Blues Matters 81

THE BLUES MATTERS! STAGE AT JAKS

SPLIT WHISKERS BAND

RED BUTLER

MICK SIMPSON & MALAYA BLUE

ROADHOUSE JAM SESSIONS

THE DAVE THOMAS BAND

SHARON COLGAN BAND

JED THOMAS BAND

RICHARD TOWNEND

JO BYWATER

MICK SIMPSON & MALAYA BLUE

ROADHOUSE

LAURA HOLLAND BAND

ROBIN ROBERTSON BLUES BAND

Well welcome, welcome, welcome to the Christmas issue of the magazine where the Blues really Matters! It was nice to see that no less than Joe Bonamassa himself included the cover of issue 80 on his web site and shared the same comment.

Many of you have been asking about the ‘confusion’ relating to the selection of the act to represent the UK at the European Blues Challenge in Brussels in March 2015. After four well received and previously acceptable nominations we do not wish, at present, to add to what has already appeared on Facebook and the website. In the interests of the bands concerned, Blues Matters! has agreed, with very considerable reservations, to go along with the ‘proposal’ put forward by the EBU Board, who have acted disgracefully in this matter, (even changing nomination dates after our submission was in good time but which did not suit their intentions). We wish good luck to whoever is finally chosen to be the UK’s representative in Brussels. However, we do not believe that this is the end of the matter.

Anyway, as our title says: it is the Blues that Matters! A new issue, bumper packed as usual with some of the best in blues reading and reviewing anywhere (that’s what YOU tell us). Enjoy your issue and from all at BM a VERY happy Christmas and New Year to you all, our and thanks for your support.

We are spartacus!

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

cOntributing pHOtOgrapHers:

Christine moore, liz aiken, annie Goodman, others credited on page

© 2014 blues Matters! Original material in this magazine is © the authors. Reproduction may only be made with prior consent of the Editor and provided that acknowledgement is given of the source and copy is sent to the editorial address. Care is taken to ensure that the contents of this magazine are accurate but the publishers do not accept any responsibility for errors that may occur or views expressed editorially. All rights reserved. No parts of this magazine may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying recording or otherwise without prior permission of the editor. Submissions: Readers are invited to submit articles, letters and photographs for publication. The publishers reserve the right to amend any submissions and cannot accept responsibility for loss or damage. Please note: Once submitted material becomes the intellectual property of Blues Matters and can only later be withdrawn from publication at the expediency of Blues Matters!

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REGULARS

08

Happenin’

All the latest news and views from the Blues world. Our regular feature Kitchat goes guitar mad on the shores of Lake Maggiori. Meet DJ Martin Freeman and check out the new Stevie Ray Vaughan box set.

16 blue blooD

90

104

This batch of new talent includes Ruby Tiger, The Rainbreakers, Jo Bywater and Belguims Lightnin’ Guy.

reD lick Top 20

Our friends at Red Lick with their list of the best selling blues albums.

rMr blueS Top 50

The Roots Music Report independent airplay chart. The chart to be seen in.

INTERVIEWS

22

26

32

36

42

SoFie reeD

Swedish born, Colorado based performer who is causing quite a stir.

MaTT anDerSen

Meet the Canadian vocal powerhouse and non-stop touring machine.

JiMMy barneS

The man with the freight train heart celebrates thirty years of going solo.

DelberT MclinTon

The Blues Brothers collaborator reflects upon his long career.

caTHy leMonS

In depth interview with the San Francisco-based blues siren.

48 Malaya blue

52

64

70

74

80

A bright new vocal star starting to make some waves.

Devon allMan

Southern Brotherhood man heads north to record his album.

erJa lyyTinen

Queen of the slide guitar pays tribute to the Delta legend Elmore James.

Dana DiXon

Edinburgh based, world renowned harp blower.

MelinDa colaiZZi

With a voice compared to Janice and the songs and chops to match.

Dave kelly

Second part of our Dave Kelly special. More about his gifted sister Jo Ann.

FEATURES

84

unDer THe raDar: Joe JaMMer

The blues rock Zelig. BM checks out his amazing career.

REVIEWS

91

albuMS

Another giant hit of the best new releases and re-issues currently available across the Blues world. Including Robben Ford, Erja Lyytinen and Sterling Koch and more.

119

SHowTiMe

Festivals and gigs aplenty, including Colne, Monaghan, Gaasterland, Portland and more.

jack bruce says goodbye

Composer, singer, multi-instrumentalist and legend. Hailed as one of the most powerful vocalists and greatest bassists of his time, his improvisational skills and utterly unique, free-spirited approach would forever change electric music. His pioneering, full-toned, free-wheeling playing on electric bass revolutionised the way the instrument is used and influenced countless bass players including Jaco Pastorius and Sting.

His work with bands such as Cream, Tony Williams, Alexis Korner, Graham Bond and his solo material unlocked the doors of a new approach to the art of sound.

Cream went on to sell 35 million albums in just two years winning the worlds first ever platinum disc for Wheels Of Fire. Jack sang and wrote most of their classic and best loved songs including I Feel Free, White Room, Politician and Sunshine Of Your Love.

His 14th solo album, Silver Rails, was released earlier this year, receiving massive critical acclaim. It included many guest appearances and saw Jack collaborating with long time writing partner Pete Brown again.

Verbals: steve YO urglivc H all tHe blues tHat’s FIt tO PrINt, FrOm arOuND tHe WOrlD

John Symon ASher ‘JAck’ Bruce 15th mAy 1943- 25th octoBer 2014

seileMan stands down

Long-serving head of The Blues Foundation Jay Seileman has confirmed he plans to stand down as President and Chief Executive in September 2015. He has held the top job with huge success since 2003 and is the longest serving executive in the Foundations forty year history. When he took on the role the organisation was in dire straits and he brought in fiscal stability and helped develop

and grow The International Blues Challenge and Blues Music Awards into world wide respected events. Blues Matters! published an in-depth interview with Jay in issue 77.

sista Monica parKer

Santa Cruz based blues/ gospel singer Sista Monica Parker sadly lost her battle with lung cancer aged 58. She had been a hugely popular live performers at festivals acoss the USA and Europe. She had in fact first been diagnosed with a rare form of cancer in 2003 and given three months to live. It is testament to the character and drive of this huge personality and former US Marine that she continued to make outstanding music.

SIStA monIcA PArker

JAy SeILemAn

REVIEWS EXTRA

ray oF suNsHINe!

sONY Have releaseD tHe DeFINItIve trIbute tO a muCH-mIsseD blues leGeND. bm CHeCKs It Out...

STevie ray vaugHan & Double Trouble

the comPLete ePIc recorDInGS coLLectIon

epic/sony legacy

In the 60th birthday year for the legendary blues guitarist and singer Stevie Ray Vaughan, we have what must be one of the ultimate collections for his fans, with this ‘definitive’ and apparently epic 12 disc set.

Having not so long ago presented us with the wonderful Johnny Winter Story , Sony has outdone itself once again with this set, which has rare and hard to find tracks that include the previously unavailable promotional recording from Toronto’s El Mocambo Club, dating from 1983, and found on disc five.

Appropriately born in the year that Leo produced the first Fender Stratocaster, Vaughan, affectionately known as SRV, first picked up a guitar at seven years of age and went on to become one of the highest selling blues artists of all time, attaining unprecedented multiple gold, platinum and multiplatinum album sales.

Disc one in this set is In The Beginnning , from the radio broadcast on KLBJ-FM recorded

during 1980 in Austin, Texas, with Stevie joined by Chris Layton and Jackie Newhouse on bass. The second and third discs are both Montreux Jazz Festivals dating from 1982 and 1985, and disc nine is the definitive 1986 Montreux appearance.

Disc ten is the album In Step from 1989, while discs 11 and 12 are labelled as ‘archive sets’, and are of justifiably great interest! There are 22 tracks on these, and from the high-energy kick-off of Tin Pan Alley – aka Roughest Place In Town – you are taken by the lovely guitar tone from Vaughan’s trademark battered Strat.

I had to jump to the second disc to hear Little Wing segued with Third Stone From The Sun. I do not have the words to fully describe this awesome rendition.

The clarity of mastering and production is superb, well done to all involved in this project. The sturdy box case contains the discs in card copies of the original sleeves, and you get a 32 page

monochrome booklet, with notes by Damian Fanelli of Guitar World , accompanied by images and full track listings presented in sequence.

I wonder what it is like up there in jamming heaven? Can you imagine the Fwenderbenders of Jimi, SRV, and Rory Gallagher up there together... if only they were still down here!

While he was alive, we had a good dose of Mr Vaughan’s considerable talent and range, and after going through this set, you will also realise what a loss his early departure was – like Jimi, his star burned so bright, but far, far too quickly.

Verbals: frank leigH

tHe clarIty of masterIng and productIon Is superb

SrV: the reAL deAL

On the air : daVid FreeMan

Verbals: darrYl Weale

COlIN DeXter, tHe autHOr OF mOrse Is a Dear OlD FrIeND. mOrse FOuND tHe bODY OF a vICtIm at tHe bOttOm OF mY rOaD” tHIs Is NOt a reCOlleCtION tO be eXPeCteD FrOm a blues DJ, but tHeN daVid Freeman Is aN uNusual blues DJ, aND He Has aN uNCOmmON HIstOrY

Jazz FM’s resident man of Blues and Boogie started out his education by specialising in electronic engineering and the science of sound, only to find he didn’t like the applications of the technology to weapons (radar, sonar, targetting, etc).The sounds the young David did like, where he lived in West London, were coming from groups such as The Yardbirds. As he says, he was lucky that “Alexis Korner was around every corner.” David considers 1956 Blues is the basis of pop music, and that year is also the basis of David’s own appreciation of music.

The man whose sternly religious father had banned him from buying a guitar did just that as soon as he left home. Then he learned his three magic chords and joined a variety of bands. While David earned his money teaching maths and physics, still in West London, he also booked a few music acts, notably Paul Simon, for the princely sum of £12.50, and in those days even chart toppers like The Animals

were available for £300.

“I wasn’t the world’s best teacher,” David says, from his latest home in Oxfordshire. “Though I was great on the physics of Rock ‘n’ Roll! That meant I could teach kids the science of sound. I’d take my guitar in and show it off. One fateful, glorious, wonderful day, a Beeb film crew came to the school. They accosted me at play time, and asked, ‘What are you doing with that guitar in this school?’ Months later I received a telephone call, ‘We’d like to put on an educational programme about the science behind Rock ‘n’ Roll, would you like to do it?’ I auditioned and got the job. The BBC hired me a Gibson Les Paul, put me in Studio 5 in Television Centre [also a home to Match Of The Day , Jackanory , Crimewatch , and The Old Grey Whistle Test]. That changed everything. It got me into TV. Ever ambitous I then wanted to do radio.

“I did what everyone did, and started out in hospital radio. I volunteered, then I applied and got a position in Radio Solent. I had a late night Rock show, I did

interviews and I loved it. I went freelance and did daytime TV, including being a Producer of BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour. I looked for another station, and rang the Beeb in Oxford. They said, ‘Come in Monday, do a phone in!’ Yeah! I came in and loved it. I had a daily book programme interviewing authors for nine years. I read a lot of books!

“It was really the magic of radio. I talked to whoever interested me and played the music I thought suitable. It was a bit like being a land based pirate and one day I met a hero - Ronan O’Rahilly, the man who famously founded Radio Caroline. He was playing snooker in Chelsea Arts Club. He was fabulous company.

“I thought about the words ‘Oxford Blue’ [the colour of the kit of the Oxford University boat

dAVId freemAn

“tHe blues ebbs and flows. I’m keen to cut down tHe barrIers between one musIc and anotHer”

race crews]. I started the club ‘Oxford Blues’, and a radio show, and a column in the local paper! I managed The Elmores with Paul Boss. It was all fun, really! Then, famously, the BBC decided I didn’t fit in with what they wanted to do, I was too bolshy, and they dropped me and Bob Harris at the same time. They declared I was ‘too intellectual for Oxford’

“I was looking for work, and Jazz FM found me. I worked in a progression: Presenter, Head Of Music, Controller. My jazz show was 10pm to 2am, and on Sunday afternoons was my interactive Blues Boogie show. This was going swinmingly until I got a call from an old friend.

bacK on tHe radio

I got to know Frank Delaney when we worked together on TV. When he called me he was presenting a book show on Sky TV but had been hospitalized and asked , as I can read fast, if I would like to take over the show. I jumped at the chance and did it for five years. It was great. Time went on, and TV lost interest, and Jazz FM shut down, on FM.

“Then, after a gap, Jazz FM called me and said, ‘We’re coming back on Digital Radio’ and I’ve been doing shows for six years, come October, and I’ve not missed a show.

David brought the Blues to the Matua Sessions stage at the Love Supreme Festival in 2014.

“This year I thought I’d like to make the music I like to resonate wider so I curated a stage at Love Supreme. It went well. It was very good indeed. I always enjoy meeting musicians, and their enthusiasms. I like artists such as Mark Harrison, he has funny elements in his songs, and Kingsize Slim was very good, excellent at the Love Supreme Festival on my Blues stage. I really enjoy Eric Clapton and the late J.J Cale’s

Hard To Thrill, and I can be Hard To Thrill. This morning I was doing something for my show on Clapton and Cale.

“I enjoy Eric Bibb, I’ve known him a long time, had him play in a room at my house for thirty-two people, and on a slightly bigger scale in the Sheldonian Theatre as part of this years Oxford Literary Festival . He was good and went down really well.

“I love 60’s acoustic guitar player Davey Graham, he was fantastic and innovative. He had many followers including Bert Jansch who with his mate John Renbourn formed the band Pentangle. Bert famously influenced Jimmy Paige. When he died I did a memorial show with his friend Paul Wassif who is now making waves with his band Three Pilgrims.

“The Blues ebbs and flows. I’m keen to cut down the barriers between one music and another. In my shows, I try to tell a story, to interest myself and to have a logical reason for what I play. I always try to ensure track B follows track A for a reason . Always. I hate vehemently and

detest shows shuffled together by a tone deaf computer. There should be a story taking away the tedium of silence. You should come away uplifted.

“I also have a show for older people on a London DAB station called The Wireless. I play Davy Graham and Howlin’ Wolf and Jazz heroes like Miles Davis and Roland Kirk.

“I have been amazingly fortunate, there is a golden thread of doing what I really want to do. I have a Gibson guitar like Robert Johnson used to play.I like to play it and I can be really impressive for six minutes, then an audience might notice I’m getting a mite repetitive! Being able to play a bit helps me appreciate those who do it well

“In my radio life I like to make things fun but also keep people interested.”

Davi D’s Jazz FM show is on s un D ays between 5p M an D 7p M s ee www.J azz FM.co M

“fAntAStIc And InnoVAtIVe”, foLkbLUeS Legend dAVey grAhAm (And hIS Very LArge hAt)

an island paradise!

Having girded our loins for a 6 a.m. departure from Birmingham airport, necessitating an enforced sleep deprivation experience and through the night journey up the lovely M5, we were more than ready for a crash out in the beautiful town of Stresa on the shores of the gorgeous Lake Maggiori. The second largest lake in the country is situated in the north of Italy quite close to Milan and not too far from the border with Switzerland.

Determined to get around the lakes, including Orta Lugarno and Como we ditched operation crash out and took to the water. Our first sortie was on Lake Maggiori itself which accommodates several small and not so small islands known as the Borromean Islands. The largest of these charming islands is Isola Bella,‘the beautiful island’ which more than lives up to that name.

Following a pleasantly languid

and mildly liquid lunch we ventured forth to explore what this little paradise had to offer and after a good old traipse around the place with it’s very impressive palace home of the Borromeo family, we came upon an attractive café/ restaurant which looked a good bet for a double expresso or two to relax and top off our lunch. Sitting outside in the sun my eye was taken by a small brass plaque affixed to the wall which read ‘when this house is a rockin’ – don’t bother knockin’ come on in.‘ A very loud bell started to ring inside my head when my ageing memory cells realised where this came from and even before looking at the name on the bottom of the plaque, I immediately knew it was the one and only Stevie Ray Vaughan! What on earth could SRV the Texan Bluesmeister be doing decorating the wall of an idyllic lakeside café in the heart of Italy?

A trip inside Café Lago soon

answered my question. To much astonishment and not a little delight, I discovered every wall, upstairs and downstairs clad completely in Rock and Blues memorabilia of astonishing content and quality.

Of not inconsiderable interest to me were the plethora of guitars hanging everywhere – Fender Stratocasters, Telecasters, P Basses. Gibson Les Pauls by the yard and many, many more really high quality axes, and not just that, all of them signed by the likes of Bonamassa, Iron Maiden, Ronnie Wood, Bruce Springsteen and many other band members... I could go on! There are dozens of beautifully framed (many of them signed) posters: the likes of Buddy Guy, John Lee Hooker, SRV, Johnny Winter and other legends of the world of the blues. It was all getting a bit too much as I made my way back outside to finish my double expresso and send Mrs Dr Dave in to witness that I hadn’t been dreaming.

As I nursed my coffee an American tourist sat at the next table to us also saw the engraved plaque on the wall said, ‘Stevie Vaughan? I seem to have heard that name somewhere!‘, I failed to

I Had to fInd out wHo Had amassed sucH an amazIng collectIon and asked tHe waItress wHo tHIs mIgHt be

resist temptation and simply told him he was just America’s best known blues guitarist. ‘I knew it’ said Mr USA – smirking slightly then pausing before asking me, ‘is he still alive then?’

By now my curiosity spilled over and I had to find out who had amassed such an amazing collection and asked the waitress who this might be. She told me it was the owner of the café and his name was Stefano, he was working in his other restaurant across the way and would I like to meet him?

I was more than happy to meet Stefano and shake the hand of a man who had to be congratulated in putting together such an impressive collection. It transpired that Stefano had travelled many countries to attend major gigs and concerts, often taking instruments with him to be personally signed by many of the big names mentioned above amongst many others.

Stefano had also been presented with signed memorabilia including guitars by some well-known mega stars. I asked who his favourite act was and he was quick to mention

‘The Boss’, aka Bruce Springsteen.

Stefano Corvisiero and his wife Michaela have clearly worked extremely hard in establishing this impressive collection and the 35 or so guitars and 70-80 framed prints, handbills, flyers etc displayed in the café, which whilst being special in their own right’ are a relatively small sample of the 400–500 pieces they have stored at home ,some of which include actual Recording Industry Academy awards. During the summer season Café Lago hosts various music gigs and events including personal boat transfers to and from the island, a very short and pleasant trip from the mainland at Stresa.

I left Isola Bella thinking of Milton’s poem ‘Paradise Lost now remembered as ‘Paradise Found!’

Keep rocking Stefano and Michaela! See you all next time.

XXXXXX

PArAdISe foUnd –SceneS from the cAfÉ LAgoon

jo byWaTer

Iwas always absorbed in music and as soon as I’d made the choice to start playing I never looked back. I took the music education route and loved every second of it and along the way played in various bands, metal, disco, pop, folk, covers, jazz and blues, anything and everything. I ended up in Liverpool at University doing a music degree and I’m still there now. I love the city for its variety and drive in creative culture. I still love my Yorkshire roots but have found a home here too.

After honing my playing chops for a few years I hit a point where I really wanted to explore song writing/lyric writing. I knew it had to be in a way that would keep me interested and push boundaries a little bit otherwise it wouldn’t be sustainable for me. I also wanted to keep the guitar parts interesting. So, I got out there gigging. I released my debut acoustic album in 2010 and got some really positive feedback, reviews, and sessions as a result and I’ve just continued. My style is constantly developing and over the last few years I’ve got a lot more into finger picking and slide blues playing. I feel really connected to it and its informing a lot of my writing these days. I have also brought harmonica and stomp box into my live performances. I’m a big fan of Kelly Joe Phelps, and that has brought a lot of new sound ideas to my palette. I tend to not really learn other artists songs but I’m definitely inspired by their creativity and soul and ultimately it inspires my playing.

I have been able to feel my song writing maturing and settling over the last couple of years and it appears to have been noticed in a different way. I

released my EP Chasing Tales last year and it felt like I’d stepped up a gear. I’ve had a fantastic year gigging and doing some collaboration with other artists. I’ve really enjoyed playing festivals such at The Great British Rhythm & Blues Festival and I look forward to more similar opportunities coming along.I’m hoping for some more support slots to come my way.

I’m planning on releasing my next album in 2015. There will be a wealth of songs to choose from this time so I’m quite excited about that!

I HIt a poInt wHere I really wanted to explore song wrItIng/lyrIc wrItIng

c heck out www.J obywater.co F or M ore in F or M ation

V erbals: JO b YW ater Visual s: beta - cvn

I Was bOrN aND raIseD IN a PlaCe CalleD east arDsleY, WaKeFIelD aND I PICKeD uP a GuItar at tHe aGe OF 15 uNDer tHe INFlueNCe OF NIrvaNa aND GuNs N’ rOses

LIgHTNIN’ guy

why, chances are Lightnin’ Guy is jumping on a table or walking his Resonator through the crowd – be it a few dozen fans in a local pub or a few thousand festival-goers in Germany or France.

Guy was already sixteen when he discovered the blues and picked up a guitar so he could play the blues himself. The early 90s in Bruges, Flanders, were the wrong place and the wrong time for a teenager trying to share his love for this ‘old’ music rather than something fashionable like hip hop. Guy, however, persevered, ‘The blues was like a microbe that got inside me, it just wouldn’t go away’, he recalls. After many years of apprenticeship on the road, Guy was finally able to form his own band in early 2008,The Mighty Gators, featuring Flanders’ finest blues men. That same year, the band was offered a record deal, toured Austria and opened the prestigious Peer R&B Festival to much critical acclaim. He won the Belgian Blues Awards in 2011 and landed the forth place at the European Blues Challenge a year later.

Now, don’t let that bundle of energy fool you. It is not used to release noise and speed, but rather to channel feeling and emotion, whether he appears solo or backed by The Mighty Gators. Guy being a passionate singer, guitarist and songwriter who truly lives the blues, it comes as no surprise to find a collection of subtle, even rather laid-back songs about the ups and downs of relationships on his latest offering, the entirely self-composed album Inhale My World The Banana Peel Sessions is a wilder, rougher set, switching effortlessly from shuffle to soul to rock’n’roll, while still putting intensity before decibels and joy before showing off. The tribute album to Hound Dog Taylor proves his prowess on slide guitar, but equally his mastery of the blues through a personal, authentic approach. There isn’t one inch of hard rock in sight. Lightnin’ Guy says he is deeply influenced by the ‘Louisiana swamp and the Chicago slide and harp-tradition’.

You too will find it quite impossible not to share his joy and enthusiasm.

More in For Mation: www.lightninguy.co M

V erbals: edd Y b O nte Visuals : sainab O u van rae M d O nck lIGHtNIN’ GuY WON’t stOP tHe sHOW uNtIl everYbODY Is uP aND DaNCING, WHIle tHe maN HImselF Is HIttING tHe strINGs, ClaPPING HIs HaNDs aND sHOutING HIs mOttO ‘KeeP tHe blues alIve, laDIes aND GeNtlemeN!’

THe WeLsH T baNd

at the centre of The Welsh T Band is outand-out front man Terry John and ace guitar strangler

Kevin Ackroyd.

When Terry met Kevin, in the late 1990s, they’d already amassed decades of gigging experience between them, and they quickly realised they had a mutual love of the blues. Within weeks, they’d established a blues jam night in their home town of Wakefield. And together with renowned bassist David Hoyle, who Kevin had played in a band with 25 years earlier, they had put together a ‘house band’ to back visiting musicians.

The reputation of the house band soon began to spread and bookings from other venues started to roll in. And The Welsh T Band was soon doing upwards of 120 gigs a year with invitations to blues

clubs up and down the country and support slots with Dr Feelgood, The Animals, Spencer Davis and Ben Poole and annual darlings of Colne’s Great British Rhythm and Blues Festival.

Roll forward nearly 15 years and we’ve just released our first album of self-penned material, ‘Where the Road Leads’.

We’d been together for over 10 years, and had done nearly 1000 gigs playing covers before the idea of an album of self-penned material even came up.

We’ve always played our own arrangements of the songs we covered, we wanted to make the songs sound like us and not like us trying to sound like the song. We always wanted to explore what ‘The Welsh T Band’ sound was.

The one song that we’d written ourselves through that period, April Fool Blues always went down really well at gigs. It has a bit of a ‘carry on’ feel about it to be honest. The lyrics are quirky and fun (another part of what we’ve always tried to do). Over the years, playing festivals like the Great British R&B Festival in Colne every year it was always brilliant and a bit of a shock when the audience would sing along with our song!

Very gradually our singer Terry ‘Welsh T’ John started to say, I’ve got an idea for another song… and gradually a collection of self-penned material came together. Our album ‘Where the Road Leads’ showcases the wide range of influences that have impacted on the band members over their 40+ years of playing experience, creating an album that isn’t routed in any one narrow musical genre.

The Welsh T Band are here for the long term. We’re together until the first man goes down.

And ‘Where the Road Leads’ is where we’re going.

For M ore in For Mation: www.welsh-t.co.uk

tHe WelsH t baND’s DevelOPmeNt Has beeN lONG aND slOW aND IN lOts OF WaYs tHat’s tHeIr real streNGtH –tHeY’ve PaID Dues bY tHe buCKetFul

we’ve always played our own arrangements of tHe songs we covered

raINbreakers

V erbals: ben ed W ards Visual s: fris W ell p HO t O grap HY FIrst FOrmeD IN late 2012, raINbreaKers are a FOur PIeCe baND WHOse INFlueNCes are HeavIlY DraWN FrOm rOCK, blues aND sOul musIC altHOuGH tHeIr sOuND Is ClearlY revereNt tO aN era WaY beFOre tHeIr Years, tHe baND sIGNIFY a steP FOrWarD IN COmbINING tHe OlD WItH tHe NeW

while sounds similar to Free and Jimi Hendrix remain significant throughout their music, artists such as The Black Keys, Gary Clark Jr and Monophonics act as current inspiration in crafting the bands own display of a raw and lo-fi dynamic.

Since Rainbreakers formation, the band has played over 300 shows up and down the country at various pubs, venues and festival stages. By playing consistently within their hometown of Shropshire, the four piece have traveled further afield to promote their music as much as possible, aiming to generate a strong and honest following. Throughout the past two years the band have performed a reputable amount of shows performing alongside some of the countries biggest emerging talent. An opportunity to play at this years Chester Rocks Festival was also a

pivotal moment for Rainbreakers, exemplifying their progression as a band in such a short period of time.

Although the rest of 2014 retains a steady line up of gigs, plans to write and record are at the forefront of the bands next intentions. Looking to book studio time in the early months of next year, Rainbreakers look forward to developing an EP that truly reflects the attitude and raw sounds created at their live shows.

Nevertheless, the bands philosophy remains true within each part of their creativity. Whether it be in the studio or at a live performance, Rainbreakers ultimately strive to produce authenticity in order for the music to truly represent themselves as well as their experiences.

For M ore in For Mation: www.therainbreakers.co M

ruby TIger

there is a purity about the vocal delivery that can stop you in your tracks. Think an amalgam of Janis Joplin, Billie Holliday and Etta James if you possibly can.

Ruby, better known to her friends as Olivia Stevens, recently released her debut EP, Vistas. Five tracks that showcase the range of the vocals but also prove Ruby to me a songwriter of depth and quality, the songs are given life with the support of regular collaborators Louise Maggs and King Rollo and top keys man Steve Watts amongst others.

I caught up with Ruby recently and asked about her journey to this point and what she thinks has helped push her into prominence now. She told me, ‘ The release of the EP has certainly helped, we are very grateful for the airplay it’s been given. Also landing the support slot with Geno Washington gave us a big lift, it introduced us to more people but I think it made everyone realise that I’m very serious about moving forwards.’

Although Ruby has always sung it hasn’t always

been in blues. In fact for many years she focused on performing poetry and curating exhibitions. Having said that the blues have always been lurking in her subconscious ready to pounce. Fond memories of listening to Elkie Brooks with her mother, and travelling to India in her twenties where she truly discovered the blues via Janis Joplin and a bootleg recording of BB King. Blown away musically and emotionally Ruby tells me, ‘ They gave me goosebumps and perfectly expressed in many ways how I felt inside. For me there as much truth in tears as there are in words. Emotional truths matter a lot. That’s a big part of blues which is why it resonates so powerfully with me.’

Ruby acknowledges the huge amount of support and nurturing the experienced King Rollo has given. 2015 promises to be the year of the Ruby Tiger with plans to move forward with a new line up and tour to be announced. Watch this space.

c heck out www.rubytigersings.co M. the ep can be or D ere D via b an D ca M p

V erbals: steve YO urglivc H Visual s: sara H reeve

rubY tIGer Has sPruNG INtO tHe COlleCtIve aWareNess OF tHe uK blues COmmuNItY IN reCeNt mONtHs, Her WONDerFul eCleCtIC bleND OF INFlueNCes, FOlK, sOul

THe cITy boys aLLsTars

these guys do indeed include some of the most richly experienced pro’s in American music. Blues fans everywhere will recognise Blues Brothers ‘Blue’ Lou Marini (also of Blood, Sweat and Tears) and Tom ‘Bones’ Malone. Their fellow horn section members include Tony Kadleck on trumpet (Frank Sinatra, Woody Herman, Buddy Rich, Ella Fitzgerald), and Andy Snitzer on sax (Aretha Franklin and Bette Midler). Al MacDowell on bass has credits with Ornette Coleman, Billy Joel, and more. For these musicians, and others in the band, this is just the tip of the iceberg. We simply don’t have room here to talk about the careers of a band that has ten (ten) musicians and three (three) vocalists.

The City Boys Allstars is also a band that is new and old at the same time. Their first appearance was some seventeen years ago, and they have bought out three albums, Look Out Here We Come, When You Needed Me, and the current live recording, Blinded By The Night. Guitarist Mikey Merola was there at the start, those seventeen years ago, and after the band was set aside while those careers took off, he and the band are back. Blinded By The Night is the recording of the band’s re-launch at a gig in New York’s Cutting Room venue, and they return on 27th September for a landmark gig ahead of a busy live schedule being planned for 2015.

Mikey reflects, ‘This band is overflowing with other commitments. Everyone is in demand. Yet here we are, together again. It’s a miracle in itself. It’s because, in all this time, our bonds haven’t broken. Our ties to each other go beyond ordinary friendship. Although we have great vocalists in Angel Rissoff, Deracoyo Scott and Bill Kurz, we miss Frankie Paris, who passed in 2008. Once the New York Times said of Frankie, ‘Frankie has one of the finest soul-blues voices to appear in the past few years.’ We also miss Keith Lambert, also a late City Boy Allstar, and a fine

composer, arranger, Musical Director and musician. We have hi-octane music, we have hi-octane video! We have a new, hi-octance album coming out next year. We have the goods now, the real deal. This thing could really explode. I don’t think there’s anything like us out there, quite frankly.’

Mikey has a personal ambition with a British dimension, ‘I want to meet Eric Clapton. That would mean so much to me. It is crazy how I met all the guys in this band, and I have jammed with Albert King, but Clapton is my idol.’

CaN be sOme OF tHe mOst seasONeD musICIaNs ON tHe PlaNet, but IF YOu’re ruNNING a NeW PrOJeCt, Or revIvING aN OlD ONe, YOu CaN aPPear NeW tO tHe sCeNe. sO It Is WItH tHe CItY bOYs allstars

With three very fine albums released and a gro W ing band of enthusiastic fans on both sides of the atlantic, sW edish-born s ofie r eed is beginning to feel on top of the W orld

ardly surprising given she seems to almost constantly be flying high above it, shuttling back and forth between her home in Colorado’s Rocky Mountains and the UK and Europe. When I caught up with Sofie in October, she was in the middle of a short, intense tour of England, mostly focussed on East Anglia, Essex and London. Evidently enjoying every minute, she confirmed it marked her fifth transatlantic crossing of the year.

‘It’s been a great year,’ she confirms, ‘this is my fifth trip over to Europe and I’ve played France, in August, for the first time. It’s great to be back in England though, I always have a great time over here. I love it. I love the culture and the feel they have for the music over here. People are so supporting.’

Following her English appearances, Reed was off to play Italy followed by her homeland, Sweden, before returning to take up a personal invitation from bluesman Otis Taylor to play at his eponymous Otis Taylor Blues Trance Festival in Boulder, Colorado in November. Whilst in the UK, she also had a number of blues radio show visits and studio interviews

booked, including a visit to Kevin Beale’s ‘Blues On The Marsh’ show on Channel FM. ‘Kevin’s always good fun and he’s so interested in the music and helpful with support for musicians,’ she says.

Album sales are also going well and she is clearly pleased with the fan-base and the swell of support she’s now attracting. With most of her material self-written, Reed’s current albums reflect her at times eclectic musical approach and the diversity of her musical influences and preferences.

Reed moved as a teenager from Sweden to Mineapolis in the USA, where she quickly became immersed in the local music scene, gaining confidence and learning her craft initially as a backing vocalist with others in the city. Back home in Scandinavia, she explains, her mother had an old radio that was generally tuned to music programmes, she grew up listening to largely American music with some British stuff thrown in for good measure. From there, and around that time, she began to develop her own vocal style, initially by imitating and emulating the voices she herself

V E rb A ls: IAIN PATIENCE Visu A ls: JANET PATIENCE

loved to hear. Aretha Franklin, Nina Simone and Louis Armstrong all caught her attention together with Prince and the music of Pink Floyd, a band she still loves. John Lee Hooker was also a major inspiration and she describes having listened to much of his material while striving to develop her own individual style.

Perhaps, surprisingly, Robert Plant also figured in the learning curve, and she tried to capture the essence of his vocal range and phrasing for a while. All in all, a pretty heady range of top vocalists to have as on-disc tutors. From there, Sofie decided that she had to begin developing her ‘own’ style and has largely eschewed her previous mentors for her own unique brand of blues and roots music, a strongly rhythmic, whooping, sparkling sound fuelled by her clear, powerful voice and strikingly original slide-dulcimer playing.

For some time she even stopped listening to other people’s music. ‘I felt it was interfering with what I was doing’, she explains. ‘I had to find my own way. ‘ Nowadays, she finds the music of independent artists to be the most satisfying. ‘I find that independents, rather than the big established studio sounds of the big record companies, produce music that’s more genuine. There’s not too much of that over-production that can otherwise end up ruining the music’s message’

Again, this is a basic standpoint that rings clearly with her own recordings. ‘Baby Boo Got Gone’ followed by ‘Simplicity Chased Trouble Away’ and her current offering, ‘Red Hen’ all echo and reflect her view of the need for straightforward, minimalist, immediate studio production values. The recording process usually runs around a max of maybe four takes, more generally three, and she often finds herself drawn to the initial, first take as the one that hits the streets.

Her approach to blues comes from her love of R&B, again music first heard while growing up in Sweden and later in its birthplace, the USA. But she is keen to point out that she herself never describes her music as being simply ‘blues.’ ‘Blues. I never say that. I play alone, so I’m always limited to some extent. I can’t say I’ve spent years and years learning

the blues craft or becoming a blues musician.’ This modest comment actually belies the fact that Reed has been working diligently on her craft and earning a living from it for almost thirty years.

Current projects include an attempt to raise awareness worldwide about the plight of the wolf and to provide protection for them. With this aim, she will be working with Texas songwriter, Susan Gibson and others in the coming months, putting together an album which she hopes will provide funds to appoint warden/ rangers in areas where they may be needed. She’s also involved in a mini-recording project with sax player, Gordon Jones, a member of Corey Harris’s band and will be going into the studio to work on her next solo CD early in the new year with a target release date of summer 2015. The next album, she laughs, will feature her usual Harp and Dulcimer playing, together with the stompbox but with the addition of some pedal hardware. She’s enjoying experimenting and getting to grips with the use of Wah-Wah on the Dulcimer right now and plans to bring that to the stage sometime soon. It sure sounds like an interesting, not to say arresting, sound possibility, as anyone who has caught Reed’s live stageact will appreciate.

