|
Blues Reviews |
|
|
|
Live And CD ReviewsThe Carvin Jones Band - I'm What You Need
Little Milton Live At The North Atlantic Blues Festival “His Last Concert”
The second song ‘Just One Moment’ is a love song and soulful ballad from his album Guitar Man. He performs this song leaving no doubt that he was one of the great soul singers. The DVD continues a little more up tempo with ‘I Don’t Believe in Ghosts’ but still in the soulful vein before moving into a slow blues medley of Little Milton’s ‘Catch You On Your Way Down’, Annie Mae’s Café, Into Walking the Backstreets and ‘A Possum in My Tree’. It is at this point Little Milton picks up the guitar and throughout the medley plays some classic old style blues guitar taking it right down with the camera following his fingers on the fretboard. The DVD shows views of all the band during the concert, using different angles with some nice fades between members of his fine band. The sun comes out for ‘I Wouldn’t Take Nothing For Your Love’, a slightly funky blues with some more delicate guitar work from Little Milton and once again classic Little Milton vocals. At no point during the performance do the band over play, allowing Little Milton to take the limelight. Little Milton likes to connect with the audience and asks the audience to listen carefully to the lyrics of ‘My Dog and Me’, which was a big hit for him and then finishes with, as he says “the blues anthem of the world”, ‘The Blues is Alright’, covered by many. He puts his guitar down and brings in the audience for some participation. A fitting number and end to a DVD that has good honest video and sound, not over produced and makes you feel that you could have been there. What more do you want from a live performance. The DVD ends with clips of Little Milton thanking the audience and the credits roll with a reminder this is in memory of Little Campbell Milton 1934 – 2005. He may have left this world but with this DVD you can keep a piece of Little Milton, thanks to the joint venture between Juke Joint Videos and North Atlantic Productions. - Delbet Black Available exclusively from Blues CD Store www.bluescdstore.com
From the opening rocky Henry McCullough Blues Band to the electric blues of Otis Grand on the second track through to the more rootsy Ian Siegal Band with ‘Drowned In My Sorrows’, makes for a perfect opening three tracks for this ambitious project. The rest of the first CD features such veterans of British Blues including Nine Below Zero, Nicky Moore and the Animals & Friends. There’s a live version of the Zombies hit ‘She’s Not There’ by Colin Blunstone and Rod Argent, with some great electric piano and organ on this track. A traditional rendition of ‘Marie, Marie’ by The King Earl Boogie Band and a track from US blues singer Dietra Farr, contrasts with a live 8 minute version of ‘Suicide’ from 70’s rock band Stray. This isn’t a blues track but comes from Stray’s blues influenced and dynamic guitarist Del Bromham who has a true blues track on disc three. Other highlights, is the track ‘Cathy’ from the Ariel Bender Band which is a sensitive blues with some wonderful guitar work from Ariel Bender aka Luther Grosvenor. He was originally guitarist with Spooky Tooth and then stepped into Mick Ralphs shoes in Mott The Hoople when Mick left to form Bad Company. A mention must also go to blues rockers ‘Never The Bride’ who donated ‘The Living Tree’ track for the album. This is the track that Dame Shirley Bassey recorded for one of her albums and performed the song at The Royal Variety performance. It is a powerful 007 esque track and must be the only song written by a band on the British Blues scene which has been performed to The Queen. On to disc two and if you thought the quality of the music and the diversity of the blues would not be sustained throughout the 3 CD set, you would be mistaken. British stalwart of the vocals, Frankie Miller and his Full House represent British funky blues on the first track and relative new boy on the block Matt Schofield and his Trio swing electric guitar blues as good as anyone. Stark contrast comes on track three with Eddie Martin’s ‘Living For The Weekend’, nice harp and slide and with boogie piano led Al’s Boogie by The Revolutionaries. Back to the blues/rock with ‘Last Man Standing’ by the well travelled Danny Bryant and his Redeyeband and the rocking ‘The Woman? Or The Blues’ by Storm Warning. Veterans of the blues are represented on disc two by Eric Bell, one time guitarist with the first phase of Thin Lizzy plus Chris Farlowe with a Ray Charles song ‘Piece Of Mind’ and a live version of Milk & Alcohol by Dr Feelgood. Female vocal is represented by Zora Young with ‘Til