubting that Senor Garcia-Navas is a remarkably talented guitarist, as you listen to him take on songs from Gary Moore, Robert Johnson, John D Loudermilk, Otis Rush, Peter Green and The Police(!). But the blues is more than technique, and sometimes it seems lacking in emotion. He’s also not the best singer, which is why the songs where he gets Phil Reinhardt to sing – in particular Sloe Gin and Midnight Blues – work best. I remember a Phil Reinhardt from my eighties metal days, wonder if it’s the same one? I’m sure this was a labour of love, but for me it just misses. stuart a hamiLton

BARB JUNGR

stockport to m emphis

Naimjazz

Let me say right from the outset that this lady has a tremendous voice, it’s just that it doesn’t sit comfortably with me and the album doesn’t suit a Blues magazine. Described as ‘an interpreter of other people’s songs’ (my cynical

view is tribute or copy act), I don’t feel that much has been added to some of the songs that she has interpreted. Opening with the self-penned title track, it’s an autobiographical piece detailing how she left home in Stockport to seek her new life. It is an up-tempo happy song that truly showcases her beautiful voice. This then changes with a rather drab version of Sam Cooke’s Change Is Gonna Come. Joni Mitchell’s River is true radio pap, and Neil Young’s Old Man has lost a lot of the angst and frustration of the original, instead being presented as a ballad. Dylan is not exempt from having his songs sugarified. Lay Lady Lay does nothing, and without the Hammond organ backing would sink into the mire. Of the covers that stand up are Tom Waits Way Down In The Hole, portrayed in a mystic manner with moody backing and hypnotic piano, and Rod Argent’s She’s (He’s) Not There which is given an upbeat and somewhat funky outing similar to the Santana version with the gender of the subject altered. In retrospect, I much prefer her own self-penned songs. New Life portrays the excitement of a young woman exploring her new life and oozes expectation, and the muted trumpet backing gives the whole song a great jazz feel. The best song on the album however is her own Till My Broken Heart Begins To Mend, on which she plays some great harmonica, and the piece staggers forward, metaphorically replicating the feelings of an injured soul.

BEN HARPER Get u p!

stax/concord music

It has taken ten years for Mr Harper to team up with harmonica master Charlie Musselwhite, at last managing it on this, his 12th studio album, the first since 2011’s Give ‘til It’s Gone. The first point I must make is how relaxed it is. The band, including Jason Mozersky (guitar), Jesse Ingalls (bass) and Jordan Richardson (drums), play with economical grit, lending the songs true understanding and authority. A mix of (what else) blues/roots/gospel/r&b Get Up! features ten character studies in cinematic detail all written or co-written by Harper. For instance on 1, Don’t Think Twice the politics of personal destruction are palpable. On 6, I Ride At Dawn, a ghostly soldier laments the futility of war, a haunting battle hymn. The catchy bass line on 8, Get Up! is hypnotic. 9, She Got Kick is very much a play on words from a song made famous by that trio from Texas! Must be said that throughout the album Musselwhite’s counter point harmonica accentuates Harper’s vocals, but at only 40 minutes, I felt a bit cheated. In the past, Harper has taught us about love, drugs, life and rock’n’roll. He continues his evolution as an artist, as well as a person. He might lack a sense of direction at the moment, but it’s this lack of clarity that has produced an excellent, focused album. cLive rawLinGs.

BIG SANDY AND HIS FLY-RITE BOYS

Jumpin G From 6 to 6/

De D icate D to you retroworld

Williams, better known as Big Sandy, released these two albums in 1994 and 1998. Jumping From 6 To 6 features a mix of swing, jump jive, early rock n roll and country. If that sounds like a throwback to the styles of the classic Sun Records releases, then you’re thinking along the right lines. The recording has that authentic feel and great vocals by Big

Sandy. It straddles a wide spectrum of genres. The title track is a great upbeat opener to the album, with some impressive fleet fingered playing from Ashley Kingman and Lee Jeffriess, the latter on steel guitar. The country influences within the recording are prominent, firstly on a take of (the original) Frankie Miller’s True Blue. Likewise, on the fast paced Someone Like You, an original composition by Williams, which includes the addition of a fiddle. On the latter tracks, the songs work well well, on other tracks, such as the rock n roll Who, Tell Me Who, the Elvis intonations run a little strong for this listener, although the band playing is still hot. The high tempo remains for most of the recording, with the sole exception being a take of Hank Williams Weary Blues From Waitin’ . It’s a great listen, particularly if you like your guitars to twang. The second album is more of a solo effort from Big Sandy. Commencing with a gospel based recording of Lonely Girl, the overall bend of the album is different, with the focus being more on the vocals, and a larger proportion of the album being dedicated to R&B and doo-wop. It is perhaps less engaging than the first album; however, the arrangement of the songs is very impressive. Death Of An Angel breaks up the lighter subject nature of the rest of the album. The sincerity of Big Sandy’s interpretations is highly merited. Yet perhaps on occasion, such as Richard Berry’s Have Love Will Travel, Big Sandy’s version is actually too close to the original. Perhaps the key is that these albums do a superb job of making recordings in the 1990s recreate the styles and feel of the 1950s.

Duncan Beattie

BILL WYMANS’S RHYTHM KINGS

the Best oF: vo Lume 2 repertoire

The pre-Christmas market always sees the inevitable release of best-of albums, and this album is no exception to the rule. However its release one year after the release of Volume 1, might be seen as a step too far for some fans. This is

particularly the case given the band has only released 5 studio albums, the last of which was 2004’s Just For A Thrill. In the two decades since Wyman departed the Rolling Stones, he and Terry Taylor have worked with a multitude of renounced artists. Indeed the opening track alone, She’s Looking Good features Albert Lee, Geraint Watkins and Beverley Skeete. Elsewhere guitarists including Eric Clapton, Andy Fairweather Low, Martin Taylor and Tommy Emmanuel crop up. Yet while Wyman’s walking bass style is a delight, his vocals do not quite hit the same heights. Therefore it is often the guest vocalists that provide the collection’s highlights. Mike Sanchez’s trademark vocals appear on Booty Ooty and You Don’t Know, while Georgie Fame and Skeete combine on Melody. The closest the collection genuinely comes to the blues is Can’t Get My Rest At Night, which breaks from the big band formula to feature Mick Taylor on slide guitar. The Watkins’ led take of Willie Mabon’s I’m Mad is enjoyable listening. It’s a good reminder of the band, but with no new material, inessential to existing fans.

Duncan Beattie

BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION aFter GLow mascot

records

Like its two predecessors, ‘Afterglow’ is overseen by Kevin Shirley, who has become the unofficial fifth member of the band. What had started out as a Glenn Hughes solo project became a full blown BCC album, due to the other band members having a five day window to record. This offering expands on the progression that took place between BCC and BCC2, rich in hooks, melodies and choruses, making for another highly rewarding album. Opener Big Train has Bonamassa delivering sharp guitar, complimenting Hughes’ voice, Bonham providing the engine room. At Bonham’s insistence, Confessor is played in the style of his dad, slow and groovy. Cry Freedom has Bonamassa sharing vocals; I detect a hint of Humble Pie / ZZ Top. The title

track, at more than six minutes is the one epic; Dandelion brings Bonham to the fore, whilst The Giver and Crawl give Sherinian a chance to show his keyboard talents. Common Man could have easily have been culled from Deep Purple’s Stormbringer. If the rumours are to be believed, we may never get to see BCC again, but the combination of Hughes’ voice and Bonamassa’s guitar alone justifies their existence. There is spontaneity to this album, but also a few sloppy moments, given the short time available to record it. Despite that, this album fulfils all the early promise.

cLive rawLinGs.

BLUES OVERDRIVE

the B Lues over D rive

Gateway music

Scandinavian Blues is alive and doing very well. It is noticeable that some of the premier Blues festivals are now across the North Sea, and whereas American artists often eschew UK venues, they do play elsewhere in Europe. This may be one of the reasons why that region is now producing some excellent Blues artists, such as Thorbjørn Risager and Mike Andersen, to which one can now add Copenhagen’s The Blues Overdrive, whose eponymous album is excellent. Apart from one obscure JJ Cale cover this is all written in house, and captures 60s revivallist Blues perfectly. The album is self-produced and features vocalist and songwriter Martin Olsen’s authentic take on the boogie, rocking, slow and country Blues of that genre. Without a weak track, and generating an eery and oddly mesmeric feeling, this is a very good album indeed. As is usual with acts from these parts the non-native language presents no barrier, and frankly if you didn’t know where they were from, you would guess at somewhere in England. The songs are superb, and such is the quality of singing, playing and production that one can hear each instrument perfectly, just one example being the slow Blues Ball & Chain. Peter Thorup and Allexis Korner et al are acknowledged in Mr. 16 Tons (Blues For Thorup). The laid back ambience of

JJ Cale and Eric Clapton pervades much of the work, and the more I have played this album the more subtle nuances and influences come to the fore. This comes highly recommended.

noGGin

CLAUDE HAY

i Love hate you

128 records

Album number three from the selfproclaimed Australian ‘swampy rock stompin blues’ explosion’. And it’s not half bad. You can also add in one man to that list of attributes, because he is largely a one-man band, with only a couple of guest musicians filling in the blanks. He’s also one of these fellas who is trying to do something a wee bit different as he is more than happy to use the wonders of modern technology to push his songs ahead. Those songs are also self-penned bar an unnecessary excursion into the Beatles Come Together. When everything comes together as it does on songs such as Best Days and the title track, I Love Hate You, a tune about his beloved motorhome, it really is a delight. If you’re wondering how he comes up with his unique guitar sound, then it’s down to his home-made resonator type guitar, made from a $7 baking tray, scrap bits of metal off broken washing machines, left over timber from a deck, and bits of guitars from his guitar graveyard. So now you know. Definitely file under interesting. stuart a hamiLton

CRAIG HORTON

i n my s pirit / touch oF the B Luesman bad daddy records

I remember when these albums came out a decade or so ago, but as there is nothing to indicate why it’s suddenly reappeared, I’ll just go with the flow, and pretend it’s just because. In My Spirit was the debut solo album from Mr Horton, but he had some pedigree behind him. He had played along with and besides the likes of Chuck Berry,

Sam Cooke, Dinah Washington, Otis Rush, Muddy Waters, Buddy Guy and Freddie King. He earned his spurs on the road, with acts like The Harlem Road Kings, and The Ink Spots, playing anywhere, anyhow. However, when it came to his own records, it was straight down the middle Chicago Blues. On In My Spirit, it’s mainly original material but he finds time for covers of Mose Allison’s Nightclub, which really rocks along, as well as a couple of tunes from his former bandmate Jump Jackson, of which Ridin’ In My Jaguar is an absolute standout. Fast forward a couple of years, and Touch Of The Bluesman was more of the same, with some excellent guitar work and some driving, rocking blues, alongside an excellent rendition of Serves Me Right To Suffer. stuart a hamiLton

CRAIG

HUGHES

har D times vo L. 1

channel Nowhere

Craig is a Glaswegian who has an amazing picking guitar style whether electric or acoustic. His vocal style is reminiscent of Tom Waites (very whisky soaked). The slide on Left to Crawl is a joy to behold. Only six songs on this EP but each is unique in its simplicity. Hard Times Every Day is a harsh indictment of today’s recession. Finally, Tapes for my Walkman has a banjo accompaniment and comments on today’s need for technology. An interesting look at one singer who takes no prisoners. Available for only £4 from his Bandcamp website.

BoB Bonsey

DANNY KALB AND FRIENDS

m ovin G in B Lue sojourn records

Danny Kalb, founder member of The Blues Project which, at times, included Al Kooper, has produced a blues masterclass. He is a musician who plays from the soul and it is a riveting

collection. This is a double album, with his own songs and traditional covers. His guitar skills and vocal dexterity makes the whole thing a pleasurable experience. Covers include Got My Mojo Working; Baby Please Don’t Go; Dylan’s It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry; and Johnny Cash’s So Doggone Lonesome plus at least another dozen and every one in his own style. And then we come to his own compositions. Feel Just Like Going Home which opens this collection; Waitress at The Troubadour; has the lyrical imagery of Louden Wainwright III. His rendition of Son House’s Death Letter Blues is worth the price of this album alone. This has to be one of the best albums I’ve heard this year.

BoB Bonsey

DAVID MAXWELL

B Lues i n other c o Lors

shining stone

DAWSON SMITH & THE DISSENTERS

took the n i G ht annson records

Sitting in an unusual juxtaposition of jazz-blues and improvisation it is hard to pigeonhole

David Maxwell’s album as anything but an enlightening journey. Feeling the blues in the traditional music of a number of nations and regions, Maxwell describes a road trip, in musical form, around the East from Morocco to Turkey and India, yet played at all times with a backbone of traditional blues. It’s part soundtrack, part experiment, part adventure and not always an easy listen. Maxwell is a piano player by trade and has appeared with every alumni of Chicago Blues, along with turns for Eric Clapton and Keith Richards. Here he sneaks in his own guest in the form of British Columbian guitar maestro Harry Manx. It’s a revealing journey and an interesting exploration of non-western instruments such as the oud, raita and Mohan vina. For those not in the know, think sitar. It may be misleading to pin down star tracks as the titles Cryin’ The Blue’, Chillin’ In Casa and Mombai Blues may just serve to confuse. The whole set is definitely worth a visit and is quite reverential to our mutual heritage.