On stage, she gives her all. Big voice, dynamic, energetic dulcimer slamming and howling harp, legs astride the mike, laptop dulcimer and slide, knee-length red laced boots and stompbox, she presents a provocative and carefully balanced element of sensuality not often witnessed on the blues stage. Part of her general performance image, however, it does not detract from the quality of her playing or writing and instead pulls the punters forward towards the stage with an appealing imagery and a cleverly controlled certainty. Live performance lies at the heart of her personal preferences. ‘I enjoy being onstage as a solo artist. I like roots blues music. It suits my style of playing and voice. I try always to get back to the roots in reality. I’m not too fond of that sort of over-played, over-long guitar solo stuff,’ she explains.

For performance she tells the sound guys to think ‘Led Zep’ and aim for a big, loud,

encompassing sound, something that’s hard to ignore. Aware of the intrinsic power of her voice, she wonders, at times, whether she should give it a go without a mic, as she thinks her voice carries pretty well, though the dulcimer would maybe get lost somewhere in the mix. It’s a thought that reminds me of the power of an another US roots player, Pokey La Farge, who is one to move away from the mic with a huge voice that still carries the message forward and projects well.

Baritone dulcimer is her chosen instrument, with a raised string action for slide work. She can also hack a bit of guitar but not too often as she finds travelling with them restricting and, as she cheerfully admits, it’s always easy to borrow a guitar from somebody on the road. Not something that can be said about the dulcimer. In addition, she frankly concedes that the dulcimer, with only four strings and an open tuning, is an easier fretted beast to control and master. Turning to her song-writing, she again returns to the theme of roots music, which is at the heart of her thinking. ‘I’ve reinvented myself many times over the years as a solo player drenched in an R&B influence. I don’t write ‘love’ songs; I write ‘love of life’ songs. Everybody writes love songs, there’s so much of that kind of thing out there. I much prefer to think of joy and happiness and positivity with songs that ring true and hold more than a hint of love of living.’

The first track of Reed’s last album, ‘Simplicity Chased Trouble Away’ provides a clear clue to this belief. ‘Glitter Girl’ is a song that fair romps along, bubbly, bouncy, full of joi de vivre. When I mention this to Sofie, she agrees, adding: ‘It seems important to lots of younger woman. They need to be able to enjoy life, to open their eyes. And when I perform it live, I usually get a great response from those young women in the audience.’

The remainder of 2014, following her return to the USA, will be taken up with her planned projects and gigs and travel in the States. She hopes to get down to both Mississippi and Louisiana in the future.With an expanding European gig-list, she views Germany as one of her next projects, hoping to become involved there in 2015. But given her genuine love of the UK music scene, there’s little doubt we’ll be hearing and seeing more of Sofie Reed in the days ahead.

f ind out more about s ofie’s tour and albums at WWW.sofiereed.com

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V E rb A ls: STEVE YOURGLIVCH V isu A

m att a ndersen is one of those performers you never forget if you’ve ever been lucky enough to W itness live. a seriously imposing figure W ith a commanding stage presence armed W ith a giant voice that moves effortlessly from roar to subtlety and a W onderful guitar technique

ittle wonder that Matt counts multi Maple and European Blues Awards and winning the Memphis Blues Challenge among the acclaim he continues to gather. Matt is an old fashioned troubadour, travelling the world playing over 200 shows per year gradually building an audience of devotees and enhancing his ever growing reputation.

His new album ‘Weightless’ is considered by many to be his best yet, showcasing his formidable song writing skills alongside his undoubted performance ability. When BM caught up with Matt on the first night of the UK leg of his latest tour in September he was already approaching that 200 show mark for this year.

BM: Hi Matt, I’m loving the new album ‘Weightless’. Tell us a bit about it, there has been a bit of a gap since the last record.

MA: Sure has been a gap but I’ve been

performing around 200 shows a year so that takes up a lot of time. Since I recorded ‘Coal Mining Blues’ in 2011 I’ve done another side project with Mike Stevens. I just decided the time was right to get something new out. All the songs on the new album are co-writes, I wanted to reach out to some really good friends who I’d wanted to write with for a long time. I like to leave space, if I write songs too close together I start to rip myself off a little. I don’t want things to sound to similar! I really happy with the results, I can hear the others influences in there. I got Steve Berlin of Los Lobos in as producer and he pushed me in some new directions out of my comfort zone so that was great.

Was CoalMiningBluesa more personal album in many ways?

I always try to write from personal experiences

l s: KEVIN KELLY

otherwise it’s a bit false and stale to play. My Last Day was written because up on the East Coast we lost a few really good friends close together so I had the idea, what would I do if I knew this was my last day. Weightless is pretty personal too, and Alberta Gold, one of two songs I wrote with Dave Gunning. The other one we wrote together is The Fight which is about fracking, that’s become a really big issue back home.

In the last couple of years things have started to really happen for you. You have a reputation as a hard working heavy gigging musician, do you think that level of commitment is what’s now finally starting to pay off?

I definitely think I’ve gotten better over the years (laughs). I think a big part of it is the hard work paying off. I’ve always been a big believer in you have to play to get heard. I think in this industry you get out what you put in.

You won the Memphis Blues Challenge four years ago, did that open up doors for you?

Not so much open doors but it helps if you are

trying to book shows in say Australia and you can say look I won this award. It helps, it’s not overnight success. I’m thrilled that I won it, it’s good for the fans but you have to just keep working at it.

Are you coming back to the UK again next year?

Yep, I usually try to get to the UK twice a year, so probably in the spring next year and again in the fall. I’ve been playing North America a lot this year. I left to tour on January 7th and since then I’ve spent about four weeks at home. I want to start work on the next album but I haven’t had time to start writing yet.

Who has been influences on you, especially when you were growing up?

Growing up it was my grandfather, a fiddle player. He always played for fun but he figured if someone wants to listen he’ll play. He was always the last guy to leave the jams. I get a lot of my musical influence from my family. I always remember to be grateful, you know if I have a bad night or there’s not many people

turn up it’s not the worst thing in life. It keeps me humble. Other than that Van Morrison and Eric Clapton’s Unplugged album was a huge influence. As I travel around I pick up on lots of different music. Someone I’ve gotten into recently is Paul Pena, he was a sideman with Bonnie Raitt for a long time, he only got out two solo albums before he died. I think he’s just brilliant. A great singer and a great writer, I wish there was more of it man. He is just so far under the radar. Worth seeking out.

You come from Perth-Andover in New Brunswick. That’s a pretty tough environment isn’t it ? Yeah, it’s a very blue collar working place. On the East coast everyone works hard to take care of their families. A lot of coal mining communities. You have to work hard to get by. It has given me my high work ethic.

Your first band was called Flat Top, what was that outfit like?

We were just a rock band playing covers mostly. We played three or four gigs a week. I realised to get anywhere I had to move on to festivals and the like and play my own stuff. It took a lot of confidence building to do that. There’s safety in numbers.

Do you only ever play solo now?

Mostly, I would say I do 97% of my shows solo. This last Summer with Weightless coming out I did about half a dozen shows with a ten piece band.

That’s a big leap from playing solo!

It was a big change. Usually it’s just me, so if something goes wrong I can just pull myself out of it. With nine other people on stage it was a different feeling. I got a real kick out of it. They were all really top players. The biggest challenge was interacting with other people onstage. Normally I just face out front but with a band you want to interact with them as well as the audience. It was great fun. I hope to do more next year as well.

What advice would you give to someone starting out?

Play lots, play as often as you can. Don’t worry about money to start with, just get out there. Play outside charity events, that kinda thing, open mics. And play with people that are better than you, be the weakest member of the band. Get out of your comfort zone as much as you can, don’t just practise what you can do.

for more on matt andersen go to WWW.stubbyfingers.ca

Interview JIMMY BARNES

ith Kevin Shirley producing Jimmy has gone back over his career to re-record tracks with a plethora of guests. With it’s UK release imminent I was lucky enough to get the opportunity for a phone call from Jimmy about the album.

BM: Hi Jimmy, thanks for calling. JM: No problem, my pleasure.

We need to talk about the new album. It’s fabulous. I’m really happy with it. It’s much more than a greatest hits, it’s actually more about spending time revisiting points in my life, not just my career, but my life. When you do these things everybody talks about your career but it’s every part of my life. I’ve been on the road 40 years but 30 as a solo performer. In that time I’ve had some really great times but I’ve also had good friends die and other issues, there’s been a lot of tears, so I wanted to capture that, not just a record but the emotion of life and I wanted to share that with my mates.

What I love is that you’ve gone back and picked key tracks but the whole album seems so cohesive and it really flows. I have to give Kevin Shirley a helluva lot of credit for that. He is just invaluable in the way he gets things down on tape, he gets the best out of people, he helped put everything together, an incredible producer. And he dragged the best out of me I think. As much as I had to do with the record Kevin did too. I can see why people love working with him, he’s incredibly productive, encouraging and blunt, he calls a spade a spade! Very driven which I love.

That work ethic comes through on the album. It must be difficult getting lots of different people together, working in with timetables etc. The good thing was we didn’t deal with any egos. Everyone was there because they wanted to be. The Stevie Van Zandt track for instance. Stevie was over with Bruce Springsteen and I asked him if he would record Ride The Night Away with me. He gave me that song thirty

years ago. He only had two days free before flying off to Lillehammer. I was prepared to go there if needed. He said we’ll do it tomorrow morning. At that point I was in the process of re-building my studio. I had to get my engineers and his guys in and they worked all night to get the studio ready. Stevie came in at ten in the morning with four hours max to do it. By the third take it was done but Stevie ended up staying in my house for fifteen hours. We just had a great time making music, I got my daughters to put backing tracks on it, Diesel who lives next door sang on it. I remember Stevie saying ‘I’ve lived in New York for forty years and spend most of my life searching for soul singers and you’ve got a f’ing house full.’

So the whole album is organic like that. The other great thing Kevin Shirley does is the moment anyone walks in the recording button is on. No rehearsing, everything you do is on tape. Often it’s one take rehearsal and one take we have it.

You can feel that vibe. Especially on Love And Hate recorded with the band Shihad. One of the highlights of the album for me, it just leaps out of the speakers. Oh yeah. I love that track and I love that band. The basic story of the song is I’d had an argument with my wife and stormed out the house, and a friend met me and said can we talk but I was just spitting venom. It’s always been a favourite but I wanted it to be harder than the original and I wanted Shihad to play it. I sent it to the singer Johnny Toogood and he said yes. He told me he had sent the track to the other band members but we’ve decided none of us will discuss it or play it together until we record. We’ll each bring our own thoughts to the session. So that was it, the first and only take. Just phenomenal, inspiring.

It sounds it, a real punky street edge to it. I love that it follows Going Down Alone which is really atmospheric.

Going Down Alone was a great track for me to have on the album. I owe such a lot to

Jimmy b arnes is one of the most successful recording artists australia has ever produced. h e has J ust released a ne W album, hindsight , to celebrate thirty years as a solo artist – and it's given him his fourteenth number one on home ground

Jonathan Cain. I came into myself as a writer working with Jonathan on the Freight Train Heart album back in 1987. I wanted to have him and Neal Schon on the album because they have been so instrumental on my career. The track, I love the lyrics, dark and foreboding and bluesy, I wanted to hear Neal play it. They turned it into a whole new animal, picking up the dark moodiness of the song.

Another highlight of course is Stone Cold. Whoo yes. That’s a Don Walker of Cold Chisel song, one of our great songwriters. It was on my album Heat. When I recorded Heat it was on the back of recording and touring one of my Soul records. I was sick to death of it and just wanted to play some hard rock. So I ended up recording everything loud so the original suffered a bit from not having the right emotion. So I got in the studio with Joe Bonamassa and Kevin said lets just run the tape and jam a bit. I just called out verse, bridge, bridge, solo and that’s how we recorded that song. Unbelievable blues player. I’ve played on three tracks with Joe now, one for the Deep Purple tribute we played Lazy, this one and one on his album. I just think he is a real great talent.

First time I’ve heard your daughter Mahalia sing. She’s a pretty awesome singer. She sang with my band when she was 14. I used to put my arm around her and lead up to the front of the stage. She was a bit shy. Now she’s so confident and good. Her band are really good.

It’s great to hear some top Australian artists on this like Suzie De Marchi and Jon Stevens too. Suzie voice is like silk, she sounds sexy as hell. Her band Baby Animals sound fantastic on that track Time Will Tell. And Jon I’ve known for many years we’re good mates. We tour together a lot and perform together but this is the first chance we’ve had to record together. I rang him up and he said I’ll sing anything with you. The track we did, I’d Rather Be Blind, I always felt could’ve been better. I think Jon brings the best out of it.

I guess it’s nice to be able to go back and tweak the originals?

Any record you make, when you listen three months later, it’s like, God, I wish I’d done it like this. So it was lovely to go back. Also to look at those songs again and remember

those marks in your life, children or things you strive and fight for. Those songs mark them for me.

How did the selection process work? Did you have a core of songs you knew you wanted to do?

Yes there were some I knew I wanted. On others the artists chose tracks. A combination of things really.

I know you’ve had problems with your back. Yes, I’ve just had seven surgeries in three weeks. I’m on the mend now.

You’re touring in Australia right up to Christmas. Any plans to come to the UK or Europe next year? I don’t need much encouraging. I love coming to Europe to play and having the record out there I imagine there’s a chance I might be there next Summer. I’d love to do it.

Jimmy barnes neW album hindsight is released in the uk by provogue, WWW.mascotlabelgroup.com. more neWs about Jimmy at WWW.Jimmybarnes.com

elbert was on his porch when Blues Matters caught up with him, a piano being played near enough by to be clearly heard. No surprise, perhaps, for a musician with a musician son, in Clay McClinton, who is, as his father says, “one of the Austin guys, a really good bunch of players.” In 2013, Delbert released a new album of his own, titled Blind, Crippled and Crazy, paired in a recording for the first time in over forty years with former collaborator Glen Clark.

Delbert is a highly-respected and loved musician in the US and around the world, but with our six-part Blues Brothers feature four episodes in, it made sense to talk with a man who wrote a song on their first album, Briefcase Full of Blues, the song in question being ‘B Movie Boxcar Blues’. That angle came as a bit of a surprise to Delbert, who said, “I’ve not been interviewed much about the Blues Brothers. Occasionally, but not really.”

So, let us start with that song, which is a particularly powerful number on that album, for all that it comes on down the playlist. Delbert recalls, “B Movie Boxcar Blues came about when I was working in California with Glen Clark in a veterinary supplies warehouse. We were in one place most of the day in some menial job. The song ran through my head all day, I was laughing while I was thinking of it and it had to come out. It was a play on words, something that sounded good. Glen Clark named it, he heard me sing it to him, and said, ‘Hey Man, you should call it B Movie Boxcar Blues and it stuck.’” Delbert likes what the Blues Brothers did with his song, “The Blues Brothers was a great version. I know most of those guys, they came from where that music comes from, so it was a pretty natural thing to play it.”

That song was a notable moment in a long and distinguished career, a career inspired by the Blues, and which started out in very good company for this noted harmonica player, “I got on the job training with Sonny Boy Williamson II and Jimmy Reed, I backed up those guys and learned to play with those guys. There was a lot of energy and life in

what those guys were playing and in the execution of their moves and music, it came from a really deep place. I’m an old dog and I draw most of my musical influences from Hank Williams, BB King, and Ray Charles. He is the guy. Period.”

Part of that distinguished career included a surprising connection in the UK, as Delbert explains, “I came to the UK with Bruce Chanel when ‘Hey! Baby’ was out and I played harp on it and got to go along for six weeks. The Beatles were our opening act at a couple of shows. I met the guys. A wonderful time during the birth of Rock ‘n’ Roll, with few precedents. Everybody played by the seat of their pants and had a good time.

John Lennon for the first night and every night came over for the show and heard ‘Hey! Baby’. In Brighton, he came in and we talked and played, a slow back and forth, two or three times in all and we went out together for a night one time. We played together like that a couple of times and it got translated into ‘I taught him everything he knows!’ We didn’t necessarily play songs together, but riffs we’d fool with and work on. Not a lot of people were playing the harmonica, especially in Rock ‘n’ Roll music, there was a lot of interest from guys in how we go about it. We’d fool around, and play, and figure.”

Those were often frenzied times for top musicians and those around them, as Delbert found on that tour, “Beatlemania? They went that way over Bruce. He’d go out to meet the fans and they’d pull and rip at his shirt, and I had to grab the back of his shirt and pull him back on stage. It was total nuts, man. In Maidstone, I think, Bruce and I hired a band and went to a rehearsal. Two girls by the door went apeshit, out of control nuts, when they saw Bruce. When we came out to the bus there were so many girls, we could hardly get moving. These two girls came and called out ‘Bruce, Bruce!’ and raised their arms. They’d traced or cut the name Bruce into their arms. Fucking crazy – Beatlemania directed at Bruce Chanel.”

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Delbert’s association with the Blues Brothers came a good deal later, and Delbert took his records to John Belushi in his hotel. Delbert was later told ‘B’ Movie was to be covered on the Blues Brothers debut album, and he was pleased to receive royalties at a time when record companies often overlooked paying such dues, and were often, as Delbert puts it, “a greedy cheating bunch. People got publishing and writing stolen all over the place all the time, a terrible legacy for somebody to leave.”

ThE BluES BROThERS

There was more to Delbert’s relationship with the Blues Brothers than their use of one of his songs, as he recalls, “The Blues Brothers used to come out and sit in and play with us in the Lone Star Café in New York and I knew them better in that setting than in a personal one. We’d play some old Blues songs everybody knows, we’d trade off songs, Danny and me, every time I came to town, for at least two years. They weren’t dressed up as the Blues Brothers. They were just like they are on stage, ‘on’.

Off stage John was an impressionable, naïve guy in lots of ways, always asking questions and digging and wanting to know all, and he thought you knew all and he couldn’t wait to get all you knew.”

John Belushi was famed for turning up unexpectedly at friends (and sometimes strangers) houses and sleeping and raiding their refrigerators for food. Did this happen to Delbert? “No, he never got near my fridge!” However, the Blues Brothers did some good, leaving a legacy Delbert has time for, “They showcased some of those guys who might not ever have been seen that way, helped them make some money, took a genuine interest in their welfare, that was very impressive.”

Delbert hasn’t appeared in the UK for a long time, as he explains, “I never got a foothold in the UK, I’ve not played there in fifteen years. I’d be interested in coming.” Yet as soon as he is asked about his take on the Blues, the UK comes up in conversation, “The Blues is personal expression, to the max, of the ups and downs of life, hate and love. Playing the

same songs with a band from times before gets real old. How many versions of ‘Got My Mojo Working’ can you take? Especially when they are performed by the mediocre. Blues is real big in festivals here and in Norway. I don’t know enough about England, I never get to look at figures here. Though you have Frankie Miller in Scotland, the most serious voice you ever heard in your life. And Joe Cocker. Fantastic Blues voices coming from there, it is extremely interesting that voice comes from so many people over there.”

So, for a man like Delbert having fresh material to play live is important. He told us about his latest album, Blind, Crippled, and Crazy, “It’s with Glen, I’ve not played with him for forty two years, but he’s been my friend all that time and we went different ways and he went and played keys with the Blues Brothers Band for a time. He and Danny [Aykroyd] are real close. Recording after all this time, we picked up and played just the same as forty two years ago. We sing real well together, he sings hard and strong. A guest on the album is Anson Funderburgh, one of the best Blues guitarists in the world.”

“Lots of songs on the album we laughed about, like the first, ‘Been Around A Long Time”. At this point, Delbert broke off and same a few words from the song, “I’ve been around a long time/Long enough to know age is but a state of mind.” Age is, if anything, something Delbert sees as a positive, “It’s a lot of fun, being more seasoned performers, laughing off some of the things we used to think serious, but we don’t now. We’re trying to write things that are fun rather than to recapture our first two albums. We had so much fun doing it.”

MY FAvOuRITE chIlDREN

It is hard to commit Delbert to choosing highlights from his discography, “I can’t choose a favourite from my albums. My songs are like my children, I can’t choose which are my favourite children. Which I like depends on my mood, but they’re all my favourites. I listen to some again and might want to do them differently, but that’s healthy, to want to do something better if you get a chance, I’m seldom ever satisfied and know I can do better and keep trying.”

Delbert is a man who reflects, and his last words from the interview sum up his feelings on contemporary Blues, being an older player, and having a musical son, “I don’t know what people want to listen to, I’ll do this till I die. I never had much luck with radio. Old guys getting on radio these days is pretty much unheard of. I’ve been around long enough to know it’s hard to get fifteen minutes of anyone’s attention in this world, but I have a pretty good fanbase.

If the album comes out and disappears, we had a good time doing it and it’s forever. People aren’t reinventing the Blues in a way that is shining a light on the older guys who put a lot of soul into their left hand and were not doing what someone else did. Every sixteen year old guitar wizard is playing a lot and burning it to the ground. The Blues is still relegated to a lower spot even though its top for festivals. My son doesn’t really try to copy me, he’s a really good songwriter, getting better, better, and better. A lot of the time he sounds like me, but it’s not copying, he’s making his own style.”

to check out d elbert, visit WWW.delbert.com and for c lay, visit WWW.claymcclinton.com blind, crippled and crazy is available on ne W W est records

this lady sings the blues based on her o W n experiences and touches i n this intervie W, she gives a frank insight into her life, W hich has not alWays been a bed of roses

riginally from Dallas, Texas, Cathy Lemons relocated to the San Francisco Bay area where, for the past 25 years, she has performed regularly. She is a skilful, expressive singer/songwriter delivering the blues in a wide range of styles, complete with a c.v. to die for. Her new CD, Black Crow, is due out any day now on out on Vizztone Records. Thanks go to her for being so hones t about her life, an inspiration to any youngsters out there.

BM: Have to admit, prior to doing this interview, I didn’t know a lot about you. Having checked your resume, I see you have a very interesting past. Would you like to enlighten our readers on your work and the wonderful times you had with the Dallas blues ‘scene’?

CT: Well I started out singing in a three part harmony band at 17 doing what is now termed roots music. I had a high beautiful voice back

V E rb A ls: CLIVE RAWLINGS Visu A ls: PEGGY DEROSE / BILL HENDERSON

then, no chest voice. No anger was coming through, no bite. But then I heard Aretha Franklin sing on a TV commercial and I was hit in the heart and head. I decided I wanted to move away from Joan Baez and try some real blues and soul. I started out practicing on my own and then I tried out for a band of psychiatrists playing blues. I was shaking so hard I couldn’t hold the mic or even a glass of wine. But I sang Stormy Monday and was hired on the spot. I ended up singing every Saturday night with these guys for a couple of years in a club in Dallas, called the NFL Club. It was then that I found my live wire chest voice. All the psychiatrists knew Anson Funderburg. I went down and listened and learned from both Anson and his singer, Darryl Nulisch. I wanted Darryl’s job secretly.

I started buying mostly Chicago Blues records, started learning all their songs, stuff like Magic Sam and Junior Wells. I loved the evil in it. I was dirt poor and totally frustrated with my life. I didn’t fit in anywhere but with musicians. I met a lot of great players in Dallas. I was 23 years old then, I started sitting in with Anson at a club called Poor David’s and they all encouraged me to stay with it. I ended up going out with Anson’s drummer, David Watson, and we made a recording with Anson, eight songs, a real good demo. David and I had a good start. I then heard Lou Anne Barton and loved her. I met Angela Strehli and I loved her material. It was an interesting scene back then. I got to sing with Stevie Ray Vaughan backing me at Nick’s Uptown for a Blues Night. There was a lot of exposure to great talent at that time which was during the mid eighties.

By the looks of it you were in a male dominated ‘crowd’, how did that feel professionally?

I was in an all male world but I loved it. I didn’t know Lou Anne and Angela, only heard the gossip about them from their sidemen who were my occasional sidemen as well. I was told by a male bass player in that first swing band that I could never sing blues. It just made me more determined to try. At some point my chest voice became smoother and more solid.

Less forced. That same bass player that told me I couldn’t sing blues heard me in a club one night a few years later and he apologized. He couldn’t believe the change. But you see I love men. I have always felt like they were my brothers. Men were the ones that encouraged me and helped me on. Always. Never women. Same today.

You’re now based in San Francisco, does that put a different angle on your music?

Well, in Texas I think we all were really much more schooled in deep blues. They were listening to such greats. I used to sit in this drummer’s living room, a guy that put me and David Watson up when we were down and out and listen to record after record in his vast collection, Lowell Fulson, James Cotton, Elmore James, Ray Charles. Texans didn’t confuse blues with rock. San Francisco, because of the ‘60’s, always has that rock edge. Down in Texas they just didn’t confuse the two genres. But when I came out to San Francisco in November of 1986, I was floored by the warm reception I got. Mark Hummel heard me and hired me for a time. Paris Slim of The Mannish Boys too, lots of local musicians really did all they could to help me get a start. I was just amazed at everyone’s desire to help me.

I’ve touched on your Texas upbringing, was that your main reason for playing the blues, or was music in your family for instance?

My father sang and played piano, my mother sang and was a soloist in some churches, my sister was a classically trained pianist. I always sang as far back as I can remember, but certainly no blues. I decided to sing blues because I understood the feeling behind the music. I loved the rebelliousness in it. Because I was poor, alone, and had absolutely no stake in life, no interest in corporate America or anything the suburbs of hell had to offer me. Blues was my big fight out and it still is.

Although, due to you having a BA in English literature, your father didn’t encourage you to go into music?

Well I was separated from my father because

of a family feud for a decade. I was 28 and in trouble with drugs by the time I started to communicate with him. He drove thousands of miles to come and see me in a drug program in Sedona AZ. He didn’t even know I could sing until he heard a demo I made through John Lee Hooker. John Lee Hooker was trying to get me a record deal with Virgin Records. I made that demo and my father heard it and he asked my mother where this ability came from. He was shocked, as my father wanted me to be an English teacher because I loved literature like he did, in fact we loved all the same writers, Earnest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Henry James. But after my BA I just could not give up music. It would have been THE requirement to get into a Ph.D. program. To concentrate only on school, but I couldn’t do it.

What, would you say, was your breakthrough period?

John Lee Hooker was a huge shot. I was exposed to many great players on the road with him. I was an opening singer back in those days, I’d sing a few songs and then he would come on. I learned more than what a million books could teach me from watching and listening to John sing every night and he would encourage me and talk to me. He was a sweet, sweet man. Unfortunately John Lee had a crush on me and things started to go bad between us due to some schemers that had a hold on him. John Lee Hooker was old school and didn’t really know any better. He had to always try and prove that he was a man. You know, lots of women around, but deep down he was like a little boy.

You toured with JLH, bet that was fun?

Yes, in1987 we toured Canada, the Northwest and Southwest. John Lee Hooker was deep and he told a story from his soul. That’s what blues is about.

But you made the bold decision to go it alone with your own band?

I had to. I am not a pawn for anyone in this lifetime. I’d rather face the street. Which is what I did, but the street is not a pretty place to land.

You suffered from rock’s demons early in your career.

I was addicted to cocaine, then heroin, even speed for a time trying to stay off the heroine. I lost a huge amount of momentum due to the drugs. It took me years before anyone would take me seriously again. This is a small town in blues.

So you can write with some knowledge of what the blues is all about?

Baby, my life was the blues. I was down on Jones Street in the Tenderloin of San Francisco turning tricks every night and shooting up until dawn. I’d walk miles in high heels trying to avoid the cops. I fought my way out of cars, survived crazy men that tried to kill me, kidnapping, shot guns pulled to my face. This was no small feat to stay alive in the world I was living in. All the women, many were so talented and beautiful, that I knew back in those days died violent deaths or from overdose. I ended up in jail in 1989 and I said to myself ‘this is not how I am going to end up, no way’, so I started to get some help and pulled myself up slowly over time.

You’ve only recently broken out on your own?

I had a musical and romantic partner for 17 ½ years, Johnny Ace who taught me a great deal. He had played with so many greats, Otis Rush, Eddie ‘Cleanhead’ Vinson, Roscoe Gordon, Boz Scaggs, Charlie Musselwhite, etc. He had huge ears and real great talent as a bass player. He was also a hell of a showman. We made two CD’s together Dark Road and Lemonace. We managed to regularly play together for the entire run of the relationship. We did a lot of great shows together. Ace always told me to write my own songs. He told me that I could do it. But ironically it took me leaving him to get my writing really out. I wrote two songs of worth while I was still with Ace, Dark Road and Get This Thing Offa My Back. Those songs I am very proud of, but my best songs are on Black Crow.

Six out of the ten tracks on Black Crow are selfpenned, where do you draw your inspiration from, and why Black Crow, omens of death/misfortune?

Black Crow came about from a mystical

experience I had while meditating on my roof in downtown San Francisco. Right after I broke up with Ace fate would have me fall deeply in love with a man that was in love with me but kept telling me he was not. Everything he ever did showed me he was having one helluva time letting me go. He had another woman. I didn’t realize that he was deeply involved with this other woman until it was too late. It ruined our thing, needless to say. I’m not good at being a fool for any man. But this individual was in a lot of pain and I made certain exceptions. It was a relationship like no other. Complete polar opposites, but with crushing clarity we could see one another and the sex was magnificent.

I would break off the relationship and he would contact me again. It was like a bird of prey circling. He just kept coming back. During one of our break ups, it had been about two months since I had heard from him, I was up on my roof thinking about him. This was a man I could feel always. Time and space failed to separate us. Well, this beautiful, huge black crow came flying down slowly while I was thinking about him. The bird landed on the edge of my roof top, so close I could almost touch it. I said to myself ‘he’s coming back.’ Sure enough he did contact me the very next day. You see I believe thoughts have wings. I went into my apartment and wrote down the song as a way to try and make sense out of a situation that was killing me.

I wrote many songs about him ‘I beat him with my words and he beats me with his wings.’ Everyone did warn me about him, all my friends in the blues clubs would report back to me what he was up to,’ but I couldn’t hear a damn thing.’ I lost the man but I gained several beautiful songs that breathe.

For the uninitiated, Black Crow has varied styles, bits of boogie, a nod to JLH?, shuffles, funk, Southern Rock.......you’re certainly versatile! The idea was to break out of the blues box. But to me it’s all blues because of the STORY. The lyrics and the grooves are the things that grab me. I look for a dramatic interior that I can step into. I am always mining for material

or ideas for writing new songs. But more and more I realize my real greatness may lie in the writing itself. One way or the other.

I see you have Volker Strifler guesting on guitar and Kid Andersen on organ on a couple of tracks each, how did that come about?

I heard Volker play and really dug him. I thought he too is trying to stretch out of the blues box, plus he is such a great person. I hosted a songwriters showcase and we put him on as a headliner and he did a great job. Charismatic and talented. So I thought ‘perfect’, I knew he would play with Stevie Gurr well. I can be intuitive when it comes to choosing the right musicians. Kid Andersen co-produced Lemonace from 2010 and did such a fabulous job. He played guitar on my song Get This Thing Offa My Back and hit it right there with me. Kid is a rare talent. So I knew I’d work with him again somehow. And I did.

I see one reviewer likened the closing track

The Devil Has Blue Eyes, to Robert Johnson’s Hell Hounds On My Trail, do you take that as a compliment?

Absolutely. The Hellhound was on my trail when I wrote that song. Might still be yet. I also had in mind Devil Got My Woman. You see, there are things in life that happen to people that twist them and make them so they can’t love. This to me is a very sad thing and well worth writing about. There is a certain pathos when someone you want you can’t have. Because of their pain. Pain is the devil.

Do you play any instruments yourself?

My instrument is my voice, my physical being.

Your band is very tight, are they all local to you?

Yes. We are very lucky out here on the West Coast. We might have the best blues scene in the U.S. out here right now, a highly competitive scene with so much talent. Stevie Gurr is a really brilliant guitarist that I actually met on a John Lee Hooker tour way back in 1987. He is the co-producer along with me and Kid for Black Crow. Stevie pushed me into the place I needed to go to make this CD. He has played and toured for many years with Dr. John and Elvin Bishop has a helluva CV. Stevie is eccentric but we are of the same tuning fork when it comes to music. Stevie wrote the music to the song

Black Crow and created much of the exquisite chordings you hear on My Town, I Am Going to Try and The Devil Had Blues Eyes. He had a tremendous amount of input in the studio. Plus he played harmonica, percussion, sang backup vocals, and helped me to arrange the songs. Paul Olguin is a great bassist. He can follow any improvisational lead.

Stevie and I are big on improv and with Paul it works. Mr. Olguin has worked with Maria Muldaur and so many other artists I can’t even begin to list them all. Robbie Bean is a great drummer who has worked with Steve Freund out here in the Bay Area and even Primus. The other drummer I used on the CD is Dmar who works with of all people Little Richard. Doug James is the co-founder of Roomful of Blues, a great character, and a wonderful horn player. Doug regularly plays with Jimmie Vaughan and Lou Ann Barton, but we get him when we can when he comes into town now. He was based out here while I was making the CD.

Who would you say is/are your biggest influences? Aretha Franklin in the beginning. Going Down Slow just kills me to this day. If that ain’t blues, well please. But I have been mostly influenced by men Lowell Fulson, Junior Wells, Howlin’ Wolf, Elmore James, Al Green, Ray Charles, Earl King, Jimmie McCracklin, and O.V. Wright.

Who would be in your dream band, living or dead?

Gimme Stevie Gurr, Jimmie Vaughan, ol’ Doug James, Jimmie Botts, Paul Olguin, and David Maxwell if he doesn’t overplay. I’ll take all those guys. I can’t imagine ‘em dead.

Any song that you think, ‘If only I wrote that’? Anything Bob Dylan ever wrote.

Do you get to hear any of our Brit upcoming blues/ rock bands, if so, do you have an opinion?

I am terrible. I listen to the old stuff. Mostly by dead people. I am trying to listen to my contemporaries more. I am just terrible, but I love all kinds of music and if it speaks to me I am in.

Any chance we’ll see you in the UK anytime soon? Stevie and I would love to come out and I am working on it.

f or more on c athy go to WWW.cathylemons.com

m alaya b lue has exploded onto the uk b lues scene this year follo W ing the release of her debut album ‘b ourbon street’. it’s a collection of W ell

W ritten late night blues delivered in a sassy, sexy style that has captured the imagination of many

he album has achieved a remarkable level of airtime on the blues programmes in the UK and Europe with interest being shown from the USA. We featured Malaya in a Blue Blood piece earlier this year but thought the time is right to discover a bit more.

BM: Hi Malaya, thanks for talking to us. Your new album Bourbon Street is getting so much coverage in the UK and Europe. You must be very pleased with the way things are going.

MB: I’m absolutely thrilled. It’s always difficult when you release an album to imagine what the response will be. It’s gone a lot better than I dared imagine. Whenever you release anything into the public domain it’s such a wide audience you never know what people will say or come back with. The fact that so far the response has just been positive and energetic is brilliant.

V E rb A ls: STEVE YOURGLIVCH Visu A ls: ELIZA BOO

I understand there may be some interest from America?

Well it’s early days so I can’t say too much but there have been some e.mails and conversations back and forth. You’ll just have to watch this space.

And a new album in the pipeline?