The Fat Lady Sings’, great funky blues and Hamish Stuart band funk it up on ‘What’cha Gonna Do For Me’. The Convulsions offer a raw blues/rock style as do The Stumble with a Houndog Taylor song ‘’Give Me Back My Wig’. Lastly Richie Milton & the Lowdown offer their Latin infused blues on ‘Get Naked’ and Cliff Stocker’s Legendary Slack Alice rock out on the last and 17th track on disc two with ‘Mean Slick City Machine’. Disc three starts with a more gentle feel demonstrating acoustic folk /blues with the wonderful Tom Doughty followed in a similar vein by The Blues Band bassman Gary Fletcher, showing why he is deservedly being recognised as a song writer and musician in his own right. Taking it up a notch is probably the best young female blues vocalist around, Kyla Brox, with a blues ballad called ‘Gone’ which is full of feeling. If it’s rocking blues guitar you like, take a listen to a previously unreleased live instrumental track from Saiichi Sugiyama called ‘Sneakin’ n Snipin’. It’s very funky blues with some great full on guitar and vamping organ. There are three more folky/blues acoustic tracks from Ian Alveston, John Williamson & Mike Bowden and a live track from Claude Bourbon. Keeping up the diversity and the more laid back approach of CD three, is Grana Louise in acapella mode followed by the cajun blues from Chris Jagger. There’s more acoustic blues including Del Bromham with the title track from his album Devil’s Highway, conveying perfectly a spooky feel using the slide to great effect. Norman Beaker Band takes up the electric mantle with a melodic blues called ‘When The Fat Lady Sings’ and Pete Barton who normally tours with The Animals and Friends closes the 3 CD set gently with ‘Cotton and Coal’. The fact that not every track has been mentioned by no way means these are the lesser tracks but the fact that so many have, just shows what a good compilation this is. This CD doesn’t represent all British Blues but it does represent a good cross section. If there was a prize for compilation of the year this would win hands down. It could also win a prize for best value with an amazing 51 tracks at a cost of less that 30p a track. You don’t have to buy this because all the profits go to the Pendleside Hospice, although that is a good enough reason in itself but buy it because there is so much good British blues amassed on one album and with a limited run of only 2,000 this could become a collectors item. If you want to make sure of getting a copy, don’t wait for the festival but visit The Great British R&B Festival website at www.bluesfestival.co.uk or www.bluescdstore.com who are handling the online sales for the CD. - Delbet Black Mr Spider - Web Of Lies (dead Earnest - DERND 1 / Barcoded) CD Album The Dundee Music scene has really sparked interest worldwide primarily by virtue of its indie bands, but the city has a lot more to offer in terms of musical styles, the best bit being that all of them are top quality acts. One other thing that Dundee is now famous for doing is its annula blues weekend where over 100 acts can be seen playing over three days and three nights in venues large and small, right across the city. In the world of blues in Dundee, there is one band that heads the way and that's Mr Spider, a quartet with bass, drums and electric guitars plus, somewhat rare these days, a female vocalist. Starting life as a covers band playing a wide range of
classic seventies blues and blues-rock covers, they
gradually started to write their own songs and incorporate
them into the covers set. Recently, they've reveled another
live side to the band with a set of Classic Rock covers from
the seventies. But, increasingly so, the acclaim is coming
for their own songs, to such a degree that they've been busy
recording them onto album - and this brand new 13 track
studio-recorded debut CD is the result.<br> Then onto what is a high point on an already great album, in
the form of the epic "Ain't No Good Men", a tale of love and
lust, initially driven by a searing slice of solo fuzz
electric guitar and Michele's mix of come-hither and
high-flying vocals. The rhythm section appears briefly to
add strength, then dies away only for the bass on its own to
join the surging guitar riffin for a few seconds before
Michele returns sounding even more sexual and powerful than
ever, conveying lyrics that'll really have you reaching for
the nearest bedroom. As the song climbs , the dynamics come
into play, the band crunch in and the whole thing drives
forward, a truly magnificent slice of blues originality that
