Keepin' it alive for the future.

	Shemekia Copeland Talking To Strangers Alligator - ALCD4887
Review by Brian Augustine

.....This third disc for Alligator by the daughter of the late blues great, Johnny Copeland, sees her moving away from the blues belting style she established on her first two releases. On the first CD, Turn Up The Heat, she gathered around her a bevy of blues talent unprecedented for a newcomer. It was as if a new royalty was being presented to the world, her coming out so to speak. She exuded raw power and talent and, for all the world, looked like the next queen of the blues. Partly due to the talent around her and the excellent choice of material, a classic album was created.

.....Then her second album Wicked was released a year later and although the raw talent was still evident, mediocre material and arrangements resulted in a weaker sophomore effort. It too was full of no holds barred screaming vocals. As a result, critics were less receptive, seeing her basically as a one trick pony. So on this, her third, release it seems someone paid attention to the criticisms. Oh sure, there’s still the ballsy blues diva numbers, but interspersed are mellower ballads and dusky jazzy blues. In all her singing ability is used over a wider range of material and thereby demonstrating her versatility.

.....Guiding this makeover is none other than that impresario of the New Orleans sounds and rhythms, Dr.John. He also provides keyboards throughout and contributes a duet on ‘The Push I Need’ one of five tunes that he either wrote or had a hand in writing. Shemekia also co-wrote three tunes and covered one of her daddy’s songs ‘Pie In The Sky’ to appropriately close out the proceedings. The other frequent name cited for contributing to the fourteen tunes are John Hahn and Jon Tiven. Although, some players like John ‘Fingers’ Hahn on percussions and Arthur Neilson, guitars are holdovers from Shemekia’s previous efforts; most the other musicians seem to be session people around the New York City area. This is only appropriate since that city is currently home to both Shemekia and Dr.John and the CD was recorded at the famous Hit Factory in that metropolis.

.....Shemekia on this disc continues to demonstrate she is the lady in waiting to take Koko Taylor’s crown as a blues belter with tunes like ‘Sholanda’s’. On the other hand ‘When A Woman’s Had Enough’ shows that Etta James has an heir apparent, while the torch number that gives this disc its title ‘Talking To Strangers’ couldn’t have been done better by Irma Thomas herself. In all this album is a competent tour de force showing the critics there is another side to this lady of the blues.

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	The Ford Blues Band In Memory Of Michael Bloomfield Blue Rock’ It Records - BRCD-136
Review by Brian Augustine

.....The ‘Ford Blues Band’ is primarily the vehicle for Robben Ford’s brother Pat. Here he is joined by his more famous sibling and well-known friend Chris Cain. They join him in paying tribute to their mutual influential source, Michael Bloomfield. Bloomfield continues to be held in high esteem by many musicians as one of the most accomplished players in the last fifty years. Had he lived longer, he may have eclipsed such guitar heroes as Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Jeff Beck. As it is, his career was mostly played out in the shadows of other mighty musicians with whom he associated.

.....Early on, he was the guitarist for the ‘Butterfield Blues Band’ which also included Paul Butterfield, Mark Naftalin, Elvin Bishop and occasionally Dave Sanborn. He went on to ‘Electric Flag’ playing with Nick Gravenites, Buddy Miles and Barry Goldberg. Pretty high falutin’ company. He is also the guitar heard on Dylan’s, Highway 61 Revisited and made the monumental, “Super Sessions” album with Al kooper and Stephen Stills. All this was before his brief fling with a solo career. That all ended abruptly when he was found slumped over in his car seat on a San Francisco street in February 1981. He was only 37 years old when he died of an apparent drug overdose.

.....Given his meteoric career and participation in some of blues and rocks most historic recordings, it would be easy for someone doing a tribute to fall into cliché, choosing his most famous material. The ‘Ford Blues Band’ thankfully eschews that approach, instead they select numbers that are a bit more obscure. Another endearing quirk of this project, they interject five little interview snippets. These are interspersed between the thirteen tracks.

.....The opening cut makes the statement of how this album will challenge the listener; they are not going to shy away from Bloomfield’s most complex music. On the old ‘Electric Flag’ tune penned by Nick Gravenites, “Killing My Love” Chris Cain not only handles the fluid Bloomfield guitar lines, but does a respectable, gravelly rendition of Nick’s voice. They also with the addition of veteran session players like Mic Gillette on brass and John Lee Sanders on saxophone give the proceedings an appropriate dash of R&B spice. This horn section is sparingly employed but always to great effect.

.....They don’t completely steer away from the tried and true they did select a couple of the better known ‘Butterfield Blues Band’ numbers, “Blues With A Feeling” and “I Got A Mind To Give Up Living. On the latter tune, Andy Just sizzles on his harmonica solo and does Paul Butterfield proud. They also select a song from a rarely heard Bloomfield recording “Two Jews Blues’ entitled, “Jimi The Fox”. Another offbeat selection is from the soundtrack of Peter Fonda’s 60’s cult film “The Trip” an instrumental named after the movies star, “Peter’s Trip.

.....The only original number on the disc was written by Pat Ford and Volker Strifler and is a nostalgic yearning number that closes out the CD, “Blues For M.B.” This song really leaves the listener with sense of what we lost when Michael Bloomfield took his early out.