There will be a new album, in fact we started working on it yesterday. I’m very excited about putting the new one together, I feel the pressure is on now because there are expectations that weren’t there for the first one. The one I’m working on now, co-writing with Andy Littlewood, I’m really excited about. I can’t wait to get it out there but I know I’ve got to be patient. It’ll be awhile yet before it’s ready. I hope it’ll be worth the wait.

You thinking towards the end of 2015?

Yes, probably this time next year. Towards the end of the Autumn.

Tell us a bit about your musical background. It’s been mostly in studios hasn’t it ?

It started by accident really. My neighbour was a bass player and I used to cook for him sometimes and on one occasion he heard me singing in the kitchen and told me he thought I was really good. So from that he introduced me to someone and it ended up with me going to an audition when I was about 19. So that was the beginning. I went on and did session work for other bands and producers. Working with Hed Kandi, Universal, Konami and Ministry of Sound as a featured artist until eventually it got to the point that I was asked to do something as a solo project.

Didn’t that come about because you featured on a Mockingbird Hill track?

Yes, that’s right. Andy Littlewood produced an album with Mick Simpson, the track was called Find Another You, and I was the featured singer. The album got good reviews and the single got really great reviews. People came back and said, whose the singer, can we hear more? So the opportunity was there to record in this genre. I wasn’t sure to begin with but I think it’s tapped into something really primitive in me, it took me right back to when I was a girl listening to really early blues. An earlier style of music where its about the instrumentation and fantastic singing. It suddenly became very organic.

That’s interesting. I wanted to ask you when did you realise you had a great voice and the early influences growing up?

I remember as a child, my father used to go on long walks and I wasn’t allowed to touch the vinyl record player we had then, of course as soon as he was gone I would put something on. I got drawn to Shirley Bassey and Barbara Streisand, such amazing voices. One day I was upstairs in the bathroom combing my hair singing Barbara Streisand when this voice bellowed up, whose that singing. I said it’s me. My father always sang about the house, he had a fantastic Glaswegian full singing voice. I probably owe my voice to him.

You mention Shirley Bassey and Barbara Streisand, anyone in the jazzy bluesy style that you perform in? Of course as a child I only heard my parents

music. As I grew up I discovered a whole new world of music. In my twenties I had a gorgeous flamboyant boyfriend who introduced me to people like Ella Fitzgerald, Julie London, Mark Murphy who I absolutely adore.

Incredible jazz singers, suddenly I realised you could combine power with feeling. These singers brought something else, it was almost raw. At times almost painful and that was what I really connected with. The first time I heard Mark Murphy on record I just played it to death, I was enthralled by this voice, this magnetism, the sense of yearning that came behind his voice. It was such an art and that’s when the transition came.

We mentioned your studio background but you’ve put together a live band and you’re taking the Malaya Blue experience out on the road.

Yes, and I like that, the Malaya Blue experience. That sounds full of promise and full of excitement. I’ve spent a lot of time in studios often working on my own, often the music is prearranged and predetermined as to what I can do with it. So to be working and rehearsing with a live band is really exciting. They are all great musicians who love the music, really committed to the project, they want it to do well and that means a lot to me.

You are playing at Skegness in January at the Great British Rock & Blues Festival so that’s a great opportunity to showcase the band.

A great opportunity yes. It seems a little unreal to think that nine months ago I recorded an album and we crossed our fingers and hoped something nice would come from it. To think in January I’ll be at one of the biggest Rock and Blues festivals is nothing short of incredible. I’m very excited and a bit scared, but mostly excited.

We touched a little about your background and upbringing. You mentioned your father was Scottish. Yes he was from Glasgow.

So where did you grow up?

I grew up in Kent. My father came down from Scotland as a student nurse. My mother had won a scholarship from Mauritius to be a trainee nurse. That’s how they met, closing a gap of six and a half thousand miles. He was a very robust Scotsman and she was a very demure Mauritian so between them they had great kids ( laughing).

We mentioned earlier about all the airplay, you seem to have been adopted by the Blues community. It’s been very humbling actually. It has been very warm. In other genres it can be difficult, you can be made to feel insecure. The difference with the blues community is they want you to do well, to be good. They support you and share your music in a wholehearted way and that’s nice.

So the wider blues community can look forward to seeing you on the road and with a new album coming the future looks very rosy. It takes a little while but I’m so excited about the next eighteen months. I just need time to show what I can do and earn my place.

f ollo W m alaya online at WWW.facebook.com/ m alaya b luesJazz

d evon a llman continues to carry the family musical dynasty on W ards W ith aplomb. a s a key component of r oyal s outhern b rotherhood he has turned heads and W on many ne W fans

is debut solo album Turquoise won many accolades but never one to rest on his laurels Devon wanted to move forward so for the first time travelled North to Chicago to record a real blues album with respected producer and writer Tom Hambridge. The resulting Ragged and Dirty album is a late contender for album of the year. The perfect time for Pete Sargeant to find out how it all went down.

BM: Hello, Mr Allman! Where am I ringing to? What town?

DA: I am in my hometown St Louis, Missouri and I’ve got a week and a half off. I just got back from a three-week tour of Europe. Got back late last night.

With the Brotherhood? Yeah exactly.

I saw Honey Tribe at The Boom Boom Club maybe four or five years ago, what I liked was the range that

you had. The impression I had was that you weren’t just trying to play one kind of music you were actually spreading it round a bit. Would you say that’s a fair comment about you?

Well I think so. You know, I’m inspired by so many genres from jazz to folk, metal to punk, blues to heavy on R’n’B. Yeah I think it’s safe to say it comes through my stuff.

I can’t hear enough new stuff and of course, it soaks into your brain and comes out of your fingers and voice sometimes. It has to find a way through your system and come out as you.

Yeah. I think that’s the thing, you are a product of what you have put in. Totally. I agree.

Now, you’ve made this new record RaggedandDirty. I’ve been listening to it and I’ve got the previous one of yours Turquoise. My favourite track on Turquoise was Time Machine. What did you think of that song? Within distance of hindsight.

Time Machine was just something that I had

the music for and I really liked the simplicity of the music. I was in making ‘Turquoise’ and I went for a run and the lyrics came to me. I did not have those going into the studio, it was a big gift. It turned out to be a lot of people’s favourite tune. But it really wrote itself.

Well David Crosby says ‘stuff just drops on your head and that’s the muse. You have to go with the moment and he says it’s happening for a reason.’

Yeah I think so. I think all of the melodies, the beats and all of that stuff is floating around in the ether and we’re lucky enough as artists and musicians to have the capability to kind of pull it down out of the ether and fashion it into a tune. I think it’s already out there somehow.

The way you play guitar, I always associate you rightly or wrongly with an SG snarly sound. Sometimes, you sound like your guitar lines are what a saxophone player would come up with.

Oh thank you! I love Coltrane and Miles. I love African jazz like Fela Kuti. So there’s definitely a lot of that in there.

Good, I’m not going crazy. It’s there is it?

I think so. I’ve never been much of a chops guy. I’m more of a ‘I wanna write something more melodic or I just wanna rip your head off’. I think as long as you tap into the vibe of what’s being laid down then you kind of can’t go wrong.

Can we talk about the album because Half the Truth has got a very strident feel and reminded me of Luther and Cody Dickinson and I wondered if that was kind of a nod to the North Mississippi sound at all?

Well you know, Tom Hambridge the producer wrote that song for me. But it’s funny because I’m really tight friends with Cody and Luther. I’ve known them for years, we’ve jammed together, we’ve done shows together, we’ve even talked about making a record together. So I’m definitely influenced by that kinda ‘stomp blues’. I’m into it.

Yeah. I like the changes in the number, they’re not too obvious. ‘Can’t Lose ‘Em All’ has a terrific New Orleans feel to it was that one of the earliest tracks

you did for the sessions?

That was a Lee Roy Parnell number that Tom brought to the table. That one I thought had kind of an Allman Brothers feel and I never really tackled anything that sounded like something the Brothers would do so I was really happy to do it. There’s a side of me that really loves Santana so to be able to write, track and play a Santana style lead is always fun to do.

When I say New Orleans, Devon, I wasn’t really thinking of the Santana thing but now you say it I kind of get that. There was a group called The Radiators that I liked and there’s a great album they did called Zig-ZaggingThroughGhostLandand that’s how two guitars should work together. ‘Leaving’ has a really fresh acoustic feel and you’re saying there ‘You’re leaving but you don’t know when’ it’s a very outside/ outdoor kind of sound isn’t it?

Yeah that’s one that Tom actually custom wrote for me. Man, when I heard the demo I was like ‘That’s a strong one and I can’t wait to sing it’. That’s a really special one on the record to me.

You’re lucky he didn’t give it to Blackberry Smoke! ‘I’ll Be Around’ is one of my favourites on here. It’s got this lovely light jazzy funk sort of feel to it. If I was playing something to someone who asked ‘What’s Devon doing now?’ I’d probably play that. That’s cool! It’s one of my favourite all-time songs and I hadn’t heard it in years and it came up. I was listening to it and was like ‘I have to do this song!’ and I was really pleased to be able to step away from Gibson world for a little bit and play a Strat solo.

‘Travelling’ has got a real dirt swamp-funk sound but a very poetic lyric and it’s almost like you had the words set on a dirty tune. How did that work?

It did actually start out as a poem believe it or not, but the lyrics came to me on an airplane and I was looking at the cities from thirty thousand feet up and I was like ‘Man, they look like little galaxies and we’re always travelling to each other.’ It really kind of wrote itself and then the music came and I wrote that the night before we went to the studio to make this record. So that was another one of those

last-second gifts that I was given and out of all the songs you’ve brought up so far that’s the first one I wrote a hundred per cent of so I’m proud of it.

Good. Of course, Frank Zappa did a song called ‘City Of Tiny Lights’ but’s that’s a haunting sound altogether. Now ‘Midnight Late Michigan’, fabulous. What I like about this, this music only sounds good in the middle of the night you know? Are we agreed on that point?

Yeah. That’s why I put the title Midnight in it, it’s definitely a night time, driving tune and when we cut that for the record I asked the producer ‘Can you let me do a really long B minor blues, play with it?’ He said ‘Sounds perfect for the record’ and we did that number in just one take.

What I love about this, I’m always talking to younger guitarists at gigs who ask ‘How do you get this sound?’ What I say to them is ‘You don’t have to be loud to sound intense. Loud is the resort of the dopes and you can sound very intense on quite low volume. Right! It’s interesting that you say that because I made the whole record Ragged &

Dirty on a 15-Watt 12 inch Combo amp.

Right. Do you think we’re connected here?

(Laughs) Right!

‘Ten Million Slaves’ is credited to Otis Mark Taylor. This is the Otis Taylor I know or is it someone else?

Oh yeah man. That’s THE Otis Taylor and thankfully he came and saw us play at a gig and I told him about my desire to cut the tune and he was so excited about me doing it, that he sat me down and taught it to me.

I found him profoundly depressing to talk to! I thought he was so overweighed with the problems of the world that he had a face of thunder. I don’t think it was just me! I think the guy is a very serious player but hey you’ve gotta say great musician. Oh yeah. Great writer.

Now ‘Blackjack Heart Attack’, that's a great choppy sound and again, this has got that Devon sneering guitar on it. Well you know, the band that Tom Hambridge

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put together for the record was just instant chemistry. I did write that song on my own a hundred per cent but once we got through with it you can tell that’s an ensemble, a unit; and it’s kind of a nod to one of my heroes and my buddy Billy Gibbons, that kind of had that feel going.

I picked up a little bit of Link Wray but that’s probably before your time. No! I’m a fan of Link Wray man!!

I don’t feel too old then. ‘Back To You’ again it’s a moody blues number but what I think makes this is the Hammond. It’s just perfect. Yeah man I was really pleased with how that came out. That was the first track I wrote for the album and Royal Southern Brotherhood has been playing that song live for about six months so it was a real comfort and I think Hambridge produced the hell out of it.

Let’s talk about Tom in a moment actually. The title track has got a distorted vocal and I get that by using a bullet mike when I play harmonica to get that sound. In the studio how did you do it?

I think it was just a normal mike and they just did a little bit on the effects for it and it just lent itself to a raw sound. Yeah you know for the ‘Ragged & Dirty’ tour I’ll actually be singing through a bullet mike or something like that for Blackjack and Ragged & Dirty.

That’s how I do it anyway and Leave The City’ has a beautiful pastural feel and that’s a Resonator I think? Yeah it definitely is.

This Joyride Studios, did you go up to Chicago to do this record or what did you do?

Yeah I made all of my records in my career down south and I really wanted to shake things up and have Chicago genuine blues cats play on the record. So we picked a really cool studio up there with a great engineer and we did the record in four days, man.

I spotted that and I thought ‘Devon’s up in Chicago. What’s this all about?’ Then I saw Tom Hambridge was involved. I’ve got Tom’s solo album which I absolutely love. What I said at the time when I got it ‘Rod Stewart could go into a studio if he discovered his rock mojo and have hit after hit with these songs.’ It’s quite incredible with the standard of his songwriting and not to be patronising, but here’s a guy known as an ace drummer. Do you know any drummer

that can write songs like this? I don’t. That’s what makes him a triple threat; he’s a drummer, producer and a writer. Really unique for him to be able to do that. Not only did he write songs for this album but he did research on me and wrote songs custom-made for me. So the record is really a third Tom’s writing, a third my writing and a third covers. More or less. I hope that makes it cohesive but still have some various road.

It’s a fresh path for you and drops you in a new town and that’s what’s great about it. But Hambridge is like a sound tailor and he’s got the cloth which is you and he thinks ‘If I take it here out comes a smart suit’. He’s a great picture framer and you’re the picture. He’s putting it in the right frame.

I think that’s a great analogy. That’s exactly what he does, he listened to my records and thought deeply, and I think he wrote around what I can do best.

I had this similar conversation with another musician who said ‘That guy understands drums and he understands not to clutter the record and not overproduce it.’ Who said that to me? Have a guess. Hmm… tell me

Buddy Guy.

(Laughs) That makes perfect sense! I think it’s really awesome. I think it’s time in my career to challenge myself and really make a gamechanger and I knew Tom Hambridge could get me there.

If you think about it, Paul Simon took a trip to Africa once and it didn’t do him any harm did it ! That’s funny man! Yeah, you know, being artist is about always evolving, growing and trying to really hit your potential.

So what’s the key track for you here on this record?

Well I think that ‘Back To You’ being the first thing that I wrote really made me think ‘Well I haven’t really made a blues record and I don’t need to make a traditional twelve-bar blues record but I should start leaning on that cause’ it is what I love. Though, I think it’s a nighttime, contemporary blues record and that track is kind of the backbone where everything comes off of that.

d evon a llman’s ne W album ragged & dirty is out no W on ruf records . for more information, go to: WWW.devonallmanband.com

E rb A ls: PETE SARGEANT Visu A ls: MHP STUDIOS

Joanne Shaw Taylor i S back wiTh a bang! h er new album The DirTy TruTh

coulD well be her be ST yeT, S howcaS ing J oanne’S growing S killS aS a S ongwriTer, aS well aS her worlD-claSS guiTar chop S

eleased on a brand new label and being performed along with many crowd favourites by an exciting new young band Joanne’s star has never been higher. The future of the blues is in very safe hands.

BM: Hello Joanne, are you just back from the States? JST: Yeah, Pete we had our last show of the summer in Colorado on the weekend. So we just flew back. It was a good show, we did The Blue Turtle, we’ve played it once before. It’s up in the mountains in Winter Park near Denver.

TheDirtyTruthand Axehouse Records. Now for this one I understand it you’ve gone back down to Memphis to work with Jim Gaines. Yeah. Obviously as you know, we did my first two albums and Jim also mixed the live CD last year. So I’ve worked with him a few times.

I was probably one of the first people to review ‘White Sugar’. Looking back The Live set, it did sound like a chapter finishing and it did sound like you were rounding off that sort of era. Hopefully you enjoyed that Shepherds Bush Empire show in London with King King. It was very good, I thought. Yeah that tour was great. They are a great band and great guys. It did a little bit I guess with the live album, I knew that I was fulfilling the last of that contract and more just because I think when you’ve done three studio albums like that the live album was kind of approached as a ‘best of’ really, with favourite tracks and fan favourites from the studio albums and make it one good live album that summarises those three albums.

It kind of says ‘We can play this live, too’ in a subtle way. ‘We don’t think we’re a studio-bound act so come see us burn it up’. I think that’s the subtle statement of a live album because if you listen to something. The Pet Shop Boys couldn’t make a live album because all you’re hearing is the studio tracks and a few people with painted faces dancing around. What you’re doing of course is the other end of the spectrum from that. You don’t plan solos ever do you?

Not really. I mean, obviously you take things from the solos on the albums which you’ve obviously put a bit more thought into and it’s freeze-framed and there for people to review for years. You might have a set way of getting into a solo or a way out. But by and large yes, it’s mostly improvised.

Mud Honey sounds very purposeful. There’s a thin line Tele in one of the pictures I’ve got. Yeah it’s actually a Double-Thinline Tele and we borrowed it just for the recording. It’s got two F holes on it. You know what? I don’t think we actually used it on Mud Honey because the only problem with that Tele, though it’s lovely, it was so bright, because it was DoubleThinline it was a bit overkill. I think that’s actually my Les Paul.

Right. OK. Some people prefer me playing a Telecaster but that Les Paul I’ve got is so bright in itself that it actually sounds like a Telecaster on a lot of those tracks.

It’s a bit Southern rock-ish kind of sound. My notes say ‘stark breakdown and arpeggio’ and that is almost classic Rory Gallagher style dynamic isn’t? Yeah that’s interesting actually. I hadn’t picked up on that. Originally, I thought it was going to be a heavy rockabilly track that was the intention. It was meant to be an instrumental, however I kinda felt it was a bit of a waste to not write some lyrics to it. But that’s interesting that you’ve picked up on that.

Well I learnt off Rory. First guitar I ever got was a copy Tele on open tuning so I started playing slide before playing straight guitar. The Dirty Truth title track, there’s some great reverbs on this. I tell you what, there’s kind of echoes Pete Anderson who does Dwight Yoakam, really knows how to get the best out of those pokey guitar sounds.

This one, you’re almost steering close to Miranda Lambert territory. Is that just from being in the area or are you listening to this stuff?

To be honest, with that track a lot of that stuff comes down to Jim. One of the main reasons I worked with Jim originally and apart from the personal relationship we have as it’s like working with family, and the reasons so many guitar players use him like Stevie Ray Vaughan, Santana etc. is that he is the guitar guy. Not a guitar player himself he just has a really good ear for what that track needs in terms of the guitar sound, the guitar solo, the way you approach it. A lot of that I’ll leave up to Jim really. You’ve gotta trust him to do his thing.

The thing is that’s true and it’s different from

someone like David Z who can also capture guitar sounds really well. But they tend to be a little more urbany sounding.

Yeah I think a lot of that’s down to probably the fact he’s a Minneapolis bloke. So he’s grown up in that school with Prince and a lot of those sort of guys.

There’s a pure Jo lyric here ‘I’d rather shoot than be killed’. Which makes you think this is not a Southern lady, this is someone with your perspective. But that’s a pure Jo lyric isn’t?

Yeah. To be honest, when I started writing that song I was trying to write a country track. The riff ended up differently, the guitar parts a bit more Southern Blues. But I decided to keep the idea of writing a country song. Most of the country I listen to is like outlaw country, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson and that kind of stuff.

Wicked Soul I liked. It’s got a twisting, turning sound to it and there’s a great Hammond part. Yeah Mr Rick Steff is a fantastic keyboard player.

How on earth do you stay off the Wah-Wah for this cut?

Honestly, I’m not a huge fan of Wah-Wah. I like it for rhythm, but I was having this discussion, I kind of see Wah-Wah as a different instrument in itself like slide guitar. People who do it do it really well and then others mess around with it and it doesn’t quite work for me.

I’ve kind of put myself unfortunately in the second category because I haven’t done it too much so I don’t consider myself a great WahWah player. Though I do like using different rhythm a lot and when we got that tone, I thought I could lay on it and it sounded quite haunting. Obviously, the vocal and lyrics are a bit dark and nasty so it kind of suited it.

I’ve got written down ‘Aren’t men dreadful?’ well we are and we can’t help it. It was actually written about a female friend that I fell out with so I kind of embellished on that thing.

Anyway, it’s got some nice progressions and it’s a nice memorable song I think. Fall in Love, again

you’ve got this great rockabilly guitar sound. I thought it was probably a single and there’s a lovely lyrical guitar solo in there. But who’s the chorale on that number?

It was me!

Was it you?

Yeah I did all of the backing vocals.

You clever thing. It’s a fair question. They are probably very buried in the mix so it’s hard to tell.

Yeah but it is an effective part of the track. Wrecking Ball is very choppy. It’s not the Miley Cyrus song. What’s going on?

Yeah that was funny. Everybody told me about that and I didn’t know because I don’t listen to Miley Cyrus!

Basically, you get a very large metal ball and you swing around on it not wearing very much really. That’s how you get attention in that field!

(Laughs) I’m good, thanks!

Alright. There’s as neat bridge in this.

Yeah that song was the one that changed the most from the demo to the recording. Originally, I intended it to be like ‘Jump That Train’ which is an earlier song. There were too many changes and it was messy so we restructured that. It worked a lot better actually. It’s different to anything I’ve done before, different vibes and it ended up being one of my favourites.

My notes here say ‘Getting over a kicking’

The song is basically about falling in love and not expecting it but it came crashing in like a wrecking ball and I didn’t have much option.

Tried, Trusted and True had Hendrix-y lament. That is obviously an album highlight; do you think that’s a fair comment?

I’m glad you said that,, actually because it turned out to be one of my favourites. I think it breaks the album up quite nicely as I don’t do that many slow ballads. I do more funky stuff but I was really happy with that one. It’s funny, I had that riff for ages and I couldn’t

write any lyrics to it and they popped into my head one day. It was quite an enjoyable one to write as well.

Yeah I mean ‘lost love’ is always a great theme. It haunts your love. The real gunslinger track here is Outlaw Angel and that’s very punchy. It sounds like a set-opener. Is it?

Yeah, I kind of felt it was a bit of a ZZ Top shuffle and I love that Texas blues. It has that Texas blues vibe to it and lyrically.

There’s a lyric here ‘Time to turn the tables’ and that’s your ‘That’s enough of this’. Yeah exactly. I’ve always been fascinated by that theme of ‘being born again’ just because I listened to a lot of blues and gospel growing up that redemption vibe. It’s that kind of vibe of someone looking over their life and realising if there is such a thing as judgement day I probably should have been a bit better.

Yeah. The mellower take on that Jo is John Lee Hooker’s ‘The Healer’. Where he’s actually saying what’s picked me up when I’ve been down is music. You can say that and I can definitely say that. Yeah!

Shiver and Sigh, you’ve got this very moody tremolo guitar and the steady drums. It’s kind of vulnerability. That’s an old song of mine actually. I co-wrote when I was eighteen and it didn’t feature in the live set for years and didn’t pop up in any of the album because it didn’t fit in but I thought it did with this one. You’re right it’s obviously about falling in love and unrequited love so that kind of tremolo sound hit the nail on the head with a vulnerable tinge I suppose.

Struck Down’has got an aggressive beat. Tinge of ‘Helter Skelter’ about this. Yeah that’s another one. The final two Feels Like Home and Struck Down we recorded both of those for Diamond in the Dirt I think and I didn’t feel like they fitted. I think Struck Down has got a little heavier over the years but it was just such a cool groove to play.

I wonder, I would have put a tempo change in this but I suppose if you wanted to do that you could do it live if you wanted to.

Exactly. They often creep in live anyway with the adrenaline.

Yeah dead right. Struck Down and Feels Like Home let’s be honest, this is where Jim Gaines can actually help you get down what’s in your head. If you are working with Jim Gaines, he can capture the moods of those songs probably better than most producers can capture it.

I think you’re right there. Feels Like Home I recorded on a demo before I was signed to Ruf and the arrangement is exactly the same but as you say, the way Jim records things and the sound he gets the tracks really benefit. Yeah. I think it’s time and I wanted to make an album similar to the first two that we’d done and it was natural conclusion to come back to.

On summary with this record, Tried, Trusted and True’was my initial favourite but now Shiver and Sigh has got to me. That is now the official Sargeant favourite track on this for what it’s worth. What do you think?

My favourite track? That’s a tough one. I would probably say Mud Honey because I just love that rock stuff and probably Tried, Trusted and True as that’s a bit of a personal song and one I needed to write and close the door on. Most of my songs are fictional, but obviously at the end

of a day it’s a release and that’s why. (Laughs) I write songs about shooting boyfriends!

Who’s to be playing with on these live dates?

These dates we are using Oliver Perry on the drums, Tom Godlington on bass and Joe Peter on the keyboards. It’s a new band for me and I’ve been auditioning people in the UK. I haven’t got any previous experience with them.

Well good for you. As I say, the records half your original style and half reached into different places. This is a record you need to make at this point isn’t it? I think so. I wanted to make another album like ‘White Sugar’ really but it’s really hard to intentionally write the same record. So years pass, styles change and you change personally and in that moment it’s gonna be the album it’s gonna be. You can’t force that stuff too much anyway. I’m glad we went for that when we did this album and it’s still very different to anything I’ve done before. It’s a bit more stripped-down and rootsy which I kind of wanted to do. I hope people will like it.

For more in F ormaTion vi S iT: www.J oanne S haw Taylor.com

he new album, The Sky is Crying, pays tribute to King of the Slide guitar Elmore James. Erja was first inspired by Elmore when she heard him back in the 1990’s. The album celebrates Elmore’s great contribution to blues in what is the 50th Anniversary of his death.

BM: Hello Erja, how are you?

EJ: I’m doing very well thank you very much, Pete. Well, this year has been very different from any of my previous years of my life ever!

(Taunting) – I wonder why?

In many ways, as you well know, I became a mother in January, to twins. I basically only stayed home about two months and then we hit the road here in Finland. We did around twenty gigs around Finland and then Sweden and now we are playing festivals and travelling around Europe as well. It’s an unusual situation for me to be a mum on the road.

Do you take the children with you?

Yeah, I had my children here in Finland for like the first month. We had five gigs a week and I took the girls with me. We did have a nanny with us so she was taking care of them when I was doing soundcheck or the gig. Yeah it was a big challenge staying up late in the night and then trying to do your best in the show. It takes quite a lot of energy.

You do then admire people who have done that. You realise how they did it. I think Diana Ross took her kids on tour …she had help and everything but you have more respect for these people. You think ‘Yeah I realise now it’s not easy. It’s not a piece of cake. It is difficult.

No piece of cake!

But hey, you love your music, what are you gonna do? Exactly. The good thing is I have two boys so for the whole last year they’ve had to hear a lot of music. I was playing a lot of gigs and then I

PETE SARGEANT Visu A ls: MIKKA HARMA / TINA KORHONEN

went into the studio so they’ve been hearing a lot of blues.

I saw Roger Inniss a couple of weeks ago and he was playing bass to help Laurence Jones on a show with Coco Montoya over at The Boom Boom Club. Roger looks very fit and well and he is on this album of yours isn’t he?

Roger, yeah of course. Roger Inniss and Miri and Davide. This is our third year together and previously we’ve done one CD together that was ‘Forbidden Fruit’.

I did review that and I did love some of the songs on that because then you played for us at The Bulls Head. That was a great album. Yeah. Looking back on it, I can see why people liked that, of course, you always like and hate your albums but I do think there’s some really nice songs in that album.

I agree and to me it’s always the unusual songs I keep playing over and over. The ones with the unusual chords and I’m always drawn to those because in my own bands’ I’m trying to play my own stuff, to have different rhythms and keys to play all the time.

I do agree with you totally. Looking back at my musical craft and all of the albums I’ve done, it’s a huge variation of different styles. Some people like it and some people don’t like it very much because people say I’m a blues artist and that’s my main thing really. But I like to mix a lot of styles into the blues that I do. For me, that works the best and it’s really hard just to stick to the one style! I went to music school so I’ve studied with different teachers so every single year I have different harmonies in my head. Sometimes, I make some kinds of movements that don’t fit in the basic blues category but for me, if it fits with the song then it has its right there.

The way I think of it, you are a singer-songwriter who can play blues.

I always want to make songs and I love to play guitar.

We see every Tarja tour and last time she made a record called Colours and people said ‘Oh this isn’t

all metal.’ I thought ‘Well, good for you.’ She’s an operatic singer as well as symphonic metal why should she make the same record every time? That’s right. Whether she is a painter or a dancer always develop yourself. We should always look to the future and go forward. I have to say, you have to learn from the old stuff though and that’s what I’m trying to do with the blues. That’s one of the reasons why the new album is tribute album for Elmore James.

That’s interesting because that’s the natural place we’re going now. Now the record has got a couple of your songs nodding to Elmore and then presumably I don’t know if these are your favourites or whether those are the songs you thought you could do something of your own with.

Some of the tracks are really my favourites which I’ve played for years. I heard this compilation CD back in 1990 and I found some of these songs from there. I started to play It Hurts Me Too and we still play that song in our live sets. It has all the elements of the great blues song with a great guitar riff which is the corner.

Where did you first hear ‘The Sky is Crying’? It was kind of adopted by Stevie Ray Vaughan wasn’t it? For me, actually I always enjoyed playing that song, it’s special. ‘The Sky is Crying’ is very well known as his version and of course I have listened to that version as well. When I was learning the song, what usually happens to me when I play covers I start to make them as my own.

If I hear some chord change I might add something a bit different. Minor chords here and there, it gives even more mellow feeling to the song. It’s about heartbreak and you see your man or woman walking down the road with another man or woman. You’re crying and ‘the sky is crying’, it has nice metaphors.

Believe me Erja, I do this all the time. If I’m gonna resolve in a B7 in a song you can bet your life I’ll play a C ninth and then I’ll hit the B7 because I want that little bit of movement in there and that little bit of what you’re not expecting. Yeah that’s right..! Different routes.

You can have your B7, audience, but I’m gonna get there via C9. See, cover isn’t a good word. You do a version of a song I think that is more accurate of what you do. You don’t do covers because you’re not saying ‘I’m gonna reproduce Elmore James tracks.’ Same keys, same tempo.’

You can’t replace anybody. How well you try to replace somebody and sing the way they sing, it will always have a filter and it will always go through your filter. It’s really hard to try to do it the exact same way. So with this album, I decided I’ll try to do some transcriptions of some of the solos and try to do some links the way he did it. Then just let it go through my filter so it would not sound copied.

I had the same conversation a few weeks with Kenny Wayne Shepherd because he loves Muddy Waters like you love Elmore. He says ‘When I play a Muddy Waters song, my fingers won’t let me reproduce it, I just wanna let the Muddy come out through my fingers. That way, I feel I’m not just a jukebox.’ Yeah exactly. Every player is unique and Elmore James was unique and king of the slide guitar! So he inspired this album and I feel I am helping people know who he was and what he did, musically.

There’s something about Elmore I’ve gotta tell you, have you heard Jimi Hendrix do ‘Bleeding Heart’? Actually I haven’t but I saw that he was a huge Elmore James fan.

He loved Elmore James. His favourite guitar player was Terry Kath from Chicago Transit Authority and Buddy Guy. But Jimi loved Elmore James and he did ‘Bleeding Heart’ at some of the shows and I saw him once and he did ‘Catfish Blues’. But the next night apparently he did ‘Bleeding Heart’ with The Experience. There was a comedy act here called The Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band and they did a song called ‘Can Blue Men Play the Whites?’ It was a parody of Fleetwood Mac doing Elmore James. Now this I HAVE to hear!

If I talk to you, Dani Wilde or Joanne Shaw Taylor or Samantha Fish all of you ladies seem to look up to Bonnie Raitt.

Yeah of course. She’s the queen! She’s been around a long time and she was one of the finest guitar players I ever heard in my life. I was playing in a guitar trio with another guy and he said ‘You’re gonna love this. She plays

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slide and writes songs like the ones you write.’ I said ‘OK. Let’s check her out.’ I liked her immediately and she has great songs and she kind of sounds young.

I think she used to hang around with Fred McDowell and Victoria Spivey. Now one of your skills, you can actually take an audience somewhere as you do play softly and bring it back up. Yeah. You have to give different emotions for the people. I think an audience goes through their own emotions, they explore themselves whilst their listening to your aches and storytelling. It’s kind of a therapy session!

Just quickly, when you go out and do some more live shows presumably you can pick some Elmore James songs to sprinkle in there. What are you gonna do? We’ve been playing all of the songs we’ve done on the album. So it’s a big variations of songs and we did alter some of the styles of the songs, for instance ‘Got To Move Me’, we changed the style of the song.

e r J a ly TTinen’S new album The Sky iS crying i S ouT now For more in F ormaTion vi S iT www.er J alyy Tinen.com

heady mix of Chicago, Texas and West Coast sounds delivered with true juke joint fervour. Festival veterans Dana and her band recently had the pleasure of supporting the legendary James Harman across the UK winning many new fans along the way so it seemed a good time to catch up wth Dana...

BM: Hello Dana, how are you doing?

DD: I’m really good thank you. Looking forward to talking to Blues Matters.

The most recent thing you’ve been doing is supporting James Harman, how did that come about?

Well it started about a year and a half ago. We talked about bringing some legendary players over and he was someone who was a big influence on me.

When you bring someone it has to be someone you can get bookings for all over the country rather than a one off simply because of the costs involved, permits etc. Dave organised it from there, involving as many agents and promoters as he could. He really made it happen.

It must have been a thrill performing with someone like James.

It was, it’s an experience because he has played with so many people and bands and has a certain sound that he wants. He doesn’t want to over rehearse, just go out and get the sound he wants instantly. It’s challenging! As we fine tuned things it became a wonderful time playing with him.

I bet he had some great stories to tell?

Oh it was great. We travelled all over in the car with him. Great to hear direct from him all the experiences from playing since a much earlier era. So much fun both on and off stage. He sounds vocally exactly the same now as on records he recorded thirty years ago, he is a real powerhouse. He is still on a par with the likes of Rod Piazza and Kim Wilson.

You’ve managed to build quite reputation yourself as a harp player. Well I think as a lady harp player, even though there are a few of us, I still turn heads. I find it a bit surprising.

I’m surprised, after all there are so many lady blues guitarists now. It’s a strange thing. People come up and say I’ve never seen a lady harp player before. Female guitar players are really flourishing, from Bonnie Raitt onwards, initially women were just regarded as singers but it’s changed now.

What made you take up the blues harp?

My Dad used to have an old Chromatic around the house although he never played it. I used to play around with it and always just loved the sound. My Dad loved the blues, he was from Texas. His music became a big influence although as a teenager I wasn’t that interested, it was just there, I appreciated it more as I got older, especially when I heard people like Albert King.

I actually played harmonica at home ages before I ever played it live. When I was in early bands I used other harp players because I thought they were more advanced. Eventually it got to the point where they would play over the vocal line, not listening properly, so I decided to do it myself. I finally got outed by Johnny Mars, he just threw me a harp onstage and that was it.

I think you’re being pretty modest, most people rate you as one of the best around. You have to remain dignified and humble. There’s always someone to look up to and something to learn. Sometimes ego can get in the way.

You’re Edinburgh based, is it a good blues scene there and is being based in Scotland restrictive in any way?

It can be, you have to link gigs together if you can to make it pay and that isn’t always possible. We have had to turn down offers because of that. Having said that we’ve been pro-active and had good success booking ourselves into Art Centres and the like. Speculate to accumulate. Edinburgh has the Blues Club now so that’s good and we have the festivals. We play a lot at The Fringe, a great festival, vast.

Apart from the harp playing you are a great singer, often compared to Maggie Bell or Koko Taylor. That must be flattering.