can't fail to have you hooked. The last four tracks on the album are gathered together as the "Tears For Bethany Suite", opening with "Dark Days", as John's lone electro-acoustic guitar delivers a slowly swaying backdrop to bassist Mike's vocal, a suitably emotive low-ish register slice of singing on a classic slow-blues burner. "The Dash" opens with throbbing bass from Mike as John's restrained electric slide guitar positively shimmers against Paul's bursts of drumming and cymbal splashes on an instrumental that provides the blues with a whole new slant before the band crash in together and present a driving sea of searing electric instrumental work that really hits home. Following the power of this piece, the emotive near-epic "Tears For Bethany" takes on an altogether different dimension as we mix the slow blues ballad with a gorgeously heartfelt warm and strong vocal from Michele over the delicious Peter Green-esque guitar delicacy and the restrained flow of the rhythm section, the song surprisingly powerful for an emotive, brooding blues ballad with some great lyrics that really hook you into what the song's all about, the arrangement as a whole, full of feeling and emotion. The suite and the album ends with "Empty", and we return to a classic slice of slowly flowing electric blues, again with a touch of the "Stormy Monday's" about it, as that soaring lead guitar once again conjures images of Santana and Green, while Michele delivers a trademark sultry, emotionally powerful, vocal lead over the slowly flowing rhythm section as the song carries you along in its wake of solid blues and strong ballad, a great vocal performance to end the proceedings as Michele strikes out from sultry to high-flying and back again. Overall, a really strong set of songs in a mix of classic, and their own twist on, electric blues, the result being one seriously excellent debut album that has an appeal across a wide range of ages thanks to the superb songs an the strong playing with the upfront and emotive, truly sung, vocals of Michele. More than just blues, a great song-based album. For more info www.deadearnest.btinternet.co.uk
www.myspace.com/deadearnestdundee TENBY BLUES FESTIVAL – 10TH/12TH NOVEMBER 2006 The first Tenby Blues Festival was held recently in this beautiful Welsh seaside town. An ambitious programme of performances, workshops, talks, films, and an exhibition of photographs, took place in a large number of venues throughout the town. Most of the venues were free. Keynote, ticketed concerts were held in two venues – the Rugby Club, which was home to more laid back, acoustic shows, and the De Valence, a large concert hall which hosted the big showpiece concerts. Inevitably it was these that attracted the biggest crowds because it was here that the non-local acts appeared.
Saturday followed a similar pattern with Dave Sugarbeet and his wah-wah violin rocking the Rugby Club whilst over in the De Valence, the Alabama 3 gave, shall we say, a unique show. Better than them were acts lower down the bill – the marvellous Michael Messer followed by the Eddie Martin Band, which really rocked out augmented by the West Coast Horns, veterans of the Todd Sharpville band et al. Surprisingly to some maybe, west Wales has a tradition of producing blues bands, many of whom appeared in the pubs throughout the town. Pat Grover’s Blue Zeroes, with their Texas/Chicago mix went down a storm – Pat has been a fixture on the UK scene since the so-called ‘60s blues boom and the Numbers Racket (also featuring the West Coast Horns) have honed their high energy swing and jump jive into an irresistible force that can only be accommodated by dancing one’s socks off! The late night sessions at the Fourcroft Hotel produced some interesting impromptu sessions, often the unprogrammed highlights of such events, and included Paul Lamb jamming with local legends Ella Guru on Friday and the next night, the unlikely combination of the Alabama 1(!) mixing it with Eddie Martin and Matthew Ord. Queues of blues fans unable to get in attested to the success of this venue. The whole festival wound up Sunday lunchtime with one of the best shows of the whole weekend by Cardiff veterans, Snatch It Back. As the strains of “Crazy ‘Bout An Automobile” and “Wang Dang Doodle” reverberated throughout the sold out Rugby Club, no one wanted the weekend to end. But, like all good things, it had to. Don’t fret. The organisers tell me Tenby Blues Festival is returning again next year. Sure there were teething troubles, what new festival doesn’t have them? But Tenby has the potential to do for the Blues what Brecon has done for Jazz. Check out the web site at www.tenbyblues.co.uk and mark your diary for next year – 9th/11th November 2007. It’s not only the sea and sky that is blue in Tenby! - BB Skone.