Gareth hayes

South Wales born Smith is seen as a veteran of the music scene and for the last twenty five years he has been plying his trade from Leicester. From the mid-nineties he fronted Blues rockers the Healers, with two successful solo albums following the split of that band, only then forming the current band, The Dissenters. Describing his music as roadhouse rock‘n’roll, this becomes apparent with the two opening tracks. Just One More, the opener, is an outright lift of a Stones riff, a great driving groove. This is followed by American Cars, a wry dig at the American motor industry and the irony of stars driving European and Japanese cars. The title track struts with attitude as the band stomp, and the powerful bass line drives the whole forward. He maintains that driving force with When I Say It, tipping a nod to one of his influences, Dr Feelgood. Key To My Heart opens in a very 60s Mayall Blues vein and then guest vocalist Sally Barker sings. Her voice is a true gem and adds depth to the song. Smith also plays some tasty guitar on this track. Changing tack completely, Drink To Drunk is an out and out rock’n’roller with a Chet Atkins sounding guitar solo and is followed by Mexicali, a South American rhythm driven by alto and tenor saxes. The accordion makes a showing in another rocker Keys To The Bank. The CD finishes with Attention To The Blues, a tribute to Rory Gallagher with Smith playing slide guitar. Difficult to appreciate at first, but it which grows over time. merv osBorne

DIAMOND JIM GREENE

s urroun D e D cooling board

introduction to the blues came, when he was a young child, via street singer Blind Arvella Gray on the south side back in the 50s. He came to wider attention in the 90s with a release on Holland’s Black Magic Records. Those country blues stylings are still there on this set, with Jim’s guitar work sounding a little like Big Bill Broonzy’s on Screamin’ And Cryin’ Blues but many of the tracks have a big horn sound – part soul revue, part jazz band – and Jim’s declamatory vocals way out front. The album opens with a stunning version of Shake ‘Em On Down, but Please Don’t Fly Away and Take Time are lilting soul ballads, Duke Ellington’s Don’t Get Around Much Anymore showcases Jim the jazz singer to great effect, and he can follow a notable duet cover of Robert Johnson’s Crossroads with Happy and Artie Traum’s folk-rock standard Golden Bird. You don’t need me then to say that Jim can easily incorporate soul, jazz, and folk into his music and the results certainly come out as blues regardless – no doubt about it. And when he does do something really low-down – like Prison Blues on this set – it is mightily impressive indeed.

norman Darwen

FATHEAD

twenty years Deep electro Fi records

An excellent and slightly different album from this Chicago-born and raised country bluesman, whose

‘Fathead’ an award winning Canadian band demonstrates throughout this well produced CD their pedigree have been delighting audiences in Canada for two decades, this collection of 19 tracks truly showcase’s the delightful combination of great musicianship and a mellow voice of John Mays. This is a buffet selection of delights from their discography of seven studio albums. This is a band that stays true to the blues and each track is carefully crafted to display the talents of all the members with strong bass line and the inclusion of awesome tenor sax and harmonica. Track 5 One Day The Sun Will Shine demonstrates this with powerful Sax opening followed by strong lyrics beautifully sung, the haunting tones of the saxophone strengthens the meaning of phrases such as I Am So

Lonely Other standout tracks for me on this accomplished album are Track 8

First Class Riff-Raff a class blues number, Track 13 Building Full Of Blues with skilful guitar playing that makes this a really punchy rhythm and Track 17 Monkey Time with its strong percussive rocky feel. A good album of mainly self-penned solid blues numbers producing a rounded sound that makes you want to see them play live in the UK very soon.

Liz aiken

FLIPRON

Firework s hoes tiny dog

What is a Flipron? Apparently lead singer and principle songwriter Jesse Budd’s friend had a (presumably model) plesiosaurus, an extinct marine reptile, whom he named Flipron, a strange route to the band’s name. That is by no means the only original aspect of this talented group from Glastonbury, who draw their influences from the great tradition of quintessentially eccentric English music, delivered with little reference to the all-pervading trans-Atlantic fashions of the last fifty years or more. Instead here is music, rich in the tradition of Ray Davies, and Small Faces Ogden’s Nut-gone Flake The songs are occasionally wordy, but always underscored with wit and ironic humour, for example Big Fat Blackberries, the superb Chas & Dave-ish sing-along The King Of All Our Crimes, referencing night terrors Until It Gets Light and a nod to surf reggae The Comet Returns

The telling menace of Superstition Has Its Uses is a standout, with great piano lines and intelligent lyrics: ‘If your ancestors were with you, their eyes upon each moment of your day, how would you feel? What would you say?’. Some of the song titles are right up there with the best, like Low-life Seeking Elevation, this song being replete with a whistled solo. This is no one-man band, and though it is clearly a vehicle for Budd’s amusing and observational lyrics the group adds light and shade in well-rehearsed and wonderfully constructed songs, and both Budd and

Joe Atkinson are multi-instrumentalists. So, if you’re looking for music of this particular and peculiar ilk, it doesn’t come any better. Quite wonderful.

noGGin

GWYN ASHTON

raD ioGram

Fabtone records

Having been a keen follower of Gwyn’s progress for the best part of ten years, I find it hard to better him as far as all-out assault on a guitar goes. Welsh born, but Australian raised, Gwyn’s been around a while and more importantly has lived the life he writes about so eloquently on the nine originals contained here.

Abandoning the Two Man Blues Army format of 2009, drummer Kev Hickman is retained but Gwyn has recruited help from the likes of Kim Wilson (harp), Don Airey (keys), guitarist Robin Blunt and Magnum’s Mark Stanway, and a fine album it is too. From the slide on opener Little Girl, through the soulful ballads

Fortunate Kind and Angel, Gwyn and friends do the business, and on the only cover I Just Want to Make Love To You confirming he’s here for the long haul, rather than some of the newer artists maybe. Old school he is, but a bloody good teacher!

cLive rawLinGs

JAKE LEAR

Diamon D s an D stones

blind racoon

I think I’m right in saying this is Jake’s second album after Lost Time Blues and it’s a cracker. Lear is joined by Roy Cunningham on drums and Carlos Arias on bass. Opener Strange Thing has a swampy, Buddy Guy Sweet Tea era feel, coupled with echoes of Neil Young and Roy Buchanan. 2 Going Back Home (North Mississippi Bound) has a lot of the authenticity of RL Burnside, basic swamp blues. 3 Wasting Time drives home the raw sound of the delta. 4 Diamonds and Stones sounds a little

cONTINueS OVer

HABIB KOITE & ERIC BIBB Brothers i n Bamako

stony Plain

This international collaboration brings together acoustic Bluesman Eric Bibb and West African 20th century griot musician Habib Koite. The song writing duties are shared and the material is mostly original with a beguiling mix of Blues, folk, gospel and world music that is soulful, intelligent, tuneful and soothing. The superb opening track ‘On My Way To Bamako is written by Bibb about his first trip to Bamako and how It’s Gonna Feel Like Comin’ Home. The melody is sweet and Bibb’s wonderful vocals are backed by the various lilting stringed instruments and light percussion that are used throughout the album. Koite responds in kind with L.A. which he sings in French. In the co-written Tombouctou the pair worry about what is happening in Timbuktu as they continue their musical journey. The pair also create a stinging commentary on the state of global commercialisation with We Don’t Care and how it has made selfish consumers of us all. “We want the gold as long as we don’t have to mine it, don’t care who suffers or who’s behind it”. The charming traditional instrumental Nani Le is followed by the heartfelt gospel tinged sounds of Bibb’s With My Maker I Am One. A gently melodic cover of Bob Dylan’s Blowin’ In The Wind features pedal steel guitar from Olli Haavisto. The closing track is the traditional folk/Blues tune Goin’ Down The Road Feelin’ Bad Bibb is well known to acoustic Blues lovers and Koite sings about his era and his environment in Africa and the two have combined well here to produce a contemporary classic.

Dave Drury

more updated, along the lines of the Stripes or Dylan, but in no way a copy. Lear plays a few raw guitar solos on here, all the time not being over technical. 5 Down By The River is really cool, Lear’s guitar stretches out, along with a bit of a 60s boogaloo beat. 6 Jack of Diamonds, the first of two covers, keeps the Hooker feel. somewhat lacking in modern players, a really great tribute. 7 Junior Wells’ Work, Work, Work sets the Chicago feel, nothing flashy, just great, solid blues. 8 I See A Train coming has a more complex feel, akin to a SRV or Peter Green. 9 Quit You gives a nod to Howlin’ Wolf. An original Lear composition, it’s a shuffle track with a bit of Texas blended in. Finally, 10 Boogie Time takes a leaf out of Hound Dog Taylor. Whilst not mimicking Taylor’s style, the carefree playing and reckless abandon capture some of the Dog’s spirit. As you progress through this recording you wait for a weak spot, but it doesn’t come. Excellent. cLive rawLinGs

JAMES ARMSTRONG

sLeepin G with a stran G er / Got it Goin G’ o n retroworld

This package contains two albums from San Francisco based bluesman

James Armstrong. The first disc contains Armstrong’s debut, recorded for the Hightone label in 1995. Blending blues with soul and R&B it is hard to describe Armstrong’s style without referring to Robert Cray. Like Cray, Armstrong pens insightful and sensitive lyrics while his guitar playing is stylishly economical, but atmospheric. The funk tinged title track sets up this promising release. While the subject of matter of broken relationships and loneliness regularly appear on tracks such as Midnight Again and Hard, Hard Blues they are balanced by the John Lee Hooker style Six Bar City and the swinging Baby’s Crawling. Perhaps the most original song is The Devil’s Living There which features his tasteful electric guitar leads over an acoustic rhythm. Sadly Armstrong’s rise was halted through a vicious stabbing two years later leading to injuries that meant he

had to restyle his guitar playing. Following 1999’s Dark Night, strangely not included, Got It Going On features Daniel Tucker on drums and Robert Watson on bass from the Joe Louis Walker Band. 2 Sides is perhaps the catchiest tune, and featured in the film Shameless. It is one of two tunes to feature Robert Cray’s keyboardist Jimmy Pugh, who also features on the Albert Collins style Lucky Guy. Overall there’s a wider scope to this second album, with the New Orleans styled Mr Bs and the heartfelt ballad Another Dream. Despite his trauma, this second album surpasses the first for its song-writing quality. If. like me, you missed these albums the first time around, this is a great opportunity to discover the talents of Mr Armstrong.

Duncan Beattie

JAMES BUDDY ROGERS

my Guitar’s my o n Ly Frien D blue Wave

Canadian-born

James Rogers has been playing blues all his life, and this latest release highlights that he can certainly write some good songs, and play some sharp lead guitar, but unfortunately his vocals are not strong enough to take him up to the next level, lacking the emotion you need to sing the blues. Having cast aspirations about James vocals I have to admit that I did enjoy listening to the album which is easy on the ear and flows nicely with a smooth soulful Robert Cray feel to it, all ten tracks are self-written and the supporting musicians are all top notch, generating some funky blues sounds to several tracks most notably Dawg, a song about a man’s relationship with a dog! There is

no doubting James’s Blues credentials; it’s just those vocals that need some work to ‘toughen up’ his sound which would really help to bring out the quality of the material.

aDrian BLackLee

JASON VIVONE & THE BILLY BATS

Lather, r inse, r epeat

Independent

The line-up is Vivone (vox/guitar/harp), Matt Bustamante (drums), Jeremy Clark (bass), Paula Crawford (vox/ guitar), Imani Glasgow (vox/percussion) and Ben Hoppes (vox/banjo). The CD opens with the seductive I Heard A Heartbeat, a Texas boogie style, with tempting lyrics and a ripping cigar box slide. On 2, Baby Fat Vivone uses a tongue in cheek solo vocal, with minimal band participation, except a slide melody and drums. 3, The Nina, The Platter, The Santa Maria, is a speeded up Chicago blues with 50s style vocals and classic blues riffs, with a touch of humour. Loosely based on a Muddy Waters track with a touch of George Thorogood. 4, The Black Lone Ranger keeps the groove going, again with the slide player having a chance to shine. 5, One Hot Mother is a typical 12 bar blues track, allowing Vivone the freedom to sing clever lyrics to an otherwise basic track. 7, Do The Nod has hints of Bo Diddley, 8, Liquid Diet is a funky scratch track and 9, Medusa Blues closes the album with a more complex track. A fun collection of original material, ideal for a party!

cLive rawLinGs.

JERSEY JULIE BAND

Goose B umps

Independent

It wouldn’t surprise anyone to discover that Jersey Julie hails from New Jersey. What the nomenclature doesn’t tell the listener is that she is now based in France and that the band is a trio consisting of herself, her husband and guitarist Olivier Mas, and upright bass

THIS SECOND ALBUM SURPASSES THE FIRST FOR ITS SONG WRITING qUALITY

player Stéphane Blanc. Supported by a handful of local guests, the album is a fun collection of traditional blues at a tempo, and the band’s own compositions. The blend works fairly well as it alternates from work by the likes of Arthur Crudup (Worried About You Baby) and Mississippi John Hurt (Richard Woman Blues) to their own contemporary styled Jersey Shuffle and Red Riding Hood. If the potential buyer was looking for a reference point, then it could well be with the UK’s Cherry Lee Mewis, a front woman with attitude but not necessarily rebellion. The beat provided by Carl Perkins, Son House and Billy Boy Arnold numbers confirm the synergy. Three of the guests hail from the Bayou Brothers and there is a natural inclination towards New Orleans and French flavouring, although the strength is in refrain.