ERIC BIBB

Eric Bibb’s new album is both a tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech, and a homage to the original “blues people,” the Afro-American creators of a style celebrated today as part of the common heritage of mankind.

“Blues People” is an album voluntarily bare, haunted by the spirit of the blues. Many good friends managed to join the recording sessions and brought their own contributions. They include The Blind Boys Of Alabama, Taj Mahal, J.J. Milteau, Popa Chubby, Ruthie Foster, Harrison Kennedy, Leyla McCalla, Guy Davis and André De Lange !

To be released in november

In the early days people made comparisons but I couldn’t see it. I don’t really hear it but it’s nice when people say that. I just sing in my own way, how I feel comfortable.

Scottish vocals can be gruff anyway it’s just a natural harshness. I always loved Koko Taylor, real hard edged, that I love. Luckily the ones I get compared to are the ones I love to listen to.

Perhaps it’s because Dave and the band are playing proper blues music not blues rock. It’s what we always intended and so far we’ve managed to keep it that way. Some blues festivals are really mostly rock festivals. I think the whole point of playing blues is to play it like it is and that’s becoming a rarity.

Let’s talk about your albums. I think there are three available.

Yes, the one we’ve just released is Good Rockin’ Mama. It’s been selling really well, our best yet. We’ve been working on a lot of new material too so hopefully we’ll have

another one out ready for next year. I’ve got folders full of songs. Boogie Woman, our first one, was a great seller. I’m old fashioned, I like to hold an album in my hands rather than downloads, we take a lot of time working out the best running order. It’s a complete piece of work.

You have such a great reputation as a live band might you release a live CD especially as you such great covers?

We did record one once but we weren’t happy with it so it never got released. We used to never do covers but now because as we said earlier there are less people playing real blues we feel we want to resurrect some of these great songs.

So a new album and lots more live shows next year to look forward to?

Yes, we’re expecting a busy time ahead. Hope to see you on the road somewhere.

From The Time The c D TiTle D wiTneSS arrive D an D waS opene D, wiTh no oTher in FormaTion on han D, i waS aS ke D “D oe S Thi S look like a b lue S album To you?” There waS only one re S pon S e To ThaT which waS To STick iT in The player an D Fin D ouT. w ell hell waS i glaD i D i D!

irst impression was immediate and grabbing. A little extra volume was then applied and Melinda’s voice simply jumps at you and takes you for a ride. Blues/Rock it is of high quality make no mistake. You will want to be a ‘witness’ to her performance!

Unashamedly from Melinda’s website: From an old steel mill city once described as ‘hell with the lid off’ comes a singer/songwriter with red-hot fire in her soul. Melinda is her name, and this Pittsburgh-born artist could well be described as the belle of blues-infused rock. She’s been raising roofs for years, from Boston to Los Angeles, with her four alarm voice and earthy stage presence. No gimmicks, no girl-pop. Just full-tilt rock and roll.

BM: So hello Melinda. What were your earliest musical memories at home?

MC: Hi there! I didn’t grow up in a family

of musicians, but a wide variety of music, from R&B to rock, was constantly played in my house. I was always drawn to music and started taking piano lessons when I was 5. One of my earliest memories was hearing Steven Tyler’s voice for the first time and I instantly became obsessed with rock n’ roll, which ended up introducing me to the blues. At that point, I was playing the flute in grade school and immediately traded in the flute for about $100 at a local music store. I used the money to buy an electric guitar. Things were never the same from that point on.

At school you did pretty well, what were you best at and did you sing in choirs there?

I actually didn’t sing much growing up, I was never part of any choirs and didn’t have any formal training until I attended Berklee. When I was a kid and just starting to play music,

V E rb A ls: FRANK LEIGH V isu A l s: K ELLI B EAVERS

I was more focused on becoming a guitarist and played in the high school jazz band. I only started singing, because it seemed like the only way to get gigs playing out in front of people. At school, I was always best at arts related classes and almost went to art school instead of music school.

You discovered the guitar at age 13, first shows at 15, influences Etta James, Janis Joplin, Rolling Stones, Lucinda Williams and Bonnie Raitt. How did you come to these artists in the first place and what was it that commanded your respect for each of them?

I think the common thread among those artists is that they each have a very unique voice. They’re each deeply emotional vocalists whose music is classic and stands the test of time. As a songwriter, Lucinda Williams has become a great influence on me, because I love the way she blends different styles and I respect how her songs speak the truth.

What was the pull of the guitar to you and how have your thoughts changed on the instrument as you’ve grown into this career?

The guitar appealed to me for a few reasons, I think that as a woman, and at the time, as a teenage girl, playing the guitar was a somewhat rebellious choice, since ‘girls don’t play guitar’. But the instrument has become supplemental to my voice and my song writing as I’ve continued to grow as a musician. I’m much more interested in writing and singing than I am in guitar chops, although I love great guitar playing, of course.

You moved from Pittsburgh to Boston for the Berklee College period and the scholarship, how tough was that (and how much fun)? Quite a way home for visits.

Berklee was one of the most important times in my life both personally and professionally. The environment there constantly challenged me to become a better musician and it was very inspiring to be surrounded by faculty and students from all over the world, who all shared the same love of creating music. The only thing that was tough for me personally, was that looking back I focused too much on being part of bands that I knew deep down

didn’t completely fit with my own personal tastes. I didn’t completely know who I was in terms of my sound and song writing style back then, and wish I would have pushed myself more to write original music as a solo artist. But I suppose it was those experiences that revealed that to me. Berklee led me to believe I wanted to pursue music as a career and part of my life’s work.

College was a success and you met Kristian Habenicht (partner, guitar and co-writer and soon to be husband, congratulations) and took the chance on L.A. where you found things didn’t quite fit because of the city’s pop-culture, how did that strengthen your musical motivation?

Thank you! Personally, Berklee led me to meet Kristian, who is my partner in life, partner in songwriting and partner in crime, because we get into mischief every once in awhile and love to laugh about it! Our time in Los Angeles really helped me discover who I am as an artist, as I recorded my first EP there. After being in more pop/rock bands, I knew that wasn’t my calling and I made a promise to myself that I was going to write and sing the music that I loved. I find a lot of inspiration being in Pittsburgh right now, because it’s a gritty city and there’s just something that feels right about the kind of music we’ve been creating here.

Tell us about the guitars and amps you and Kristian use and why. Which are best for you for stage and/or studio use and why?

Although I play an acoustic guitar live from time to time, depending on the arrangement of the song, I usually play rhythm parts on my Telecaster to support Kristian’s parts. Keith Richards has been a huge influence on my playing, so I like the big, open, jangly Telesound, which complements Kristian’s sound well. He’s heavily influenced by Prince and Jimi Hendrix, and usually plays a Stratocaster he built himself. Regarding amps, we both play small, low-powered tube amps. I use this little Blackheart amp with one speaker, and Kristian uses an Orange Tiny Terror. Since the amps are low-powered, we can really push

“I actually didn’t sing much growing up”

them for a very natural broken up sound. And the small amps definitely make load in at the gig easier. Plus, we used the same gear in the studio.

Your song-writing processes, how do you work together on this, do you have a pattern and does anything come first or is it as and when it happens?

It tends to start with me having an idea around a song title or guitar riff. Then Kristian and I sit down and he really takes off with the guitar parts, which then gives me ideas in terms of melody and arrangements.

To the album Witness, six of the eight tracks are originals and the title track is a bit of a flag waving song, could be your anthem, do the audiences react as such to this when you are in full flow?

Witness is one of my favourite songs to perform live, because the energy and foot stomping groove really bring people to life, and you can really feel on stage how it connects with the audience. We’ve also starting covering Midnight Rider by The Allman Brothers half way into the song, which always surprises the audience and gets a great reaction. The harmony of both songs are similar, so it’s a fun left turn to take when performing the song live.

You grab the listener with a super hook on the opening track Trouble which grinds its way into our ears and works steadily through the body and down to the feet, that must have taken some building to get that effect?

It did, as a matter of fact, we had to record that song twice. We did it once in LA with some friends of ours, and it turned out great. But, as luck would have it, between the LA sessions, where we put the bands tracks down, and the Pittsburgh sessions, where we did most of the vocals, the song’s form changed. We played it live a few times before getting a chance to record the vocals, and by the time we were ready, since the song had changed so much, we had to do it all over again.

Everything about the following track Time Runnin’ Dry is lighter and groovier before you go deep again on Your Turn To Cry. What was this one about, it sounds personal?

This is a somewhat revengeful love song and the first time I experimented with adding

“WHAT’S GOING ON?”

The much acclaimed

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BLUES MATTERS! MAGAZINE

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strings to a song. I don’t believe in getting revenge is real life, so leave that for my song writing.

I loved Slide, especially in the car up loud, it is steady and eerie with a good build. What in particular made you pick the cover of Black Crowes song Seeing Things and Stones’ No Expectations songs you have included on the album?

Thank you! Those are two of my favourite bands and singers. The Stones have been a huge influence on me from a very early age and we tend to cover them quite often live. I also had the chance to meet Mick Jagger and sang him Mercedes Benz by Janis Joplin, which was a moment I’ll never forget. When thinking about actually recording a Stones song, it was intimidating for a few reasons. You need to approach the song with female lead vocals in mind and I wanted to pick a tune that was more of an obscure cut. I’ve always loved the song No Expectations and love the way it ended the Beggars Banquet album, so it just felt like the right song to cover.

It’s time to put your thinking cap on. Name a song you wish that you had written and tell us why.

I’d Rather Go Blind, first recorded by the one and only Etta James in 1967. Listening to that song gives me chills every time I hear it.

Pick one of your songs and tell us who you would like to see cover it and why.

I would love to hear Buddy Guy rip into Trouble. I feel like the attitude of that song is right in his wheelhouse, not to mention the fact that he’s one of the few remaining artists from that generation who’s still playing. It would be an honour, but more importantly, he would tear it up.

Your message to our readers.

If you haven’t had a chance to check out any of my music yet, I hope this interview inspires you to do so but most importantly, thank you for being devoted fans of the blues, and for taking the time to read Blues Matters!

here’s a lot here about some of the early British greats, in particular, Dave’s wonderfully gifted sister Joanne. And we get some inside track on The Yardbirds, John Lee Hooker and The Groundhogs plus the seminal band The Deep in the West Country and the Welsh connection which all formed part of the Blues explosion in the UK in the 1960s.

What was your sister Jo was doing in the early 60's.? About that time, ’63 or ’64, she was working in London and she came home (about 18/19) and announced to our parents “I’m giving up work. I’m going to become a folk singer.”

That’s what she said.

And how old was she then? About 18?

About 18 yeah.

And your parent’s reaction?

“You what? Oh don’t be daft.”

I remember, her first gigs were at Bunjies and she had a residency with a fellow called Les Bridger. He was Folk, but not with his finger in your ear, definitely not a blues singer. He was kind of a Chas and Dave – did all that Cockney stuff. He didn’t write his own stuff but he used to do music hall stuff. I always remember he did this song which I thought was very clever – guess it was ‘music hall’ called “I’m Me Own Grand Pa” and it was a song that told you the deviation of how he married so and so and how his son had married so and so - you know –complicated family relationships and that was the chorus “I’m me own Grandpa”. Very Clever!

How was Les helping out?

Well, I think it was his residency originally. I don’t know. He was there before Jo and they started sharing it and the owner, Lou, who did a bit of catering, suggested that as Jo was bringing a few people down / attracting a few people – so they split the door money and shared the residency.

So Bunjies had a great variation of styles. Well yes. And Jo, at the time, she was doing the odd Blues thing but she hadn’t totally gone over. I can’t remember but, around that time, suddenly you had Fred McDowell, Memphis Minnie on Blues Classic – that first album that was put out and all the Atlantic - like Library of Congress type recordings. A big influx of

stuff you couldn’t get before, but that was because there hadn’t been any interest before.

But at this stage we’re talking about listening to records. Not blues artists. Not initially. No. But we had seen Hooker who had been over in ’64 and he’d worked with the early Groundhogs who Jo used to sing with: that was, not the later trio. Jo met Hooker then and sung along with him and the Groundhogs. She used to sit-in with The Yardbirds as well.

Really?

Yes. In Croydon.

Was that when Top Topham was with them? No, no. It was when Clapton was with them. Classic line up really – Clapton, Dréjà, McCarty etc. That was at The Hav in Croydon which, again, was a jazz club – used to go and see Chris Barber and Freddy Roundle and then Givoshki started what was then the Crawdaddy Club on the Saturday night: in the back room of The Hav and that was where, 63,it would have been, and Jo came back and said “You’ll never guess who I met in the bar at The Star.”

I said “No, I probably won’t. Who?”

“Muddy Waters and Sonny Boy Williamson”. Heah, heah, heah, heah! And then I used that in an introduction to a song. I said “Cos Croydon’s cool like that” Heah, heah.

I like it!

They were on with the Lipmann tour at the Fairfield Hall and came over to The Star and Muddy gave them tickets for the show the next night. She couldn’t go. She was at Bunjies. So I went. That’s where I met Muddy and Big Joe, and Sonny Boy and Lonnie Johnson.

Lonnie Johnson was something special?

Yes. But at the time he wasn’t playing what he was really good at. He was playing very smooth stuff which was almost “I Left My Heart In San Francisco”.

Oh. Really smoothie stuff?

Yeah.

He could do that couldn’t he?

Yeah. I didn’t know his other stuff – Johnson Lang duets at the time, though he wasn’t

doing those beautiful instrumentals. He wasn’t doing anything like that. Wonderful technique. Little solos and all that but the stars for me that night were Sonny, Muddy and Big Joe Williams –awesome. Oh, and Matt Murphy was on it as well. He was the guitarist . Very nice man as well.

Really? He’s still going isn’t he?

Yes. But then him... and Billy Stepney I think was the drummer. I was 15 or 16 and probably looked ,at the time, about 14. And they said we’re just knocked out that you are interested in our music. Billy said “I’ve got a son your age. He hates what I play!” I said “We love it”.

Excellent !

In fact, good gracious, jogged my memory. I went with John Bull and Johnny Osbourne, John Osbourne was Joanne’s boyfriend and I just this week on Facebook, I had birthday greetings from him – from Johnny Osbourne ( who became Joanne’s fiancée’ but they split up) but, wow, I’ve just remembered that. I haven’t heard from him... and this week he’s been in touch. He still plays guitar in a local pub band. And John Bull became an actor. He did a lot on Radio 4 but, to us, he was the guitarist we all wanted to play like because he was the one that could play better than any of us!

So there’s a real appreciation by the black guys that, here, these young white guys love their music? Yes. Well, I remember, it was Matt & Billy Stepney who said that while I was getting their autographs.

Do you think they were glad to be keeping the Blues alive or just glad to be working?

It was just what they did. Yeah. It was quite a good time really to be a Blues musician, you know you’re beginning to get the audiences and, from a recording point of view, Chess had been there fifteen years and you had Cobra putting out some good stuff.

So you and Joanne were starting to play acoustic guitar and slide at this stage. Did that go hand-inhand with setting up bands or...?

No, no. It was just acoustic strumming and I was still at my Lonnie Donegan stage. Picking started really with the first Bob Dylan album – Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright. Wonderful

.How do you do that? And there was the Topic label. Rambling Jack Elliot – first time I heard him Francisco Bay Blues. Fantastic song.

Especially by him. But I didn’t know he was a flat picker. I was trying to learn. And then came the Jesse Fuller one on Topic. He came down to Bunjies one Sunday. I forgot what year. People used to drop in. Van Morrison came down. But I remember Jesse Fuller coming down with just his twelve string. That was when I first tried to learn finger-picking but, in my in-disciplined way, I just used to use whatever fingers were near it and whatever, and developing a style like that you know, which I’m glad about that, really.

Because that would have been the way the black guys had done it. Books on it didn’t even exist. I’m always aware, particularly with acoustic playing, you’re right hand is just as important as your left hand: for rhythm, feel, everything, you know and the tension, all that. The Memphis Minnie album came out and hit Joe between the eyes! And me watching Muddy... I loved the simplicity, feel and, as you say, tension; with that slide. Just wonderful.

He was quite a simple slide player. Yes, but something I could do with remembering, occasionally.

I know. You start to make a little bit of progress and then you think “I must use it because I know it.” Ha.Yeah.

And the band thing...I bought...I’ve got it in there actually – the Harmony Sovereign –small bodied one. McPhee sold it to me and it was great.

And it’s the same one you have now?

Yes, but it’s not terribly playable because Howling Wolf trod on it!

Ha. That’s a claim to fame. You’ve got to show me. Yeah (at this point Dave Kelly goes next door to retrieve said guitar) when we toured with him he was a bit bored in his hotel. I was in a bed-sit with my girlfriend at the time, so I could hardly invite him a round for dinner so I lent him this to entertain himself.

Right (Dave Kelly returns with battered instrument) Do you know Keith Nelson? He builds guitars,

an American guy. It was like this for years but he repaired it. (Inside the guitar is a label affixed to commemorate the occasions when the late, great Howling Wolf trod on it!)

Did you ever know a guitar maker called John Bailey? He lived in London. He built a guitar for me in 1969.

I have heard of him but I never met him. I knew Tony Zewaitis. He lived in Balham. John Bailey was originally from my home town –Newport in Wales. Did you know Lyndon?

Lyndon Parry, the bass player. He’s my cousin. We’ve had this conversation before haven’t we? Of course, yes!

Yes. I’m on my way to see him in a couple of weeks. Do give him my regards when you see him. I saw a picture of Putty on Facebook. The guitarist from the Deep. He joined the Dummer Band. He and Lyndon were both in The Deep. Pete Emery as well. Ken Pustelnil was from The Deep.

Hang on. Let’s get this right. Ken Pustelnik joined The Groundhogs and then Putty, Adrian Pietvyga, Pete Emery replaced him in The Deep then moved up to London when The Dummer Band nicked him. The Deep were constantly being plundered by London bands.

In The Deep there was Ken, there was Putty, Pete Emery (a bit later), Lyndon. And Eliot Jackson on harmonica. I don’t know if he was with The Deep but he was definitely around at that time with that Bristol crowd. I think he lives in the States now. Ian Anderson can fill you in on that.

I’m really quite fascinated about those little pots of players – you in the Wandle Delta, the Bristol lot (not Bath so much) then in my neck of the woods –The Cellar Set in Newport (who became Blonde On Blonde), then Dave Edmunds and Andy FairweatherLowe down the coast.

I saw both of them the other day at Albert Lee’s 70th. It was great. Andy was the

second guitarist in the house band + Albert’s American band I had played with on bass & drums. Edmunds came out but only did one. Shakin’Stephens. I was surprised how good he was. His voice was very good. Marty Wilde, Joe Brown, The Shads... it was at Cadogan Hall. It was real good fun – Chas & Dave. Oh, and Gary US Bonds. It was a gig –with an audience – sold out. We did a thing there a couple of years ago with Ian Siegal and Matt Schofield to raise money for Help For Heroes and Paddy Milner, the piano player; Robin Trower.

Some of these guys are a lot younger than we are but they seem to be on it.

Yeah,yeah.Very good. I met some of them in Mustique in 1999 that was 15 years ago, just the other day! And Ian Siegal – I did a couple of things in France with him.

He’s got a fine voice hasn’t he and real control.

Elsie Franklin, only 16, from somewhere down near Worthing. I heard this voice. I said “Who’s that” She was doing Hoodoo Lady Blues, Memphis Minnie and she sounded, I thought, a bit like Trixie Smith. I heard this CD and said you’ve got to give Paul (Jones) one of these. He’ll play it on his show. It’s like you say – like Ian Siegal and – and this is what I do. This is what I am. It’s not ‘I’ve learned how to sing like this’ ‘I do it... and this is what I am. Exactly. And this is what this girl was like – a sixteen year old and I spoke to her Dad and said this is wonderful. I’ve not heard anyone do Memphis Minnie as good as that since Jo. He said “I did give her two Joanne Kelly albums three years ago. “ Heah, heah, heah. I said, well , who’s the guitarist. He said “Well, that’s her” she’s got Minnie off! Which is,is – it ain’t simple – with real heart. Pete Emery came over to play a fee gigs in Germany depping for Tom McGuinness and I told him the story. He was really moved. (Pete Emery was Joanne Kelly’s long–term partner and father of their daughter) and he said “She’s not just learnt it all. It’s real.”

parT Three o F Thi S amazing, in D ep Th, inTerview conTinue S in blueS maTTerS! i SS ue number 82. Don’T mi SS iT!

Blues Under the Radar JOE JAMMER

oadie for Hendrix and The Who before becoming the first recognized ‘guitar tech’ for Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page where he earned the Jammer name by matching them note for note in jam sessions. The white guy who could drift from South to West-side Chicago performing and recording with Buddy Guy, Junior Wells, Albert King, Freddie King, Jimmy Dawkins, Mickey Baker, Eddie Vinson and Gatemouth Brown among others. First guitarist for Supertramp, member of Stealers Wheel with Gerry Rafferty, performing on world tours with Maggie Bell, forming funk legends The Olympic Runners with Pete Wingfield, playing on his massive hit, Eighteen With A Bullet. Member of cult rock band Paladin. A driving force in convincing Aerosmith to get together. Running jam nights at The Checkerboard Lounge in Chicago for Buddy before being jam master at The Speakeasy running the London version of Blue Monday nights for three years. Recording his own albums with Micky Most with backing from Peter Grant. Working on at least 150 albums with the likes of Ringo Starr, Mick Jagger, Donna Summer, Joe Cocker and Jerry Lee Lewis.

Now in his 60’s Joe has decided the time is right for a new venture. Time to put something back. He has kept performing with his Joe Jammer Band mostly in the Surrey area close to home but he is about to launch Joe Jammer’s All-Star Chicago Blues Revue. Joe told me, ‘ I want to base it on the Blues Revue shows that are popular in Chicago, a top rhythm section play through the night but various artists front the band and at the end finish with a grand finale jam. The thing is it’s not an ad-hoc session, it’s slick and planned. I was involved doing these in Chicago for many years. I’m hoping too that it’s an opportunity to introduce some new talent into venues where otherwise they wouldn’t get to play. I love to jam and give others the chance to jam with me.’

Joe is passionate about passing on the lessons he has learned over a career working alongside some of the worlds best musicians. He regularly teaches youngsters at his music school, The Music Marines. Without naming names Joe has waxed lyrical about one young female he has high hopes for but also despairs, telling me, ‘ I get young lads who come along because they’ve reached level 10 on Guitar

Hero so they think they can play. I say learn to tune the guitar and they have no idea what I’m talking about! The most important thing I learned from the Chicago guys is to play with emotion. That’s what I want to pass on.’

And Joe has extensive touring and recording experience to pass on. His passion is infectious although he says many of the names he toured around the world with just wanted to get home. One notable exception was BB King, as Joe explains,’ When I was running jam sessions in Chicago at The Kinetic Playground I met BB backstage once, around ‘67, he was practicing on Lucille, his famous guitar. I introduced myself and told him I was a guitarist too. So then I asked him, how long is your tour? He looked me right in the eyes and says, “My tour? It’s been about 27 years so far.”

A NEW pHASE

This is the start of a new active phase of Joe’s career. Not only the Blues Revue project but Angel Air Records are about to release Headway, the second Joe Jammer solo album recorded for Regal Zonophone but never was released. It had been intended as the follow up to ‘Bad News’, Joe's solo debut which included at it’s core Tony Stevens ( Savoy Brown), Reg Isidore, the drummer on all of the classic early Robin Trower albums and keyboard wizard Jean Roussel, whose credits include a Grammy nomination and recordings with Roy Buchanan, Mick Taylor, Wilson Pickett, 10cc, Sandy Denny, Cat Stevens and many more. On Headway Joe recruited Mitch Mitchell, John Gustafson and the amazing vocals of Johnny Contardo of Sha Na Na. It’s the last ‘lost’ recording from Olympic Studios and the release is timed to coincide with the studio’s 50th Anniversary.

We would need several books to do justice to the full Joe Jammer story, complete with all of his tales from the battlefields of gigging on the road (45 years now), and in studios (47 years). Only space here for a broad resumé, so here goes. Joe was born Joe Wright and was an accomplished young sportsman growing up in Chicago. In those early days music was his second love but he was out playing in local blues and psychedelic bands covering Hendrix and Cream. Once rock ’n ’ roll was in

Joe Jammer celebrates his birthday Falkland arms, dorking

FEATURING:

DAVE THOMAS BAND

ROADHOUSE, TOM GEE

SHARON COLGAN BAND

THE WHITE KNUCKLE BLUES BAND

ZOE SCHWARZ BLUE COMMOTION

RED BUTLER, THE IDLE HANDS

INNES SIBUN, ROADHOUSE

ALEX McKOWN BAND

DOVE & BOWEEVIL

ROY METTE BAND

JACKSON SLOAN

PLANET GRAFITTI

LITTLE DEVILS ABSOLUTION

his blood he would hang around a venue called The Auditorium Theatre to get jobs helping visiting bands. Being a tall athletic guy helped. Joe recalls he had the job of holding up the Marshall stacks while Hendrix smashed into them, trying to topple them over!

The following summer of 1968 Joe went on the road with The Who helping the road crew, and spending nights for the first time in motels with the band. Having become something of a face in the local scene Joe landed the role of organising jams at The Kinetic Playground, a position that gave him unlimited access. That’s how he met up with Led Zeppelin backstage as they prepared to support Vanilla Fudge in 1969. Zep were little known then having only recently changed their name from The New Yardbirds featuring Jimmy Page. Joe had been a Yardbirds fan so hung around, met the band, and played some guitar for them. He must have made an impression because when they returned to Chicago a few months later Page hooked up with Joe again and a friendship began to grow. It wasn’t long before the teenage Joe was invited to travel with the band on the road initially as equipment roadie. Because of his love of jamming with other musicians, support bands and Zeppelin in dressing rooms, at sound checks, anywhere and everywhere”The Jammer” tag soon stuck. As one would expect, jamming with Jimmy Page presented a wonderful learning curve. Jimmy passed on lessons in creative playing, how songs were constructed, bringing cohesion into his playing. Inspired, Joe began writing. Amazingly when the US tour ended Peter Grant and Jimmy invited Joe over to England and help with his career. That first band never really worked out, although they were on the big stage at the Bath Festival, 1970, opening for Led Zeppelin, and filling in for many of the head-liners who were unable to get to the stage in time to do their sets. Yet, Joe did find himself under the wing of master producer Mickie Most . Peter Grant then offered Joe the opportunity to play guitar on recent Swansong signing Maggie Bells’ World tour in 1974. After the Bell tour Joe formed the famous Olympic Runners. Around this period

Joe auditioned for Tim Bogart and Carmine Appice after Cactus broke up but missed out to Jeff Beck, and nearly became part of Aerosmith because he did not want to move to New England...Olde England was just fine for Joe Jammer! Joe is quick to acknowledge the fact that he owes a lot of his career down to his friendship with Jimmy, telling me, “I played on 150 albums between ‘69 and ‘79, much of it session work that Jimmy couldn't do any more or via Mike Vernon. All together, that’s around 11million album sales-and counting!”

TRANSATLANTiC 770

Joe played with Jimmy Dawkins at Theresa’s famous bar in Chicago’s West-side. He is an artist Joe believes would have got more recognition if he had been South-side based. He tells me, ‘At that time West and South didn’t mix. I guess because I was a white guy I was allowed, but it wasn’t the norm. The West-side was pretty bombed out, it looked like a war zone, something like Beirut. The South-side was more built up and near to Lake Michigan. My most fun was playing the Revues. The strange thing was I had to come to London to discover the real Chicago blues in 1969. With The Olympic Runners I got played on black radio stations and, in fact, we first got together while recording Jimmy Dawkins' album, Transatlantic 770, it’s still available.’

Other claims to fame include being Supertramp's first guitarist between ‘71 and ‘72 and playing with Stealers Wheel. Joe recalls recording an album for Joe Cocker and getting to play with Ringo Starr, he says, ‘You know Ringo can really play the blues.’

Joe now describes himself as semi-retired although he still plays between 50 and 60 gigs a year including fund-raisers like Help For Heroes, and free performances at Headley Court. One thing for sure, The Joe Jammer AllStar Blues Revue will be a highly energetic and passionate affair.

The F ir ST gig S are booke D a S F ollow S, The h al F m oon, p uTney on January 4Th, The b ull S h ea D, b arne S on February 9Th, The c ellar b ar, Farnham m alTing S on m arch 5Th

Princess Theatre, Hunstanton

Tickets: £16.00

Doors open at 7.30pm

Box Office: 01485 532 252

www.princesshunstanton.co.uk

Interviews with the 25 most influential guitar makers from the UK including: Patrick James Eggle, Stefan Sobell, Alister Atkin, George Lowden, Roger Bucknall and more

Access to behind-the-scenes images from the most revered guitar workshops in the country

With a definitive guide to tonewoods, strings, and body shapes, this is a one-stop-shop for guitar lovers

The secrets of guitar making revealed from the best in the business

A foreword from Newton Faulkner on why he loves custom made acoustics

From the first line of opener Trouble you just know this album is gonna be a treat. The tight rhythm section, the crisp production and then that voice. How can that powerful, emotive vocal be coming from the demure young lady on the cover? The track also introduces us to the beautifully paced, balanced guitar playing of Kristian Habernicht. He sounds well schooled in all of the classic US players from Duane Allman through to Billy Gibbons. The vocal treats continue into Time Runnin’ Dry, every subtle deftness adding feel and vibrancy. The gentler Your Turn To Cry precedes title track Witness, a Southern tinged blues tour-de-force. Slide returns to a more subtle build up proving that Melinda has a full armoury of vocal skills, as do the two covers, Seeing Things ( Black Crowes) and No Expectations (Rolling Stones). All in all a wonderful album that should introduce Melinda

STEVE YOURGLIVCH

sterling KoCh trio

pLace youR BetS

Full Force Music

A slightly different format for the latest offering from Sterling Koch with him playing lap steel, dobro and acoustic guitars complemented by Jack Kulp on harp and Gene Babula on bass. The band take on a wide range of blues and blues rock classics several of which at first glance you might not expect to suit this stripped back line up. However the imaginative playing and arrangements pay dividends. Among others we get versions of SRV, Hound Dog Taylor and Albert King but for me the songs that work best include ZZ Top’s Tube Snake Boogie, Checkin’ Up On My Baby by Sonny Boy Williamson, Oh Well by Peter Green and a great version of John Lee Hooker’s Dimples. Jack Kulp

provides some outstanding harp on the old Jimmy Reed classic Dizzy. Personally for me the outstanding track is Blue On Black by Kenny Wayne Shepherd with some lovely vocals provided by Jennifer Dierwechter matching Sterling all the way home. The only non-cover Nothin’ But The Blues is pretty damn tasty too. This is a good fun album and I guess everyone will have their own favourites but as usual Sterling Koch delivers.

STEVE YOURGLIVCH

anonyMous (at present)

St. NickS got the BLueS

Mighty Village records

At last our first Christmas album arrived!! Slip card sleeve and the disc carries ten lovely Christmas songs played acoustically in a wonderful

Blues style that truly catch the spirit and give much joyous pleasure to the listener and lift any mood. This is a unique take on the sound of Christmas let there be no doubt. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen is a boogie/pickin’ feast of joy that is guaranteed to make the feet tap and the smiles appear.

The Holly & The Ivy gentles down somewhat and is pleasurable, Silent Night is jangly and slidey and wonderous, Jingle Bells simply does jingle along with chugging harp to back the playing up, (I’m sure I once saw Gregg Wright play this totally differently with not too loud but loaded with feedback in a sort of Who style). I Saw Three Ships skips along after a gentle Amazing Grace sort of intro. Away In A Manger has a Peter Greenish quality to it with a haunting harmonica sections to it, delightful. Deck The Halls/We Wish You A Merry Christmas takes us foot tapping our way along to the picked electric notes, I must say that as much of the album is acoustic. This is much more fun than the normal box of Xmas chocs! Now there is no artist name on this and in seeking out who it maybe we have been sworn to secrecy.

With a release date set of 1st December and a possible competition to run on it we hold our promise (we know who it is!!) and the artist will be revealed at some point. This tinsel morsel chock full of Christmas goodies comes to an end with The First Noel where tremolo and reverence are in equal match and we let out a joyous sigh full of the spirit and wish that is a peaceful Christmas wish to all around.

FRANK LEIGH

Th E Wor

Melinda WitNeSS Goldfeather records

luCinda WilliaMs

doWN WheRe the SpiRit MeetS the BoNe highway 20 records/Thirty Tigers

A glorious 20 track, double album from the queen of Americana. Most double albums have an inevitable feeling of too much weak material, superfluous padding, about them. Not this one, a jam-packed elemental tour de force from start to finish. Williams is on top form throughout, her gritty voice and guitar shored up by quality writing, at time withering lyrics, and gnawing raw emotion. We’re all familiar with her style and unique - often dark - view of life, love, relationships and vision. ‘Down Where The Spirit Meets The Bone’ is no exception, but with more than a hint of redemption in the mix. Williams says of this release, it is an expression of her ‘optimism’. Not a description often attached to her usual, stripped-bare emotive take on life and love. Tony Joe White and Jakob Dylan both feature together with strong support from multi-instrumentalist/producer Greg Leisz, Bill Frisell, and a couple of former Elvis Costello sidemen, drummer Pete Thomas and bassist Danny Faragher. The production is perfectly pitched and assured with such a great studio team on board. This has to be one of those sadly all too rare things, an absolutely essential album. Is it country, is it Americana, is it blues? It’s all of those things and much, much more. Possibly the essential release of the year.

IAIN PATIENCE

RockiN’ BoLLockS

Bamboo Groove

Scotsman Brian was learning his craft in Glasgow blues bands before moving to Chicago to complete his musical education. The scene of this album is well set in the liner notes with the statement: ‘Beneath ceilings stained by the muddy waters of our ancestors, the audience drinks in our songs that leave the bittersweet taste of loves gone bad.’ The American influences are evident from the smoldering opening track, I Gotta Have It by Smokin’ Joe Kubeck and Bnois King. Texan guitarist Anson Funderburgh’s Change In My Pocket is similarly nailed with a fiery melodic solo from Carpy. The band comprises Ari Seder on bass, drummer Marty Binder, harmonica player Ron Sorin and Chris Foreman and Marty Sammon on keyboard and organ respectively. Whilst highly competent musicians in their own right they also provide the perfect platform for Brian to show his prowess as a tasteful,

expressive and skillful guitarist. The many highlights include Carpy’s powerful vocals on Bad Intentions, the emotion of Estrin’s Dyin’ On The Vine, the groove on the self-penned Hangin’ with Sammon’s organ solo and Carpy’s clever responses, and At Chat Mama Nims for that infectious harmonica riff. Given the rapid development of Scottish blues over the past decade perhaps Brian Carpy could be encouraged to return to Scotland to ply his trade?

THE BISHOP

the Mustangs

oNe Night iN the WeSt Trapeze Music

The Mustangs are one of the classiest, hardest working bands on the UK circuit. Live they are the real deal and this album captures the excitement, energy and craftsmanship perfectly. Kicking things off with a scorching

Put Your Money On Me sets the tone and never looks back. In Adam Norsworthy the Mustangs have one of the best front men around, great

rasping vocals and guitar tones that always fit the song just right. Supported by Ben McKeown (bass), Jon Bartley (drums) and Derek Kingaby on blues harp they re-create a wonderful Chicago Roadhouse atmosphere recorded here at the Swanage Blues Festival. One can easily imagine a sea of swaying blues lovers front of stage. As stated in the sleeve notes, this is a real, no overdubs or fixed up recording and it’s all the better for that. The moments when the band almost but never quite become ragged are testament to their tightness and experience. The fact that there are hardly any covers speaks volumes about the quality of music The Mustangs have been giving us for the last decade and a bit. Buy this and then explore the back catalogue.