From the opening song 'Universe Demands', the whole feel is uplifting and happy, folky and catchy with a strong acoustic riff. The second track is 'Shipwrecked' with Derrin's great vocals showing feeling and commitment to his music. With this track as with others the double bass slides nicely up and down the fingerboard. 'I Won't Turn My Back' has an Eric Bibb style about it which is followed by the very folky 'Where Two Men Go Tonight' and the upbeat Queensland. Derrin is a very talented acoustic player and this shows on many of the tracks and especially 'My Hurricane' which builds with some frantic, excellent guitar playing and the wonderful 'Long Road Home'. It says in the liner notes written by Derrin Neauendorf ,"This was the easiest and most relaxed studio recording I have ever been involved in" and this does come across and sounds like Derrin and the band enjoyed it. Maybe he should be aiming more at the in vogue contemporary singer/songwriter market and he just could be a big star. Review by Delbert Black – Rocking the Blues. Buy this album at; www.bluescdstore.com
Review by Delbert Black – Rocking the Blues. Buy this album at; www.bluescdstore.com Walter Trout and the Radicals - Aylesbury Civic Centre 9/10/2006 Walter Trout came on to the Aylesbury Civic Centre stage like he meant business from the start firing off on all cylinders with an old standard ‘Dust My Broom’ in unmistakable Walter Trout fashion. On the second number Walter invited to the stage his guitar roadie Andrew Elt to share some of the vocals on ‘You Need A Helping Hand’ and this was followed by a slow blues but there’s no way Walter Trout was going to play a slow guitar solo. This number had some nice soloing interplay between Walter’s guitar and Sammy Avila’s keyboard. All the songs featured Walter Trout, most of the time at break neck speed and many of the songs featured some great organ keyboard solos from Sammy Avila. Solid bass lines were courtesy of Radicals new boy Rick Knapp who replaced Jimmy Trapp who unfortunately died recently. On drums was Joey Pafumi who juggles with his drum sticks through out the set, throwing them up and catching them. Eyes of the audiences were on Joey as much as Walter to see if he was going to drop a drumstick. 'Working Overtime’ was the first number from the new album ‘Full Circle’. On the album Jeff Healey plays some of the fine solos but Walter stepped in to take the spotlight once again although it was touch and go with Sammy’s solo, slapping away at the keyboard. This number passed straight into another slow blues. Subtle isn’t in Walter Trout’s dictionary and it wasn’t long before he was up to speed on the guitar solo. 'Baby I’m Long Gone’ brought a slight changed to the feel with a jazz tinged blues led by Sammy Avila on vocals. Then for the next number roadie Andrew Elt took to the stage on lead vocals, Gillian-esque style. As the night went on, the enthusiastic crowd just wanted more and more guitar and they got that alright including Walter playing some guitar ‘violin’ notes and harmonics. Down hill to the end and Rick Knapp treated the audience to a bass solo and this was followed by a drum solo from Joey Pafumi, with more drum sticks flying about then ever before. Then the crowd got what they were watching for – Joey dropped a stick but picked up another without losing the solo. To be honest not many noticed it and he was given a rousing applause. Walter and Sammy came back to the stage to finish off the set which had the crowd cheering for more. Walter Trout came back to the stage to give Aylesbury some more full on blues rock with a great version of ‘Going Down’ with Walter, Sammy and Andrew on vocals and ended the night with a slow blues to leave the crowd wanting more. Many of the crowd did get a lot more by queuing up at the merchandise stall in the foyer and Walter Trout came out to chat and sign albums. What ever blues is your bag, you can’t deny Walter Trout’s passion for the music and his fans.