Gareth hayes

JOCK’S

JUKE JOINT

c ontemporary B Lues From s cotLan D vo Lume 2

lewis hamilton music

This is the second release of the top Scottish blues talent following the highly acclaimed first volume described by BM! as, ‘one of the best compilations made this year, taking us on a roller coaster ride of emotional and blues styles.’ However, Volume 2 can now claim this accolade because it is even better, not least because of the sensational collaboration between Scots harp legend Fraser Speirs and young gun Lewis Hamilton. The instrumental, There You Are Now is reminiscent of Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee at their peak, albeit in mellow mood, with harmonica and guitar in perfect synergy. Another key factor contributing to the brilliance of the second volume is the continuing theme of superb harmonica playing on most of the 18 tracks. One of the leading exponents of this instrument is Richard Young, an Englishman now residing in Scotland, whose Confidence Man is a tour de force performance. Other harp giants include the Blues ‘n’ Trouble front man Tim Elliott (Try Anything Twice), Danny Williams of The

Kennel Wages (Fighting Over You), Ali Davies from The Binsness Bluesboys (Crawdad Hole) and Cameron Grey who accompanies the excellent Jed Potts and the Hillman Hunters on Don’t Tell Me. Jed is a versatile guitarist who sounds like he was born in the Mississippi Delta but is also an accomplished folk musician with the renowned Jake Cogan Band. Further high spots include: Alan Sutherland’s piano playing on Wang Dang Delta’s Shutting Out The World; the earthy vocals of Cynthia Gentle’s You Just Can’t Win accompanied by the subtle rhythms of The Truetones; and John Alexander’s acoustic slide guitar and finger picking on Nowhere To Go Folk-blues is represented by the eight-piece band, The Black Diamond Express, swing from Baby Isaac; and old school R&B courtesy of The Blueswater. Then there are the cool licks and hot riffs of The Lynsey Dolan Band, the soulful acoustics of Hot Tin Roof and the unique progressive blues of Earl Grey and the Loose Leaves. The 4 Als, including guitarists Nimmo and Brown, and multi-talented Dougie Burns represent the long serving stalwarts whilst Leah Gourley is the promising newcomer. And within this variety lies the beauty of this entirely original offering, a surprise package and cornucopia of contemporary blues artists discovered by journalist Duncan Beattie on his travels. The CD has been lovingly produced by Lewis Hamilton whose father Nick takes the credit for the professional and creative photography and lay out. All in all, Jock’s Juke Joint is an important concept which shows how the genre is thriving in Scotland as the indomitable spirit of luminaries such as the late Tam White, Frankie Miller, Maggie Bell, Ian Anderson, and Jack Bruce lives on within the country’s contemporary blues scene. Indeed, it is far more than that as each of the current generation of blues men and women represented here adds a fresh, distinctive and innovative approach and sound which is widening the appeal of the blues in the 21st century by taking it in a new direction. Now where is my suitcase, I’m heading north of the border! the Bishop

cONTINueS OVer

JOE BONAMASSA Live From n ew york Beacon theatre Provogue

Another month, another album from Joe Bonamassa. This latest offering is culled from the DVD of the same concert, a home performance if you will, and goes to show Joe’s maturity and much improved vocals – we all know about his fiery guitar work. A short, busker-like 72nd Street Subway Blues precedes Slow Train and we’re off on the well-trodden (not to mention previously wellreviewed!) set-list. Joe calls on some very good buddies to guest on their own particular contributions to the CD back-catalogue. Beth Hart duets finely on I’ll Take Care of You and Sinner’s Prayer, John Hiatt on his Down Around My Place and I Know a Place. I have to be honest and say that for me the two contributions from Paul Rodgers fall somewhat short. I preferred the rockier version of Walk in My Shadows from the New Day Yesterday Live era and I found Fire and Water a little laboured. Closer and bonus track, Warren Haynes If Heartaches Were Nickels, good as it is, is again a song Joe falls back on. I recently read an interview with another cohort of Joe’s, Glenn Hughes, in which he says that Joe no longer has time to write songs because of his heavy workload. One might even be tempted to suggest that a lighter workload might bring forth more original material than is offered on this particular CD; a matter of quality over quantity perhaps? The covers on this album were, to my mind, better done in their original form and for a musician of Joe’s stature, I personally feel that is a shame. cLive rawLinGs

JOE CASTELLANO

s ou L Lan D

blues Promotion

This is a live double album from Joe Castellano’s Super Blues and Soul Band with 14 special guests (too numerous to mention). ‘Super’ is the right adjective to describe this band. The gig is a blues and soul evening and covers most genres.

Proud Mary (Creedance Clearwater); Tell Mama (Eta James); I Wish (Stevie Wonder); Marvin Gaye’s Let’s Get it On; Dave Mason’s Feeling Alright; Bad Girls (Donna Summer); Lady Marmerlade; Solomon Burke’s Everybody Needs Somebody to Love; the list is endless. There are eight Joe Costellano compositions which could become soul classics in their own right. The Bob Marley / Eric opus I Shot the Sheriff is a masterpiece. Over two hours of full on big band R&B sound. Absolute heaven, if this is where you’re at. I highly recommend it.

JOHN THE CONqUEROR

John the c onqueror

alive Natural sound

Conqueror have not set out to invent the wheel, but this debut is dependable, solid and timeless. It has all the ingredients you want and thanks, perhaps, to the Black Keys, there is an audience out there for their style. cLive rawLinGs.

JOHN HIATT

mystic pin BaLL

New West records

packed with good songs, lyrical and witty word-play, strong vocals and the musicianship is first class.

Dave Drury

JULIAN FAUTH

everyB o Dy o u G ht to treat a stran G er r i G ht electro Fi records

Philadelphia’s John

The Conqueror are cousins Pierre Moore (gtr/vox), and Michael Gardner (drums), with bassist Ryan Lynn. They bring a very familiar blues/rock sound at you, full throttle. Opener, I Just Wanna is preceded by 45 seconds of handclaps before a full on blues explosion with its pleading chorus, pumping right into track 2, Southern Boy. This is when the instruments start sparkling, Moore’s vocals hit full volume and the band completely groove. Even though the record stays in a similar vein throughout, the band shakes things up with subtle tweaks that enhance the flow. Songs like the swaying 5, Time to Go pays more of a tribute to Muddy Waters, while 8, Letter of Intervention showcases a blend of darker, slow rhythms and group sing-alongs that make an album highlight. John The

Indiana born singer/ songwriter who has been around for over 30 years and whose songs have often been covered with some success by other artists including Bonnie Raitt, Bob Dylan, BB King, Roseanne Cash, Emmylou Harris and Willie Nelson.This album builds on the worldwide success of Dirty Jeans & Mudslide Hymns and is also produced by Kevin ‘Caveman’ Shirley (Joe Bonamassa and Aerosmith etc.). Opener We’re Alright Now is a melodic Blues/ rocker which features Hiatt’s trademark raspy vocals and great harmonies and is driven along by twangy Nashville guitars and a clattering snare drum. Great driving music – put the hood down and head for Route 66. Or, in my case, the A35 to Lytchett Matravers.The mid-tempo Bite Marks is a Stones-style rocker with typically tough lyrics spiced with a dash of humour and pathos. Tough love indeed. It All Comes Back Someday reminded me of our own long lost pub-rocker Graham Parker featuring those soulful sandpaper vocal chords. The pace drops for the black humour of Wood Chipper which features twangy and atmospheric guitar from Doug Lancio as Hiatt relates his dark tale. Nick Cave eat your heart out! The crunching straightforward rock of My Business is followed by the gentle and gorgeous ballad I Just Don’t Know What To Say There is a country rock feel to the melodic guitar on the Byrds tinged Give It Up and a great acoustic ballad with No Wicked Grin which features bass fiddle from Patrick O’Hearn. The album closes with Blues Can’t Even Find Me featuring superb dobro and mandolin from Lancio as Hiatt tells his tale of living in a trapped relationship.This man is a great story teller and this album is

Julian Fauth is most definitely an accomplished blues singer/writer, combining strong lyrics with more than a hint of biblical references in a clever and artful way that have been applied with a modern twist as demonstrated on Track 4, Requiem where Bill Gates, Bankers and Sodom and Gomorrah are mentioned, a very clever song with a the beat of French quarter New Orleans and Julian’s voice is deep and melodic but is not the strongest element of this accomplished musicians package. The title track does not disappoint and the highlights are Track 11 Angelique with its bluegrass feel and Track 14, a great interpretation of the traditional Rolling and Tumbling. This is a gem of an album that refuses to be pigeon-holed, where every track is strong, with a different twist showcasing all the passion that Julian puts into his piano and guitar playing, and interesting rearrangements adding so much to this eclectic CD.

Liz aiken

JULIAN SAS

Boun D to r o LL cavalier

Julian Sas is well respected in Europe with seven CDs in his catalogue but not well known in this country. This album should change that. The opening track Life on the Line sets off at a tremendous pace with a guitar riff reminiscent of Walter Trout. Mercy has a wah wah guitar sound (really lovely stuff); the title track Bound to Roll has a real boogie feel. This album is definitely for guitar freaks (I mean that in the nicest possible way). Wonderful tunes with stunning solos. Julian puts his stamp on Rory’s Shadowplay (not an easy thing to do);

Bob Dylan’s Highway 61 Revisited gets the Johnny Winter treatment complete with screaming slide guitar. There are 13 tracks here and ever yone is stonking! Not a filler in sight. Is it blues? Is it rock-n-roll? I don’t know, but what I do know is it’s just a brilliant album and should be played at a loud volume.

BoB Bonsey

LITTLE JOE MCLERRAN

FaceBook B Lues

root blues reborn

Starting off with an Elmore James flavoured and indirectly rather rude My Girl Kay and following it up with a lovely (slightly updated) 20s styled Billy The Grinder, Little Joe immediately justifies the record label’s name – but then, as he writes in the notes, he still listens to 78s. But Joe is no stick-in-themud purist– just listen to the lyrics of the title track and it is apparent that he knows what he is talking about when it comes to social networking, despite his protestations. Born in Boulder, Colorado in 1983, he has been playing the blues in public since he was eight years old, and was in his first band a year later. Although he is often touted as a Piedmont blues player, here he is generally in full band mode – take a listen to the slide guitar driven shuffle Black Hearted Woman, Homesick James lovely Gotta Move (with Joe capturing both Homesick’s slide and vocal sound to perfection) or the driving Corinne. Hobo Blues has a fine old-time jug band sound, and the short bonus track, the instrumental Sixth Floor Glide that concludes this thoroughly entertaining and beautifully packaged album, has a similar knockabout feel.

norman Darwen

LOUISIANA RED

when my mama was Livin G labor

records

story of such a blues drifter has to include years of anguish and lowlights before the late-life recognition; it’s an archetypal story. Sadly passing away in February 2012, this collection of Louisiana Red hollering traditional blues songs was recorded in the mid-1970s and most of them are being issued for the first time. His main instrument on show here is his skilled harmonica playing, alternating with suitably pained vocals, while his guitar makes space in humble accompaniment. It’s the sensitive pace of delivery that is spell-binding about this man at home with real blues. Supported on a half-dozen tracks, of sixteen in the collection, by the challengingly wonderful Peg Leg Sam and Lefty Dizz, it is a rare treat indeed. Hard to pick out highlights, except to maybe go for those that deliver the rudiments of blues storytelling, namely Got A Girl With A Dog Won’t Bark and I’ll Be Glad When You Are Dead You Rascal You, and, of course, the mesmeric title track.

Gareth hayes

MARK HARRISON

c rooke D s mi Le Independent

Reckless, and sums up his whispering profundity.