STEVE YOURGLIVCH

MaCKenZie Blues Band

SLaM! BaM! oh! Town records

Tara (vocals) and Trevor Mackenzie (guitar) are at the heart of the band with first class support from Joel Dawson and Mike Weir on bass and drums. Tara possesses a powerful classically trained voice but never over performs. Her range allows her to retain control and infuse every track with honesty whether that involves blues, soul or raunchiness.

Trevor is equally adept at bringing heartfelt playing to every tune, like Tara never indulging in overplaying or needless showmanship but every solo is razor wire sharp. Favourites for me include Bone Cage with its menacing intro, Burned When You Play With Fire with Tara’s soaring vocal and the soulful On The Other Side. In truth there really isn’t a weak track throughout. The tour de force though is the eight minute I Feel A Storm Coming, a swampy voodoo vibe that envelopes you until you surrender yourself totally. Album closer Spiritual Power is a superior slab of gospel blues inspired by true

Brian Carpy

life experiences as is much of this classy album.

STEVE YOURGLIVCH

eg Kight

My heaRtFeLt thaNkS

Blue South

Anyone wanting a change of pace could do well to take a trip with EG Kight and her new album, a sensitive mix of gospel ballads and straight ahead blues tunes. Probably not very well known in the UK and Europe, EG (Eugenia Gail) Kight hails from Dublin, Georgia and has seven albums to her name. Influenced by the likes of Koko Taylor she was honoured in 2013 with the Georgia Music Legend Award and also holds a couple of Grammy nominations too. The merit is to be heard on the album, a relatively low-key amble through the blues. Sharing production duties with regular compatriot Paul Hornsby (Marshall Tucker, Charlie Daniels), and using her touring band as the studio band makes for a very tight and professional outing. Derivative and intimate, Comin’ Down With The Blues sets the scene for much of the album, but it’s a formula that works and allows her to dip into optimistic gospel, Don’t Give Up, and take it right down to the floor with Time To Move On. She duets with Greg Nagy, on Bad Times (a tune co-written with the late Ann Rabson from Saffire), but it’s mostly her lush vocal that provides the compass for the album. Uplifting and aching at the same time, there is an attitude of gratitude right across the album and if there is such a thing as warm blues then this is it.

GARETH HAYES

Kaye Bohler

haNdLe the cuRVeS Independent

I’m not normally a great fan of titles like “the white Tina Turner” as they sometimes seem to demean both parties, but I will certainly go along

with it in this case. Kaye Bohler, out of California, has a big strong voice and on this, her fifth album, she proves that she can certainly handle a soul tune with ease and class – take a listen to the opener Diggin On My Man - and the blues good and proper as on the slow impassioned blues of the title track (I somehow don’t get the impression Kaye is really talking about the curves on the road!), with an excellent guitar solo by Kelly Back. Elsewhere executive producer Pete Anderson is economical but always spot on with his guitar breaks and fills, and saxman Ron Dzibula takes a couple of nifty breaks too. Back Bone is very much classic Albert King styled Stax era, and like many of the numbers here (all original, incidentally – good songs too), is inspirational and aspirational, though Kaye can also just enjoy herself as on Party Time (and how can anyone dislike a CD where the lyrics transcription notes “ripping guitar solo by Pete Anderson”?). Slayed does have more than a tinge of that 80s Tina Turner approach – the only track here to do so – and leads into It’s The Blues, a low-down, grinding performance which definitely fits the Trades Descriptions Act. The closing Don’t

soft shoe saM

Take My Hope Away is worthy of the great Otis Redding and a first class end to a very fine album.

VICTOR IAN LEYLAND

the Jordan patterson Band the Back oN tRack RecoRdiNg pRoJect

Flamingcheese

“OK, it’s neck and neck in tonight’s pub quiz for our star prize, which is kind of connected to our final question: who can tell me the link between The Beatles, Britney Spears, Bobby Rush and Bobby Parker. Yes, Team Stevie Ray’s Muddy Wolf. “Err, is it Jordan Patterson?” “Indeed it is – you still need one point to win outright though, and I’ll award you that if you can elucidate a little more” (Next table: “Ooh err, missus). “Well, Jordan recorded an album for JSP Records in 1996, which had Bobbys Rush and Parker as guests. Washington DC bluesman Parker recorded Watch Your Step which the Beatles nicked the riff from for I Feel Fine. And Jordan

This is an album of fourteen bottleneck and slide instrumentals that showcase the talents of Soft Shoe Sam as he has recorded them live with no overdubs and as it says in the title on National guitars built in the 1920’s and 1930’s, there is one cuckoo in the nest a 1940 Harmony faux resonator. This is fourteen tracks that vary in tempo and certainly gets the feet tapping and makes you sit back and truly appreciate the sounds that the National makes and the debt the blues listener and artists owe to this iconic guitar manufacturer. The Road to Jericho Farm musically creates a picture of a long road leading across the empty plains of this travelling blues. The Roll Of The Dice has a slight country twang and is full of nervous tension that is felt as the dice is rolled and will lady luck be with you tonight. Every Day Those Monday Blues, is full of tones of delta blues and certainly along with Turn Your Money Green show the versatility of the guitar. This is an album where no track is over long so the interest is maintained despite the lack of a verbal story being told, Soft Shoe Sam on National Debt has let the guitars and his skills do all the talking that is required!

LIZ AIKEN

Albums reviews

himself has just spent more than a decade and a half in artist tour management with Britney”. “That’s right” “Oh, but he’s back with the real stuff though now, and he’s just put out a four track EP, with some lovely modern rocking blues showcasing Jordan’s great voice, excellent harp blowing, strong song-writing, crack band and guitar ace Shawn Kellerman helping out – he’s played with Bobby Rush too, and Lucky Peterson, you know. Jordan’s back on track – and how – or so I believe.

You don’t happen to have one of those do you?” “Sorry guys, I’ve only one and you’re not getting your filthy mitts on that – it’s great and I’m not letting it go. You’ll just have to buy your own – and you really should. Here’s the star prize though, a copy of Britney’s Greatest Hits, well done lads!” “Bloody booby prize again!” NORMAN DARWEN

the City Boys allstars

BLiNded By the Night Independent

’Allstars’ is a bit of a claim for any band, but if anyone can justify it, then it’s The City Boys Allstars. After all, any blues fan with even a cursory knowledge of the genre will recognise the names “Blue Lou” Marini and Tom “Bones” Malone. Yes, it’s the Blues Brothers! Blinded By The Night was recorded live at the Cutting Room in New York City, in August last year, and sees the big band firing away on all cylinders.

With three vocalists and up to ten musicians (a horn section of Tony Kadleck, Lew Soloff, the aforementioned Blue Lou and Bones Malone, guitarist Mike Merola, Al MacDowell (bass), Rob Clores (keyboards), drummer Nick Saya and percussionist Daniel Sadownick), this is a high octane show. There are five songs from their previous release, When You Needed Me alongside some covers including the Robbie Robertson song Testimony as well as a take on God Bless

erJa lyytinen the Sky iS cRyiNg

Tuohi records – Blueslands Productions

This release finds our favourite Finn unleashing her powerful guitar work and wonderful band on the works of one Elmore James. Now unfortunately for UK music fans of a certain age, an overkill of this bluesman’s work was rained upon those of us attending early Fleetwood Mac shows – the villain in question being one Jeremy Spencer, who when not lampooning rock ’n’ rollers was thudding out Elmore James numbers and making them all sound remarkably similar! This was celebrated and spoofed by London circuit comedy band of the late 60’sThe Bonzo Dog Doodah Band, in their song Can Blue Men Sing

The Whites? And yes, I have given Erja a Bonzo’s album including this very song! It took me receiving for review a double CD of James a few years back to appreciate his works; and so Erja now creates a special album in his memory and this is it – she includes a couple of own compositions which turn out to be highlights. Highlights include the raunchy tropicana of Baby Please Let Me Set A Date, the pulsing grip and excellent Davide supporting guitar runs of Got To Move and lush horns on Something

Inside Me. The stomping Hand on Hand is a winner, too. Erja’s uncanny blend of traditional slide runs and her own original licks make this a compulsive listen for blues lovers and you cannot doubt her burning love for this music or the feel the players have for making it spark

PETE SARGEANT

The Child and two songs from the pen of David Bennett Cohen, one time piano player with Country Joe and the Fish. It’s more a jazz blues southern soul fusion than anything else, but with faultless playing, this was a real highlight. Even better with a vinyl release and even a seven iinch single, it’s music the way it’s supposed to be.

STUART

A HAMILTON

luCKy peterson

tRaVeLiN’ MaN

JSP records

Hot on the heels of earlier acclaimed release Son Of A Bluesman, dedicated to his father James comes another wonderful mix of songs by this Chicago bluesman. Strangely though the concept of this release was formed from a concert he made in Ronnie Scott’s Club in London. John Stedman the record labels head guru thought it would be good to have a retro type blues release on the back of this concert. Agreement was

total and this release was born with an invigoratingly fresh approach to old style songs this being a live studio release it is well mixed by Martin Atkinson.

The opener Proud To Love My Baby is a poignant and honest emotional take showcasing his huge vocal range, whereas Feeling They Call The Blues refreshes old time laid back Chicago blues tonestitle track

Travelin Man has an up-tempobeat and virtuoso guitar licks the sound exemplifying coordination of an accomplished big band sound later in the release with his wife Tamara returning the complement with the quizzical What Have I Done

Wrong played as a duet with covert undertones. Get On Down spotlights a more funky approach showing he is not just one of the best Chicago guitar players but also a most competent piano player. He also has a horn section Michael Vincent on trumpet Bill Eden on saxophone and Thomas Eby trumpet that compliment his heartfelt vocals on the final track The Day After just excellent.

COLIN CAMPBELL

dana gillespie cat’S MeoW

Ace records

Dana Gillespie has been in the music business for four decades, cutting her first release when aged fifteen. She has also collaborated on about forty releases whether solo or with bands and her music style spans differing genres of music folk to rock and laterally mixing up a successful blues formula. This new release exhibits and testifies to what a great experienced vocal talent she is and continues to produce great releases this one being no exception a truly gifted lady of the blues.

This is possibly an autobiography of her life eleven songs of class and distinction. Accompanied by Jake Zaitz on lead guitar Artie Zaitz on acoustic Mike Paice harmonica Jeff Walker on bass, and percussion

Evan Jenkins this is a very professional outfit. Also Dana uses her vocals as an instrumental overlay. The title track is full of irony and even

cynicism relating to the narcissistic main protagonist the shrill of the backing cat adding to the pathos. There is an effortless and cool soundtrack to this release not her previous full on attacks to songs.

Ballads such as Eureka Moment giving it a more honest and personal approach but able to change pace on the funky groove on Last Chance Saloon a particular highlight. Two Faced Girls deals with a more feminine approach to the male ego a continued theme. This is an altogether smooth end of the evening listen which could become a classic just marvellous.

COLIN CAMPBELL

Washington reed take Me hoMe Independent

Tom Kerr and James Martin from Chester make up this excellent duo. Naming themselves after a college project James researched into the Blues and the history of the sound

too sliM and the taildraggers

I am feeling slightly embarrassed here reviewing this anthology double CD, as I have to admit that I had never previously heard of this artist yet here are thirty four tracks of pure eclectic blues perfection, drawn from his eighteen album career which started in 1986. Renowned as a Slide Guitarist Too Slim (Tim Langford) offers much more than guitar slinging, his compositions are of a high quality and offer plenty of variation and his vocals are versatile, be it a rocking beat or just accompanying his acoustic guitar, there really is a full mix of styles here, ranging between rough & ready rocking blues to solo acoustic instrumentals, in between there are a couple of commercial smooth blues numbers, particular highlight is Everybody’s Got Something which includes a soulful vocal from guest Curtis Salgado. The slide acoustic work on La Llorna is phenomenal, there are no supporting musicians but Too Slim draws out so much feeling and emotion on the track, other highlights include; Wash My Hands which is built on a hard rocking riff and the funky Latin flavoured track Mexico. There is so much to explore on these two discs with little gems everywhere, apologies for so much gushing but this is really a great find and there can be no better way to discover this artist than to purchase this Anthology package, which does include three new tracks produced by Tom Hambridge. Buy it!

ADRIAN BLACKLEE

bringing him onto an old document about a runaway slave named Washington Reed, a man on an old looking western wanted poster, never found by his plantation owner or the authorities.

The story was interesting, the name stood out, so they began to create the image of Washington Reed. Tom sits behind the drums setting a captivating groove inspired amongst others by Benny Greb and L Zeppelin while James fronts and is inspired by Chuck Berry, BB King, JLH and Dan Auerback.

Their confidence is audible and distorted but takes you in waves. The sound can be chinky and pleasantly light then hard and disturbed. The CD shows only five tracks yet the player reveals seven but two without title, track six now revealed as Bang Bang. Debut single, Money, is here (not the Flying Lizzards or The Beatles versions) noted as a bonus track. The guitar is distinctive with drums driving it to insanity. Track seven turns out to be a stripped bare vocal/piano version of The World Today (full blown version is track two where moody flowing guitar and cymbals lead you into a swaying yet bare and compulsive performance that mounts in intensity). Ocean Breeze comes in quiet with a very neat, sparse guitar hook that gets the head nodding along as you will want to float out on that gentle Ocean Breeze.

Let The Devil In finds Martin talking the intro before picking up as the song grows incessantly yet holds that sparseness. Oh Lucy is the CD opener and drives along impressively. Check out their video which is amusing with the lads tied back to back on a chair while being tickled with a feather duster by a sparsely dressed young lady, as the song grows in flow you sense their frustration at the situation. A fine and recommended CD by this new young duo from Chester, watch out for them as they grow!

FRANK LEIGH

Albums reviews

luKe WinsloW King

eVeRLaStiNg aRMS

Bloodshot records

Having previously reviewed Luke Winslow King’s The Coming Tide, I was already ready to like this new album. Alongside his own vocals and Guitar, is regular collaborator and new wife Esther Rose King on vocals, washboard and percussion, he has expanded on his sound, with his retro Americana now featuring a full brass section. Alongside a full band, brass, and four part harmonies the music on this album is warm, musically sophisticated, and toe tapping in near equal measure. The album was partly recorded in New Orleans, which has a marked influence on the sound of the album, but we have more variety than up-beat New Orleans Jazz. On Graveyard Blues the inner turmoil of the blues can be heard, whilst Swing That Thing has punk attitude by the bucket-load. Cuban music makes an

Blues

appearance on La Bega’s Carousel, whilst Levee Man is mix of burlesque, with some fine clarinet playing from Orange Kellin. This album won’t be for everyone, but if you like the warmth of brass, early Elvis Presley, and music that is as much about feel and groove as it about perfection, than you could do worse than adding this fine release to your library.

BEN MACNAIR

the reverend

shaWn aMos teLLS it Put Together

This EP is dedicated to Amos’ friend Solomon Burke for whom he did backing vocals and in fact it was recorded in Studio ‘D’ of the Village recording studio in LA where Burke’s last album was recorded and the studio that has been favoured by the likes of B.B. King and Eric Clapton. It is a raw and howling kind of Blues,

Considering the calibre of the musicians playing on this album one might consider an album of relatively straightforward Blues to be an understatement but the playing really is something special. Pacifico Blues are Chris Newland (guitar) and Paul Pacifico (Blues harp) plus Richard Simmons on keys and rhythm section of Winston Blissett (bass) and Tony Mason (drums) and they have added vocals from the likes of Jocelyn Brown, Chantelle Duncan and Erica Steenkamp and a host of friends from The Allstars Collective (a pickup band of some of London’s best session musicians). The core of their music is Blues whether it be swampy, rawboned or countrified and they play with so much underlying restraint that the music sucks you in and you are grooving with the band before you know it. A combination of original numbers by Chris Newland and covers shows off the various talents of the band from the opener That’s What I Call The Blues by Newland and through a version of the Beatles Taxman which grooves pretty well - even if the subject is slightly out of date – and featuring some delightful electric piano as the band plays slow and low. Chantelle Duncan features on Wade In The Water and her voice really takes the song to a soulful and gospelly place. This is an album that is faultless in terms of playing and gives a home to some great music. This definitely sounds as though they are a band to experience live and I’ll be looking out for them on the London circuit.

loaded with edge and punctuated by Amos hard vocals. First time through it had me thinking “is this all?” but after a few listens it definitely grabs you and insinuates itself under your skin. On I’m The Face the repetitive drum riff has you tapping out patterns while the harp blows a mean tune and then on Something Inside Of Me the opening guitar lines are so sweet and fulsome you get to feeling all warm inside. Opening number Hoodoo Man Blues ties up all the strands of what The Reverend claims “My whole DNA is wrapped up in these tunes. It’s like tracing your family tree.” – the raw Blues riff and the thudding bass line aligned with his impassioned vocal and that harp: wow! 6 tracks and a total of 20 minutes but it’s well worth checking it out.

ANDY SNIPPER

dana roBBins

daNa RoBBiNS Independent

This, I find, is a stunning second solo album from the excellent saxophonist Dana Robbins and it features vocals from Delbert McClinton and Jimmy Hall. Long overdue a review. Dana hails from Detroit but now calls Nashville home after seven years in LA. She has played with John Mayall, Frank Zappa, James Brown and Steve Cropper amongst so many others and is a very highly rated and in demand player. Six of the tracks here are instrumentals and on the closing track, Right As Rain, Dana takes the vocal herself proving to be quite the sultry lady.

This is one excellent album of feel good and smooth sax playing with a fine band to assist her fluent and commanding style as she approaches Blues, soul, R&B, rock, jazz, et al with the warmth that the saxophone gives off so well in good hands as she shows it’s wide range of applications to all sorts of styles. The band are some of the finest and sought after players in Nashville whose joint credits stretch far and

ANDY SNIPPER

delta ladies

ReFugee

Independent

Ah ha, the new twelve track album from the Delta Ladies arrives. It is very good to read that half of the duo Vicky Martin has defied the odds and recovered from major heart surgery while Diana Stone has also recovered from serious back problems and I think you can tell there is an optimism in this album. Featuring the joyous harmonica of Alan Glen interweaving with the violin of Diana in an understated Cajun way. There is lovely playing throughout by all involved and we hear some gorgeous pedal steel work from John Davis, neat piano and violin from Diana, even accordion from Mark Stevens and in combination there is an ethereal creation of sound that is emotive, evocative and soothing. Opening with Devil Calling Out My Name the track builds behind the pulsing violin that leads and it is hard not to tap the feet and bob the head to this as percussion, harmonica and piano all trip along very neatly. I almost imagined Robert Plant doing some of the vocals on this material at points. Last Train sees the wife leaving and the end of a relationship with light vocal while the violin is a joy. Loved the Trad. Arr. Of Rising Sun with mournful violin and harp intro and percussion bubbling under and featuring Vicky and Danny (Bryan) on Kandela and Udu respectively, a fine and refreshing version. I enjoyed this (a lot!) and am a sucker for violin played this way. I was very taken by the instrumental Paranoia running at 6.20. This is not an album to skip through but you will want to listen to.

TOBI ORNOTT

wide, such is their respect for Dana that they meet here on this fine album. I will not pick a stand out track but this has been playing a lot in the car. Make It A Double has an expected bar room style to it as it swings and sways with wonderful swelling piano, and B3 organ. The opening Say It All is a fine and varied track allowing each musician to give you a sample of what to expect as the tracks play through. Recommended? Hell yes and keep an ear out for this lady

FRANK LEIGH

dexter allen

BLuez oF My SouL

Deep rush records

Dexter Allen has been around for a while getting his start in gospel and touring in Bobby Rush’s band as lead guitarist and this is his third album under his own name: rather a corker it is too. His style is loaded with funk and grooves, strutting and chest-out

lively and he has a pretty good voice to go with some tight guitar chops and funk laden bass playing. Bobby Rush kicks in his fine harmonica as well as some spoken and backing vocals while Joe Robinson’s keyboards and drums fill out the sound. The album kicks off with a groovy Blues Coming Home To Mississippi and all the features are in place right from the off – there is a brilliantly sloppy feel as well as some great harp from Mr Rush.

Allen’s guitar screams the solo and the whole thing sums up the modern Mississippi sound brilliantly. Ride This Train gets quickly into a gospel groove, driven by the harmonica and drifting into a paean to Howlin’ Wolf with Allen echoing the Wolf’s howl. The album builds track buy track into one of the best I’ve heard in a while with lots of seventies soul touches as well as the Blues that lies at the heart of Allen’s music. You get dance music like Monk Donky and sexy stuff like Come Out And Play alongside a stone Blues funker in Pudding & Rice and the closer

That Same Thang that just hits a slow groove and burns with soul. It really is a fine album, hot and smoky with some real rhythm.

ANDY SNIPPER

BlaCKtop deluxe

tuRN

up Be Nice pLay haRd

Independent

This album is as British as Al Murray, Pub Landlord. There is a particularly British brand of Blues-Rock, and guitarist-vocalist Keith Howe’s previous band, Blue On Black, and now Blacktop Deluxe, are very much at the heart of that. Others include the Who-ish Riotous Brothers, Larry Miller and The Sharpees. Heavy vocals, grunting bass, chunky and squealing guitar, solid riffs and rhythm led by insistent drums, they’re all here. Outta The Red is a particularly good listen, and Colour Me Gone is boosted by some (by then) thoroughly unexpected and welcome sax. This is, appropriately given the band’s name, a cruiser of an album. One to stick in the CD player of your open-top Ford Mustang, if you’re lucky enough to have one, before you get moving on a long, straight road. Full marks go to the band for a decent quality CD case and lengthy insert as well. Whether this is the cream of British Blues is open to argument, but it is definitely gold top.

DARREN WEALE

the urBan

voodoo MaChine

LoVe, dRiNk &death

Gypsy hotel records

This London based eleven piece band have put together a very entertaining sixteen track CD packed with a variety of musical styles that cover the majority of musical genres but mainly following a Rhythm and Blues based framework, all the material is self written by the band leader

Albums reviews

Paul-Ronney Angel, who adds plenty of whimsy to the material with his lead vocal, which on certain songs is very similar to the late great Alex Harvey, humorous but very menacing. Even with an eleven piece band there are additionally several guest players on show, including a returning founder member Jim Jones and Wilko Johnson, getting back to the band I have highlighted a couple of tracks to give a feel for the variety of music that is covered on this CD; firstly Pipe and Slippers Man, which has a Chicago Style street rag band sound with brass and Kazoo to the fore, worth checking the web site for the Video promoting this track, as it stars Rat Scabies and brings out elements that I had not picked up from listening, second track to highlight is Jimmy Cuba which starts with a great rocking guitar riff before introducing a full on Latin Samba blast, you could be listening to Santana here, final track to highlight is my personal favourite Loretta’s Revenge, which is a fairly bleak ballad, sung in a style not dissimilar to Tom Waits. The band often refer to themselves as Bourbon soaked Gypsy Blues Bop N Stroll and this is probably a good description for the band, who are great performers but do not appear to take themselves too seriously.

ADRIAN BLACKLEE

loCKWood

LockWood

System Dialling records

This first ever solo record from Jeremiah Lockwood features a mix of original material and key pieces from the cannon of American Roots music, including Lockwood’s take on pieces by Charley Patton, Mississippi John Hurt, Elizabeth Cotton, Skip James and Rev. Gary Davis. Lockwood is clearly a gifted musician and his virtuosic fingerpicking is impressive throughout yet never unnecessarily showy and always reverent of the material he is performing. Indeed, whilst his original material is highly accomplished and fits surprisingly

favourably alongside interpretations of such timeless works, it is perhaps as a documentarian that Lockwood excels.

His delivery of the specific pieces included here, and his approach to the Folk/Blues/Roots tradition as a whole, is authentic and respectful yet artistic at the same time. Lockwood is in possession of a strange, almost other-worldly, voice whose timbre and natural wide vibrato sound are much more akin to the by-gone era he is so clearly infatuated with. Lockwood’s version of Big Bill Broonzy’s How You Want Your Rolling Done rattles along percussively as it’s title requires and sits nicely alongside the more lilting stand-out original, Hurting, which highlights Lockwood’s clear understanding of tradition and genre as a songwriter and not merely a copyist.

Likewise blues standards Hard Times Killing Floor Blues and Spoonful are vibrant and nuanced with all their history intact but stripped of the baggage of years of lesser cover-versions. Were the recordings not so bright and clean one could be forgiven for assuming this was some

newly discovered relic of the likes delivered to us by Alan Lomax. As it is this release comes off sounding like one of the more rootsy Coen Brothers soundtracks, documenting somewhat forgotten or perhaps overlooked works from American music history but, crucially, highlighting their youthful energy rather than merely resorting to nostalgia.

RHYS WILLIAMS

Matt BaCKer get BackeR right recordings

From the press release that accompanied this album, Matt Backer is a guitarist/ songwriter who has had a degree of success in the past. From performing and touring with artists as diverse as Elton John, Cher, Alice Cooper and Joe Cocker to selling out the Royal Albert Hall with Belinda Carlisle, where they performed an orchestral version of their Lexicon Of Love album, it seems he has done it all. To me however, he is a new name and as such I was

I was not previously familiar with Joanne’s musical output but on my first playing of this CD I am already a convert, this is rocking blues at its best, the ten tracks really race along with no opportunity to take a breath driven by Joanne’s classy vocals and strident lead guitar playing. While bred and born in Birmingham her vocals are very Americanised and are reminiscent at times to Janis Joplin at her peak, her guitar playing is certainly not secondary and she can play soulful blues notes alongside more Hendrix influenced playing, like she does on the closing track Feels Like Home, which has a rhythm and lead mixed in a fairly free form style. Joanne’s band are basically a three piece although there are some additional keyboards provided by Rich Staff, particularly prevalent on the slower blues Tried, Tested and True, I was surprised to see that the album was recorded in Memphis, while historically the Memphis Blues sound originated here, the sound on this album is very sharp and clean, stripped of studio wizardry but renowned producer Jim Gaines has done an excellent job bringing to life all the self written material. There are some quality songs included here and I am sure this will become a very popular and successful album on both sides of the Atlantic; this release showcases a British blues artist of real talent.

Joanne shaW taylor the diRty tRuth Axehouse Music

ADRIAN BLACKLEE

pleasantly surprised with the music on Get Backer. With eleven self penned songs, the style is definitely more Blues/Rock than Blues, and whilst the songs take second place to the performances, there’s not a lot wrong with the album. Backer is an extremely accomplished guitarist, but he also plays a complete array of other instruments. So much so that accompanying musicians appear on the odd track, making this a truly solo effort. Opening with a great slide steel guitar blues of Histrionic Narcissist Blues (Let’s Talk About Me), Backer interjects with some great electric guitar and harmonica on a tongue in cheek song about self importance. This is followed by a great rocking intro which then disintegrates when he sings “...take me back to Abu Dhabi, where the sand blows free..,” a song about lying beside the Persian Gulf and where pipe lines roll, I didn’t expect that! Back to business with another slide steel guitar song called Leaving Trunk to be followed by a hard line rock song, Rock & Roll Headache featuring Marcella Detroit on vocals. Too Big To Fail and Don’t Talk both come across like strutting Stones anthems with great riffs, and with Backer playing some great piano backing. My favourite track here is the closer, I Don’t Worry About A Thing which features US Blues legend Bill Blue and world renowned harmonica player Adam Gussow in a stomping Blues round. Get Backer is a tremendous introduction to a musician who has obviously paid his dues and is enjoying his own music.

MERV OSBORNE

Brandon Miller Band

SLoW tRaiN

Independent

This is the second album from the Kansas based power trio of Miller on guitars and vocals, Dylan Reiter, bass and vocals, and drummer and vocalist Jeff Daniels: Mike Sedovic provides keyboard accompaniment. The track list comprises a mixture of

hard-hitting, inventive guitar riffs such as Forevermore and End Of The Road and sensitive slow burners like Hero’s Mistake and Dark Heart Of Mine, all written by Brandon. The upbeat shuffle of Can’t Get Enough is a highlight due to the excellent interplay between guitar and piano. Comparisons with young guns in the UK are inevitable with Laurence Jones and Oli Brown springing to mind although Brandon’s voice is not as strong as these contemporaries. Nevertheless, Slow Train is worth listening to, not least for its thoughtful lyrics, refreshing honesty, youthful enthusiasm and raw energy.

THE

BISHOP

sunny loWdoWn

the BLueS VoLuMe LoW Coolstreme

Sunny’s first solo release comprising 13 tracks which are a mixture of traditional blues tunes and some of his own composition, unfortunately the rather spartan sleeve notes don’t indicate which is which, and to be fair, it is almost impossible to tell the difference. Sunny plays a lovely acoustic guitar, sometimes with slide, and for the most part unaccompanied, although he is joined on three tracks with his trio, all of whom carry the name Sunny, Sunny Bottom on bass, and Sunny Tubs on drums. None of the tracks come in at more than 4 minutes and you can see Sunny playing on street corners in your mind’s eye as you listen to these tracks, apart from the recording quality, any of these could have been recorded fifty or sixty years ago, and it is a tribute to Sunny’s musicianship that they sound so authentic. He has apparently honed his craft by playing with Hubert Sumlin, Pinetop Perkins, Otis Rush and R L Burnside amongst others. Sunny’s guitar style is the sort that is deceptive, leading you to believe that it is quite easy, until you try to replicate it! The overall style of the album reminds me a lot of Seasick Steve, and like him Sunny is another white artist drawing on the inspiration

of the stripped down sounds of a solo artist singing to a single guitar, and one that I would be quite happy to hear again and again.

DAVE STONE

the delta saints

LiVe at eXit/iN Independent

The Delta Saints come from Nashville and this album was recorded in their hometown club in front of an enthusiastic audience who lapped up their swampy brand of bourbonfuelled Southern rock and blues served up with a punk swagger. A Bird Called Angola crashes out of the speakers with heavy slide guitar and soulful vocals from Ben Ringel and funky organ from Willie Burns. Vocalist and resonator guitarist Ben Ringel is from Louisiana and there is a touch of N’awlins fonk and swagger to Drink It Slow as “you sway a little left and you’re staggering right”. Yes I know that feeling! The fast and furious number The Devil’s Creek is drenched in lashings of heavy slide guitar as it speeds to a frenzied climax. Things calm down a little with Steppin’ as Burns gets to feature his jazzy keyboard chops but Death Letter Jubilee features a thumping chorus which gets the crowd joining in excitedly “I’m gonna dance and I’m gonna sing”. The band have toured hard for the past five years in USA and Europe carving out their own space in the territory occupied by Gary Clark Jr, Tedeschi Trucks Band and North Mississippi Allstars. The lengthy and swampy slow blues Pray On features hoodoo imagery and a chance for lead guitarist Dylan Fitch to air his chops. Chicago is a steady shuffle which grooves along like an old Chess blues and then runs straight into the next number Boogie an up-tempo slide guitar rave up. Phew! Crazy is an emotional slow blues with Ringel pleading “baby think twice, that’s my only advice”. Liar is a tour-de-force of swampy Southern

Albums reviews

rock with a funky bass line and everything including the kitchen sink thrown into the mix underpinning Ringel’s slinky vocals. The album closes with Momma featuring funky, distorted keyboards from Burns and emotive vocals from Ringel. This hard working and enthusiastic band have produced a live album with plenty of energy and crowd pleasing music.

DAVE DRURY

Malted MilK oN Stage toNight

Dixiefrog

Square one

“Chester” being Chester Burnett, better known as Howling Wolf of course, and although singer/ harmonica player and guitarist Tim and friends may not have met him (Tim sings, “I was sitting in a classroom when the Wolf was on the prowl”), they do seem able to channel his spirit on this programme of seven tracks associated with the mighty Wolf, plus one from Sonny Boy Williamson No. 2 and three of Tim’s own originals. This is the follow up to the acclaimed The Burnham Wolfpack Sessions. Don’t expect note for note re-treads – these Essex boys certainly aren’t about to do that – but they do build on the original arrangements, so that the opener, I Ain’t Superstitious, has all the attitude of a cocky young mid-60s UK outfit, lots of energy and pent-up aggression not very far below the surface, in contrast to The Red Rooster which is nicely laid-back with an easy swing. The title track has some nice autobiographical lyrics, excellent lupine vocal and a guitar solo that just is Hubert Sumlin – though I assume it is by Joel Fisk. Several others numbers are given a modern groove; try Back Door Man for a good example and the rhythm section of Rob “Tank” Barry and Paul “Dougie P” Lester really kick this along – as they do on the other ten tracks too. Tim’s own number slot in very nicely indeed alongside the classics, making this CD very easy to recommend.

NORMAN DARWEN

Malted Milk is a suitable name for this French band because like the legendary Robert Johnson song these guys just ooze the blues and add a flavour of their own. This impressive 10-piece line up put on a great show at Stereolux in Nantes last year where this was recorded, their seventh album in 15 years. Touch You sets the scene with lead guitarist and vocalist Arnaud Fradin in outstanding form, his mellifluous voice and understated, tasteful axe work complementing the brilliant brass section of Pierre-Marie Humeau, Vincent Aubert and Sylvain Fetis. Easy Baby showcases the tight rhythm section and slick tempo changes of Igor Piichon on bass and drummer Richard Housset. The bluesiest songs are Sweet Baby with guest vocalist Nina Attal’s soft anguished tones reaching a crescendo, and True Love, a slow burner with searing guitar solos. Soul god Karl W Davis adds his charismatic presence to the show with Sunshine and 20SYL adds turntablism to another song. The highlight is Down The Road with harpist Kevin Double a revelation giving a performance comparable to Sonny Terry’s legendary Drinking With The Blues. This is my first sample of Malted Milk and the ingredients of blues with dollops of hip hop, reggae, soul and jazz leave a great taste.

Berdon

KirKsaether & the tWang Bar Kings

LateNighteRS

uNdeR a FuLL MooN roller records

This turned out to be a journey of discovery on my part. I’ve worked in Norway and was aware of their love of Jazz and Blues, but I genuinely had no idea that they could produce this quality. That said, I’m going to quickly brush over the opening track Go Cat Go as the group winding themselves up a bit discordantly for the metaphoric night out which is the basis of the whole album. It was perhaps a step too far to introduce themselves with such an Avant Garde opener. There is a narrative to the album and the contents, and is based on a group of guys going out presumably to have a grossly expensive club/bar crawl. The price of drink in Norway is exorbitant by any standard. This exquisite mix of jazz, blues with a hint of R&B, is guitar playing of the highest order. It will not appeal to the mainstream in the sense

that Berdon and his fellow troubadours are not too well known on this side of the North Sea! However, if this got some real exposure they would be, and readers of this magazine know their stuff so there’s a chance. If I were to be coerced into choosing a favourite track it would be track seven, Another One Going Down presuming that it refers to another grossly expensive Norwegian drink, as well as excellent guitar work from Kirksaether. Skol as they say in Norway.

TOM WALKER

the sharpees:

Formed from the ashes of the late seventies band Rebel, who mostly played in and around the London/ Kent area. The Sharpees were Bill Mead, Pete Goodley and John Smith who together recorded and performed across the U.K. until the band suspended activities in nineteen eighty-four, this went on to become a

tiM aves & WolfpaCK

NeVeR SaW cheSteR

THE BISHOP

twenty year resting period. Bill reconvened the band and their activities in two thousand and three but, this time with Baz Payne; bass, Spencer Blackridge; drums and of course William (Bill) Mead; guitar and vocals. For added spice and flavour the trio are at times joined on this album and onstage by Brian Willoughby; lead guitar, Richard Hayes; lead/slide guitar and Roger Cotton; piano and organ. Over the past few years a successful touring schedule of the U.K. has seen the band expand their touring itinerary to include countries such as; France, Holland, Belgium, Germany and Greece.

