The Cash Box Kings Release Their New Alligator Records Album Oscar’s Motel

By Kevin D. Wildman

By Kevin D. Wildman

Alligator Records recording artists The Cash Box Kings have just released their new masterpiece of Blues Music. The album, titled Oscar’s Motel is the 11th release for the band and their third for Alligator Records. Recording for Oscar’s Motel took place at Reliable Recorders/Hi-Style Studio in Chicago, Illinois. The recording of the album was engineered by Alex Hall and produced by Joe Nosek. Mixing on the album was handled by Alex Hall and Mr. Alligator Records himself, Mr. Bruce Iglauer at The Boiler Room, who also mastered the album along with Collin Jordan.

The new release is filled with nine great new original songs, along with two nods to the past recreating the songs “Please Have Mercy” by Muddy Waters and “Pontiac Blues” by Sonny Boy Williamson. The album kicks off with the tale of a really hip motel called “Oscar’s Motel”. If you want to have fun and kick off your shoes and dance, you can take it on down to “Oscar’s Motel”.

Here’s a great tune that will kick up your heels and get you to dancing.

The primary songwriters on this album are Chicago vocalist Oscar “Mr. 43rd Street” Wilson and harmonica great and singer Joe Nosek. Also contributing in the writing of this album are guitarist Billy Flynn and Deitra Farr. Steeped in the sounds of the ’50s, The Cash Box Kings carry on the traditions of the old school Blues scene along with a step into the future as well. Be sure to check out the song, “I Can’t Stand You.” It’s hilarious and it shows what happens when you spend too much time on Facebook.

“Oscar’s Motel” features some of the best guitar licks you’ve ever heard on a blues album, not to mention the extreme prowess of Harmonica Great Mr. Joe Nosek. His harp just rings true throughout this album. But of course, this album is truly fantastic with the soulful vocal skills of Blues singer Oscar “Mr. 43rd Street” Wilson. His vocals are simply out of this world.

The whole album will have you captivated from the moment you start it up till the closing bars of “Ride Santa Ride.” That’s right, “Ride Santa Ride,” one of the coolest Christmas songs you’ve ever heard. Find out what happens when Oscar gives Santa a helping hand on his latest Christmas delivery. Other great moments on here include “Down On The South Side,” a fun-filled journey through Chicago’s South Side. And then there’s the Joe Nosek penned “Hot Little Mess.” Find out all about this young lady that walks into Joe’s life… Not quite the girl you’d take home to mother. Joe also reminisces about another young lady when he let’s us know that “She Dropped The Axe On Me.” Billy Flynn contributes a fine song as well to this album in the form of “Trying So Hard.” There are definitely a lot of great songs on this album, some serious and some just a little bit on the edge. But that’s not all you’ll find here. On “Nobody Called It The Blues” you’ll be taking a bit of a history lesson when you find out just where the Blues continued on next page