Gareth hayes

MUDDY WATERS

vo L. 2 kin G o F the c hicaG o B Lues 1951-1961

Frémeaux & associates 3 cd set

Having your father lynched by the Ku Klux Klan is certainly one reason to become a bluesman, but then the back

Recorded at the Livingston Studios in Wood Green, London, Mark Harrison’s sophomore album is a follow-up in similar vein to his debut Watching The Parade. It’s a comforting act of low-key folky and rootsy blues numbers that give Harrison plenty of opportunity to roll over his National guitar with suitable vigour, whilst delivering his poetic self-penned songs in iconic scratchiness. The songs segue sweetly into each other with no distinct difference in flavour (that’s a good thing), except to be interrupted by the mid-album number Lay Your Burden Down where Josienne Clarke shines with figurative focus. A fine cast of guests and colleagues add width with harmonica, mandolin and double bass all at the right time. Harrison is well schooled in the discipline and knows exactly how to tag the song, whether that be for the ritual Honeyboy, or the reflective Blessed. The low-key rumble is particularly ironic for the album’s closer,

As Chuck Berry astutely wrote; RolI over, Beethoven –tell Tchaikovsky the news. I make no apologies for proclaiming the blues to be the classical music of the pop world. As such, with the epic European composers, it’s damned difficult to decide who, among Beethoven, Mozart, Mahler or Bach, is more important. The same goes for what came out of Mississippi and Chicago. I listen to Howlin’ Wolf and say ‘yeah –he’s the man...’ then you’re faced with Robert Johnson or John Lee Hooker… yet in the end McKinley Morganfield, aka Muddy Waters, has to be the Beethoven of Blues. This three-CD set of 30 tracks apiece is Muddy Waters at his peak. It kicks off with the atmospheric Long Distance Call and the suggestive Too Young to Know, and includes some lesser-known tracks such as Stuff You Gotta Watch and the curious Iodine in My Coffee. CD 2 plunges headlong into the Willie Dixon/Chess classics, including Mannish Boy and Hoochie Coochie Man, Mojo and Close to You, and the third CD, entitled The Crossover, takes us through a buzzing 1961 with nuggets like Tiger in your Tank, Messin’ with The Man and I’m Your Doctor. Fair makes your hair stand on end. Having had the privilege of seeing this giant live in 1982, hearing of his death aged 68 the following year felt like a body blow to the blues. He was so important in so many ways. There isn’t a voice to match his gritty, meaningful delivery. His slide guitar work on that battered Telecaster always thrills, and as for rock’n’roll in general, every guitars/bass/drums combo since owe him a debt. He invented the classic electric blues band line-up, and always had the very best harmonica players, among them Little Walter and Junior Wells, all featured

here. If you need one Muddy Waters collection to preface the later, classic Johnny Winter-produced Hard Again, then buy this; you’ll relish every note.

roy Bainton

PEARL, TN

Leave m e aLone rattler records

What a charming CD; combining English folk with less obvious influences from the sensibilities of traditional Country & Western music. Overlaying the gentle instrumentation of this five-piece band comprising, piano, guitar, dobro and bass is the wistful and beautiful voice of Harriet James. All but one of the songs are self-penned and mostly speak of loss and regret. This is its charm, for it blends the seemingly innocent and dulcet tones of Harriet’s voice with some truly embittered sentiments, for example You Never Said Goodbye and resigned Slipping Away. Johnny Cash with its subtle trademark Cash guitar figures, is a tribute to a former lover whose errant ways are pithily encapsulated, rhyming a relationship described as ‘hell on earth’ with the man’s incarceration on ‘the very night when I was giving birth’. There is longing in Can’t Wait Forever, loss in Fly, Mother, Fly, playful lust in Kissing You, resentment in Dirty Lie and concludes with the self-explanatory Leave Me Alone. The one cover on this album is Bill Trader’s beautiful and highly apposite A Fool Such As I. If you have any albums by the wonderful in your collection, this will suit you perfectly. My only complaint is that at only half an hour long it left me wanting much more –maybe the occasional happy ending! noGGin

PHILLIP WALKER

the Bottom oF the top & s ome Day you’LL have these B Lues retroworld

Retroworld are currently releasing a series of overlooked blues and R&B albums, including Big Sandy and his Fly-Rite Boys, James Armstrong and this

release of Golf Coast blues by Phillip Walker. Having only recorded several singles prior to The Bottom Of The Top, Walker was joined in the studio by a young producer Bruce Bromberg, who was later to produce the works of Lightnin’ Hopkins, Joe Louis Walker and Robert Cray. Having served his apprenticeship with Clifton Chernier, Walker was a seasoned performer of 20 years. The album is comprised primarily of his interpretations of earlier blues musicians, yet songs such as Bob Geddins’ Tin Pan Alley are interpreted in an original, and then contemporary fashion. Not only a fine guitarist, Walker’s vocals are pleasing, with a fine take of Sam Cook’s Laughing And Clowning

One of three self-penned tracks, It’s All In Your Mind features saxophones and a trumpet, and indicates the emergence of his own song writing style. Also of note, is his version of Hopkins’ Hello Central Someday You’ll Have These Blues bares little in way of differentiation, although it is a little more stripped back with keyboards generally replacing the horns of the first album. The two standout tracks being the Beaumont Blues and the title track. One feature of the second disc is the song-writing of bassist and co-producer Dennis Walker, who was to earn greater credits in the following decade with Robert Cray. While this is not an essential purchase, it will hold the attention of those fond of his contemporaries Magic Sam, Otis Rush et al.

Duncan Beattie

PINK TURTLE

Á La m o D e Frémeaux

There is a fairly straight line linking Cab Calloway, Louis Jordan and Louis Prima in the evolution of jump-jive – French outfit Pink Turtle can now be added to the contemporary end. They have immense musical talent and the same kind of sense of humour as their predecessors too; they are happy to take hits of the last few decades, deconstruct them and then rebuild them as, say, a jumping, Jordanesque blues shuffle (Fleetwood Mac’s Don’t Stop), a

Calloway-ish jiver (Sultans Of Swing, appropriately enough) or 50s flavoured group R&B (Baker Street, in the vein of a very early Leiber & Stoller composition). For me though, best of all is You’re The One That I Want, with its echoes of Duke Ellington’s ‘jungle sound’, though Bob Marley’s Get Up Stand Up runs it close, a cross between Cab Calloway and Ray Charles, or maybe the smoky, early 50s blues ballad rendition of The Kinks You Really Got Me (with flute). Oh heck, just take a listen to the whole album – it will certainly bring a smile to your face.

norman Darwen

SCOTT HENDERSON, JEFF BERLIN, DENNIS CHAMBERS

h B c music theories

The coming together of three of the jazz-fusion world’s premier players has created great excitement within jazz circles. Scott Henderson is accredited as one of the world’s leading jazz guitarists, whilst Jeff Berlin in acknowledged in a similar vein for his work on bass. Dennis Chambers is an almighty powerhouse on drums and has occupied the stool behind Carlos Santana for many years, yet in the world of jazz fusion, he is the most recorded drummer. All three players can cite stints with jazz musicians like Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, Joe Zawinul, Al Di Meola, John McLaughlin and others. Their pedigree is second to none, and throughout, each musician sounds as though he is following his own solo route, each attempting to outplay the other. However, within that statement lies the true artistry of jazz-fusion as the overall complex sound comes together as one. Composers here include Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Joe Zawinul and Billy Cobham, and of the nine tracks, only two, have been written by the three musicians. Threedom was written by Jeff Berlin and is an intricate bass solo, whilst Wayward Son Of Devil Boy co-written by the three of them is a straightforward Blues style stomp. It opens with some really heavy laden guitar by Henderson, demonstrating

various tricks and styles. My favourite and the one I recognise most is Cobham’s Stratus. It allows Chambers to stretch out and pound the kit before being reined back into the fold for the driving bass line and soaring guitar. I realise that this is difficult music for many to listen to, but if you’re looking for new sounds, check them out.

merv osBorne

SHEMEKIA COPELAND

33 1/3 telarc

Shemekia has come a long way since she was a precocious teenager making her debut in 1998. She immediately impressed and has continued to do so ever since, and she has also managed to make a name for herself that does not rely on her parentage – though on this set, as usual, she does record one of her father’s songs – One More Time. For much of this set she has a small blues band in attendance, with Buddy Guy guesting on Ain’t Gonna Be Your Tattoo, a slightly harrowing tale of domestic abuse with music to match. Shemekia has a few points to make on this album – the opener rails at nameless politicians, and Somebody Else’s Jesus is an attack on cash-hungry televangelists. I Sing The Blues is forceful, direct and has a tough down-home sound with some excellent harp playing by Jon Liebman, but a more playful side is evident on Mississippi Mud, a danceable duet with J J Grey. Towards the end of the set, Shemekia covers Sam Cooke and Bob Dylan, and these two – plus the slow Hangin’ Up which they sandwich – show just what a good and versatile singer she is. She’s taken a chance with this set, but the results are worthwhile.

norman Darwen

SPOONFUL OF BLUES

s inners

bluestown

another reason, as it is also the home of four-piece Spoonful Of Blues. There’s nothing fancy about these guys. They sound – and the sound is spot-on incidentally – like they got together around 1970, eager to play the blues their own way, mixing it up with rock and maybe a bit of folk, and influences varying from Joe Calicott through Elvis Presley and on to Black Sabbath (Notodden also hosts a metal festival). Yes, the guitars riff (loudly – very) and the rhythm section pounds away – not for them the sophistication of soul-blues, they prefer rather ‘a rocking party’, with the volume cranked up. Purists need not turn away just yet though, as I Heard My Baby includes among the line-up young Sharde Thomas and Bill Turner, fife player and drummer respectively with Mississippi’s Rising Star Fife And Drum Band – yes, this album was recorded in Notodden and Clarksdale, Mississippi. Kenny Brown also crops up on guitar on a couple of numbers, and award winning blues pianist Eden Brent supplies some fine playing on Delta Porch. Towards the end of the set there are a couple of numbers that tend perhaps more towards indie-rock, but this noteworthy set closes out in fine fashion with a hard-grooving A Ton Of Love. norman Darwen

STOMPIN’ DAVE

c ommon Groun D Independent

STEFANO RONCHI

i’m r eaDy Independent

Stefano Ronchi has been working as a professional musician in Italy since 2005 and although his best achievements have come in Blues he also plays jazz, funk, pop and bluegrass.

The album opens with a solo acoustic intro to The End Of The Road before the full electric band kick in with a slow shuffle and great ensemble playing from all and featuring a nice harp solo from Fabio ‘Kid’ Bommarito. A rolling piano intro from Max Vigilante leads into a cover of Trouble In Mind which features guest vocalist Merl Maroutian.

A rocking drum salvo leads into the instrumental Wait A Minute! which, unexpectedly, features a jazzy violin solo from Fabio Biale. A gentle acoustic guitar and soulful vocals from Ronchi feature in Down To The River and then we get the slow, atmospheric, and smokey late night feel of 5 O’Clock Blues.

Notodden, Norway, is famous among blues lovers for its blues festival and as Seasick Steve’s home - now here’s

Stompin’ Dave is a man for all occasions and a popular attraction on the live scene. He is a multi-instrumentalist who plays guitar, fiddle, mandolin, piano, harmonica, banjo and much more. He has his own electric Blues band and has also previously played with top British Blues band The Producers. For this latest solo album Dave features traditional all American songs with fingerstyle guitar accompaniment and he kicks off with that old chestnut Rising Sun Blues. This old favourite is played in an old time country Blues style and comes up sounding as fresh as a daisy – lovely jubbly. Another old Blues classic St. James Infirmary gets similar treatment and then we get Great

My favourite track on this album is Ain’t No Love In The Heart Of The City which features gravel-tinged vocals from Zibba and good guitar from Ronchi, along with some interesting violin playing. Max Vigilante adds his soul-tinged vocals to Boogie Boy which also features wailing sax from Stefano Riggi.

The album closes with the old Albert King favourite Born Under A Bad Sign which swings mightily and features excellent guitar from Ronchi. But wait a minute, there is a ‘hidden” track’ which is a jam featuring a rootsy harp and guitar driven cover of Muddy’s I’m Ready. A good solid album and an enjoyable listen.

Dave Drury

Big Dog which is a gentle, lilting lullaby with Dave crooning to rolling guitar accompaniment. For the England rugby fans amongst us we get a swift run through of that old spiritual Swing Low Sweet Chariot. It’s a great song but how it ever came to be sung at Twickenham beats me. The sound quality is excellent and recording was done just as it should be for this sort of music – live with no overdubs. As always with Dave he manages to instil his bubbly personality into the music and this is particularly evident on my favourite track, the oft covered, Bottle Up And Go. There is a touch of country, a smidgeon of bluegrass, a dollop of Blues, a hint of gospel and it all comes together in a tasty stew. The jaunty tale of Railroad Bill is accompanied by some nifty picking and is followed by the swinging Down By The Riverside. This lovely album closes with the story of Old Dan Tucker who was a ‘fine old man, washed his face in the frying pan’. as you do! I really did enjoy this album and can thoroughly recommend it to all lovers of acoustic Blues and Americana. It will bring a smile to your face.

Dave Drury

THE BREW UK

Live i n e urope

Jazz haus records

This album starts off like a Hydrogen bomb has just exploded; the three piece band really let rip and put in some energetic, aggressive playing full of intensity, and have the crowd totally in their hands. As the title implies, the album is a live recording from concerts in Europe, unfortunately no details are available although the twelve tracks do have a ‘one concert’ feel to them, or there could be some high class editing! The Band are UK-based, having originally formed in Grimsby over five years ago, the rhythm section is formed by father and son Tim & Kurtis Smith, fronting the band is Jason Barwick; who sings and plays the guitar exceptionally well, leading the band with a certain swagger. The recording quality is to ‘studio standard’, and the raucous crowd noise is kept to a minimum even on the

obligatory ‘sing along’ tracks, the material is all self-written and probably fits a classic rock style albeit with some blues influences. I was really blown away on first hearing the album and this opinion is unchanged after several plays, while the band would have been huge in the 1970s I see no reason why they cannot become a major force in this decade, they bring to mind artists and bands like Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin, believe me, they are that good.

aDrian BLackLee

THE MOKATS

c rossover B Lues

Independent

This release is classified as an EP although it does contain six tracks, which does give the listener sufficient time to gain an impression; in this case it is a positive one. The four piece band have previously plied their trade as a covers band at functions in the Midlands, but they have now decided to focus on a Blues/Rock path to seek their fame and fortune. The band have written all but one track here and the material is strong, but not with any particularly strong blues influences. Best track is Weaker Man on which all band members contribute to a song with some underlying menace, the remaining tracks are all very polished and follow a more soulful path at times. Bobby Womack’s It’s all over now is the cover here, and the band perform it to perfection, but I would have liked to hear them deliver a grittier Rolling Stones style version. A promising debut here that benefits from strong material and good musicianship, more than enough to warrant their decision to move on from being purely a covers band.

aDrian B

LackLee

THE MOTIVES (FEAT. MATT TAYLOR)

the motives (Feat. matt tayLor) bluesy electric recordings

He probably won’t thank me for this, but I’m the proud owner of Matt’s 1995 CD Radio City Blues, and I have followed

his progression through his participation in Snowy White’s Blues Project to this, his debut, which I will say at the outset, is a strong contender for this reviewer’s CD of the year. If your bag is Brit 60s flavoured blues with a potent cocktail of American influences, then this is for you. You’re taken on a fantastic journey from the off with Never Tell A Lie with its brilliant shuffle. The Motives are extremely talented as back-up musicians, Jonny Dyke on keyboards, Andy Graham on bass and Roy Martin from the aforementioned Blues Project on drums. The material is all original, albeit Matt calls in some mates to help, notably ex-England cricketer Mark Butcher and saxophonist Raf Ravenscroft, with the songwriting, and Ian Siegal’s gruff tones can be heard on The Rules Don’t Apply. For me the full band collaboration slow blues of Gone Before takes the biscuit, though. Enough said, if you only buy one CD this month or year, check this one out. It has everything going for it and it’s by a Brit band to boot!

cLive rawLinGs.