Full Circle opens with a slow blues ‘She Takes More Than She Gives’ which features Walter’s former band leader John Mayall on harmonica and sharing some of the vocals. Walter Trout from the beginning stamps his mark with great trademark guitar soloing. This is followed by ‘Workin’ Overtime’ which has a Hendrix-esque type feel to it and some lovely guitar from Jeff Healey. Walter Trout gives space in the songs for his guests to shine but he’s never far behind with some dazzling and competitive solos. The album isn’t all full on Trout all the way through and the electric guitar gives way to the acoustic guitar on ‘Firehouse Mama’ with Eric Sardinas and stand up bass is featured on a couple of tracks. Even a jazzy feel is apparent on After Hours featuring Deacon Jones, “one of the best Hammond B3 players on the planet” - quoting from Walter’s sleeve notes. However the feature, apart from the guests, of this album is full ‘going for it’ guitar solos which will please Walter’s many fans even though not all of the solos are Mr Trout himself. The songs in themselves are not particularly remarkable but the playing is from the top drawer and compensates one hundred per cent. The stand out tracks for me are Luther Allison’s ‘When Will It Ever Change’ featuring Bernard Allison, ‘Wrapped Around Your Finger’ with Guitar Shorty and ‘Clouds On The Horizon’ where full on blues/rock guitar hero’s Walter Trout and the young Joe Bonamassa go head to head. It’s all about the passion and Full Cirlce brings you guitar based blues/ rock ecstasy. Review by Delbert Black – Rocking the Blues. Buy this album at; www.bluescdstore.com Mister Doo The real reason to go see Mister Doo, though is his blues –
both the old classics like Blind Boy Fuller’s Walkin’ My
Blues Away, Kid Bailey’s Mississippi Bottom Blues
or Rev. Gary Davis’ She’s Funny That Way, or his
own takes on the blues like Comfortable Blues, and
Jelly Man. It really does sound like there’s more
than one guitar being played at times – he plays bass lines,
chords and solos all at the same time. Breathtaking! To
describe Mister Doo as a finger picking guitarist would be
to detract from what he does – it seems to be picking,
strumming and flat pick work all at the same time. His
approach is pretty unique in this genre – with the delta
numbers, he seems to start off recognisably close to the
original, but adds all sorts of things and changes bits, and
really just brings it all up to date. The old delta classics
can sound a bit dated these days, so Mister Doo puts in
improvised instrumental verses, and leaves verses out
altogether if it’s all a bit too long. As he told me in the
interval “You have to have a bit of variety – even Robert
Johnson’s mum would get bored of this stuff after a couple
of hours”. (He also pointed out another reason for leaving
out verses – many of the verses in the originals are
outrageously racist and sexist, and you just can’t do them
in these enlightened times). REVIEW: THE TURK’S HEAD, London Road, Reading BAND: GATORHIGHWAY - ‘LET THE GOOD TIMES ROLL’
This Hendrix classic certainly went down a storm inside the warm and inviting Turk’s head Inn on a freezing-cold Saturday night. Music at this popular Reading venue is being taken seriously, with talented bands like Gator Highway setting a very high standard.
This band is a loud, 4-piece, guitar-driven mix of madness, with Chris Walker’s (lead guitar) unique ability setting the tone. The audience was clearly left with the knowledge that they had experienced a thoroughly rewarding performance, by these accomplished artists.
They skilfully delivered a variety of classics by some of the world’s most inspirational musicians – Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jagger, Living Colour, and Hendrix. A favourite of mine was an instrumental number, ’Floor It’, (one of their own compositions); this opened the first set, creating the signature for their energetic performance: raw, dynamic, controlled.
They will be playing at The Rising Sun, Reading, (under new management) on February 4 – so get there, if you can!
Check out their website: www.gatorhighway.com for information and music bites.