The eleven original numbers here are an engaging mixture of late sixties and early seventies British rock and blues that have a particularly satisfying ingrained air of Englishness about them, influences range from the laid back blues of Free to the energetic goodtime defiance of Dr. Feelgood. The most noticeable aspect of the music is Bill’s vocals which seem to be an enticing, urging and strutting mixture of Rodger Daltrey and Glenn Tilbrook, especially on such building numbers as Strangers, where an Englishman seems to be lost, bewildered and searching for his lost love in New York. On Play Johnny Play, there is a strong Dire Straits undercurrent on the story of bleeding and raw fingers gained from practising to be a great guitar player.

The engrossing and enticing guitar passages are rich in highly enjoyable reminders of bands that encompass the wide spectrum of classy guitar work, from the Shadows to the Stones. Crazy Woman Blues is a terrific and frenetic acoustic guitar led rockabilly foot stomper. The Clock ramps up the finger tapping rate with some fine hard rocking blues which continues with Trucking on the E15, a story of relentless motorway travelling, aptly described by the highly affecting and emotive racing acoustic guitar work. The culmination is Travelling Blues Man an out and out ever rising boogie rocker. Recommended!

BRIAN HARMAN

MarCia Ball

the tattooed Lady & the aLLigatoR MaN Alligator records

This rollicking, swampy, Louisana album from Marcia Ball, her first in a few years, is another bundle of steam-rollering, rocking tracks. Mostly all written by Ball, the 12 tracks that make up this release are fine examples of her song-writing skills and her powerful, poised, barrelhouse/swamp-funk piano and vocals. The band core comprises Don Bennet on Bass, Damien Llanes, drums, Michael Schermer, Guitaralways nicely pitched - and Thad Scott on wailing Tenor Sax. Delbert McClinton guests on Harmonica while Terrance Simien squeezes the absolute max from his Accordian on track six, the aptly titled, The Squeeze Is On. From the driving boogie playing of the title track to the closing bars of The Last To Know, Ball and the band hammer out a feast of fabulous, fun-fuelled music. This is not your usual quiet, stinging, introverted blues release; instead what we have here is a boisterous beauty of an album that’s pretty much guaranteed to bring a smile to the face. I defy anyone to keep still while cranking the volume up and listening to this offering. Not so much a toe-tapper, more a full blown, leg-stomper or body-boogie banger. Recommended? Goes without saying, surely!

IAIN PATIENCE

vaneese thoMas

BLueS FoR My FatheR Segue records

Tricky to ignore the influence of such a soul great as Rufus Thomas when the artist acknowledges him as her father in the album title and when her sister is Carla Thomas you are going to have certain ‘expectations’ about the album. But Vaneese Thomas actually has some reputation in her own right as a singer and songwriter and this is

her 5th album release. Strictly in the soul & R&B vein, she has a strong voice with a husky undertone and gospel-like peals of vibrato and she has a pretty good band around her featuring Buddy Williams on drums and Tash Neal on guitar while production is handled by Vaneese herself with Wayne Warnecke. It’s good stuff. Strong soul with a heavy funk to it and some stunning vocals from the lady as well as a grand duet with Sister Carla on Wrong Turn and her father on Can’t Ever Let You Go. The songs are generally excellent and the playing fine throughout and it had me in raptures listening to some seriously fat horn sounds – you just don’t get them like that anymore. She gets dirty and dark on tracks like When My Baby Comes Home and takes John Fogerty’s The Old Man Down The Road and turns it into a swamp masterpiece but adds a touch of New Orleans groooove to Southern Girl. She is clearly a talent in her own right, a fine singer and a pretty good songwriter and this might be the breakthrough she needs – she is certainly good enough.

ANDY SNIPPER

root doCtor

NeW attitude

Independent

Ten tracks of funky blues with a strong soul vibe. The subtitle to this album adds, Featuring Freddie Cunningham, whose gritty, powerful voice leads this release from start to finish. This five-piece outfit throw in a good range of up-tempo soul numbers with some decidedly tasty guitar work from Bill Malone adding to the balance. On first hearing, I was unsure about this one. After a second run through, I was a convert, convinced that this is a fine bit of work, of interest to those who like their blues with a full-blown horn section and that Memphis soul sound at its core. Track six, Louisiana Bound, brings in some perfectly pressed

devon allMan

Yay! That was my comment about a minute into the opening number Half The Truth as Devon hit the kind of licks we associate with people with the surname Allman. Devon has already proved himself – and on his own terms – both on his own albums and with others, most notably The Royal Southern Brotherhood, but here, that initial comment notwithstanding, he has taken himself off to Chicago and enlisted the support of musicians of the calibre of Tom Hambridge (drums, songwriter and producer), Felton Crews on bass, keyboards man Marty Sammon and Delmark artist Giles Cor(e)y on rhythm guitar, among others. Tom is ‘the man to go to’ these days, following his work with the likes of Buddy Guy, Johnny Winter and Susan Tedeschi, among others, and he works his magic on this set, a mix of classic southern rock and hard driving contemporary blues that fits Devon like a glove – but maybe I am doing Devon a disservice, as he handles this material with class and apparent ease. Listen to the slow blues of Back To You or the more contemporary Blackjack Heartattack. Of the three non-originals, the title track is one of Luther Allison’s funky blues, The Spinners’ 1972 hit I’ll Be Around is given a smooth treatment that shows off Devon’s voice and versatility (as if we needed proof) and Otis Taylor’s tough, uncompromising Ten Million Slaves is a surprise choice – and all the more effective for that. Midnight Lake Michigan is a guitar tour-de-force – with sensitivity – and the closing number, Leave The City, with just Devon’s resonator guitar over Tom’s sparse backing, underlines the quality of Devon’s voice once again. This is one fine CD that deserves to sell by the bucket load.

NORMAN DARWEN

squeeze-box and was probably my personal favourite track here. Based in Michigan, the band have been together in various forms since the 1980s and have built a steady following in the US for their brand of soulful R&B. Most of the tracks here are written by band members including the excellent opener, Rear View Sight. Recommended for soul-blues lovers.

33 records

This is the band’s third album in less than three years and it reflects the rapid progress made by Zoe and all of the musicians during that time. Exposed is quite simply breathtaking, epitomised by the opening track

Angel Of Mercy with its clever tempo and mood changes as it reaches one crescendo after another. Like Beatitudes from the Good Times CD, Schwarz and guitarist Rob Koral have come up with a song which will be regarded as a classic in years to come. The lyrics are pure poetry, “The candle of my life that burned so bright, It flickers in my final twilight, Dancing in the shadows, dancing in the half light, From my lips, my heart and soul.” Indeed, all 13 tracks here are original, dynamic, beautifully arranged and expertly produced and mastered to achieve a crystal clear sound quality. The blues underpins the track list, with the up-tempo Let Me Sing The Blues and Broken Heart Blues plus the earthy I Wonder Who My Next Man Will Be. The trademark Billie Holliday influences include Fifteen Days and Let’s Explain whilst contemporary jazz is represented in Heroes with lyrics and melody by the talented chanteuse and composer

Sue Hawker. Zoe sings with honesty, emotion and intensity; Rob’s guitar solos are compelling, tasteful and interspersed with memorable blues and rock riffs; Pete Whittaker’s sublime, melodic Hammond organ infuses the entire sound; harpist Si Genaro adds flair, charisma and reflective interplay with the vocals and other instruments whilst Paul Robinson’s drums maintain precise rhythm and timing. What is exposed for all to hear in this superb album is the love and devotion of Zoe and her partner Rob, the heart and soul which they put into their music and a band which performs in complete synergy to produce an awesome and unique sound. Fortunately for all jazz and blues enthusiasts this is one Commotion that will not go away but continues to grow and develop.

THE BISHOP

raMon goose

BLueS aNd SpiRituaLS

Acoustic Music records

It was the turn of the millennium when Ramon Goose exploded onto the scene with his experimental NuBlues band and it has taken him the best part of 14 years to find his true roots. This sensational solo album confirms his arrival as the consummate blues man. Ramon has travelled extensively on a pilgrimage of immense dedication during which he explored the African origins of the blues and experimented with its many genres. Three of the tracks are interpretations of Blind Blake, Blind Boy Fuller and Skip James, with the latter’s Hard Time Killin’ Floor Blues a masterpiece of finger picking acoustic guitar. The self-penned Walking In The Rain proves that Ramon can sing, write and play as well as any of the past blues masters. His slide guitar playing is exceptional on the instrumental, Mountain Song and Keb Mo’s Perpetual Blues Machine.

One of the most inspirational tracks is Going Home, reflecting Ramon’s journey back home from Senegal and his thoughts on how

music travels, evolves and mixes. Take Me Out Of The City showcases Ramon’s skills on the Hammond B3 as the atmosphere and tempo change on this jazz-rock classic with its haunting background vocals. ‘I can hear the Delta calling’ pleads Goose, ‘It’s the only place I call my home.’ What epitomises this album’s cultural mix though is the classic Mystique Blues with the brilliant interplay between Goose and the Hungarian double bassist Akos Hasznos. The spiritual dimension is represented by the gospel infused I Want Jesus To Walk With Me which is played with sincerity and emotion. In contrasting moods, Keb Mo’s Angelina is pure ragtime and Robert Johnson’s Kind Hearted Woman swings all ways with mesmeric piano from Dom Pipkin. Blues and Spirituals is undoubtedly Ramon’s best album to date as he continues to develop into a prodigious talent who links the past with the present and in an eclectic and unique way.

THE BISHOP

parKer Millsap paRkeR MiLLSap

Thirty Tigers okrahoma records

Parker Millsap is a bit of oddity in today’s music scene, in that he is a twenty year old who writes and sings with an intensity which belies his tender years. This debut album is self titled and for all that, it is right and proper to have the album named after him. There is intensity to the lyrics and his rendering of them which makes you sit up and listen so very, very intently. This is a totally unique musical experience and a real joy to find for the first time. I’d never have thought of getting so much pleasure from what is effectively a cross between the diverse forms of Southern Baptist/ Gospel/Americana with a hint of Blues and all from someone so young. He will be touring the United Kingdom, Ireland and Holland in October of this year, if you see him advertised near you be sure to go, as this is your chance to catch him

before his star ascends to the stratosphere in the U.S. His voice is a bit like a young Bob Dylan, but improved with better technology available in recording in the 21st century. There is an almost fire and brimstone sense of a preacher who has a voice to match his own lyrics. There isn’t a track which I liked more than any other, as they were all superb. He’s very ably supported in this debut album by Michael Rose on bass and Daniel Foulks on fiddle, they all obviously enjoy their work as you will too!

TOM WALKER

Mud Morganfield & KiM Wilson

FoR popS: a tRiBute to Muddy WateRS

Severn records CD 0064

For Pops really does showcase a genuine chip off the old block. What more to add? Son of Muddy could equally well serve to illustrate the fact. This is a very fine tribute to not just a father but to someone who was genuinely a man of stellar importance to the blues music scene worldwide. A hard act to follow for sure. It takes a brave man to attempt this, but in Mud Morganfield there is a confident, champion contender. Add some wonderful wailing harp from the original front man of the Fabulous Thunderbirds, Kim Wilson, and the result is a winner. If anything, Wilson is a bit of a surprise here but his rocking roiling harp produces great slabs of sound echoing the influence of Little Walter and Junior Wells at times. Guitars are brought by both Billy Flynn and the joyously-named Rusty Zinn. Barrelhouse Chuck on piano, Steve Gomes on bass and Robb Stupka on skins complete the band, with a ‘live-studio-cum-houseparty’ atmosphere rocking the whole mash forward. In truth the rhythm section bring little fresh or adventurous though they do provide solid backing and years of accumulated Chicago style and experience. There are outings for a

few lesser-known Waters’ tracks like Still A Fool beautifully paced, captured and released, while some sterling Muddy favourites including Trouble No More, She’s Nineteen Years Old and I Just Want To Make Love To You also feature. This is an album to savour and enjoy, with great performances all round and the booming voice of a true son of the blues.

IAIN PATIENCE

dan Charette and aBsoleutley Blue

BeaLe StReet Boogie

Twango Music

This feels like a Cd that says thank you. Thank you to the many blues players that Dan has played with since his broken transmission left him broke down in Memphis in 1986 while he had been driving all over the country. Dan has played Beale Street for years including several with Uncle Ben then with Beale Street Cadillac Blues Band for some seven years. He was away for a short while in 1996 but the draw of Memphis called him back and there he has stayed and played the blues. This album is of songs of experience of blues in Memphis. His cohorts here are; Brian Welch on drums, Vic Charles, bass, Charles Taylor on all keys with added brass and background vocals which produce an easy to the ear set of songs that are all naturally matured and in the manner of his favourite artist Otis Rush, the Kings B.B. and Albert. That should whet the appetite for you.

Here is an album of thirteen songs with ten originals by Dan and the exceptions being Call My Job written by Detroit Junior/Albert Lewis Perkins, Cold Women Warm Hearts by Mack Rice and I Got A Mind To Give Up Living by Carl B Adams all of which are excellent versions. The songs and instruments are handled with reverence and you can feel that throughout this pleasing set. The

Blues Top 50 october 2014

opener, My Name, is literally Dan introducing himself to you in song and doing it rather well with easy vocal sparsely used, a neat rythmn flowing with brass and tinkling piano and Dan playing lowdown guitar. Call My Job shows the Son Seals influence, Beale Street Boogie does what it suggests. The lyrics are Dan’s experiences in music and thoughtful and felt. The album has been a very pleasant surprise and thoroughly enjoyed

FRANK LEIGH

Kenny Butterill tRouBadoR taLeS No Bull Songs

Mary floWer

WheN My BLueBiRd

Bluesette records

SiNgS

the Bella

reunion iNtRoduciNg… the BeLLa ReuNioN Independent

As an introduction to this Australian outfit, The Bella Reunion, this seven-tracker debut is half EP, half full album. In scope, it’s more album and serves as a fine intro. The players here have been together, in one form or another Down Under for a few decades now, soaking up and pushing out their own brand of Chicago blues with more than a passing nod to the more soulful, Memphis sound. There are shades of Motown and Stax in the stew and the five-piece band includes a couple of Brits with guitarist Chris Harvey and former Ray Davies drummer, Toby Baron. In fact, surprisingly in parts, only two true Ozzies feature here: Steve Russell on keyboards and Brisbane bassist Jez Klysz, the whole being fronted by an Irishman in the shape of vocalist Alan Boyle. The overall mix works smoothly, raucous at times and introspective at others, with some fine writing ability on display. When first released a few months ago in Oz, the album went straight to the top of the country’s blues and roots radio airplay charts. Not bad for a debut and a push that the band no doubt welcomed. For me, however, it lacks real passion, seeming to be just another of those loudish, laudable releases screaming out ‘Me, me, me’ rather than grabbing its audience with a ‘You, you, you’ wave of emotion.

California based Canadian singer/ songwriter with his third album of Americana, folk, roots, alt-country and bluesy music which is influenced by J J Cale, Gordon Lightfoot and John Prine.This beguiling CD is packed full of easy rolling songs and vivid imagery of life, love and death etc. which justify the album’s 10 years in the making. Opening track Good Thing That Couldn’t Happen Here is a satirical blast at the attitudes of government and big business towards democracy and citizen’s rights with great playing from Ray Bonneville on harmonica and guitar and John Lee Sanders on piano.

The album is packed with 20 or so world class musicians and one of Butterill’s hero’s Donovan adds superb harmonica to the lovely Gaia Blues. The gently rolling tale The Old Man And The Kid features wonderful mandolin and fiddle from Kenny Feinstein who also co-wrote this song with Butterill. Flying With Buddha is a spiritual song which starts with a Tibetan Monks chant before a speedy shuffle beat comes in as Butterill relates the vagaries of life, love, death and reincarnation. Butterill’s masterful songwriting and inviting melodies plus his warm laid back vocals make for a rewarding listen.

The speedy minor chord shuffle Hocus Pocus is a tribute/ homage to JJ Cale who passed away three weeks after this fine song was recorded. This is music where folk, blues and country are put into a blender and come out as a genre which is dripping in class and invites the listener to sit back, drink in hand, and wallow in enjoyment. The dreamy, romantic and inspirational Woman In A Canoe is a beautiful ballad which rounds out this wonderful album. Thoroughly recommended.

DAVE DRURY

Mary Flower says of this latest album, that it marks a departure from her usual style, normally a ragtime-blues acoustic driven mix of blues standards and self-penned tracks. And yet, that solid background shines through here with wonderful, crisp and clear guitar work matched by a mellow voice that seems to improve steadily with age, like a good wine or a fine malt. All titles here were written by Flower and she plays both standard acoustic and slide guitar with strength, sensitivity and soul throughout the mix. From the opener, So Far Doin’ Alright she shimmies on to a more typical ragtimey theme with Ragtag Rag. Sashay My Way is a cracking, walking boogie piece and the closer, Atchafalaya is a beautiful, rhapsodic piece of playing, reflecting and echoing the genesis of this release which was recorded down in New Orleans a few months ago. For me, Mary Flower is probably the finest female acoustic ragtime-blues picker out there, so it goes without saying, this CD is recommended.

IAIN PATIENCE

JaCK J hutChinson Band get it Back Independent

This is a three piece blues-rock band from London with wide ranging influences from Neil Young, Cream and Led Zeppelin to current bands King King and Gary Clark Jr. This debut EP contains six original songs opening with Wake Up which certainly blows away any cobwebs with Hutchinson firing out huge fuzzy licks with his Gibson over a rock solid rhythm section and adding his gravelly vocals. This is riff laden blues-rock taking us back to the white boy blues

Albums reviews

heyday of bands like Zep and Lynyrd Skynyrd. Look In The Mirror is another heavy duty rocker with hook laden slide guitar fireworks and an aggressive vocal from Hutchinson. The pace drops for Loving Man with spare backing as Hutchinson spins his tale of love and loss. Never Too Late is a rocker which grooves along nicely and then Hutchinson fires out one of his trademark solos with his speedy fretwork. Title track Get It Back is a real monster slide driven, heavy rocking number with Hutchinson spitting out the lyrics. I’m sure this band go down a storm live with numbers like this. The EP closes with the radio friendly lush ballad Hey Hey Hey which leans toward the Neil Young influence as Hutchinson croons his plaintive tale. Good debut with the promise of much more to come, hopefully, with a full album.

DAVE DRURY

rod piaZZa and the Mighty flyers

eMeRgeNcy

SituatioN

Blind Pig records

The eleven numbers on offer here from Rod, who takes lead vocals and harmonica with his stalwart Mighty Flyers who consist of; Miss Honey (Mrs Piazza); keyboards, Henry Carvajal; guitar, David Kida; drums, Norm Gonzales on acoustic and electric basses with Ron Dziubla and Jim Jedeikin supplying saxophones. Together they create an uplifting and mesmerising mixture of forties swing, fifties R&B with a splendid dash of Chicago Blues. Seven of the numbers are covers but, before you yawn and turn to another page it should be noted that they are not only tastefully crafted, they are also evocatively presented with all the fizz and sincerity of the originals. For on the enticing walking piano, and swinging, sweeping brushwork of Amos Milburn’s Milk and Water Rod’s sublimely inviting and calming vocals immediately mellows your spirits Equally uplifting are Henry Carvajal’s underplayed but, alluring

vocals on Lee Dorsey’s timeless Ya-Ya with the saxophones and guitar gently swaying in the background. The blues are more than represented with James Wee Willie Wayne’s Bad Weather Blues, a sad saxophone and piano led slow burner, which has mournfully rich harmonica and guitar wailing in the background. Sam Myers’s Sleeping In The Ground continues the mood with Rods’ solemn solid playing paired with an equally solid vamping piano while the punching drum work adds significantly to the overall sound.

Another James Wee Willie Wayne number Neighbour, Neighbour, is rather more cheerful, with swinging saxophones underpinning the splendidly solid and evocative breathy playing of Rod’s harmonica. Rod seems to be having a rather nice harmonica time on his extremely swinging and foot tapping rendition of Jimmy Rogers Tricky Woman. A change of pace is dictated by the almost doo-wop version of Johnny Ace’s tale of lost love, The Clock, a reminder perhaps of a less frenetic time when people had more time for each other to blossom. Walter Price’s Gambling Woman, pairs a cheerfully striding and rolling piano with honking goodtime saxophones, this leads us into a very fine blasting solo from Rod. Recommended!

BRIAN HARMAN

roB

stone

gotta keep RoLLiN’

Vizztone

Chicago harp fans will lap up this collection of vibrant blues from Los Angeles-based Rob Stone who is already cutting a reputation as one of the hottest young bandleaders on the scene today. This is his fifth album, and suitably styled (as are all his albums) in a livery that depicts the retro nature of his harmonica hued blues, and perhaps it will be one to lift him to greater recognition. What will help him get noticed is the array of

special guests that appear on the disc. Notable names are Baton Rouge maestro Henry Gray on piano for Wired And Tired, Blues Hall of Fame Inductee Eddie Shaw playing tenor sax on Anything Can Happen and She Belongs To Me, and Muddy Waters employee John Primer on guitar in Lucky 13 and Cold Winter Day. It’s a full album and although there is split between six covers and six Stone originals you can’t see the join. Key to the album are his long-time bandmates Chris James on guitar and Patrick Rynn on bass who publish with Stone under the name cool name of The Blues Triad.

GARETH HAYES

MiKe Zito and the Wheel

SoNgS FRoM the Road ruf records

Ruf are really giving away the goodies, here is a release with a 12 track live CD together a bonus of 13 tracks recorded live on DVD. The tracks aren’t all the same, so you have in total 17 different songs on this release.

This release was all recorded at Dosey Doe in Texas, and as you can imagine, the audience were all Mike Zito fans. This is less obvious on the CD as the audience aren’t too much to be heard, and in fact they are equally well behaved on the DVD, but at least you know they are there, because you can see them! Mike Zito is a name that a lot people won’t have come across until recently, but he is very much in view now, playing as he does with both The Wheel and also Royal Southern Brotherhood, he is also responsible for introducing a lot of new Blues talent to Thomas Ruf and features on several of these other records too.

It is safe to say that he is highly talented and accomplished guitarist and songwriter, having written almost all of the songs on these albums. The playing is first class, although you may find the restricted camera angles on the DVD a little boring, as

they are not really much of a visual act, although to be fair, there doesn’t appear to be that much room on the small stage area for anything like guitar gymnastics! Another great value package from Ruf!

DAVE STONE

Jp soars

FuLL MooN Night iN MeMphiS Independent

This is an album that will warm your blues heart as the nights draw in and get colder with a bit of Southern warmth and exciting guitar and vocals that are full of energy from the opening title track with its Southern Rock driving beat through to the last track Missin’ Your Kissin’. This is definitely not a one trick pony as the styles vary and contrast with each other this is an album you want to listen to with tracks such as Mean Old World with the Latin American feel of the drumming intro and the moody spoken lyrics full of darkness and jungle swampiness. Then we have some funk added into the mix on The Back Room; this is a dexterous musician. The Viper is a hissing track that is dark with a tango

lightnin’ hopKins

FRee FoRM patteRNS

Charly

beat that would feel just right playing in a joint of the main street just a little bit dangerous and is the stand out track for me. The last track is Missin’ Your Kissin’ picking up on sounds of swing and times gone by with Terry Hanck delivering a mean sax solo great track to draw this album full of depth and musical flavours to a fitting close. This is his third solo album and is full of musical intrigue with hints and tipping his hat to his wide range of influences from Miles Davies to Muddy Waters through to T-Bone Walker and Django Reinhard – Full Moon Night In Memphis touches all the right spots.

LIZ AIKEN

elvin Bishop

caN’t eVeN do WRoNg Right Alligator records

I have to own up that one of my treasured 45rpm’s is Elvin’s 1975 release Fooled Around and Fell In Love that included superb vocals from Mickey Thomas, remarkably nearly forty years later the pair perform again on this CD, the track Let Your Women Have Her Way is a highlight,

A three disc set here from Charly/Snapper in a hard card open box set with centre fixed 24 page booklet carries the original album plus two discs of complete studio material previously un-released which form a fascinating insight into what is a straight forward recording of a blues album as it happened with all the chit-chat included (that was intelligible). The sound of this re-mastering from the 1968 originals is admirable and gives a heightened sense of presence, as if you were there. Here Lightnin’ is supported by the rhythm section of Danny Thomas and Duke Davis from the Thirteenth Floor Elevators, both high on at the time apparently, backed by fans, who happened to be members of a psychedelic band. It shows how the music cut across all boundaries within the segregated and repressive atmosphere of late 1960s Texas. Original International Artists producer Lelan Rogers (brother of Kenny) intended to get the definitive interview with Lightnin’ and left the tapes running in the studio as the album was cut. These recordings have sat in a series of dump tapes for 44 years but have now been put back together as unique documentation of one of the 20th century’s most revered bluesmen.

FRANK LEIGH

which showcases both Mickey’s silky vocals and some excellent slide guitar from Elvin, timeless. Elvin is a real trooper, he started his professional career as a guitarist during the late sixties and has played with some major Blues and Rock artists over the years, now into his seventies this CD highlights that he has lost none of his skill or enthusiasm, his vocals may be huskier in places but his lyrics still provide some humorous antidotes. The material all follows Elvin’s recognisable style which he has developed over the years that brings in elements of Country and Cajun, the best track on the album is his working of Jimmy Reed’s Honest I Do, an instrumental that has some guitar phrases not too dissimilar to the Mac’s Albatross, the material is a mixture of self written songs and some carefully selected covers. This is definitely a feel good type of album that highlights one of America’s most respected artists who still has plenty to offer to the Blues Music scene, every Blues fan should own an Elvin Bishop album; this could be your one.

ADRIAN BLACKLEE

Big apple Blues

eNeRgy

Stone Tone records

From the opening sounds of what appears to be an early morning refuse dumpster reversing, to the closing sounds of an aircraft taking off, this CD has taken over my life. Call it retro, call it old hat, call it what you want, to me it excels. For a start it’s an instrumental which I like, allowing the listener to focus completely on the musicians and the tunes. There’s everything here from the exhilarating guitar runs of Zach Zunis, the Hammond keys excess of Jim Alfredson and sublime harp playing of Anthony Kane. The band is made up of musicians who form some of the top New York City professionals and who play in numerous different formats and styles across the City

Albums reviews

and State, all coming together to produce this themed album, Energy. It is supposed to musically detail a day in the life of New York City.

Opening with Wake Up And Do Something, the dumpster alarm gets us off to a funky groove with Zunis having free rein on his fret board. Next up is out of the house with I-278 Grind, a slow but foreboding style that churns throughout, seemingly going nowhere but with so much happening within. On a more upbeat and happier note is Morning Jive, before the sombre Remembering Eni, recalling thoughts of lost friends over peeling church bells and howling winds. Some beautifully Blues drenched guitar opens Lost In Thoughts, a slow and melancholy song evoking some of the finer gut wrenching sounds of a Carlos Santana. A memorable tune that gets better with each play. Day Dreaming follows and this is likewise a great tune with some superb playing, particularly Alfredson on the keys. Happy Hour switches the mood to an altogether livelier frame, something more akin to a bar or club with everyone enjoying themselves, whilst Unwind reflects the feeling one has when back at home, feet up and

drink in hand, the end of the day. This CD covers so many differing styles, but above all, the outstanding feature here is the musicianship of those playing. It’s an absolute blast from start to end. Brilliant and could end up my album of the year!

MERV OSBORNE

andy gunn

MiRacLe oF heaLiNg

Barbaraville record

Well if you like your blues music mellow thoughtful and heartfelt this is the one to go out and buy. Andy’s fourth release is produced by Martin Stephenson whose influence is noted on such tracks as Freedom Reality. This has a varied style of music a mixed bag of blues folk and rock with his soft lilting vocals he expresses his own hardships with family and health problems and certainly there are references which only enhance the bluesy feeling more. Initial track Are We Thru has good guitar licks and soft approach a very listenable track makes for an interesting upbeat sound to a relationship break up. He

the allMan Brothers Band the 1971 FiLLMoRe eaSt RecoRdiNgS

uMC/Island

The Allman Brothers Band’s essential LP, At Fillmore East, compiled from the four sets recorded on the great weekend of March 12-13, 1971, is expanded here over six CDs with sixteen unreleased tracks. This had to be one of the very best live albums ever recorded and is possibly the guitar lovers’ ultimate album. Duane Allman is superb, no other way to describe his slide work and playing. Betts had never played better and the interaction between the two is amazing. From the opening Statesboro Blues to the final Whipping Post you have awesome guitar work. Statesboro Blues kicks off the slide guitar show with an amazing solo that is restrained yet completely flows with the rhythm and vocals, followed by a Betts shorter but equally inspiring solo. As the album moves on Duane’s guitar work follows his brothers’ vocal lines naturally, interspersed with an inspired Betts who seems taken to fantastic heights by Allman. To blues lovers and guitar fans alike this album is a must. There are few live albums that come near it. Now presented in a book fold with a 36 page booklet of info and pics. Time to replace that worn out vinyl copy and the CDs you used to spare the vinyl and get the full live set with no messing.

FRANK LEIGH

seems blessed with hope on such tracks as Brighter Days and the steady rolling positive title song Miracle Of Healing. There is a sharpness and more gutsy electric guitar technique in Trouble Woman with smooth harmonica backing by Stevie Smith. Not a release to be blasted out on music system more a chilling experience after a hard day or chance to reflect generally on the listener’s lifestyle choices. Vocal range can be a challenge high octaves difficult to reach but the final song nails this with another salvation note to one of the highlights Road That Leads Back To You with haunting backing vocals by Jo Hamilton Susanna Wolfe and Miriam Campbell. This is a very original and soulful release hitting all the right notes hopefully will get the acclaim it deserves.

COLIN CAMPBELL

deanna Bogart

JuSt a WiSh aWay

Blind Pig records BPCD 5159

Washington born

Deanna started her illustrious career off some thirty odd years ago by joining the Maryland based band Cowboy Jazz as a vocalist; they were an outfit that specialised in the joyous cowboy rhythms of the nineteen forties that became known as Western Swing. After they disbanded in nineteen eighty-six Deanna broadened her musical horizons by becoming a member of the Washington based R&B band Root Boy Slim, two years later she formed her own band and proceeded to spend the next fifteen years constantly touring across America moulding, refining and defining her own particular sound, which by now incorporated her mellifluous talents as a tenor saxophone player and pianist. In turn her vocal talents incorporate a molasses smooth edge tinged with an emotional depth that can only be gained by the facing of the many unpleasant realities of life.

Deanna embarked upon a solo

career during the early nineties and has since endeavoured to combine the elements of swing, boogie woogie, jazz, blues, R&B and country into her ever increasing musical repertoire. The eleven numbers here aptly display the musical miles travelled by Deanna and her efforts to distil her own particular talents. The album was recorded Louisiana’s Dockside Studio and enhances the overall feeling of relaxed good times. If It’s Gonna Be Like This, a tale of a very rocky relationship is played with gusto and verve from the tight fast drumming and piano to the fizzing pedal steel and rich fuzzing guitar. The duet with Chris Jacobs on J.D Southerner’s If You Have Crying Eyes, is rightly dominated by the melancholy and mournful pedal steel of Marty Rifkin while Deanna and Chris pour their hearts out over a sympathetic piano. Sly Stone’s Hot Fun In the Summertime, is a smoothly jazz tinged, urban frolic with funkin’ saxophone from Deanna and a cool roaming bass for you to float away on. Bye, Bye, Blackbird, is a serious nod to New Orleans laidback Big Easy reputation her saxophone joyously cavorting around your ears while a sublime jazz rich smooth guitar floats in the background. Well worth a listen.

BRIAN HARMAN

Boo Boo davis

What kiNd oF Shit iS thiS

Black & Tan records

This is an album that makes you sit up and listen outside the traditional box of blues! This is a new approach to the blues and has been created by Boo Boo Davies who belongs to the last generation of bluesmen that write and play the tunes from first-hand experience in collaboration with Blu AciD. The project started with the Boo Boo’s Harp and vocals with the background added by Blu AciD so we have Delta voice and 21st Techno music colliding on the rail tracks of life experiences creating what Black & Tan have described as high voltage

electro blues! This is blues with a psychedelic twist love the laugh and comment from Boo Boo on Half A Rap as he says ‘What Type of tune is this!” His vocals are earthy and strong and are the adhesive that holds this interesting project together. Every track has a different mix of sounds and feel we have hints of reggae colliding with electro in the opening phrases of Plane Station, then the blues vibe comes to the for once Boo Boo opens his voice and the vocals come alive. You Ain’t Never Had The Blues is full of a beat that is straight from the delta and takes you deep into southern past with a feel of an African beat. You think these tracks are unconventional you have to reset your ears for What You Got On Your Mind which has a deep counter melodic beat that at times seems counter-intuitive to the harp and vocals that are pure blues. This is not for the traditionalist, but that said it is the blues and could well open up the power of the blues to a whole new audience, and more importantly Boo Boo Davis is happy with the result. I know that without the harp playing and vocals skills of Boo Boo I would not have this album as part of my collection.

LIZ AIKEN

david vest

RoadhouSe ReVeLatioN

Cordova Bay records

David Vest is a throwback to real Boogie & Blues allied to Rock, not quite Jerry Lee Lewis but not too far off the mark. The first note has my feet going with his piano playing allied to vocals which seem soaked in Bourbon (a bit of a cliché but in this case accurate). It is extraordinary to realise how long this Canadian has been producing quality music of this calibre, he has been on the go since 1957 and still has a vocal range that singers a third of his age would give their eye teeth for. I particularly enjoyed his track four, You Came Through. It is an impromptu note of gratitude to the

people who have been there for him in a lifetime of music and is done with real feeling. Teddy Leonard has ably aided and abetted Vest with his guitar playing especially on this track. However all of the Willing Victims contribute to this fine album. David’s cover version of the Hank Williams number on track three Ramblin’ Man actually sounds like you’d expect Williams to sound, but frankly is even better since the drum work of Mike Fitzpatrick and the bass of Gary Kendall is more attuned to Vest’s style and technology too has improved. This is an album of real blues, written apart from the Hank Williams cover, and performed by a genuine artisan of his trade. A real foot-stomper of a compact disc.

TOM WALKER

Reissues

eriC Clapton

JouRNeyMaN

Duck records/Warner Bros

Re-mastered on SACD we might have expected a little more in the sleeve department here but no nothing new, no insights, no bonus tracks just the full original from 1989 now 25 years on. The sound is good for sure but do you want to spend money on the same tracks again and not get a bonus? I didn’t think so either. BUT it is a fine album and features Pretending, Bad Love and Before You Accuse Me so if you do not have the original then what are you waiting for?

FRANK LEIGH

ten years after the FRiday Rock ShoW

SeSSioNS – LiVe at ReadiNg 1983

Talking Elephant

The beauty of being around since the 1960s and being a band known for its live performances is that every now and

The Perfect Christmas Gifts For Any Blues Fan

The Alligator Records

Christmas Collection

Includes Koko Taylor, Elvin Bishop, Son Seals, Charlie Musslewhite and 10 more! “Original tinsel-sprinkled blues... superb...an ideal stocking filler”

–BLUES & RHYTHM

Alligator Records’

Genuine ChristmasHouserockin’ Houserockin’

Includes Marcia Ball, Carey Bell, Michael Burks, The Holmes Brothers and 12 more!