VARIOUS ARTISTS

First came m emphis m innie stony Plain

Although billed in some places as a Maria Muldaur solo album, this tribute to Memphis Minnie also includes tracks from Bonnie Raitt Ain’t Nothing In Ramblin, Ruthie Foster Keep Your Big Mouth Closed, Phoebe Snow, Rory Block and Koko Taylor with Black Rat Swing. Each artist has their own backing musicians such as Bob Margolin with Koko and David Bromberg with Snow. Muldaur provides the majority of songs here and her version of Tricks Ain’t Working is perhaps the best of her offering. This was the very first track of Memphis Minnie’s that she heard when with Victoria Spivey. and she added it to her repertoire instantly. Each song has been treated with reverence and passion and there is a definite feeling of Blues sisterhood throughout. Minnie is often cited as a pioneer and influence

VARIOUS

eLectric B Lues 1939-2005

vo Lume 1: Be G innin G s 1939-1954

bear Family records 3 cd box

vo Lume 2: part 2 1954-1967

bear Family records 3 cd box

vo Lume 4: part 4 1970-2005

bear Family records 3 cd box

Reviewing blues records is a great occupation, and some days it’s absolutely terrific. This is one of the terrific days. I’m writing this after a crammed weekend of documentaries on BBC TV celebrating the Rolling Stones’ 50th anniversary, and after hours of wall-to-wall wailing Fender Stratocasters and Telecasters, these three boxes arriving from the wonderful Bear Family Records in Germany seemed very apt. These records answer a question; just how much do we blues fans owe to the invention of amplification of the guitar and harmonica? All the answers are here, and they add up to a helluva lot. There is a Part 3 available, covering 1960-69, but the postman hasn’t brought that. However, this quartet of releases is so great I’ll simply have to order part 3 to feel life to be complete.

Apart from 221 tracks spread over these three boxes, (each set contains three CDs), each box contains a 150+ page illustrated book of liner notes masterfully written by Bill Dahl. So you’re not only getting the recorded music – you’re getting a veritable blues library, too. Dahl, (check him out at www.billdahl. com) deserves a review of his own. He has the kind of background most of us UK R&B scribes can only

dream about; growing up in Chicago, spending his school lunch money on 45s. In 1998, Dahl was nominated for a GRAMMY® in the Album Notes category for his contribution to Rhino’s boxed set Ray Charles Genius & Soul: The 50th Anniversary Collection. And Blues Matters! shares an honour with this splendid writer; like us, Dahl is the recipient of a ‘Keepin’ the Blues Alive’ Award for journalism, from the Blues Foundation in Memphis. How remarkable, a humble, skilled wordsmith being so justifiably recognised. We minor Sunday league hacks can only dream…

vo Lume 1 (1939-1954) reminds us that in the 1920s, the first generation of blues guitar pioneers from Charley Patton through to Robert Johnson all played acoustic. Prior to guitar amps, if you played guitar (or harmonica) in a drum and piano-dominated blues band back then, stepping forward for a solo was a challenge. Some guitarists overcame it by adopting the louder, spikier banjo, or by using a resonator guitar like a National steel, but it appears it was the Hawaiians who experimented with pickups as early as 1933. The rest, thankfully, is musical history, and when Andy Kirk and T-Bone Walker plugged into the mains, we were all in for a pleasant shock. That exhilarating jolt continues throughout this collection, which features some amazing tracks; Broonzy, Hooker, Hopkins, Muddy, Little Walter, B.B. King, Jimmy Reed, Ray Charles and many other big names rub shoulders with Chuck Norris (no, martial arts fans, not that Chuck Norris!) Sunny Blair, Papa Lightfoot, Pat Hare and stacks more. Each track has Dahl’s own informative notes, and the whole experience is an education for any blues fan.

vo Lume 2, 1954-1967 takes us into what was arguably the golden age of electric blues with 79 tracks which mark the dawn of rock’n’roll and serve as a timely reminder of what Messrs’ Jagger, Richards & co. were

all soaking up in their London bedsits before drug-fuelled mega fame took over. So here we’re introduced to Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Sonny Boy Williamson, Howlin’ Wolf, Bobby ‘Blue’ Bland and Elmore James, among others. It’s a rousing ride.

vo Lume 4, 1970-2005 could be regarded as the post-60s global blues explosion. There’s an expansion in style and sophistication, and a new elegance in recording techniques. By this time blue-eyed blues is well on the scene, so alongside B.B. King, Freddy King and the fiery Albert Collins here are tracks by George Thorogood, Rory Gallagher, Johnny Winter, ZZ Top and Roy Buchanan. All in all, this brilliant quartet of triple CDs lives up to its strapline ‘The Definitive Collection’. If you’re a geriatric blueser or a young newcomer, there’s just about everything worth knowing and listening to here to kit you out as an anorak. Beautiful packaging, excellent design, erudite words, and above all, wide-ranging and historic, epic blues. Plug it in, turn it up. Highly recommended as the ultimate gift for any blues fan. I’m off to get the missing Volume Part 3 now. Can’t wait …

roy Bainton

boxed: the great Charlie patton

red lIcK records, Po box 55, cardIFF cF11 1Jt sales@redlick.com. www.redlick.com

01

VARIOUS cLassic B Lues artwork caLen Dar 2013 an D c D (blues Images) 02

VARIOUS: the r eturn oF the Dreams are maD e oF (Yazoo 2cd) 03

TAMPA RED AND GEORGIA TOM m usic makin G i n c hicaG o 1928-1935 (J P 4cd) 04

08

MEMPHIS SLIM

r ockin’ the h ouse - the Best oF the r&B years (Fantastic Voyage 2cd) 09

IAN SIEGAL can Dy store ki D (Nugene cd) 10

16 BOB BROzMAN Fire i n the m in D (ruf cd)

17 GOV ’T MULE the Geor G ia BootLeG Box (Provogue 6cd)

18 MISSISSIPPI HEAT De Lta Boun D (delmark cd)

OTIS GRAND

ROBERT NIGHTHAWK, HOUSTON STACKHOUSE & JB HUTTO masters oF m o D ern B Lues (Floating World 2cd) 05 BIG BOY BLOATER: the wor LD e xpLaine D (azan cd) 06

POKEY LAFARGE AND THE SOUTH CITY THREE: Live i n h o LLan D (continental song city cd) 11

B Lues ‘65 (maingate cd) 12

LINSEY ALEXANDER Been there, Done that (delmark cd)

JULIAN FAUTH everyB o Dy o u G ht to treat a stran G er r i G ht (electro Fi cd)

VARIOUS

o n Ben D e D knee - the Birth oF swamp pop (GVc 2cd) 07

VAGIC SLIM & THE TEARDROPS BaD Boy (dixieFrog cd)

DAN PENN the Fame r ecor D in G s (ace cd)

IKE TURNER trou BLe u p the r oaD 1961 (secret cd)

19 GARY MOORE B Lues For Jimi (eagle cd)

20 ELMORE JAMES JUNIOR oLD s choo L Lover (Wolf cd)

in using the electric guitar within the Country Blues field, yet this is predominantly an acoustic outing, coming over as an old fashioned set of recordings but without the crackle and hiss that early systems gave. Three outstanding tracks are Snow with In My Girlish Days, a slow Blues that drips with emotion and to which Snow’s voice quavers and wails with suitable respect. The backing mandolin is quite the correct tone behind her and the song grows in stature as it progresses. Muldaur’s Lookin’ Over The World has her growling over a simple rag tempo with Del Ray on guitar. The song demonstrates her voice to the full and its simplicity belies the content. Finally Koko’s Black Rat Swing, the electric foray, oozes the power from her voice for which she was well known. This release is an interesting document in maintaining the name of Memphis Minnie and perhaps introducing new fans, but for me, I much prefer the original

VARIOUS ARTISTS

m ove with the Groove, c hicaG o s ou L 1962-1970 charly

Move With The Groove is a two CD set documenting just how important Chicago was fifty years ago in the development and growth of Soul within the US. Many people believe that Detroit with its Motown sound and label was the originator of Soul, so here three important record labels of that era namely One-derful, Mar-V-lus and M-Pac have been brought together by Charly records to present artists as diverse as The Sharpees, Harold Burrage, The Ulti-Mations and many more. One artist, Cicero Blake is still performing and I caught his act at a recent Chicago Blues Festival. Another artist I saw at Chicago is Lonnie Brooks, father of Ronnie and Wayne Baker Brooks. Here he is captured in his Guitar Jnr days with two songs, The Popeye and Mr. Hot Shot. It’s fair to say that modern styles and sounds are a million miles from what one hears

here. Offering a total of fifty songs over the two CDs, the majority of them are unknown to this scribe, but it is not difficult to see how some of these songs influenced others. Harold Burrage, a mentor for many of the genre’s younger artists, shows through his version of More Power To You recorded in 1962, how to belt out with feeling, and perhaps his influence could later be heard with Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett. The only track I can sing along to is the Five Du-Tones with Shake A Tail Feather, recorded in 1963. An interesting collection of largely unknown tracks that is an undeniable treasure for those interested in early soul.

merv osBorne

VARIOUS

santa’s Got m oJ o 2 electro-Fi records

This is a real blues Christmas celebration, Electro-Fi Records have put through a mix of songs that are full of warm cheer and old fashioned Christmas well-being with a twist of the melancholy at times, so not full of saccharine sweetness. Track 1, Be my Santa Claus is delightful and the laugh Shakura produces at the end is full of hidden promises and sets the scene for the whole album. Track 5, Hot Cider Cinnamon is full of sentiment and reminds us of all the things that make our Christmas special and Track 8, Fruteland Jackson’s Fat Santa, is jolly and a bright and breezy Rock n’ roll style number that brings a smile to your face and gets the party dancing. This CD is unashamedly sentimental, but has a sense of humour and irony as demonstrated so well on Track 10 Fathead’s, Santa’s Drunk with sleigh bells, gurgling child’s laughter and the opening chords of Jingle Bells turned into a jolly ironical ditty with Santa’s Drunk since 4th of May, and this collection definitely makes a change from many Christmas compilations around this time of the year, if it is a Christmas CD you want this is the one for you!

Liz aiken

B.B. KING

LaD ies & G entLemen...

mr B.B. kin G

universal, 10 cds/4 cds

There are two versions of this release available: a wallettstretching 10CD set and a neater four CD version. We’ll deal with the latter for now (but if Universal are feeling generous on the promo front, I’m willing to tackle a review). Both collections are handsomely packaged, with a hardback book that chronicles the career of the king of the blues.

Essays from journalist Ashly Kahn and blues producer Dick Shurman are accompanied by memorabillia and photos of King onstage and off.

The music on my compact version of ‘Ladies...’ covers King’s recorded output from 1949 to 2008. Starting with his early Bullett Records single Miss Martha King (curious to hear such a high vocal from the 24 year old King), to the somewhat morose choice of closer: See That My Grave Is Kept Clean

A total of 77 tracks in all, you get some astounding live numbers recorded back in ‘64 at the Regal Club in Chicago, along with that U2 collaboration. Bono and Co. aren’t the only guests on ‘Ladies...’, demonstrating King’s ability to share his talent with notable players that include Van Morrison, Eric Clapton, Dr John, Leon Russell and a whole lot more. Long may he continue to do so.

martin cook

showtime!

the bm ! rou N d–up of live blues

the 6th Carlisle blues roCk festival

SWALLOW HILLTOP HOTEL CARLISLE

9th-11th November 2012

Carlisle in the far north west of England has a strong industrial past, and due to it’s proximity with the Scottish border

a history of turmoil. However, this previously austere and highly fortified city now presents a different image. The city still boasts of its association with Hadrian’s Wall and its 12th century castle, but these days the cathedral complex and impressive Tullie House Museum, alongside a burgeoning cafe culture in the pedestrianised town centre add to it’s tourist appeal.

For the past five years there is

another reason that folks have been heading to Carlisle, and that is the annual blues festival run by Nick Westgarth and his team. Nick began to build connections within the music industry by bringing national blues artists to the Penrith Playhouse. When Nick relocated to Carlisle in 2005 he began to look for a venue to host a full weekend of music. This resulted in The Lakes Court Hotel (now The Hallmark)

Mick Ralphs

photo: chRistine MooRe

l aRRy and steve MccR ay

photo: chRistine MooRe

GR ainne duffy

photo: chRistine MooRe

hosting the first Carlisle Blues Festival in 2007. Over the last five years the festival has gone from strength to strength and is now located just outside the city centre at The Swallow Hilltop Hotel.