Julie Hughes
3AM
www.3am.uk.com
Taking to the stage, Charlie Moffat (vocals and harmonica), Ian Mckechnie (lead guitar), Barry Kelly (rhythm guitar), Hughie Kelly (drums), and Colin Graig (bass), launch into a barnstorming version of ‘Roadhouse Blues’. We’re only halfway through the first song and the locals are already drifting into the gig from the front bar asking about the band. Next up is the old chestnut ‘Before you accuse me’ with Charlie Moffat blowing some fabulous harp…before you’ve had a chance to catch breath they tear straight into Free’s ‘All Right Now’ with guitar soloing from Ian which “Koss” at his peak would have been proud of. The highlight of what turns out to be the first set has to be a stunning version of ‘Hoochie Coochie Man’. At first you think oh here we go again, how many times have you heard this song, but The Easy Riders have taken this classic and put there own imitable stamp on it giving it a complete breath of fresh air. The guitars on this really have to be heard to be believed. ‘Sonny Boys’ Sloppy Drunk follows, and then it’s a return to ‘Free’ with one of my own personal faves ‘The Hunter’ complete with more sterling guitar from Ian chased to a climax with the driving rhythm section never letting up till the final last chords fly into the crowd. ‘Black Magic Woman’ winds up the first half of what is turning into one hell of a night. As the band take to the bar for a well earned drink you begin to wonder how they’re Going to top what really has been a fantastic performance, but blow me, do they not only top it in the second half but they go one better. Opening with ‘Walking by myself’ they drive into a superb rendition of The Stones ‘Honky Tonk Woman’ featuring a mind blowing solo from Ian. With no let up it’s straight into ‘Feel like making love’ featuring some great drumming from Hugh, with his son Barrie chopping out some great rhythm riffs.The treat of the night was to follow. Charlie announces that the band is going to play a tribute to his mentor whom is no other (now get this folks) than the late great Lester Butler of The Red Devils fame. As they launch into The Devils own ‘She’s Dangerous’ it comes clear how much Charlie Moffat has been influenced by this man. Close your eyes and Lester is once again onstage. A rollicking version of ‘Mustang Sally’ is played as is a stonking version of Stevie Ray’s ‘Pride and joy. By this time heads are shaking and the dance floor is moving. Colin’s bass drives out the opening of ‘Born to be wild’ and the whole raucous night is wound up with ‘Johnny Be Good’ done aka Easy Riders style, complete with harmonica and guitar soloing. If you like your blues rocking and enjoy one hell of a night out, be sure and catch this band the next time you pass through Glasgow. Here’s hoping that ‘The Easy Riders’ are going to be around for many years to come. -Review by James L. Brown Joe Bonamassa at Beard's Blues, Tooting , LondonLet's start by doctoring the immortal phrase, ‘He came, he saw, (he blinked twice, took a deep breath), and conquered"! Joe Bonamassa and his gifted band took their first tentative steps into South London , and after an eventful anxious few minutes as the power supply vacillated, the band swept all before them to convert every single person in the venue, to the merits of the Joe Bonamassa band. Let it be said that in the age of cheap quotes and media hype, Joe Bonamassa is a breath of fresh sir. Not only does the guy play stunningly well, he has an encyclopaedic knowledge of the genre he plays. Joe is totally at ease with his tone colours, he has a rare feel for dynamics, he belts out the blues with passion, and he pushes himself and his band to the limit. On top of all that Joe has the simple but all too rare ability to communicate with his crowd, giving his extraordinary ability a meaningful context. On this his first London show, Joe opened up on solo acoustic guitar. And after reducing an expectant capacity crowd to reverential silence, he proceeded to construct a mesmerising set that encompassed layer upon layer of imaginative solos, and hard driving rock blues. The set was punctuated by judicious use of vibrato, sustain, speedy note flurries, and an underlying intuitive feel for the blues. Joe's rhythm section of bass player Eric Czar and drummer Kenny Kramme read him like a book, and unlike far to many bands they don't follow their leader, but push him to play to the best of his ability. Underpinning the inspired band interplay and sunning solos, is Joe's penchant for the British golden age of Rock/Blues. Tull's "New Day Yesterday" for example has been re-arranged to become something altogether tougher and more durable than the original. Asked what Ian Anderson thought about Joe covering the song, Joe says, that Ian gave him his blessing to play the song if he could name the guitarist who played on the original. I'd hazard a guess that Joe could probably tell you the colour of socks that Martin Barre was wearing at the time! Joking apart, it is Joe's real feel and enthusiasm for both playing and exploring the outer fringes of Rock Blues that makes him different, and a cut above the rest of his contemporaries. The closing Hendrix/Grateful Dead jam incorporated everything in his guitar playing arsenal, and above all he teased out the kernel of an elongated West Coast jam. This was a sumptuous ending to a