“The perfect holiday party album”

–BLUES REVUE

Elvin Bishop

Can’t Even Do Wrong Right

“An album ranking among Bishop’s very best...Impeccable and spirited playing by a legendary guitarist... much recommended”

–ROLLING STONE

Marcia Ball

The Tattooed Lady And The Alligator Man

“A feast of fabulous, funfuelled music...a boisterous beauty of an album”

–BLUES MATTERS –

then a live set appears, or reappears, after being lost in a cellar or dungeon and we can take a trip down memory lane. This set is from a BBC vault and a transmission for the Friday Night Rock Show recorded on 28th August 1983. As expected it is a masterclass in excess, from the opening Love Like A Man to the closing Going Home. Frontman Alvin Lee rocks out as the venue and festival would demand. There is an extra vitality to the set as it was their first proper gig for nearly ten years, after their split around 1975. I don’t recall if the significance of it being nearly ten years after was picked up at the time! It’s a big sound that is driven by the occasion and the focus is on the eclectic guitar solos and heavy rhythm section. There’s a change of pace for Slow Blues In C and I Can’t Keep From Cryin’ Sometimes but even then the emphasis is on scale and proportion. As a poignant reminder of the late Alvin Lee’s unique talent it might take some listeners back to Woodstock, where the band made their name, and it might take some forward to visit the current incarnation of the band with Blues Matters’ friend Marcus Bonfanti now helming guitar and vocals.

GARETH HAYES

alvin lee & Co

LiVe FRoM the acadeMy oF

MuSic, NeW yoRk 1975 Digital White Label

This review is unique because Alvin is the first musician to feature on the innovative, subscription-based Digital White Label platform launched in May. Over a 12-month period, a previously unreleased collection of audio tracks is downloaded, alongside a variety of other exclusive material accessible on-line, all for the price of a single CD. The first two songs already released from this live gig are Let’s Get Back and Got To Keep Moving and whilst they are both from Alvin’s live In Flight double album of 1974 they are very different in this new format. This is because these are

alvin lee & ten years later LiVe at RockpaLaSt 1978 repertoire

Alvin Lee was already a legend in 1978, the charismatic Ten Years After front man having taken Woodstock and the music world by storm a decade earlier with his breathtaking solo on I’m Going Home, also a highlight of this show. Preferring a power trio as he did towards the end of his career, Alvin teamed up briefly with the talented, thunderous drummer Tom Compton and nimble, mesmeric bassist Mick Hawksworth. From the opening bars of Gonna Turn You On, this electrifying three-piece makes Cream sound like Peter, Paul and Mary.

The performance is a barnstorming avalanche of classic songs including Hey Joe, Rip It Up, Sweet Little Sixteen and Choo Choo Mama, and features Lee’s superb blues harp playing and swaggering vocals on Help Me. Compton and Hawksworth deliver pyrotechnic solos and Lee is the consummate showman throughout, plucking his guitar strings with a drumstick using the microphone stand to create slide effects. This beautifully packaged, re-mastered DVD/CD set has excellent sound and picture quality and is a fitting tribute to Alvin who prematurely passed away last year. Gibson had just nominated him the best ever musician to play one of their guitars ahead of Clapton, King and Berry.High quality releases like this enhance Lee’s reputation even further and much credit goes to his family, Evi, Jasmin and Suzanne, for keeping his flame burning brightly, hopefully for an eternity.

DAVID SCOTT

extended, live performances from what was clearly a memorable night in New York, and the fact that the bass and keyboard players for this 1974-75 world tour were the sensational Steve Thompson and Ronnie Leahy respectively. Neither artist featured on In Flight but who can forget Steve’s thumping, mesmeric riff on John Mayall’s classic blues/jazz number, California? Leahy, of course, found fame with Stone The Crows and Jack Bruce.

The band also includes iconic former King Crimson members Mel Collins on flute and saxophone and the late Ian Wallace behind the drums. Thompson and Wallace are in perfect rhythmic synergy on both tracks whilst Let’s Get Back highlights Leahy’s exquisite keyboard skills. Not surprisingly, in the 15 minutes of music so far, Alvin’s powerful vocals and trademark blistering, inventive and incisive guitar solos steal the show. And this is just the aperitif, as other tracks to

be released include Time And Space and There’s A Feeling.The prospect of hearing new versions of these with Alvin and the band on fire is mouth watering.

Thanks to expert mastering, mixing and executive production, the original tapes are transformed into a crystal clear, high quality recording which is superior to any live album I have heard from that period. With more of Lee’s personal drawings, newly released photographs and memoirs to come, together with the ongoing interactive blog, it is unlikely that owning a CD will ever be the same again. As one Alvin Lee fan commented: “It is like celebrating Christmas every month”. Given the outpourings of grief and universal respect for the legendary musician who passed away far too early at the peak of his creativity, this commemorative package is an important legacy.

DAVID SCOTT

various artists

a BLueS tRiBute to cReedeNce cLeaRWateR ReViVaL Cleopatra records

Take the songs of one of the greatest and most iconic bands in Blues/Rock history and give those songs to some of the top artists around today – sounds like a recipe to me and the tasting proves that the songs are strong enough to stand being performed buy a huge variety of artists. The tracks themselves are as good a

CCR Best Of as I can imagine so the review is all about the performances and there are some stunners as well as some that might surprise. Fortunate Son features Mike Zito and Sonny Landreth and they play it pretty straight, adding very little to the original but with Sonny Landreth’s guitar howling and Mike Zito showing how good a vocalist he can be. Follow that with The Mynabirds version of Bad Moon Rising and we are in very different territory with Laura Burhenn taking the lyrics and adding a spooky element to them. Blitzen Trapper put Proud Mary to an electronic beat that doesn’t quite do it for me but all power to them for avoiding the obvious covers of the song. Down On The Corner on the other hand becomes a Cajun/stomp and holler number at the hands of Spirit Family Reunion and the rough playing and hearty vocals definitely add to the song, really putting over the heart of the original. Duke Robbilard’s version of Who’ll Stop The Rain is awesome, carrying the emotion of Fogerty’s song into a dark and soulful place. One of the best versions is Bnois King & Smokin’ Joe Kubel’s Run Through The Jungle which takes the song out of Vietnam and puts it somewhere in Central Africa. The album closes on the song which probably most sums up Creedence Clearwater Revival – Born On The Bayou – and Trampled Underfoot take some of Fogerty’s bellow out and create something that has more textures and less chest beating about it. Not totally sure if I would forego the originals but there are tracks here that definitely work and very few that suck.

ANDY SNIPPER

roger ChapMan & the shortlist

LiVe at RockpaLaSt, haMBuRg 1979

LiVe at gRughaLLe eSSeN 1981 repertoire

Since he came to fame as the highly original lead singer in one of the UK’s most loved sixties bands Family Roger Chapman has now spent over five decades in his solo career and his band Shortlist are an integral part of this career. In Germany he is a superstar. Interesting that the band got their name from a Mickey Jupp song of the same name, and they perform

that very song in this set, and also that the same artist was recently reviewed in this magazines pages. Rogers’ stage craft is still there, the performance levels can be intense, the band are excellent throughout and Roger actually talks to the audiences. Loved Geoff Whitehorns’ Union Jack Strat and great to see and hear Steve Simpson on violin etc. The DVD is of the live show that makes up the two CDs. Hyenas Only Laugh For Fun is here too, this was the album that was Germany album of the year 1981 and had Roger as Artist of the year.

There is a short rendition of Sgt. Pepper Lonely Hearts Club Band fading into Help Me. The second box set here again DVD and two CDs covering the same set. This one features the fabulous Burlesque from

Family days. Visually cramped stage, performance a little more restricted it seems. Repertoire present well in the fold out card case with 16 page booklets. For any fan of Roger these are a must!

FRANK LEIGH

roBBen ford

LiVe at RockpaLaSt, LeVeRkuSeN 2007 repertoire

Here Repertoire present two previously un-released live performances on one DVD spread over two CDs. How Deep Into The Blues (Do You Want To Go) I’m afraid did nothing for this listener although the musicianship is tremendous. So that was not a good start and it didn’t really pick up until Cannonball Shuffle. There’s an interview with Robben. I shorted to the second concert with Blue Line where The Millers Son impressed, then forwarded to the closing The Brother (for Jimmie and Stevie) which carried some fire. Great musicianship of that you can have no doubt.

FRANK LEIGH

stevie niCKs

24 kaRat goLd – SoNgS FRoM the VauLt Warner Bros

An impressive production team of Dave Stewart, Waddy Watchell and Stevie on an album recorded in Nashville and Los Angeles this is her follow up to 2011 In Your Dreams

Stevie says most of the songs were written between 1969 and 1987 and each one is a lifetime, each one is a love story, representing her life behind the scenes, the secrets the broken hearts and the survivors. A lot to live up to there. Fourteen tracks of that magical voice which is in good form. Each song certainly is a story and you must listen to the lyrics, there sure

is a lot written in there to grab your emotions and maybe clear some mysteries. Loved Mabel Normand, Blue Water is plaintive, Cathouse Blues has cheek and swank and is simple, 24 Karat Gold is Fleetwood Mac in all but name. The songs are deep and this takes repeated plays for sure.

FRANK LEIGH

louisiana

red

the Sky iS cRyiNg Wolf

Released around the same time that Erja Lyytinen, Finnish slide guitar mistress, released her latest album with the same title, makes us make the point that they are very different albums, with the exception that both include astonishing slide work. Louisiana Red died in 2012 leaving over fifty albums to his name.

This is an extraordinary collection taken from 1994 to 2007 and contains a mix of live tracks and studio pieces. It’s all raw and laid down with the slide as the main attraction, although Red’s vocal is humbling too. Whereas Lyytinen’s album is full of Elmore James numbers, this one from Louisiana Red only contains the title track and ten of the tracks are credited to Iverson Minter (his real name).

Many of these are chilling enough to make blood curdle, witness Keep On Playin’ The Blues (from a radio show in 1996) and I Wonder Who (live in Athens in 2002).

Louisiana also introduces a few of the live tracks so we get a little bit of the man as well as his music. The title track stands out because it, strangely enough, almost doesn’t fit with the vibe of the albumas the production values are a little different. The sleeve notes make reference to it sounding like it belongs in a Sergio Leone western. Whatever the framing, it is a breath-taking collection and a perfect reflection of his absolute talent.

GARETH HAYES

Compilations various artists

the LaSt Shout: tWiLight

oF the BLueS ShouteRS

Fantastic Voyage

cRackiNg the coSiMo code: 60S NeW oRLeaNS R&B

aNd SouL

ACE

ScRatchiN’: the WiLd JiMMy SpRuiLL StoRy

GVC

A fantastic array of compilations are on offer here, and if you were to buy all three, you could probably survive without any other vintage rhythm and blues, for quite some time. Fantastic Voyage have put out some good collections recently, but this one may well be the best. Especially, for someone like me, who just loves a blues shouter. What makes this one particularly interesting is that it places a focus on the years after they were at their commercial peak. Compiled and annotated by Dave Penny, this 3CD package brings together late period, and, in some cases, final sessions from the likes of Big Joe Turner, Wynonie Harris, Jimmy Witherspoon and Eddie Cleanhead Vinson, as well as some lesser known names such as Jimmy Nelson, The Tone Twins, Dossie ‘Thunderbird’ Terry and Big Tiny Kennedy. With a whopping 97 tracks on offer, there is some dross, but pound for pound, this is an amazing collection. Meanwhile, Ace Records have offered up a compilation of New Orleans R&B and soul recordings made at Cosimo Matassa’s recording studio in the nineteen sixties, which has been compiled by the Cosimo Code website founders.

All the tracks have been remastered, and as well as some big hits from Jessie Hill, Lee Dorsey,

Robert Parker and Aaron Neville, you’ll find Trick Bag by Earl King, a staple of the UK blues scene in the sixties alongside Dave Bartholomew (best known for his partnership with Fats Domino) and Did She Mention

My Name by Ronnie Barron, which sees an early production credit for one Mac Rebennack aka Dr. John.

As a collection of funk, soul and blues, it’s hard to beat. Finally, we have Scratchin’: The Wild Jimmy Spruill Story. Nope, me neither. However, it turns out that Jimmy Spruill was the go to guy for guitar picking in the late fifties and early sixties. Of course recording sessions being what they were, compiler Roger Dopson doesn’t actually know whether Mr Spruill actually played on all of them, but he’s done his best to put together an interesting collection. Musically, it covers a lot of ground, peaking with Wilbert Harrison’s Kansas City. The excellent liner notes provide some fascinating background and whether on not he played on all the songs is moot, as there is some great music on offer, with Solomon Burke, Maxine Browne, Lee Dorsey, Tarheel Slim and Elmore James all putting in an appearance, amongst the 61 tracks.

STUART A HAMILTON

various artists

tWeNty yeaRS aNNiVeRSaRy ruf records

A double CD set celebrating twenty years of probably the best Blues record label in Europe and a reminder of the debt that we all owe to Thomas Ruf for making it all possible. It is of course also a sampler for the current roster of artists enabling you to dip a toe into their various repertoires. CD 1 is subtitled Girls with Guitars (taking the name from the road shows that Ruf have been putting out) and there are thirteen tracks from Eliana Cargnelutti, Samantha Fish, Ana Popovic, Sue Foley, Meena, Joanne Shaw Taylor,

Book

shot of rhythM ‘n’ Blues (a piCtorial essay of dr feelgood and WilKo Johnson)

patRick higgiNS

Available from: phiggins210919636gmail.com

Patrick Higgins was born in France to English parents and educated in the UK. He has been an avid FG fan and several other Pub Rock bands since the 80’s. He has been fortunate (dead b****y jammy I would say!) to photographically record the FGs in their early years when they played in Europe – mainly France and Belgium. Patrick also amassed a collection of memorabilia and has included illustrations to prove “He was there!” On discovering one of his pictures of Wilko in his (W.J’s) autobiography (p.203) he decided in view of what has been happening recently to ex members of FG to publish this tasty tome and share with us fond memories of them and the spirit and passion of and for the band then and now.

The book is a large glossy pictorial record with a spattering of written information. Now! I usually shy away from such when haunting the bookshops modern and second hand preferring word weightier editions with evidence of thorough research and documentation. But this book grabbed my attention when I spied it on the reception counter at the Oysterfleet Hotel Canvey Island this May when I was attending the Lee Brilleaux Memorial gig – the last to be held there so we found out!! I dearly wanted a copy and when the author (Patrick) was pointed out to me by Phil Mitchell’s wife I asked if he had any more copies to sell. Alas! The few he had brought over were already gone. When I said if he posted me a copy and I paid him postage etc. I would review it for BM he agreed to send me a copy as soon as he got back to France. True to his word and me to mine... this is it. I know some will want more info and or in depth discussion when they buy fanzines and biographies etc but this is simply a joyous picture book of the early FG days! I didn’t discover the live FGs till the late 90’s – heard of them and saw them on the TV (Old Grey Whistle Test) but never saw the magnificent and powerful Brilleaux perform. Oh! How I envy those who did. This book will be a reminder for old brigade of FG fans and the likes of us late comers to the sea of rocking blues LIVE and in action. Once initial costs of the books production has been met a donation from monies it raises will be sent to a Cancer Care Charity. Thank you Patrick for your book and good company at the last Lee Brilleaux Memorial Concert and the Roosters gig on the following day at Southend where all present “Rocked the House” in true FG. fashion.

DIANE GILLARD (SISTER FEELGOOD)

Candye Kane, Joanna Connor, Deborah Coleman, Roxanne Potvin, Erja Lyytinen, Dana Fuchs, Dani Wilde and Cassie Taylor. It is fair to say that if they are on a Thomas Ruf record, then you can take it for granted that they are good, and this CD serves to not only prove that, but to show you all what a great number of supremely talented female blues guitarists we currently have. CD two is as expected

entitled Guys with Guitars and in exactly the same way as CD 1, showcases most of Ruf’s current male talent, featuring Devon Allman, the Royal Southern Brotherhood, Thorbjorn Risager, Walter Trout, Aynsley Lister, Ian Parker, Laurence Jones, Bart Walker, Albert Castiglia, Oli Brown, Kim Simmonds, Spin Doctors, Luther Allison, Mike Zito, Cyril Neville and Jeff Healey. As

before, there is no doubting the wealth of talent on show and to have all of these on a single release is treasure indeed. This is an ideal chance to get your hands on a superb Blues collection in one convenient package. Don’t pass it up!

DAVE STONE

various

BLueSiN’ By the Bayou –Rough ‘N’ tough Ace records

This is the second volume of Ace Records compilation series Bluesin’ By The Bayou. This album concentrates over twenty-seven tracks with musicians from South Louisiana and South-East Texas. Opening with Lightnin’ Slim & Lazy Lester getting the show under-way with a Trip To Chicago a bluesy tale that is about a group of musicians heading for the windy city and this is a previously unheard J.D. Miller recording.

Sometime later the album ends on a high with My Little Queen Bee courtesy of Slim Harpo. Throughout the album we hear a variety of approaches to guitar styles and harps feature throughout, as every subject covered by the blues is given an airing, love, betrayal, defiance and celebration. This is the music you expect to hear in a juke joint on a steamy evening in Southern Louisiana and it doesn’t disappoint. With a mighty fine version of Sugar Coated Love from Lazy Lester, there is nothing lazy about this, and I Want to Boogie is made for getting your dancing shoes on with some pure harp playing that pierces into the night sky and the roots of rock n’ roll can be heard through the ghosts of musical history. Boozoo Chavis, Got Me A Brand New Mojo combines an earthy blues voice with the harp being replaced by an Accordion a traditional Louisiana sound. These are musicians that love the blues delivering tracks that say something and resonate with the spirit of the Bayou.

LIZ AIKEN

various: t Bone

WalKer/Joe turner/ otis spann

SupeR BLack BLueS

Ace

The late sixties were hard times for blues musicians. Music had moved on to a harder, more experimental style, and with black audiences drifting off into soul and early funk, dyed in the wool bluesmen like T Bone Walker, Joe Turner and Otis Spann were no longer in demand. But 1969 saw producer Bob Thiele founding Bluestime to try and cash in on the European blues boom with a series of records, all of which are being reissued by Ace. The template seems to have been very loose as he put three big names of yore into the studio to see what happened. And what happened was an unholy mess. Granted, there is a frisson of excitement at the thought of Big Joe Turner, T-Bone Walker and Otis Spann in the studio together, but the lengthy jams go nowhere, and even though there are moments when Spann puts together a good piano riff and Turner digs into his bowels for a howl, the music is routine at best. The backing band are all top performers but fail to shine and quite why T Bone Walker has so many vocal turns is a mystery. Did they forget Big Joe was there? As a period piece, as a moment in blues history, it has its place, but as an album you’ll turn to over and over for pleasure, it fails to make the grade.

STUART A HAMILTON

various artists

cLaSSic aFRicaN

aMeRcaN SoNgSteRS

Smithsonian Folkways

Another of those splendid Smithsonian compilations from the US heritage collections in Washington DC, this album features a 40-page booklet plus over twenty tracks of acoustic and slide-led music

from many of the long-gone greats of US blues and gospel music together with a few lesser-known gems. With this series of recordings you always know what you’re likely to get; quality musicianship, interesting tracks and an authentic, raw blues sound that has probably never been bettered. This release, distributed through Discovery Records in the UK, is no exception. Major leaguers such as Rev Gary Davis, Brownie McGhee and Leadbelly rub shoulders with Pink Anderson, John Hurt, Big Bill Broonzy and Snooks Eaglin. Some early Phil Wiggins – one of the few or only one still with us today – and his old late buddy, John Cephas also get an airing. On the lesser-known front Warner Williams and Jay Summerour, Martin, Brogan and Armstrong, and Marvin Foddrell are all new names to me, but all bring something of value to the mix. This is simply one of those old-style ragtimey-blues albums that has never been overmastered or touched up and as a result remains true to the spirit of the music and its importance in American culture. Highly recommended, like most in this amazing, important historical series.

IAIN PATIENCE

Book

Million dollar Bash BoB dylan the Band and the BaseMent tapes

Sid gRiFFiN

Jawbone Press, 328pp

“Much of the Basement Tapes tale is conjecture”, acknowledges Sid Griffin in Million Dollar Bash, of the fabled home recordings Bob Dylan made with the Band in Woodstock in 1967, when he had retreated from public view following a motorcycle accident.

Griffin’s own conjecture, however, is generally thoughtful, persuasive and entertaining in this significantly updated edition of a book originally published in 2007.

Griffin briskly sums up the histories of Dylan, the Band and the town of Woodstock but the heart of the book is his analysis of each of the 178 recorded performances that he has managed to access. The performances – none intended ever to be heard by the public – include blues songs like John Lee Hooker’s Tupelo, folk standards like Come All Ye Fair And Tender Ladies, country songs like the Carter Family’s Will The Circle Be Unbroken and Dylan originals. Such is the range and quality that Griffin asserts that an argument could be made “for the entire Americana/No Depression/ alt. country scene beginning right there” and that “the Basement Tapes era of 1967 will probably go down as Dylan’s most powerful period of sustained songwriting greatness”. Certainly his analyses of the songs are perceptive and heroically detailed to the point that we learn, for example, that at 3.18 of Curtis Mayfield’s People Get Ready, “Bob bumps his guitar on a chair”. Griffin also repeatedly notes the convivial atmosphere. Indeed the chaps often seem as convivial as newts. On Bobby Charles’ See You Later, Alligator, for example, he detects that they are “extremely welloiled”, on The Spanish Song (take one) that they are “drunk as lords”, and on Don’t Ya Tell Henry that they are “well into their cups”. However, notwithstanding the industrial quantities of booze apparently being consumed, songs like I Shall Be Released, This Wheel’s On Fire and You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere emerged which are now regarded as Dylan classics. The Basement Tapes saga continues of course. As Griffin relates, a cache of previously unknown Dylan lyrics from the era has recently been unearthed and released as Lost On The River, performed by Elvis Costello et al under T-Bone Burnett’s guidance. Anyone reading this fascinating book will surely be inspired not only to buy that album but to chase down as many bootlegs of the Dylan and Band recordings as they can.

TREVOR HODGETT

ThE 2014 rESuLTS For ThE BEST IN BLuES ACroSS ThE GLoBE

Band

1. pauL LaMB aNd the kiNgSNakeS

2. GRAINNE DUFFY BAND

3. ZoE ScHWARZ BLuE coMMoTIoN

In with a shout: Red Butler, Rosco Levee and the Southern Slide, David Migden & The Twisted Roots

uK Results

studio alBuM

1. hoLe iN the WaLL –pauL LaMB & the kiNg SNakeS

2. A SPECIAL LIFE – JOHN MAYALL

3. GET READY – KAZ HAWKINS

In with a shout: Dirty Truth –Joanne Shaw Taylor, Wildest Dreams – Matt Woosey, Animal & Man – David Migden & The Twisted Roots: Gods & Highways & Old Guitars –Roadhouse, Shake The Walls – Marcus Bonfanti

live alBuM

1. MaN & guitaR – iaN SiegaL

2. SONGS FROM THE ROAD –JOANNE SHAW TAYLOR

3. = LIvE AT BuSH HALL –GARY MooRE, LIvE IN LoNDoN –THE SpIKEDRIvERS

solo artist

1. = gRaiNNe duFFy / Matt WooSey

2. SEAN TAYLOR

3. DANA GILLESpIE

In with a shout: Dave Ferra, Big Joe, Kaz Hawkins

reCord laBel

1. ace

2. MANHATON

3. = NuGENE, JSp

voCalist

1. gRaiNNe duFFy

2. = ZOE SCHWARZ: KAZ HAWKINS: JO HARMAN,

3. SEAN TAYLoR

In with a shout: Miller Anderson, Earl Green, Lorna Fothergill,

druMMer

1. SaM keLLy

2. WAYNE PROCTOR

3. = MIKE HELLIER, DAvID pETER JoHN TETEMAR

guitarist

1. otiS gRaNd

2.= ALAN NIMMO / RONNIE GREER

3. DAvE FERRA

In with a shout: Jon Amor, Jules Fothergill, Tom Doughty, Ramon Goose

Bassist

1. RogeR iNNiSS

2, JACK BRUCE

3. = RoNNIE o’FLYNN / STuART uREN

KeyBoards

1. paddy MiLNeR

2. BOB HALL

3. ToM cANNING

harMoniCa

1. pauL LaMB

2. ALAN GLEN

3. pAuL JoNES

In with a shout: Eddie Armer, Giles King, John O’Leary, Steve ‘Wes’ Weston

Best neWCoMer

1. Red ButLeR

2. MALAYA BLUE

3. Kaz Hawkins

lifetiMe aChieveMent (sCroll of honour)

1. WiLko JohNSoN

2. DON CRAINE

3.= pHIL MAY / MILLER ANDERSoN

Non musician – Dave Raven (radio presenter)

Best Blues radio

shoW/station:

1. pauLJoNeSBLueSShoW –BBc Radio 2

2. RAVE’N’BLUES

3. DIGITAL BLuES

In with a shout: Blues In The Marsh, Blues Is The Truth, Crossroads Café

INteRNAtIoNAl Results

studio alBuM

1. aNthoLogy – too SLiM aNd the taiL dRaggeRS

2. GOING HOME – KENNY WAYNE SHEPHERD

3. =THE SKY IS cRYING – ERJA

LYYTINEN: TATooED LADY & ALLIGAToR MAN – MARcIA BALL: In with a shout: Blues Pills –Blues Pills: A Day In Nashville

– Robben Ford, Too Many Roads – Thorbjorn Risager & The Black Tornado, A New Day – EG Kight, Made Up Mind

– Tedeschi Trucks, Step Back

– Johnny Winter, Going to The Delta – Savoy Brown, See The Sky About To Rain – Colleen Rennison

solo artist

1. eRic BiBB

2. ERJA LYYTINEN

3. = DouG MAcLEoD, SoFIE REED In with a shout: Otis Taylor, Corey Harris, Hans Theessink, Larry McCray

Band

1. tedeSchi tRuckS BaNd

2. VINTAGE TROUBLE

3. ALLMAN BRoTHERS BAND In with a shout: Monkeyjunk, BB & The Blues Shacks, Selwyn Birchwood Band, Savoy Brown, North Mississippi Allstars, Royal Southern Brotherhood

reCord laBel

1. aLLigatoR

2. MASCOT/PROVOGUE

3.= DELTA GRoovE, DIxIE FRoG In with a shout: Stony Plain, Ruf, Crosscut, Blind Pig

voCalist

1. SuSaN tedeSchi

2. CURTIS SALGADO

3. ELIN LARSSoN

In with a shout: Maria Muldaur, Lisa Biales, Beth Hart, Matt Andersen, Frank Bey, EG Kight

druMMer

1. Butch tRuckS

2. CHRIS LAYTON

3. coDY DIcKINSoN In with a shout: Kevin Hayes, Steve Jordan

guitarist

1. LaRRy MccRay

2. JOE BONAMASSA

3. = DEREK TRucKS, poppA cHuBBY In with a shout: Hans Theesink, Selwyn Birchwood, Kim Simmonds, Bill Blue, Luther Dickinson, Eric Bibb

In with a shout: Dr. John, Jim Pugh

harMoniCa

1. Rick eStRiN

2. CHARLIE MUSSELWHITE

3. KIM WILSoN

In with a shout: Matyas Pribojszki

Best neWCoMer

1. SeLWyN BiRchWood BaNd

2. MISSY ANDERSEN

3. BLuES pILLS

In with a shout: Raoul & The Big Time

Best Blues radio shoW/station (no outright Winner)

Confessing The Blues, National Blues Museum Radio, Live From The Midnight Circus –Richard l’Hommedieu

Best Blues dvd

1. RoBBeN FoRd – LiVe at RockpaLaSt

2.LIVE AT MONTREUx – ZZ TOP

3.= LIFE oF RILEY – BB KING, LIvE IN coRK – RoRY GALLAGHER

live alBuM

1. aLL My FRieNdS:ceLeBRatiNg theSoNgSaNd VoiceoFgRegg aLLMaN – VaRiouS aRtiStS

2. LIVE AT MONTREUx 2013 –GEORGE THOROGOOD AND THE DESTROYERS

3. SoNGS FRoM THE RoAD – coco MoNToYA

Bassist

1. phiL LeSh

2. RON EOFF

3. oTEIL BuRBRIDGE

KeyBoards

1. daVid MaXWeLL

2. CHUCK LEAVELL

3. GREG ALLMAN

Blues BooKs

Bathed In Lightning – John McLaughlin, The Sixties and the Emerald Beyond – Colin Harper Beginning To

Beginning – Bob Pearce, The British Beat Explosion – re. Eel Pie Island, A Sense Of Wonder, Van Morrison’s Ireland – David Burke

tH e bm ! rou ND-up of live blues

COLNE GREAT R’N’B FESTIVAL

colne, lancashire

auGust 22ND – 25tH 2014

This was the quarter century marker – 25yrs of bringing the best of British and International Rock & Blues performers together in one glorious festival week end. Three stages, a fringe – an element that has spawned an ‘unofficial’ fringe, buskers and thousands of spectators from all corners of the UK and from around the globe- all gathered to celebrate this musical genre! Not bad for a wee Lancashire town in the shadow of Pendle Hill that nudges the border of neighbouring Yorkshire. We (R’n’B followers) have seen the demise and fall of other festivals during these times of harsh economic downturns and industrial decay and upheavals that often reduce- eradicate even – the grants and sponsorship of local councils and businesses but Colne has managed to survive – just. This is largely due to determined townsfolk, businesses and Municipal management. This year’s festival did have its element of shock to add to the problems faced by the organisers when prominent performers on the billing fell ill, indisposed or injured so close to the date! Congratulations to the team that pulled in replacements of equal quality and status at such short notice. My account covers mainly the main stage bands and performers with snippets of what was happening at other venues and fringe.

Friday

This is the opening night and as always the main R’n’B rockier bands night. The Yardbirds, Band of Friends and Eric Sardinas Band graced then

tore up the main ‘Muni’ stage with their hard in yer face performances. The Yardbirds line up has seen many a change over the years but still presents a cracking stage presence and deliver the golden days of Brit style R’n’B anthems. They produced heavy harp, hard guitar, smouldering percussion, familiar lyrics – all there for everyone to join in with and gyrate out on the beautiful sprung dance floor front of stage. Excellent stuff! Band of Friends did the same but with that dedication to one guitar hero alone – Rory Gallagher. And boy don’t they do it well! This bunch – Ted McKenna (drums), Gerry McAvoy (bass) and young Marcel Sherpenzeel vocals and lead guitar blew us away and for those of my friends there that evening who had not witnessed their magic and spiritual homage to Rory were in

absolute bewilderment and awe! It was a wonderful spectacle viewing both band and audiences reaction from where I stood in the midst of the dancers. Wearily and quite hoarse I limped back to my seat at the end.

Eric Sardinas is no stranger to this festival or many of those of us in the hall that night. A few years back he headlined this festival and held us in captivity by his magnificent presence – visually, musically and demonically. Despite having fractured his leg and in considerable discomfort before leaving home in the US he flew over to play here as he knew he had an enslaved number of followers this side of the Atlantic. He had to remain seated for the greater part of the concert- obviously – but that did not deter him from delivering some

Eric BiBB at colnE

Photo: Paul WEBstEr

festivaLs

i Was Up on the danCe fLoor for MarCUs MaLone

blistering guitar solos and rasping vocals with panache and true grit. As his luggage had been lost at the airport (every woman’s, nightmare) he still managed to impress as he has a fine etched torso and upper limbs to display – his tattoos are all part of the act! His band are not to be overlooked and although Eric is front man extraordinaire they are frighteningly good masters of their instruments also and gave good account of their fierce and attacking play. Friend Annie was agog with the whole spectacle and especially Eric’s’ solo acoustic moment. A great troubadour and great end to the first night. I did sneak down to the mini muni acoustic stage towards the end to catch a snippet of the Martin Roger Trio. The room was packed and jumping. They were great musicians and entertainers and the audience was buzzing and some managing to jump and bop around to their wonderful set.

Saturday

As The Groundhogs had sadly cancelled the substitute was called in the form of Jerry Donahue and The Backroom Boys. Jerry had graced the main stage the evening before when invited by Jerry McAvoy (Band of Friends). Now he fronted his own band and opened the day with a straight no nonsense set of fine blues anthems and tunes. Jerry an American by birth joined the Brit. Folk scene and featured in such legendary bands such as Fairport Convention. He is known for his finger style picking and amazing ‘bending blues notes’. His set contained numbers such as I’m On Your Side, Around The Bend (instrumental), When The Night Rolls In, See That My Grave Is Kept Clean and that old gospel song Jesus Is On The Mainline- an altogether

eclectic mix superbly delivered by Jerry and band.

A grand start and truly appreciated by the punters. Caravan the heroes of the Prog Rock scene back a while ago and built up a wide fan base that has remained loyal to them. Many in the audience gathered front of stage and balcony alike to witness their performance. Friend Annie stayed to see them and was full of praise for their really good set. I confess! I ducked out after a few songs – I liked what I heard but felt I should help out a while on the Blues Matter stall down in the British Stage at the Leisure Centre. On passing the mini muni I spotted a familiar sound and face – but one sporting a lighter – ‘peroxide’ rinse! It was Jet Martin so I stood on the side lines for a few minutes and heard him deliver a stonkingly good Dust My Broom and Stranger In Your Town in his loud strident thumping guitar style. I also missed Jethro Tull’s Martin Barre but once again the fans crowded in and they were given a wild reception and they in return gave the audience a great finale to the afternoon’s programme.

I was back ensconced in the main hall for the evening and was up on the dance floor for Marcus Malone, who was last minute addition to the programme due to another ‘called in sick’ by yet another band. His makeshift band that was thrown together the previous week and had one only rehearsal came, played, and stole the thunder as it were. I always enjoy Marcus and everything he does.

He entertains and pulls out the stops when required to engage with the audience and in doing so makes up for any shortcomings a cancellation may have on the billing or with organisers and fans. He played a few songs from his latest recording but filled up the performance with many an anthem from previous releases making a raunchy rocking set. When called back for an encore by the MC Chris Powers I shouted for two numbers when he called “what do ya want?”

Well he sang Double D, Double D, Double Delight acappella and then the band went into Blue Radio so I had what I wanted – and so too the whole hall of punters present! I got back to my seat exhausted but well pleased. Then next on – Mud Morganfield with Mick Moody and his band. Lucky Peterson had to pull out from the festival due to a worsening heart problem (poor organisers – this must have been a nightmare on an epic scale for them!). BUT having said that what a great hour or so Mud Morganfield gave us as our ‘consolation’ as it were. He is charismatic – like his Dad. Sings very much like his Dad. Gestures just like his Dad and wows the crowd present – just as his Dad did. Mick Moody (lead guitar) and his team of magnificent musicians wove the magic of the late Muddy Waters (Dad) around Mud’s rich deep resonant vocals and gave us a night to remember! Starting with Call You On The Telephone right through to the finale Mud gave us the BLUES! I wondered how Eric Bibb was going to fare after all that – but I needn’t have worried. Eric along with his band went into up tempo, Reggae, Samba, Cajun and Gospel sorts of beats and with those crystal clear sweet sounding melodious vocals he finished off a wonderful evening entertainment.

Sunday

Snake Davis. This was a band featuring the very impressive saxophonist of note and legend. I saw

Marcus MalonEat colnE Photo: christinE MoorE

him a few years back at Nantwich Jazz n Blues and I found him exceedingly good but very much on the Jazz side of things that evening. has an astounding CV and has played with prominent singers and bands all over the UK and abroad, featured on many albums etc. etc. and it was with some guilt that I left friends Annie and Phil who were absolutely enthralled with him and dashed off to see a band on the fringe. On my return I was severely reprimanded by said Annie for failing in my duty! She was keen to tell me on my return what an astounding cool set of blues/jazz fusion I had missed. It was something of a master class she continued and inspirational as she has decided to get her tenor sax out of hibernation, start practicing book some tutorials! Seems Snake can add “Charmer” to his credentials. Good! Connie Lush and Blues Shouter. I do not think Colne could have got away with it – not inviting Connie and Blues Shouter this year as she has graced the stage here very many times and almost constitute a post of “Resident Female Blues singer”!! She was as sassy as ever, raucous and funny giving it all in performance, humour and vocals backed all the while by her superb band.