Nick’s portfolio of festival acts have included both national and international artists including Sherman Robertson, Michael Burks, Earl Thomas, Tom Principato, Jim Suhler, Mud Morganfield, Hamilton Loomis (all USA) and James Hunter, Ian Siegal, Paul Lamb, Matt Schofield, The Nimmo Brothers, Connie Lush, Nine Below Zero, Larry Miller and many more of the top acts on the British blues scene. This year the festival was re-named The Carlisle Blues/Rock Festival, and Nick unashamedly admits that this was a commercial decision to try and broaden the fan base and attract more punters, whilst also reflecting his own eclectic taste in great live music.

FRIDAY

This years festival got under way at 7.30pm on Friday 9th November with Gerry Jablonski and The Electric Band; this was high energy blues with a rock edge. The main stage plays to a room which holds 400 people, with seating through the middle section and standing/dancing room at the back and sides, two bar areas added ambient light to the darkened room and Gerry connected well with the crowd from the low stage area. Over a solid rhythm section, well crafted guitar and bluesharp solos set expectations high for the remainder of the festival, the crowd was clearly up for a good time as they stood to applaud the final chord.

Next Grainne Duffy’s set was rooted in a southern states country style. Duffy may come from Northern Ireland but her vocal style has shades of both Bonnie Rait and Shania Twain. The self-penned compositions of the band were well crafted and bounced along, but the audience was truly won over by her rendition of I’d Rather Go Blind, the Etta James Classic. You could’ve heard a pin drop!

Ian Siegal is always a favourite of the Carlisle Festival fans, and this year his association with the Mississippi Mudbloods produced a good variety

of sticky southern grooves, over which his gnarly vocals worked well. The multi-instrumentalist Luther Dickenson of Black Crows fame added an extra dimension to the mix via his terrific slide, mandolin and clever use of effects pedals. Ian seemed to really be having fun, as the band played a variety of tracks from recent award winning albums The Skinny and The Candy Store Kid.

Many of the festivalgoers buy a weekend ticket that includes accommodation at The Hilltop, and for those not quite ready to retire to their rooms more music was available in the side bar. Johnny Whitehill (blues guitarist of the year four times over) presented a new line up called the Groove-A-Matics. This was a fifties inspired up-beat set featuring Mick Cantwell whose singing style was reminiscent of a young Tom Jones, and he played a mean tenor sax too!

SATURDAY

Unfortunately your reviewer missed the Saturday afternoon session, but this opened with a short acoustic session by Steve Pablo Jones which was followed by Cherry Lee Mewis. Australian Geoff Achison with his Souldiggers, better known as stalwarts Sam Kelly, Spy Austin and Paul Jobson. Paul Cox made a rare trip North to headline the afternoon session with a high class band featuring The Splinter Groups’ Roger Cotton on keys.

Saturday evening got underway with Bad Company and Mott The Hoople founder member Mick Ralphs with his Blues Group. With Mick seemingly happy to share guitar duties with Jim Maving, vocal and harmonica duties were left to Son Maxwell who lead the band through a variety of originals and blues standards. The crowd were once again drawn in by the intimate feel, the on stage interaction, and tasteful solos.

Next Martin Turner’s Wishbone Ash provided a real ‘time-warp’ experience for those who were there first time around. The sheer quality of musicianship was there for all to enjoy as the signature sound of two guitars playing both intricate patterns and dense harmonies was reproduced by Ray Hatfield and Danny Wilson. Multi-layered vocals

topped the complex arrangements. Larry McCray and his band took to the stage as the headliners on Saturday night. The grooves from this band were huge! They were bluesy, funky and soul infused, helped by the Wurlitzer keyboard of Shawn McDonald which added to the wall of sound. Larry’s guitar playing showed that he has paid his dues to many of the greats including Freddie King and Albert Collins, and his vocal style had hints of B.B King and Delbert McLinton. Larry’s delivery was polished and effortless with oodles of feel, it has to be said however that the crowd wanted more from him between numbers. Although this side of his delivery was minimal, for your reporter this band was the highlight of the festival. Difficult to follow, but in the side bar Tommy Allen and Johnny Hewitt created a juke joint atmosphere and played on into the night with blues-harp and guitar/ percussion.

SUNDAY

First up on Sunday were Mike Bowden and Jim Williamson with Big Vern on percussion. What a joy this act was, all players were seated which added to the intimacy of their presentation as Mike’s strident acoustic guitar rhythms accompanied John’s creative electric guitar solos. Both players presented seasoned blues style vocals and their songs were quirky and amusing.

Next up was The Jon Amor Blues Group, the band played tight figures whilst Jon interjected his melodic vocal lines. The two guitarists in this group have distinctively different sounds, Jon on his softer-sounding Gibson, and Dave Doherty on his more cutting Fender Strat. Judging by the amount of physical activity behind the kit, I’m assuming that drummer Simon Small must be a fan of Keith Moon, and Bass man Chris Doherty was solidly with him all the way.

Lisa Mills from Mississippi played a duo set with acoustic bass man Ian Jennings. This was a marked change in timbre for the crowd as Lisa’s jangly almost ‘Dobro’ sounding semi-acoustic guitar contrasted with deep rich tones from the bass. Both players were experts in using their instruments rhythmically on

festivaLs

there’s no plaCe like...

FROME BLUES FESTIVAL

C HEESE And G RAI n, FRO m E, S O m ERSET

october 21st 2012

I looked forward to visiting this, the inaugural Frome Blues Festival, for one reason; that apart from Chantel McGregor, the line-up was new to me. Arriving at 2pm, I found Laurence Jones in full swing. The venue is buzzing too, albeit a Sunday lunchtime. The sound was incredible as it was for the duration of the festival. Laurence himself leads a tight trio, and just needs to find his own style and he will be a force to reckon with. I’d heard great reports of the next act, and having lived in Brighton until relocating to the West Country, was well aware of Jo Harman’s talent. By all accounts she was the act to watch that day. From the moment she and her band took to the stage I could see what all the fuss was about. The audience was transfixed by the predominantly bluesy set list which also mixed

gospel, soul and country in equal measure. Stand out for me was the self-penned ‘Sweet Man Moses’ where Jo sank to her knees during the Hammond solo. The crowd has a belief in her, every bit as she has in herself. She oozes sensuality and had the audience eating from her hand. My only observation, which I made to her management afterwards, was to work some more on her diction as every song tells a story in words as well as music. Next up was Eddie Martin and a stunning set of a more traditional Blues style, with the addition of a great brass section (I am assured it wasn’t Paul Weller on trumpet!). The whole performance was polished and, if not for the strategically placed tables at front of house, the aficionados in the audience would have been having a good old knees up! The only minor disappointment was the non-appearance of Pee Wee Willis who left the building feeling unwell. Oli Brown to me looked absolutely shattered. There

was very little smiling or interaction with the audience who were treated to what can only be described as a heavy set. Opening with Here I Am, the title track from the new album. I was impressed, but to my mind it was all too mechanical. He moved about the stage during solos in a classic rock mode but for me, lacked authenticity. The ballad Love You More Than You’ll Ever Know was, however, superb. Perhaps that is Oli’s niche. The set was, I thought, too reliant on covers, and for me was hijacked by the superb Wayne Proctor on drums. Talking of covers brings me on to Chantel McGregor. I first saw this little lady at Skegness a few years ago when she was locked in a legal battle over the use of her own material. From the opening Better Days I could see she has broken free from those shackles. Voodoo Chile highlighted the best rhythm section of the day. Like Jo Harman before her, Chantel exudes the charm of the girl next door. Yes, she relies heavily on covers but her guitar soloing is exemplary – she seems in a happy place and surely is a future headliner. The honour of that place this time went to Stan Webb’s Chicken Shack (a late replacement for Poppa Chubby). If he ever gives up on music, this man could make a living in stand-up comedy. If I tell you he dedicated The Thrill Is Gone to Angela Merkel, you’ll see what I mean. The stand-out for me though is that voice and guitar playing. Both combine perfectly, illustrating again what an experienced back-line brings to the party. Highlight? The tear-jerking version of the classic ‘I’d Rather Go Blind’. All I can say in conclusion is, book early for 2013 – a wonderful day, great staff and food, and a firm place in the blues calendar.

CLIvE RAWLInGS

joe haRMan. photo: chRistine MooRe

“ThE cROwD hAS A BELIEF IN hER, EVERY BIT AS ShE hAS IN hERSELF”

songs which included a tribute to Lisa’s influence Freddie King, and a version of Hendrix’s Little Wing.

The last act of the festival was Andy Fairweather Low and The Lowriders. After a sound check on an Eddie Harris instrumental the band launched in to Baby What Do You Want Me To Do, a relaxed shuffle. Andy’s vocals were high in range, but his delivery was cool, the band were classy with the sort of confidence that comes from years of playing in a variety of line-ups. Everything was understated, and in control. Reggae and soul style tunes followed and then an original tune made famous by Joe Cocker called Hymn For My Soul. The set was given a change in direction when Andy decided to run a few well known numbers by guitarists who influenced him, these included The Shadows Hank Marvin, Duane Eddy, and Freddie King. A bit of a sing-along on Bend Me Shake Me was followed by more originals such as Wide Eyed and Legless before finishing with (If Paradise is) Half as Nice, much to the crowd’s delight.

Carlisle Blues/Rock Festival is fast becoming one of Britains top music events, perhaps in it’s own field it has already reached those dizzy heights? The over riding ‘vibe’ is one of pure connection; connection between the musicians on stage, connection between bands and fans, and connection between festival goers, many of whom travel great distances to attend – some even from Europe! The venue lends itself to this ‘vibe’ as does the warmth and enthusiasm that comes from the hardworking team that runs the event, long may it continue.

by ROz SLumAn

tenbY blues festival FRIDAY

Fbm STAGE AT TE nby Ru G by C Lub. friday 9 November, 2012

KENT DUchAINE AND LEADBESSIE

Kent is a well-known act on the British and overseas blues circuits – touring and entertaining with his 1934 National resonator guitar he affectionately calls Leadbessie. Kent regaled the audience with numerous ‘tales from the Delta’, name dropping his many associations with well known icons from early Delta days. Some self-penned songs were performed together with a host of early country blues classics by Willie Dixon, Bukka White et al. The set was a little elongated due to the delay of some late showers following on performances. Kent received a rousing reception from sections of the audience many of whom were clearly Duchaine fans of old.

SIcKNOTE STEVE

Steve had been bumped up the programme following last year’s hugely popular performance on the Blues Trail pub circuit. Once again he didn’t disappoint – although he nearly fulfilled his destiny by being racked with bronchitis and being, himself almost in need of a ‘sick note’. As a tribute act there is a high degree of novelty value –but make no mistake the boy can sure play. Capably backed up by bass and drums on top of his own one-man-band paraphernalia, Steve had the place bouncing right from the off. No prizes for guessing the source of the material, but really well executed, you felt like shouting out ‘Y’all come back now!’, which no doubt he shall.

vALERO STAGE AT THE dE vALAn CE TODD ShARpVILLE

Todd, back again in West Wales, renewed our acquaintance with his ‘no surrender’ blazing fret board work backed up really tightly by a quality 3-piece unit of keys, bass and drums. Todd has a big following down this neck of the woods – and a lot of them turned out to greet the man again. A host of

fiery blues/rock was complemented by an extended and personalised version of Peter Green’s classic Need Your Love So Bad which went down very well. Todd, joined later in his set by the critically acclaimed Marcus Bonfanti on guitar and vocals, was able to put his axe down for a turn at the keyboards with both men sharing the vocal duties. More action with the two axe slingers ensued leaving the De Valance crowd well happy. As ever, a high energy, no holds barred effort from Todd and the gang.

SATURDAY

bLu ES TRAIL AT THE C ROWn Inn

saturday 10th November

ThE SpANNERS

For an early Saturday am. start, The Crown was packed to the doors and beyond. The Spanners were leading a ‘jam style’ session with twin guitars, bass and drums banging out loads of Bluesy/ Rock crowd pleasers, which certainly –er – pleased the crowd!

vALERO STAGE AT THE dE vALAn CE

LITTLE TOBY wALKER

This was a masterful display of 6 and 12 string dexterity from Toby who had flown in directly from the US to be at Tenby. If you love Americana, Mr Walker is your man. Engaging with the audience he took us through trips to The Mississippi Delta, Texas and all points South. Toby is a seasoned veteran who has worked with the likes of Marshall Tucker Band, Allman Bros and many others. Speaking of The Allmans – Toby did a killer solo instrumental of Whipping Post. A really excellent performance from a true pro. Having a few words with the man after the gig, I asked him if he was likely to pay a return visit to the UK anytime soon, whereupon he advised that while he would dearly love to, his next appearance on these shores won’t be before 2014. It will certainly be well worth the wait.