memorable show that left me with a head full of slide guitar runs, jangling riffs, and the fanciful notion that there surely must have been more than a trio on stage. As I said, in an age when hype and style too often triumph over substance, Joe Bonamassa casts a beam of bright light over the often predictable and downright mundane Rock Blues genre. I'd venture that Joe's biggest career obstacle will lie in keeping his chops vibrant, his passion alive, and finding musical outlets for his imaginative guitar playing. For right now Joe Bonamassa is on fire, and to be honest the rock blues mantle could not be in more talented hands. - Pete Feenstra Storm Warning - Red Lion This was a night of some serious blues. The band, which included 3 members of J Fordaway, so you know the musicianship was going to be good included a vocalist with a voice just right for the blues. They played a good mix of slow and fast blues with the second set building the tempo nicely. Another good crowd saw and heard some really good playing with a good blues club atmosphere. It was a complete contrast to Daft the previous night but showed that a venue can mix the bands it has playing. I'm sure they will be back and I reckon that the word will spread and there will be even more people down for a great night of blues. CDL - Review from Red Lion website Rocking the Blues at the Limelight - Mick Abrahams Band + Storm Warning T he first night of ‘Rocking the Blues' at the Limelight’ was full to capacity. Local people in Aylesbury, have been starved of live blues recently and a chance to see this Storm Warning and The Mick Abrahams Band in one night, was something not to be missed.Storm Warning supporting Mick Abrahams Band, provided the night with some classy blues which started with John Mayall’s ‘Pieces and Parts’ and Robert Cray’s ‘Won the Battle’. They got a rousing applause on Keb Mo’s ‘Dangerous Mood’ and they played an original acoustic number ‘Big Man’ which involved acoustic guitar and acoustic bass, blazing harmonica and three time signature changes. Other numbers included Muddy Waters ‘She Moves Me’ which got guitarist Bob Mad Dog Moore a huge applause after his solo midway through the song. Two Delbert McClinton songs followed, lifting the tempo and pace with 'New York City' and the funky 'Lie No Better'. Storm Warning finished with Robben Ford’s Prison of Love and unexpectedly, for a support band, got such a reaction, they had to come back and do one more number, which was an unplanned, funky version of Lucky Peterson ‘Sea of Love’. The Mick Abrahams Band launched into ‘You Got It Wrong’ followed by the title track from the Mick Abrahams Band ‘Lies’ cd. This three piece band packs a punch, with Mick’s Gordon Smith guitar biting the air, in yer face style. Mick Abrahams is fond of using traditional songs and re arranging them, and making them his own, as on ‘Jesus on the Mainline’ and ‘Billy the Kid’ from the ‘All Said And Done’ album.
The set finished with ‘Going Down Slow’ and applause from an ecstatic audience that could have gone on all night. The band returned for the encore and played ‘Rock Me’, rocking the night away. To say the whole evening went very well would be an understatement, and the crowd went away excited about the next gig.
Review of The John O'Leary Band JOHN O'LEARY BAND at The Back Door Club, Torrington Its doubtful that any of the of the blues fans attending this gig could have anticipated just how good John O’Leary’s band was going to be. And they were better than good.The crowd appeared to be a mix of Torrington regulars, general blues fans, a gaggle of Savoy Brown fans and the rest it seemed, came courtesy of a radio plug. So much for the marketing analysis and now for the music. With a classic twin guitar attack topped by one of the most impressive harp tones in the capital, The John O’Leary band powered their way through one of the most enjoyable blues sets the old venue has seen in years. Above all this was a band effort, with German drummer Joachim Greve and the redoubtable Nick Townsend on bass holding down the bottom end with panache while and John subtly coaxed the best from his two young guitarists Jules Fothergill and Tim O’Sullivan.The band took the stage for an untitled funky instrumental, allowing each member just enough room to blow away the cobwebs, before O’Leary led the ensemble into an original reading of “Born In Chicago”, bolstered by a rhumba beat. In fact both sets were infused with as much Latino rhythms as shuffles. Isaac Scott’s “Let My Baby Ride” for example, offered a full blown rhumba beat with Jules Fothergill teasing out as splendid jazzy guitar run. John added a delicate harp solo to another funky Latino arrangement of his hero Junior Wells’ ”Snatch It Back”, and threw in an emotive vocal line and repeat harp excursion on the nicely understated “Who’s Been Talking” The second set gave full reign to the band’s virtuoso talents and even the most potentially predictable of songs such as “Black Cat Bone ”, became transformed into a funky workout complete with (don’t laugh) a climatic and humorous drum solo.By the time dived into a raucous encore of “Rock Me Baby” – complete with original Muddy Waters lyrics, and flailing guitars - the audience volume nearly matched that of the band. In short The John O’Leary band came, saw and beat fresh life into a ragged old genre.