She has had some classic Etta

James numbers in her repertoire in the past but recently has included Nina Simone’s Feeling Good Awesome to say the least as were lead guitarist solo’s and stonking good rhythm section as ever. Mike Sanchez and his band followed on and like Connie he’s a stalwart of this festival and a few others besides! He’s “Up for it” and takes off into that brilliant rollin’ left hand boogie woogie style and everyone is jumping on the floor or balcony aisles upstairs. Everyone was having a rock n roll, R’n’B, rock-abilly time of it. Ah! Yes he played my favourite Geraint Watkins’ On My Colour TV and I hoofed it up on the floor with hundreds of others. A great time was had by all! Jim Diamond’s Blues Trail were next on the menu. This was a glorious interlude whereby Jim sang you down through years by way of his songs and snippets of his career. This Glaswegian singer song writer who has been in exceptionally innovative line ups such as PhD sang with clarity and enormous feeling. And Joy! He looked pleased to be there with us and enjoyed our company as we did his and had us singing along to such hits of his – I Won’t Let You Down, I Should Have Known Better and Hi Ho Silver.

His was a simple but stylish acoustic session. After the following

break and somewhat lengthy sound check Eric Burdon And The Animals took centre stage and faced a sardine packed sell out full Muni main hall. It was worth waiting for! I liked the way he said little about himself or the old bands but just got on with entertaining the crowd and sing the songs associated with him when he started out in the sixties. The arrangements were not note for note renditions of his back catalogue but many had been given a slight variation here or there and this kept it fresh. The lyrics, however, were the original and the audience would have it no other way as they were ahead of him a good deal of the time! His backing musicians were world class as you would expect and there were beautiful solo moments from them all throughout their stay on the main stage. Both E.B. and band deserved the standing ovation on completion of their set. Roy Young Band finished off the night with a fine rock and roll set of numbers – after the rather frustrating few minutes when the keyboard went on strike and wouldn’t change key!! I danced for a while but was now totally knackered so decide to save my energies for the final day. Friends who stayed said it turned out to be a really good rocking session – as one would expect from such a talented group who have played through decades with numerous rock luminaries from here and abroad as well as being very much in demand for recording sessions when solid professionalism is demanded!

Monday

Last day and what a start – The Otis Grand Band A giant in the blues world, and we have missed him here at Colne for what seems like an eternity. In his own style he starts brilliantly and just goes on to further heights of blues delights for everyone there. He did his usual – pick up mike on and its off onto the dance floor to mingle with the devotees gyrating away and then back on stage to complete the next half of his set with gusto, pathos, humour and downright

Victor Brox at colnE

Photo: christinE MoorE

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tear jerking blues and soulfulness! Yes he’s a bit of an exhibitionist, but he is sincere in everything he says, sings and plays and I have watched and listened to him and the band for twenty years or so and he can make that guitar ‘get to you’. I have known him stand in at very short notice when ‘big’ American names have had to cry off last minute and he comes on and plays his heart and soul out for you as he feels he must make up for the deficit the blues fans may feel at not seeing the billed artist. He has ‘carried’ many an act who may have otherwise ‘bombed’ on main stage had he not stepped in with great panache and soloing thus covering what could have been a mediocre performance. He helped with Colnes selection for the 10th anniversary billing and that was a way out successful w/e and still talked about to date! So Otis pulled out the stops yet again and set the blues bonanza ball rolling for the last night! Great man, great band, great rocking blues.

They were impressed with the very mobile, lively and obviously revelled in his music as did his fellow band members. In fact their overall presentation of piano led blues was

so good they bought two of their CDs on completion of their stage performance. Now that says it all! Grainne Duffy Band Now here is a fine brave lass- having caught her right index finger in a food mixer the evening before and a trip to casualty she still made it onto the main stage and played her guitar (plectrum) and sang with much bravado and gutsiness that she has made her trade mark! Her brief chat interludes when retuning are engaging and cheerful. Then it’s off into a wild rocking blues or a blues classic slow one such as her version of Etta James’s I’d Rather Go Blind which is a stormer and the audience let her know as much on it completion! It’s a craic(ker) as they say! Several friends with me who had not seen her before were astounded by the bands great sound and stage presence and with Grainne’s fabulous vocals. They’ll be looking out for her at future festivals and countrywide gigs – Where have they been all this time? Andy Fairweather Low and the Low Riders the house was full – and full of excited chatter – everyone waiting for this singer/songwriter who’s “Who’s Who” reads like a encyclopaedia of British and American (and other)

singers, bands of the music world and blues in particular. He’s played with and often is the man behind (doing all the work!) great musicians and the glitterati of the rock and blues/ country/soul/gospel – everything really! Andy and the band come on stage and almost apologetically take positions and start off on their set.

Then they shift up a gear or two and start ‘motoring’ as it were. He says sorry when he had a senior moment in the middle of a number and we all laugh it off with him and the boys. Andy has no pretentions or outwardly “showmanship” but he holds everything together and just plays for pure enjoyment and knows full well that is what the audience wants. He also knows he and the lads are not going to escape from the place until he touches on those songs that brought him to prominence in the 60s pop scene and as he opens the refrain of If Paradise Were. The audience have beaten him to it and already singing the refrain! Same goes for Wide Eyed And Legless etc. A wonderful performance and well deserved standing ovation for him and the Low Riders.

Dr. Feelgood: After Andy F.W.L. and the Low Riders it may have seemed daunting for Rob, Steve, Kevin, and Phil to follow someone who holds so much attention and admiration from an adoring public but with that public still in place in the Muni main stage they come out guns blazing and they too held everyone ‘hostage’ to the last. When they have to follow a tough act such as Andy and Co they sense the excitement and the tension and let rip with an astounding full in yer face set of Essex Delta 70’s pub rock and blues. The place is up for it and we dancers are ripping up the parquet flooring underfoot rocking and rolling bopping and jiving and pogoing like there’s no tomorrow! All the classic were there like Roxette, Back in the Night, She Does It Right and so on and so on right down to Bony Maroni! With Robs high Tequilla note hanging in the rafters long after we have filed out, reluctantly, and Rob has thanked

andy FairWEathEr loW at colnE Photo: Paul WEBstEr

MC Chris Powers for his contribution to the success that is the Colne

R’n’B festival 2014

DIANE GILLARD SISTER FEELGOOD

EALING BLUES FESTIVAL

ealing. london

JulY 19tH-20tH 2014

Again the blues returns to Ealing. After a sound check from Bob Hokum and the Devil’s Drive, last year’s surprise stars, Rabbit Foot, took the stage and really made their mark. They are something special and a brilliant start to the Festival. Jeremiah Marques and the Blue Aces followed with their own inimitable Reggae and community blues. What can you say about Connie Lush that hasn’t been said before? She filled the stage with her Liverpool humour. Lonely Avenue and Send Me No Flowers were stand out numbers and the audience loved her. Meanwhile on the South Stage, stalwarts of Ealing Blues history, The Others regaled us with standards such as Spoonful and Fortune Teller. Their experience was quite apparent in their passionate interpretation of Blues standards.TJ Johnson and The Preachers (another local band) took us on a journey through Hendrix, Albert King to Magic Slim.

Robin Bibi was in Festival-form, and who must be one of the hardest working artists on the festival and blues club circuit, gave us over an hour of favourites. Mack, fronted by Tommy Hare, gave us a manic set. Tommy is a reminder of what Long John Baldry was in his heyday, tall in stature, tall in talent and definitely a band to look out for.

Sunday

This part of the Festival was duly set in motion with The Jules Carter Trio playing cuts from their new album. Jules’ guitar solos were just what was needed and stand out songs were 27 Club and Since You Went Away. An amazing Australian duo followed namely, Hat Fitz and Cara, who made the complicated

seem simple. Real roots music; fantastic songs; great slide guitar; and wonderful harmonies (reminding me of Delaney and Bonnie). Their showstopper was their own Coming Home. I don’t think anyone in the audience, including myself, have seen anything quite like this pair and definitely an act to look out for in the future.

Tim Aves then took the stage running and it was full-blown energy all the way. Howling Wolf to Hound Dog Taylor; Chicago Blues done with vigour and panache, wangdang-doodle all the way. Kat & Co, featuring Kathleen Pearson, great stage presence with a voice to match, really made the stage her own with her versions of Johnny Winters Tired of Tryin’ and Make it Rain. The main stage’s final act was Earl Thomas and The Royal Guard who is best known for his songwriting, but nevertheless a powerhouse performance with a brilliant band behind him, brought the house down and the Festival to a close.

Meanwhile earlier in the day on the South Stage, The Golden Manor Medicine Show had the audience dancing in the tent with amongst others, lovely versions of Shelter from the Storm and the Felice Brothers’ Frankie’s Gun. The unique Andy Twyman, a one-man band, amused the audience with his own set of self-penned songs, I Eat Pot Noodle with a Plastic Spoon, and Afraid of the Blues. The only way to describe him is blues with humour and John Lee Hooker with attitude. The Glorious Fools again, like last year, educated us to the musical portfolio of John Martyn. Francis Gaham Band played with style. Their version of Don’t Think Twice made me nostalgic for the early Dylan.

The South Stage’s finale were the magnificent Alan Glen/John O’Leary All Stars, a super group if ever there was one. We had John O’Leary’s Born In Chicago, Papa George’s T-Bone Shuffle and Stranger In My Home Town; Ali Maas complete with sparkly cowboy hat gave us Big Boss Man, Crazy Bout You Baby,

and Dylan’s Serve Somebody. She gave a masterclass in stage charisma. Steve Morrison’s Dust my Broom and JJ Cale’s The Breeze had the audience cheering. Finally Paul Cox had the crowd in the palm of his hand with I’ve Got the Proof and People Get Ready. Alan Glen and his rhythm section, namely Pete Miles (drums), Glynn Evans (bass) and Nick Newall (saxophone) were on the money throughout the set.

BOB BONSEY

GAASTERLAND POP FESTIVAL

gaasterland, holland

20tH JulY, 2014

In 1971 in the Dutch town of Rijs there was a festival of mainly blues and blues rock bands, it was called the Gaasterland Pop festival, pop music in Holland was the likes of Rory Gallagher, Led Zep, Golden Earring, Focus etc. The town was invaded by hippies people were running around naked smoking dope, obviously a big threat, and the riot police were brought in to this event, this was time of peace man, make love not war. This lovely outdoor festival has been revived in the same setting, an amazingly sculpted set of gardens with a great amphitheatre, think Alice in wonderland. 2014 will be headlined by the Living Blues Experience, in 1971 the heavens opened up and the band had to stop play after a couple of songs. It`s the night before and organiser Jan De Boar is wondering if history will repeat its self, heavy rain is forecast.

It’s a very hot sunny Sunday afternoon and there’s over 1000

there’s over 1000 aged hippies and their offspring here

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aged hippies and their offspring watching the opening band Cripple Creek Ferry doing some great versions of Crosby Stills Nash and Young, no great clouds of dope smoke or riot police, no naked hippies running around yet! Sat in the sun drinking chilled bottles of Heineken, the band are great, gentle on the hung-over heads. The thing that strikes me about this festival is time warp, no security bouncer types, everything is laid back, and it has the feel of a mini Woodstock. Up next Travelin Band doing great tribute to Creedance Clearwater Revival. The guy singing has a great voice that suits his role as John Foggerty, the band rock, the audience rocks with them shouting for an encore at the end of their set. On a smaller stage “The Protest Stage” it’s some acoustic blues from Goldfish, I am completely blown away by the lady singer Gea Brens. She is a cross between Janis Joplin, Tina Turner and Etta James, what a voice, doing great versions of summertime amongst others. Gear did a great acoustic version of Nutbush City Limits, Wow that voice!!

Back on the main stage JTBB play a set of blues and blues rock covering songs of Rory Gallagher and Jimi Hendrix with some blues classics

and a couple of original songs, one called Another Rainy Day which had the organisers looking up nervously at the sky. Voodoo Chile Slight Return segued into the Star Spangled Banner with crashing bombs and dive bomber sounds exploding over the audience. The M.C. got the crowd chanting make love not war, like I said very Woodstock. Now it gets down and dirty with Jack Bottleneck and Johan Keus. Men, playing guitars and bass drum. Jack has a voice even when he’s speaking like Blind Willie Johnson, and when he sings he has the voice I would be fooled into thinking was from 1920s Mississippi, his slide playing on an old (very) acoustic Gibson is stunning, covering some Robert Johnson and others of that era like Son House. It would be great to see these guys on the UK festival circuit, they would go down a storm as they did here. The sun is starting to go down and Rumours open up to the setting sun playing from the Peter Green catalogue and the later Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie, the crowd was dancing along to Black Magic Woman, the band did a great version of Rhiannon and Dreams.

It was nearly time for the Living Blues, the weather was still behaving, the beer was behaving, the band

played some great blues doing great versions of John Lees Boom Boom and Got My Mojo Working got the crowd doing a nice sing-along. The front man Niko had great energy, belying his years, charging around the stage and doing karate style drop kicks in time with the band, great to see, I guess he works out a bit. The band comes back to do an encore with Chuck’s Nadine, the last chord of the song fades, and the rain starts. Its’ off to the beer tent!

This was a great mini festival, the weather was great and the music more so, it felt like we had gone back in time, the bands felt authentic. This festival is done once every two years, would love to see Focus or Golden Earring play. It’s well worth the trip just for the setting in the beautiful gardens and natural amphitheatre, step back in time get yourself there if you get the chance and check out Jack Bottleneck, will try and get him to play UK.

JED THOMAS

GLOUCESTER BLUES FESTIVAL 2014

various venues, gloucester auGust 26tH JulY – 3rD 2014 tueSday, 29th auguSt Gloucester folks have the privilege of having a great week of Blues centred in the city with excellent music provided by local and ‘away’ bands. I made two visits this year. Mid week I caught the brilliant Steve Walwyn and Friends that were Simon “Honeyboy” Hickling and the DTs in the friendly atmosphere of Cafe Rene. I love this venue- as do many others as it was soon full inside the bar and in the outside seated area. Steve naturally took lead guitar and vocals, Honeyboy vocals and wild manic harp, Chas Chaplin on drums and backing vocals and Chris Rhind on bass. The first half set off at a cracking pace with Have A Good Time, Crying Shame, Caladonia, Everybody Got Somebody and Hand Jive. It was a Wurlitzer trip of Blues beat numbers and everybody was having fun. The second half went

GaastErland PoP FEstiVal

Photo: Max trEWhit

on in a similar pace and rocking good fun. Dancers danced. Punters joined in the chorus of many an R’n’B anthem and Honeyboy was as exuberant as ever blowing a mean ol’ wild harp throughout. Walwyn was not to be out done and chucked in many a stonking good blues riff that brought rapturous applause. But then so did everyone else in the band. It was a happy load of imbibers in the bar of Café Rene that night for sure. I left on the dot on their last encore to get back home as it’s a long drive. I wanted to be refreshed by the weekend when I’d be back – this time with re-enforcements – the Swansea swashbucklers of Tawe Delta Blues Club fame.

Sunday, auguSt 3rd

It was a bright warm day and we arrived early to deposit our gear front of stage within easy reach of Cafe Rene for refreshments and loos. It all got under way when D Sharp opened up with his harp playing some mean blues whilst accompanied by a backing tape. Our attention now focused, he then duly introduced the first act of the day – Damon T. This young guy originally from New York but now residing in Glorious Gloucester (his words) for some time now gave a startling Southside style blues acoustic guitar loud and clear with vocals to match. There were several big riffs and stomping along the way. I managed to get a few words with him in between D. Sharp and his own sound check. He stated his influences varied from Sam Cooke to Blind Willie Johnson and Howling Wolf to name but a few. He included Wade in Deep Water, Hard Times, Mocking Bird and Hush Now Baby and a delightful Spoonful.

It was a good start and we were to hear more from him later when Mark Cole joined him to play a few more numbers as unfortunately Steve Morrison had not turned up – lost somewhere en route to Gloucester from London way!

Matt Woosey Band: was next and I was keen to hear him with his band (Rob Newel-bass and Dave Small (drum box). I had seen and

heard his acoustic set a few times and really enjoyed it but was keen to experience him with the band. I was not disappointed his guitar work was impeccable and vocals strong and clear. The rhythm section were also clear and precise and they tore through such numbers as Same Ol’ Blues, Cruel Disposition where Matt held a long lovely blues note and finally went into Little Red Rooster and Black Smoke Rising. What a fine set! Steve Morrison eventually turned up a little flustered and apologetic but in no time at all settled into his witty and raucous renderings of blues ancient and modern.

The Greyfriar’s lawns were now covered with folks and families and several dancers were up. Steve won over a good few more fans by the end of his joyful set including a group of young girls (all under 10yrs) who danced away to his great rolling guitar style. They also sat alongside him on the stage that was not very high and gave him High Fives following the slower more soulful songs!! One of these fans who saw me writing away told me that he was very very good but did say a naughty word here and there, but he did say sorry after! She also signed my note book, so Ellie Jones gets a mention in Blues Matters!

Keith Thompson Band: This lively and certainly exciting outfit have been delighting audiences both here and abroad for some years now. Keith is an accomplished guitarist singer songwriter and is constantly gigging somewhere or laying down an album or two along the way! Today they played a well honed set of rocking blues that had the dancers dancing and a few heavy cider drinkers swaying enough to spill a little of their bevies – not much mind you but moving they were! We were all up dancing and as the sun disappeared and a still chill took the air we were glad of the action. Spikedrivers: Needless to say we stayed on our feet as these guys are just too good to let their songs and rhythms go without a stomping

and dirty grooving, even on the hallowed ecclesiastical Greyfriars’ turf. Brilliant guitar work and vocals from Ben Tyzack coupled with Constance Redgrave’s pounding and gritty bass lines all meld with Maurice McElroy’s multiple arsenal of instruments that makes up the percussion department!! They cover about every genre of blues – rocky, earthy, Back Porch, Juke Joint, Ho Down, Piedmont, West Coast, haunting indigenous American Indian beats, Western Swing and so on! Spikedrivers – a class act and hard to beat. Connie Lush and Blues Shouter: This was a good choice on behalf of the organisers as Connie and the boys can hold their own with the Spikedrivers.

There’s is a different style but likewise masters of the genre: The Blues. Connie’s vocals and stage persona is an amalgam of soulful melodic songs, perfect pitch, notes held and shortened if and when required, humorous interludes but honesty in delivery with each number. All this is backed by the band of equal professionalism and style with their own solo moments of great virtuosity – never overdone or cloying. And a grand performance to finish as Connie belts out Nina Simone’s Feelin’ Good that ricochets around the Turneresque ruined priory and the city. This was another spectacular Glorious Gloucester Blues Festival 2014.

DIANE GILLARD (SISTER FEELGOOD)

Matt WoosEy Band at GloucEstEr

Photo: christinE MoorE

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WATERFRONT BLUES FESTIVAL

Portland, oegon

JulY 3rD – 6tH 2014

Oregon is a state rich in blues music, with a heritage of fine players who have settled there. It’s no surprise then that the Waterfront Blues Festival held alongside the river in downtown Portland is one of the most important annual blues events in the US music calendar.

This year’s festival was no exception despite losing its headliner a few weeks before the off. Greg Allman sadly pulled out due to ill-health, but showing the sheer strength of the music locally, the event organisers (local charity Oregon Food Bank) were able to turn to local resident, Curtis Salgado, who stepped into the frame. Indeed, 2014 was a very local event in many ways with a number of excellent local blues players involved. Acoustic guitar wizard, Mary Flower put on a cracking set, as usual, and as a festival regular with a new CD, When My Bluebird Sings just launched, went down particularly well. The Rose City Kings, a storming rock-blues outfit had split-up a few years ago, but having recently regrouped, also stormed the stage with a memorable, zingy set, cementing their position as local favourites. Another example of local strength was the great Lloyd Jones. He and his band, Lloyd Jones Struggle are an important, hugely popular band on the US West Coast. Portland-based Jones himself is cited by many locals, including Robert Cray and Curtis Salgado, as one of the most significant bluesmen in the US. Despite these accolades, Jones frustratingly and incomprehensibly remains largely unknown outside his home area. His set at waterfront Festival was stunning; strokes of

repeated brilliance, soulful guitar work and fabulous song-writing skills were all on display. A listen to Jones last CD will confirm this guy’s genius. The Too Loose Cajun Band are again a local outfit of huge swampy, Louisiana low-down energy and class. Another fabulous set from them was followed by a more laid-back but equally strong set from Leo ‘Bud’ Welch. Hunched over his old guitar it was clear we were in the presence of an authentic blues-king of the old order, a guy who learned to drive when Model T Fords were still hogging the southern roads. Otis Taylor also produced the blues goods, as did New Yorker, Blind Boy Paxton with his usual gripping acoustic guitar mastery, while yet another classic local blew the place apart with his leading world-class Harp playing; Charlie Musselwhite also lives in the ville. Tim Williams was an eye-opener; a dual award winner at this year’s International Blues Challenge in Memphis.

On the closing day, fans were treated to a wonderful set from young, rising, Nashville Americana star, Joan Osborne, here joined on-stage by the Holmes Brothers, a pairing that worked surprisingly well. Boz Scaggs also produced a superb set of searing quality, while Ivan Neville’s Dumpstaphunk was deliciously funky and bluesy. Perhaps to be expected from the son of Aaron Neville and a nephew to the Neville Brothers. Curtis Salgado closed the event energetically with yet greater Harpwork and his own recognizable blues take.

It’s hard to think of any festival that could withstand the loss of its headline act at short notice, but still have the strength to survive, placate and please the fans. The Waterfront Blues Festival could do this by just drawing on the talents of its local blues residents!

HEATHER BRYSE-HARVEY AND IAIN PATIENCE

HARVEST TIME BLUES FESTIVAL

Monaghan ireland

september 5tH – 7tH 2014

Friday

Now in its nineteenth year this festival has gone from strength to strength in recent years. Reviewed this two years ago and although there seems an overall enthusiasm for the event it did not seem as busy as previous years. Unfortunately some top acts were not able to attend for various reasons, these were all acts originally booked for the main stage in marquee, Lucky Peterson Jordan Patterson and Rick Vito. This however was the only hiccup at this superbly run event and never detracted from the overwhelming talent on show, an eclectic mix of acts graced the main stage and pub trail. Super Chikan (James Johnston), and The Fighting Cocks started proceedings in the Marquee main stage with a consummate set which had fun songs that were full of innuendo steeped in the tradition of the Mississippi delta. His rendition of Low Down Dirty Blues being a particular favourite by an intimate and very appreciative audience on a side stage at Marquee very relaxing.

There was much excitement and anticipation for the next act to play on main stage local band fronted by the ever improving and charismatic Grainne Duffy who is getting a lot of notoriety in the blues world that is fully deserved. A very polished performance the band clearly enjoying themselves very tight and together with lead guitarist Paul Sherry playing at blistering pace and very energetic complementing Grainne’s husky vocals. High point was definitely her sweet and passionate take on I’d Rather Go Blind. Initially sound was a bit fuzzy but with a few tweaks the engineers sorted this out easily. Rapturous applause for an excellent performance. Headliners The Steepwater Band with an awesomely loud set, with their almost psychedelic blues approach to some songs. Lead

guitarist Jeff Massey leading the way gelling band with bass player Tod Bowers and rhythm Joe Winters.

Saturday

After a late night it was time for some mellow tunes at the Acoustic Room. Smokin’ Joe Kubek and Bnois King played an outstanding set with Bnois sweet vocals reverberating round the room and underpinning this was the mellow guitar playing by Joe, they played a lot of their back catalogue to an appreciative and packed house. Just time to catch much lauded Canadian guitarist Doug MacLeod playing a mixture of songs and telling the stories that influenced them such as the almost autobiographical Dubbs Talking Religion Blues, a certainly uplifting performance. Again Smokin’ Joe Kubek and Bnois King gave a masterclass of acoustic performance starting proceedings in Marquee. This was followed by a great set by Mud Morganfield and his band, including Mick Moody, ex Whitesnake guitarist. Mud Morganfield is a son of Muddy Waters and paid homage to him in his performance exciting a fairly full crowd. Very charismatic and great showman he even chose two girls from audience to dance with him and he also did a duet with Grainne Duffy an absolute gem of performance lapped up by the local crowd and family. Headline time again saw Canadian J W Jones and band play

a very tight and professional set. His playing was second to none fret play and tone to guitar were superb another great showman and multi- instrumentalist this evident when the band switched playing instruments themselves a great crowd pleaser finishing off with the three members playing his guitar at one point in the set for a trio this was an awesome performance one to cherish.

Sunday

After another late night Sunday came creeping in. another chance to relax and chill in acoustic room listening to Leo Bud Welch, another Mississippi resident playing some tunes from his acclaimed Sabougla Voices release moving towards a lot of gospel inspired music lyrically composed and strong vocals. Lil Jimmy Reed rocked the tent later with backing from Rob Hall on organ and Hilary Blythe on bass guitar playing an assortment of downtown delta and boogie woogie. There were a lot of the enthusiastic crowd waiting eagerly to listen and dance they had played a trail venue half an hour before and what a set they put on, led by charismatic vocalist Lars Nasman and with West Weston pumping out blistering harmonica, mix in a double base and how could anyone not be mesmerised. Extremely talented

band bound for more success. There is not much new to say about the headliners Royal Southern Brotherhood, except they can take music styles to a different level and make everything into a party. Consummate performers they gave an eclectic gumbo of hard rocking Mississippi rock blues and they played a powerful cover of Gimme Shelter being particularly gutsy and vibrant attack of force. While Devon Allman and Mike Zito bring their signature blues style, Cyril Neville and Charlie Wooten spice it up with some New Orleans soul and funk, and Yonrico Scott keeps a heavy rock and roll beat. The group lived up to its expectations, putting on a no-holds-barred set that had the Monaghan blues festival crowd rocking like it probably never has before in its past, that is how good they were, everyone seemed to enjoy this spectacular ending to the festival. Finally a mention on pub trail bands, The Revolutionaires rocked the joint with their brand of fifties high energy rock and roll takes. The Hard Chargers a Belfast band brought a twist to blues rock as did Black Crow Chicken with their dark foreboding grungy tone. Another highlight was Clara Rose Band, with acoustic mix and she has such a soulful powerful voice. A wonderful weekend, great organisation beautiful setting good weather long may this festival continue with its high standards. Fabulous time – definite success keeping the blues alive!

COLIN CAMPBELL

GrainnE duFFy at MonaGhan

Photo: colin caMPBEll

sMoKin JoE KuBEK at MonaGhan 2014

Photo:colin caMPBEll

concerts

KaZ haWKinS and her Band

lichfield guildhall

september 21st 2014

Imagine, if you can Janis Joplin fronting Chic, and you have some idea of the level of imagination and musicianship that Kaz Hawkins and her band bought to bear when they appeared at Lichfield Guildhall as part of their first UK tour.

Playing songs from their recent, critically acclaimed release, Get Ready the group played a wide selection of their own songs, as well as a choice selection of covers. With a voice that was part Etta James, Janis Joplin, and part Bonnie Raitt, Kaz Hawkins lead the band through an explosive, but commercial mix of blues, rock and soul, and some disco rhythms thrown in for good measure.

Her three piece band of drummer Ross Hawkins, bassist Michael McKinney and lead guitarist Nick McConkey provided sympathetic backing that left plenty for the ears and feet to digest, providing funky, Motown inspired riffs one moment, to heartrending ballad playing the next, but the star of the show was Kaz Hawkins, leading the band, and

the audience through the life that had inspired her work.

Believe With Me a waltz time ballad was a song about redemption and self belief, and I’m Mad,But I Love You looked at the trials that all relationships go through, this was a melodic southern rock song with traces of the Allman Brothers, Drink With The Devil was a swing Jazz number. Vocally, the highlight of the first set was Born To Me Baby which was a slow blues number, which showed of the highs of Hawkin’s voice, and the pin sharp playing of the group. A rare cover was thrown in with Nina Simone’s Feeling Good which robbed the song of it usual bombast, and instead had a far more intimate treatment for this reading. The song half packed in a lot more upbeat numbers, although it still left space for a heartfelt Lipstick And Cocaine which was a largely autobiographical song, whilst a new song It Ain’t You was a stomping disco flavoured piece which will hopefully become a live favourite. This was a fine concert, and hopefully the band will go onto reap the rewards that they so richly deserve.

BEN MACNAIR

gLaS

thethree tuns, chePstoW september 27tH 2014.

I saw these guys play at Tenby last year and I have to say they were the saving grace of what for me had been a dismal showing by the other bands earlier in the day. I had wanted to see them again as they are a local outfit and play regularly around the clubs and pubs in sunny South Wales with a festival appearance here and there but up until now I had missed them. Tonight I was there! The Tuns is situated at the bottom of the town and its car park and beer garden nestle into the ramparts of the magnificent Chepstow Castle. Best of all it has another car park alongside – very helpful when the old town streets are narrow, some cobbled and on a one way system.

The locals are friendly and the landlady keeps a good house, so I was informed. As I was observed to be on my own a lass said if I wanted I could join them at the next table if I felt a bit out of things! The band was itching to get on and at the crack of 9pm leapt into action and started to play as though their lives depended on it. They looked relaxed and comfortable and soon the sparse area of the front bar started to fill up and band and punters alike were into the swing of things. The crowd were enthusiastic and showed their appreciation hooting and clapping loudly all the while supping at brim full ale glasses. Numbers included rousing anthems such as Shaking all Over by the Pirates, a Howlin’ Wolf song and then the girls started shuffling to Brand New Cadillac and so it continued.

All covers I know but well done and played with vigour and produced an overall great rocking sound. Huw Hannon on drums gave it some ‘wellie’ as they say in these parts and kept the rhythm solid and the high hat in constant motion. Dai John bass and vocals played and sang his heart out all night. Then there was James – James Oliver to be precise. James is a youthful looking lad but in an all black outfit including a big black Stetson hat and lead guitar he

Kaz haWKins in lichFiEld

Photo: roB Morris

dispels the fear that you may have that he may be a covert Country (and Western) style player! He’s not – I expect he could if he wanted to break out into a medley of Grand Ole Oprey if you asked him – nicely – I say nicely as he stands over 6’ tall and despite his boyish looks is quite a forbidding figure! Those there who like their Lead guitar to be loud, fast and furious were not disappointed –but then again if you wanted a slower low down dirty bluesier sound he could deliver. The audience sure liked them and the girls were dancing. The bar staff were busy, men were nodding approval of the numbers played and joined in where and when they could. It was a very lively night. Songs such as Killing Floor and Baby, Baby Whatcha Doin’ To Me, Shake Your Money Maker a Bo Diddley medley and some lovely slide on Dust My Broom did it for me! I won’t leave it so long before I go see them again!

DIANE GILLARD (SISTER FEELGOOD)

Mud MorganFieLd Band + aLi MaaS Band

ronnie scott’s JaZZ cluB, soho, london

september 1st 2014

The first of two sold-out nights at this prestigious Jazz venue, proved to be a highlight of the year for this reviewer. The evening kicked-off with a great set from the Ali Maas Band. Ali is a new voice on the Blues scene, and she proved to be a very exciting performer indeed, totally owning the stage, and going down a storm with the audience at Ronnie Scott’s. Her strong personality seemed equally at home with both Blues and Soul, and she was also happy to Rock when the music required. Add to this, she has a real killer band, featuring organ maestro Rob Millis plus ex Yardbirds/Nine Below Zero harp & guitar man Alan Glen, and a swinging rhythm crew in Glynn Evans bass, and ex Radical Sheik Peter Miles on drums. With a tasty set comprising very cool arrangements of tracks by Bonnie Raitt, Otis Rush, Ann Peebles, Mavis Staples and Little Walter, plus some fine quality

Larry MiLLer the tivoli, WiMBorne

JulY 6tH 2014

Larry is one of the biggest crowd pleasers on the circuit today and from the moment he explodes onto the stage, he hits you right between the eyes. Performing as a power trio tonight, no Ian Salisbury on keyboards, the band are straight into Mad Dog from the Unfinished Business CD. The majority of the set is taken from the most recent Live & Outlawed release, but we were also treated to the likes of Daddy’s Car and Gambler’s Hill from his vast back catalogue, the latter seguing straight into Cruel Old World. Before all that, though, we had a slight aggravation in that Larry cut his finger, all a bit of an unnecessary melodrama, the audience went along with it, albeit reluctantly! He strapped on his LarroCaster Strat for the dramatic Calling All Angels, followed by his exquisite take on Rory Gallagher’s Walk On Hot Coals. The evening passed very quickly, as in no time at all we were into Voodoo Chile, for which Larry used his Jeff Beck Fender Strat. The encores were the standards Delilah and Bullfrog Blues, brilliant slide on his Gibson Firebird. Have to say, we got exactly what it says on the tin from a Larry Miller performance. To my ear, there was a slight problem with the sound, which I understand comes from guitar and vocals sharing the same amp. However, I look forward to catching the new tour from November, when the new Soldier Of The Line CD is released, complete with brass and strings.

CLIVE RAWLING

originals, this is certainly a band to watch for when it hits the festival circuit next year. After a short interval, the Mud Morganfield Band hit the stage, and we were introduced to the son of the great Muddy Waters. Looking very dapper in his suit and waistcoat, Mud proceeded to treat us to a selection of his father’s greatest hits including Gone to Main Street, I Just Want to Make Love To You,19 Years Old and many more, plus a

few original numbers of his own. The band did a great job of re-creating those authentic Chess Records sounds, underpinned by Mike Hellier on drums and Ian Jennings on double bass, with some nice subtle piano tones from Jools Grudgings, and magical guitar moments from Micky Moody, who did a great job keeping to the band remit, while still

larry MillEr

Photo: christinE MoorE

showing his star quality on stage. Steve Weston captured that illusive Little Walter sound, and was great throughout. Mud sounds uncannily like his father, and his performance drew whoops of recognition and enjoyment from the audience. Finishing the set with Mannish Boy, it was easy to see why this was voted into the top 10 greatest riffs of all time.

BLAKE

POWELL the geoFF

eVerett Band

chaMBers folKestone

auGust 7tH 2014

One of Kent’s busiest bands, I wasn’t going to miss the chance to see them at my local venue and so I took my wife and a blind friend of mine along, and we were able to sit as close as it was possible to be without being on stage with the band. Geoff’s trio consists of himself on guitar (or piano as he will call them) Kevin Dore

on bass and Darren Lee on drums. I usually have problems in writing down all of the numbers and often try to get a set list, but on this occasion, I didn’t have to worry as Geoff introduced every single song. Opening the set with a thundering version of 40 days on the road, from the band’s new album, this set the mark for the rest of the evening. High energy in your face rock and Blues, with Geoff keeping up a lively line of patter between numbers.

Playing cover versions that the original artists would be hard pressed to recognise, truly making each song his own, the set included afore mentioned covers as well as some original material. Swapping back and forth between two different Strat’s, Geoff played some intense slide work, there was the usual

bass solo and drum bonanza, but not only were they not boring, they were also very good. The evening was over much too soon and clutching my notes of the evening and a new copy of the latest album, it was time for us to go home. Great band, great music, great entertainment.

DAVE STONE

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thE Mud and ali and Band at ronniE scott’s

STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN

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