STEVE ROUx AND ThE BRASS KNUcKLE BLUES BAND

These guys are a really tight 7-piece combo comprising 3-piece brass and rhythm sections, keyboards and fronted by Steve on guitar and vocals. cONTINueS OVer

cARLISLE BLUES/ROcK FESTIVAL IS FAST BEcOMINg ONE OF BRITAINS TOp MUSIc EVENTS

festivaLs

Regrettably we were running between gigs and didn’t get too much time to really sit and enjoy the up tempo Chicago Blues and other Soul/ Blues on show here. Suffice to say this is a great unit with a formidable line up of quality musicians rocking the audience with a mega hot set.

bLu ES TRAIL AT THE FO u RCROFT ThE MARK pONTIN gROUp

I have to say this local (ish) trio really made an impression. From Hendrix through Cream (a really top version of White Room) to Rory Gallagher and other three piece supergoups too numerous to mention. Mark is a hugely talented guitarist – extremely well supported by bassist and drummer of equally high standard. This was a good venue for the band that spared no effort in getting the crowd on side with a very professional rock solid set. More please.

bLu ES TRAIL AT CAFFE vISTA MAhARAjAh BLUES

This was different, very different. Two Indian/Asian gentlemen playing classic Delta blues numbers on Resonator guitar and bongos! A relaxed coffee house setting with many in the audience wearing quizzical expressions to accompany their double espressos and lattes. This was a multi cultural event complementing the Caffe Vista menu. Did I say different?

bLu ES TRAIL THE THREE mARI n ERS ThE MEAN MISTREATERS

Again a full house to greet the return of The Mean Mistreaters. Chicago and classic electric Blues really well rendered helped cheer the crowd after the afternoon’s disappointment at the Wales Rugby result earlier.

The Blues Trail is a brilliant, if tiring, element of Tenby’s annual Blues Fest –so many pub and club venues all within a few hundred square metres and all free entry. So little time, so much beer!

vALERO STAGE AT THE dE vALAn CE gRAINNE DUFFY BAND

So to the start of the prime event of the weekend on the main stage at The De Valance. Grainne (pronounced

Graunya – I think!) and her band put a gremlin-laden start behind them to kick off proceedings in a packed house. The band had actually driven all the way down from Carlisle Festival that morning (that’s an awful long trip) – although once they had settled in their groove you would never had noticed. A fantastically tight and driving set with the audience loving an arrangement of ‘I’d rather go blind’ which got a huge reception from the many fans and crowd in general.

Grainne is building a big following and the future holds a lot of promise for a talent like hers. The band were deserving of their reception and I am sure we could well see her back at Tenby Blues in the not too distant future.

vALERO STAGE AT THE dE vALAn CE ROB TOgNONI BAND

This is a difficult review to write as a diehard blues fan. Rob Tognoni is a non-compromising guitar virtuoso within his genre – which clearly leans more to the hard rock side than blues per se. Skillwise Rob is certainly a master of the blazing fret board as well as being an outstanding showman. Not being one to ‘hide his light under a bushel’, he attacks his instrument (and the audience) with unrelenting power – testosterone flying everywhere, with maybe just a touch of tongue in cheek appearing here and there – however he held the attention and the crowd responded all right. A big reception for the man who loves to blister and shred.

OLI BROwN BAND

Oli and the band made a very welcome return to Tenby as headline act –following a great reception here also at the De Valance in 2008.

Lauded in some circles as the British Joe Bonamassa, Oli did not disappoint. He has, however, retained and grown with his very own style, and it was interesting to see him back in Telecaster mode for the whole set.The numbers getting up on the dance floor gave a clue to how well he was going down, and the three young men on the stage were appreciating it too! A lot of material from the latest album was heard, interspersed with some older original and classic blues as interpreted by the man. A triumphant return to

Tenby – welcome back Oli. Some things don’t change (except haircuts maybe? – er – enough of that now).The boy done good.

SUNDAY

THE bLu ES TRAIL AT THE FO u RCROFT DEKE

LEONARD

sunday 11th November

I readily confess to some self interest in this review as a long term musical cohort of Deke when we were both mere striplings playing in our respective bands (Corncrackers and Vikings) in the old Wild West (aka Carmarthenshire) in the early sixties. The Welsh battle-scarred legend turned up at The Fourcroft to give the large audience, who had made an early Sunday morning start the benefit of some of his years travelling and performing in many countries. Never the shy retiring type, Deke gave forth on a variety of subjects – a number of which would be unlikely to receive a U-rated censor certificate, but which judging from the roars of laughter, sat well with the attentive audience (mercifully adults only). Deke was plugging his new and third book ‘The Twang Dynasty’ which – if as good as his previous two publications – will undoubtedly be another success to chalk up. In between the banter there was music, with Deke renewing our acquaintance with his two constant road companions the battered Telecaster and even more battered Gibson SG. Some early inspirational songs – courtesy of a certain Mr Presley – were given an airing – occasionally interspersed with muffled curses from the ‘Man’ when the wood and metal failed to respond as required! A really enjoyable outing sent everyone off in search of Sunday lunch with a smile on the face (and a book under the arm).

Fbm STAGE AT TE nby Ru G by C Lub MATT wOOSEY

Matt is an extremely accomplished instrumentalist with a great blues voice in the modern style. An extended set due to a missing following act gave the audience the opportunity to fully enjoy the talents of this man for longer than anticipated, which proved to be a real bonus. Matt has a laid-back style when it comes to engaging with his audience, and his playing and singing were

pleasures which were really well enjoyed by the sizeable audience on the final day – not too many early baths thankfully. This is an entertainer with great prospects who is well worth catching when he comes to your area, which he undoubtedly will as there is little doubt he is going to be in great demand .

Fbm STAGE AT TE nby Ru G by C Lub jAMIE FRANcIS AND STARK

sunday evening 11th November

Jamie was making a welcome return to Tenby following on from his successful solo debut last year, and together with his band Stark did not disappoint the expectant audience. Songs from the CD release were given a fresh airing –benefitting from the added harmonies provided by the drummer Evan and bass player Josh which make up this talented trio. Jamie continues to grow as a performer and, having seen him recently

at other venues, there is a definite future in store for the guys, who are honing their already very proficient skills.A great return performance this time, keep an eye on them for maybe an appearance in your area. An act very worthwhile catching.

hENRY’S FUNERAL ShOE

So to the final act of the Tenby weekend the two brothers Clifford hailing from Ystrad Mynach deep in the valleys and if their PR was anything to go by, we were advised to put on our seat belts, crash helmets and ear plugs and batten down the hatches. Not bad advice as it went as the boys told us they take no prisoners in the war against decibels!! However, yes they are loud and yes they are proud, but man are they good? You betcha!

I liked Henry’s Funeral Shoe immensely for despite the Clifford brother’s warnings of impending

Apolyptical chaos their songs were really well thought out and delivered in high style. The boys had just returned from back to back Blues cruises, sharing shipboard billings with Kiss (blues?) and Lynnyrd Skynnyrd. I feel sure they more than held their own in such exalted company – hopefully they left fewer empty energy drink cans rolling round the stage. The energy levels, especially of Brennig, Alde’s drumming sibling, were reminiscent of Keith Moon in his pomp – who can say better than that. Don’t be fooled into thinking that these guys are shred freaks come thrash masters, this was music with a distinct and elemental basis in blues. Blues for this generation if you will, and two great guys to boot, the brothers were a real pleasure to talk to after the show, very respectful of the audience and gracious.

An absolute cracker of a finale to Tenby 2012. dAvE WARd

roots, blues anD sunshine

SwANAgE BLUES AND ROOTS FESTIVAL SWAnAGE, dORSET

5-7th october, 2012

What an amazing weekend organised by the wonderful Steve Darrington. This is, in all, his 18th Festival and though I’ve been to a few others around the country, this certainly takes some beating. For the princely sum of £10, you buy a bracelet and wander around the lovely town taking in all sorts of, sometimes diverse, acts. I’m afraid I missed the Mustangs on the Friday night, due to other commitments, but the feedback was encouraging. Basically, there are 15 indoor venues, with bands playing constantly and there is no place for egos! On the Saturday afternoon I caught the end of a rousing set from Reading’s Jason Manners and 3 Buck Shirt in Bar One, meeting up with the Bare Bones Boogie Band, prior to their early evening slot. Having seen

the first part of that, I made my way to Tawny’s where Pete Harris and Hugh Budden were doing a fantastic set. What I like about Pete is that he explains in depth the origin of each song he sings, very enlightening. I was put off by being asked politely to stand as the tables were reserved for diners, who had materialised, but never mind. A walk back down to the bottom of town, I went to East Bar, where I caught up with Jay Tamkin and band setting up. Having not seen him for a couple of years, I was interested to see how, if at all, he had progressed. I soon found out in as brilliant a set of blues/rock you could wish for, supported by Ric Christiansen on keys and dad on drums. Brighton’s own The Elevators were another ‘must see’ for me. It meant a longer walk than first thought up to the British Legion Club, only to find that the place was full, so had to wait for someone to exit before

I could get in, who says the Blues is dying? What a set they did, with Fran Galpin at the forefront on vocals and various guitars/harp, mainstays Mick and Martin on drums and bass, Phil Greaves on guitar and ‘newby’ Tall Paul Lawson on guitar/slide etc. Sunday was a little more tranquil. Starting by seeing Peter Harris and Hugh Budden again at Sea Breeze, a short wander to The White Horse took me to the Robin Bibi Band doing a set prior to the jam session. It had everything a set by Robin consists of, the man just never ceases to amaze. I’d like to make special mention of Robin’s young step-daughter, whose name eludes me, but she did a couple of covers and the voice is to die for! There is talk about the festival not being able to carry on, that would be a travesty, so it’s up to us, the public, to keep supporting it, I guarantee you’ll enjoy it.

CLIvE RAWLInGS

LISTER LED ThE BAND ThROUgh A STEVIE RAY VAUghAN STYLE ShUFFLE

AYNSLEY LISTER AND LEwIS hAMILTON

THE CAvES, EdInbuRGH

2nd december, 2012

Just as regular as the opening of advent calendars is the visit of Aynsley Lister to Edinburgh in early December. While the heavy snow of two years ago was avoided, we were soon to hear of another mishap. Before that, rising local blues star Lewis Hamilton performed an impressive opening slot. The title track of his second album ‘Empty Roads’ displayed his growing talents on the slide guitar. ‘Whisky Boogie’ gave existing fans and newcomers alike a tantalising indication of his next album; currently in the pipeline. Backed by the solid Nick Hamilton on bass and Santa on drums, Hamilton put in a dynamic live performance. Yet little did the audience know they would be seeing him again so soon; when Aynsley Lister took to the stage he notified us that due to cold he had lost his singing voice. Undeterred

Lister led the band through a Stevie Ray Vaughan style shuffle which segued into ‘Cissy Strut’ with Andre Bassing on keyboards adding a stylish touch. Bassist Steve Amadeo lead an instrumental version of the commercial sounding ‘Inside Out’, before Hamilton was brought back to the stage. Although his hands initially looked uncomfortable without guitar, he continued to demonstrate how he has evolved as a singer. ‘All Along The Watchtower’ was recorded by Lister for his Ruf debut when Hamilton was a mere 6 years old, yet they combined well. Following ‘Just Got Paid’ a relieved Lister complemented his stand in vocalist and jovially remarked how he rarely gets such a cheer performing his own material. Back to a quartet an instrumental ‘What’s It All About was a highlight, with searing guitar solo. For the encore Hamilton returned with guitar in hand to jam with Lister and band on ‘Further On Up the Road’ and ‘Crossroads’, the icing on

the cake to what was a unique and memorable evening.

dunCAn bEATTIE

BABY ISAAc

THE vOOdOO ROOmS,

1st November, 2012

EdInbuRGH

The Speakeasy lounge of Edinburgh’s Voodoo Rooms was the setting for this performance by one of the country’s finest proponents of rhythm & blues, swing and jazz. Having been a fixture on the north British circuit for more years than they would admit to, Baby Isaac are always entertaining performers. Fronted by soulful vocalist Angela Moore, whose colourful dress contrasted with the dark suits of guitarist Derek Welsh, stand-up bassist Graeme Smith, harp player Gary Arnott and drummer Dave Welsh. ‘Soulful Dress from the band’s most recent album Blues Epidemic got the evening underway with an upbeat start. It was soon apparent to newcomers that this band do not waste a note, the

aynsley listeR photo: MaRco van Rooijen

rhythm section are particularly tight. An inventive medley of Nobody’s Fault But Mine and Walk on Walter followed and saw Moore and Arnott switch lead vocals. While Wang Dang Doodle followed convention, Baby Isaac have their own unique style. The self-penned What The Hell included a change of tempo which brought the song to an exciting climax. With no unnecessary interludes or extensive instrumental showcases, the performance kept the crowd entertained with a collection of songs with enough variation not to feel repetitive. Sugar Mama saw Arnott take lead vocals on which his harp playing came to prominence. Finishing their set with Choo Choo, Baby Isaac typifies good time blues and their live performances are highly recommended.

dunCAn bEATTIE

BETTYE LAVETTE JAzz CAFE, LOndOn

11th december, 2012

When we knew UK’s much vaunted, award nominated singing star, Jo Harman, bought her ticket to see a legendary figure from the world of International Blues and Soul, the incomparable Bettye Lavette, we asked Jo to file her report from the Jazz Cafe, from a professional and personal perspective. Here’s her take on proceedings...