BOOCIGALUPE & THE BAD BOYS at CATFORD BLUES CLUB at The Green Man
They say the grass is always greener on the other side. Well in the case of
Boccigalupe & The Bad Boys the band deliver everything you would expect from
a hard working outfit from Mixing some muscular r&b, with rocking blues and all round good time bar
room boogie, this is a band that once seen is never forgotten. For aside from some mighty playing, cracking solo’s a twin vocal attack, and
some great hooks, Boccigalupe is an outfit full of characters Bocci himself aka Tony Amato, is a diminutive Soprano’s lookalike, and a
very busy keyboard playing vocalist. He got his name from Springsteen no
less, and the Bruce/Nils Lofgren/Southside Johnny connection runs deep, as
Bocci has been a pivotal figure on the That said, and in spite of some rip roaring covers of "Treat Her Right", and
? this is a band in its own right. The title track of the album "It’s My
Turn Now" and the hugely fierce shuffle - simply titled "Hot Blues"- were
impressive enough before guitarist Billy "Boy Wonder" Walton and the mighty
Rich "The Taz" Taskwitz get to work on the wonderful bluesy ballad "Karma". In between sets we were treated to a wonderful wordsmith, Mr Bobby Strange,
who’s songs make you realise that when it all boils down to it, you can’t
beat heartfelt lyrics. The band slipped on stage to help Bobby out, before the house rocked to a
wrapped up, swinging version of "Jump For Joy" on which beefy harp of guest
John O’Leary swapped lines with all the front row instruments, with magical
results. If you can remember those dark distant days when a tour band played until they dropped, then Boccigalupe and his boys played it as it used to be. The rhythm section of bass player Kelly Tyrrell and drummer Tim Moss held down a rock steady beat, while the band tore their way through a set of great songs, played with gusto, and rare passion. Here’s to the band’s projected return next November Pete Feenstra
|
|
|
IAN
ELLIS BLUES IMPERIALS AT THE Band line-up Ian Ellis bass/vox; John O’Leary harp/vox; Tony Morley gtr/bass/vox; Gary Sandford gtr/vox; Alan Savage drums; Peter Terry keyboards For a review of the gig click here
|
|
|
Big Joe Turner at the 'Monday Blues' - Oxford Big Joe Turner and his Memphis Blues Caravan played the 'Monday Blues' at the Bullingdon, Cowley Road, Oxford Monday 10th Nov. The joint was jumping to some fine blues from the walking and funky blues bass lines of Big Joe and a Memphis Blues Caravan that was on fire all night. There was even a guest appearance from blues singer and former Drifter Clarence 'Tex' Walker. Not to be confused with the late rock & roller Joe Turner, this gentle giant of the blues boasts a forty year career that has seen him play record, arrange and tour with all the greats from BB King and Albert King to Little Milton, Al Green, Isaac Hayes and many more. For more info on Big Joe click here and to see more info on 'Monday Blues' gigs in Oxford click here
|
|
Gator Highway at the Rising Sun, Reading - gig review - click here
|
Gwyn Ashton-Fang It CD To read a review of this CD click here
|
|
| Popa Chubby - Live at FIP CD Big in New York, in fact he is big everywhere! Great entertaining guitarist mixing his blues with rock and a little soul and comes over well on this double live CD recorded in France. CD 1 has a fine version of Hey Joe and Hendrix's Fire and CD 2 has the classic Gloria. He mixes covers with his numbers and sounds alive! alive! For more info www.popachubby.com |
|
If you have a review of a CD or gig send it to us for consideration on the Rocking the Blues site.
Rocking the Blues does its best to ensure information is accurate but does not accept liability for any inaccurate information that may appear within its pages.