When I found out that one of my genuine heroes (OK, heroines!) played her only UK gig at the Jazz Cafe in Camden I knew I had to be there. OK I live just up the road, but I would have travelled pretty much any distance to see this iconic soul/blues artist in the flesh. When I first started out doing my own music - music I loved, as opposed to music other people may have lovedBettye was very much an inspiration to me and, indeed, I used to cover her song ‘You’ll Never Change’ in my own fledgling set. Sometimes in these circumstances the sense of expectation can outweigh the reality but no such worries on this occasion, Bettye just floored me - and the whole venue indeed - with a quite incredible set of bone deep and heartfelt artistry. The hairs were standing up on my neck from the first moment Bettye, off stage on her radio mic, let loose her trademark soul deep growl and she

walked on stage looking, at age 66, like a million dollars and with a figure to match. She held the audience in her hand from the off, backed by her own sympathetic and, for the most part, understated blues fuelled quartet as she worked through a good number of tunes from her recent cover albums, giving her own unique take on songs by Bob Dylan, Neil Young and other more modern writers. Her wonderful slow burning, impassioned, version of ‘Crazy’, in particular - ‘recorded so my grandchild might think I’m hip’ - just underlined how a singer can ‘own’ a song, whoever wrote it, and own it she did, and then some. The whole thing was a pure masterclass to a developing artist - even a blonde, middle class white girl from Devon like myself - not least in terms of commitmentBettye simply bled every note she sang - (sincere) showmanship and stagecraft. Her stories and interaction with the spellbound audience were worth the ticket price alone. Bettye closed the latter part of the show with the soulful ‘Heaven’ and, a song she must have sung a million times before, ‘Let Me Down Easy’, her biggest (‘my only’) hit. Bettye sang it like it was the first time, like the guy had only just told her the news and we believed every syllable of every line and we all shared her pain to the core. A totally, totally, inspirational show rounded off with an impromptu (?) a capella to an adoring crowd. From both a professional (singer) and personal (gig goer) point of view a simply incredible experience from a simply incredible artist. A performance, a yard in front of me as I stood at the front of the Jazz Cafe, that I shall never, ever forget. They really don’t make them like this anymore. I pinched her set list. I think I might frame it. Bless you, Bettye Lavette.

JO HARmAn

jOhN ALExANDER

THE ACOuSTIC muSIC CEnTRE, EdInbuRGH

24th august, 2012

The Edinburgh Fringe is not renowned for its music shows, but beyond the daunting number of comedians, there are some high quality music events. While an excursion to an unknown comic may give you the blues, there were no such concerns about the standard of

performance at the Acoustic Music Centre in St Brides Church, with a lineup of intimate, but well attended shows including Dick Gaughan, Preston Reed and Mike Whellans. It was John Alexander that I had come to see, with a show subtitled ‘Dustbowl Blues with a Glasgow Kick’. A solo performer and story teller, I was struck from the opening Saints & Sinners by both his soulful but gritty vocals, and the honesty of his delivery. The bluesy Still Got a Long Way Home was upbeat, while a topical Dangerous Win featured some particularly intricate acoustic guitar playing. The performance allowed the audience to hold onto every word Alexander uttered, and this came over strongly on the atmospheric Long Way Home. A diverse set saw Alexander switch from Apologies To Woody, with its country blues flavour, to the Celtic influence of Bridge Of Kings. The boundaries between these genres are blurred. This was a point made by Alexander before Gallows Pole, a song of Scottish/Irish decent, which became a regular theme in American folklore. With a rich imagery within his lyrics in songs such as This Side Or The Other and a likeable dry wit, Alexander is an engaging and talented performer well worthy of your exploration.

dunCAn bEATTIE

ROBERT cRAY BAND

02 SHEPHERdS buSH EmPIRE, LOndOn

26th June, 2012

Cray’s set tonight, as part of the BluesFest, highlights how as a musician, he is happy to carry on riding his own wave of creation, consistently reworking the blues wheel by affecting its groove from anywhere but the genre he is so widely attributed to being a key part of. His soulful voice, rich in diverse melody and tone, recalls much more Motown than perhaps Chess Records, whilst his toying with the standard form of the blues has meant that he still appeals to new audiences with a fresh approach to the genre. Backed by the immense Jim Pugh on keyboards, the bare-footed Richard Cousins on bass and Tony Braunagel on drums, Cray strolls out

joanne shaw taYlor

jOANNE ShAw TAYLOR

mR KyPS, POOLE

14th october, 2012

If you’re into hard rocking blues, extended incendiary guitar solos, chest thumping bass lines, pounding drums and swirling keyboards, you had to be here tonight. First up though was support Tristan Mackay, who had none of the above, but nonetheless showed what he was capable of. Starting with folky/blues accompanying himself on acoustic guitar, he transferred to electric and things got decidedly bluesy from then on. Promoting his own Out Along The Wire album, he mixed his own compositions with covers, notably on The Thrill Is Gone. Tristan is hoping to get his A Million Little Things on the Radio 2 playlist, so good luck with that.

Aided by the extremely tight trio of Joe Veloz on bass, Tony Dicello on drums (both from Detroit) and Brit Jools Grudgings on keys, Joanne Shaw Taylor took the stage by storm, ripping straight into Soul Station the opening track from the new Almost Always Never CD.Her phenomenal guitar solos are long, muscular

and at breakneck speed and her voice roared with gutsy power on her older Jump That Train and a ferocious version of Hendrix’s Manic Depression. Joanne’s not all ‘crash, bang and wallop’ though, as testified by her emotion-charged vocal and beautiful guitar soloing on Frankie Miller’s Jealousy.

Another of her older songs Diamonds in the Dirt had a soul-like feel to it, perhaps more evident in some of the songs from the aforementioned new album. There’s a newfound subtlety in the case of Beautifuly Broken and Lose Myself to Loving You. More of an observation than a criticism, is that there could be a little more variety on her set-list, something that will no doubt come with experience. Disappointingly the venue was probably half full, whether that is apathy or the Sunday night, who knows, but when Joanne said how she had looked forward to playing Poole, a member of the audience shouted ‘Don’t make it your last!’, Joanne simply replied ‘I guess that’s up to you’. All in all, a great night at a great, friendly venue, thanks Joanne.

in a pair of slacks, open shirt and flip flops, ready to perform songs he feels are the best, not just what the crowd want to hear. ‘Like this’… was the refrain as he began each scintillating number, starting with the classic Don’t You Even Care. It was to be the theme throughout the night as stories of faithless women and broken hearts gave some heartfelt soul to the music, which borrows from funk, gospel and soul to give Cray’s blues a distinctive style. He has the archetypal blues voice with crystal clear diction and a wonderful range which compliments the virtuosity he displays on his trademark Stratocaster (annoyingly changed every song). The atmosphere is lacking somewhat, in part because of the venue being half seated, but Cray struts his stuff and his solos are unique, you feel part of something special. There are a fair share of tracks from the new Nothin’ But Love album, but Robert does not have a setlist, which makes it difficult to identify each track. A few classics were thrown into the mix, though, including Smoking Gun and Chicken in the Kitchen, complete with a superb guitar break. He caused some amusement by informing the audience after that song that ‘You know, these things play themselves’, yeah right! He ended by taking the tempo down with the beautiful ballad Time Takes Two, which showcased both his wonderful voice and sensitive guitar playing. Ultimately, Robert Cray is a bluesman with a sight for continuously moving forward , not allowing himself or his music to stagnate and become irrelevant; tonights performance illustrated just that.

CLIvE RAWLInGS

SANDI ThOM

mARInE THEATRE, LymE REGIS

27th october, 2012

A beautiful, intimate venue for what turned out to be a celebration for Sandi finally being granted US citizenship. Barbara J Hunt, a local singer/ songwriter did a sterling job in the support role, never easy, but had the audience in the palm of her hand with her set of original material. Then, it was the turn of the lady from North of the border (Mexican or English, take your pick!). Accompanied only by Steve Down on guitar – his third gig on the tour,

CLIvE RAWLInGS

photo: chRistine MooRe

and long- time drummer Craig Connet on percussion, gave a quick reveille on the harmonica, before setting off on a riff-heavy version of ‘Help Me’. The sound was a perfect mix of both silk and steel, the musicianship faultless, as they moved on to Stormy Weather with its funky, rhythmic undertone. Along with much of tonight’s set list, these two were taken from the new Flesh and Blood album. Preceded by the beautiful take on Buffy Sainte Marie’s Big Ones Get Away, we were treated to the song which started it all off for Sandi. Love it or hate it, I Wish I was a Punk Rocker, the souped- up version of which we got tonight, will always be there, although it sounds a little dated now, compared to where Sandi is now. Taken from the Merchants and Thieves album, Show No Concern and This Ol’ World were well crafted, Mr Down making a fair fist of doing a certain Mr Bonamassa’s solo on the latter it must be said! Talking of whom, one of many highlights for this reviewer was the song dedicated to Joe, Love You Like A Lunatic. Still the bluesy vibe kept coming, Need Your Love So Bad, again with Steve brilliant on acoustic guitar, exquisitively arranged to illustrate the full range of Sandi’s vocal ability. I understand a covers album is in the offing and Guns and Roses November Rain will be on it, we got an astounding version tonight. The evening ended with Sandi conducting the packed house on the chorus of her Runaway Train. Congratulations Sandi and musicians, you managed to wake up this corner of sleepy Dorset!

CLIvE RAWLInGS

ThE cLIMAx BLUES BAND/chUcK MIcALIFFE

LICHFIELd GuILdHALL

december 8th 2012

One of the country’s longest-serving blues bands returned to raise the rafters of the Lichfield Guildhall when The Climax Blues Band appeared. Local singer songwriter Chuck Micaliffe started the evening, playing songs by such luminaries as John Prine and Gordon Lightfoot, whilst a version of Bob Dylan’s Don’t think twice, it’s alright was an early highlight, his own songs matched the high standard with Old Man and The Sun, the moon and

the stars both being fine narrative songs. Technical gremlins interfered in the set, which saw the seasoned troubadour playing and singing without any amplification, and still getting his message across. With a history dating back more than thirty years, the Climax Blues Band marked their territory early on, with two Willie Dixon songs. Seventh Son and Down in Louisiana were tight, funk-based readings, and allowed for some fine singing from guitarist and vocalist Stevie Hayes, and soloing from guitarist Lester Hunt and saxophonist Johnny Pugh, with strong support from keyboard player George Glover, bassist Neil Simpson and Drummer Roy Adams. Although the band’s repertoire comes mainly from the blues, the tight unison playing on saxes and guitars, also betrayed the influence of jazz, a well as a definite rockier edge in such songs as Fool for the Bright Lights and Chasing Change. Lester Hunt led the band through a blues rock Take me back to Georgia whilst So Many Roads was a slow blues which allowed for a show-stealing Saxophone solo that was both technically demanding and also full of soul. The first half finished with a third Willie Dixon song, with a jump-jive rendering of I’m Ready. The pace was lifted during the second set, with a far more responsive audience being treated to livelier than usual versions of Little Red Rooster and Spoonful, both blues standards that can drag in the hands of lesser blues bands, or be treated with far too much reverence. The band got their hands dirty with both songs. They showed their slow blues credentials with Last Chance Saloon, whilst the pace really lifted during Couldn’t get it right the song’s mix of a catchy beat and road-won musicianship providing the band with their bestknown song to date. After this it was a straight home run with Towards the Sun and Let the Good times roll which was packed full of high quality musicianship, and a very deep groove. An encore of Going to New York/Money saw a fine guitar solo, the first of the night, from Stevie Hayes, and it was a shame that the audience had to wait until the end of the concert to hear this facet of his musicianship.

bEn mACnAIR

ThE DIRTY DOZEN BRASS BAND

THE 50TH uLSTER bAnK bELFAST FESTIvAL AT QuEEn’S

November 2nd 2012

It’s a dismal thought that in the mid-70s the New Orleans brass bands that for decades had been a colourful presence at the city’s parades and funerals were in serious danger of extinction. But then along came the Dirty Dozen Brass Band who by introducing elements of R‘n’B, jazz and funk into the music reinvigorated the tradition.In truth, during some of the band’s long, funky workouts one might have felt that they were straying too far for comfort from their roots but ultimately the vibrancy of the interplay between the seven musicians and the sheer excitement they generated carried the day. “We’re going to have some fun,” was the promise as the septet – sousaphone, two trumpets, baritone and tenor saxophones, keys, drums – took the stage.

And yet a few of the early tracks like ‘Tomorrow’, from the band’s current album Twenty Dozen, seemed pedestrian and those who leapt on to the dance floor eager to make some groovy shapes found themselves somewhat stranded.

Stevie Wonder’s ‘Superstition’, ever a guaranteed dance floor filler, worked its usual magic, however, although extroverted trumpeter Efrem Towns’ raucous vocals were unexceptional.

On what may have been called Everybody Get Up the band’s other trumpeter Gregory Davis called out moves and almost the entire audience responded delightedly and bopped merrily along, with Davis’s lyrics alluding to ‘Shake Rattle & Roll’ and ‘TuttiFrutti’.

An exhilarating When The Saints Go Marching In featured immaculate ensemble playing, a glorious trumpet solo from Towns and great vocal interplay between Towns and deepvoiced tenor player Kevin Harris.

The likes of the jazzy Git Up and the funky Dirty Old Man provided the fun that the band had promised, while a strange St James Infirmary, played as a duet by baritone saxophonist Roger Lewis and Davis, two of the band’s founder members, was woozily, wonkily wonderful.

TREvOR HOdGETT

december 2012

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