.....This is certainly one of the best tributes to another artist I’ve heard in a while and the approach taken to the project is unique and obviously heartfelt. Thank you Patrick Ford!

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	Omar & The Howlers Big Delta Blind Pig Records BPCD-5072
Review by Brian Augustine

.....Austin Texas based Omar Dykes brings his scratchy John Fogerty-like voice via Tom Waits, with Dr. John sensibility to this, his most menacing recorded effort in years. He’s in good form for these raucous set of Texas cum Louisiana swamp boogie for his debut outing on Blind Pig Records. The debt owed to John Fogerty is more than just a passing thing on this disc. On ‘Monkey land’ (a redux of his 1997 recording), not only does the melody line strike an occasional uncanny resemblance to Run Through The Jungle’, he also uses that title for one of the songs verses. Then there’s the vocal phrasing on Mississippi Queen’ and the melody line of Mystery Walk’ that bears similarities to Born on the Bayou’. All these are obvious nods to the king of 60’s, early 70’s pop blues/rock.

.....Fogerty is not the only influential source here, ‘Conversation Mambo’ could have easily been stuck on Tom Waits Mule Variations. In fact all the material on this album is edgier and more primitive that most the rest of his catalogue. This intention is signaled in the chain-gang style traditional acappella treatment given the uncredited opener, Linin’ track’. The guitar solos are sharper with stabbing riffs akin to some of Freddie King’s earlier work to a psychedelic guitar featured in, ‘Bad seed’.

.....Monkey Land’ is not the only song on this album to have been previously recorded by Omar. Most of these songs appear elsewhere in his discography. None of the songs, though, is a note for note recreation of the originals. On Muddy Springs Road’ (from the 1995 album of the same name) he gives it a distinctly more menacing tone than the original. This rising of the stakes for intensity seems to be the goal of this release. How well he succeeds is varied, Mystery walk’, Life Without You’ and Mississippi Queen’ (one of only two covers) have the feel of classic blues/rock. On the other end of the spectrum, Caveman Rock’ seems like a lightweight throwaway and Low Down Dirty Blues’ sound like a history lesson.

.....Also the inclusion of drummers Terry Bozzio (Missing Person’s/ Peter Wolf) and Frosty Smith (Lee Michaels/Butch Hancock) along with bassist Roscoe Beck (Jimmie Vaughn/Marcia Ball) are bound to lead to a greater intensity in the material. This though is not good for some of the material and when it isn’t, leads to an overbearing feeling. This is a good CD I feel confident in recommending but it does not beat out their best which remains 1987’s Hard Times In The Land Of Plenty.

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	Ronnie Baker Brooks Take Me Witcha Watchdog Records 337-02
Review by Brian Augustine

.....This is the first solo effort for the son of old bluesman Lonnie Brooks. He’s played on some of daddy’s previous recordings and contributed creditably. From the opening guitar riff on I Had My Chance he serves notice that the listener is in for a guitar extravaganza. He opens the tune by playing a Jimi Hendrix’ish version of Here Comes The Bride’ before launching into this lament of missed opportunity. In order to achieve this demonstration of guitar pyrotechnics Ronnie employs three separate rhythm sections.

.....The rockier, funkier numbers ‘I Had My Chance’, ‘Hit Me On The Hip and ‘Set Me Free’ for example, features Michael Bland, drums, Lloyd Thompson, bass and Stanley Howard, keyboards. This team achieves a fat, full sound that is more remenicient of the Henrix’s Experience or Double Trouble than the more traditional and straight blues outfits.

.....Starting on cut number three ‘See You Hurt Me More and continuing on through tunes like Do You Love Me Baby’, ‘It Takes A Smart Man To Play Dumb’, ‘Pick Powder and Time Will Tell’, Ron takes this CD into a more southern R&B styles. These range from the Stax/Volt sound to the down and dirty Texas Soul. The punch here is delivered by Steve Potts, drums, Dave Smith, bass and Ernest Williamson Keyboards. The sound depends on rich dynamics and textured tension between players and these guys achieve this goal effortlessly.

.....Finally, the more traditional Chicago blues style tunes like ‘Do You Love Me Baby’ and ‘ Give Me Your Heart’ are handled by drummer Jerry Porter, Vic Jackson bass and Daryl Coutts Keys. This aggregation has this loping, syncopated thing down pat.

.....Having musicians that Ronnie has total confidence in their limited role allows him to really explore the contributions he can make with his guitar and vocals. His vocals tend to be brash and husky and something like a Lucky Peterson on the funkier ditties and Percy Sledge on the more soulful tunes but always as if on steroids. He only seems to know one speed and that’s full throttle. Part of his maturation process may be learning to wrap his vocals warmly around a lyric.

.....His daddy, Lonnie, comes into the mix for the closing cut ‘Tough To Keep From Crying’ and shows him how to sing plaintively and expressively. He takes the lead vocal chores on this tune and lends warm authenticity to this simple country blues song. This also represents a fourth distinct style on this recording and a melancholic apostrophe to end it.

.....Considering Ronnie is credited with the authorship of all fifteen songs and co-producer chores it would seems he could grow into a major talent. And with the family experience and his immersion in the music industry he has all the pieces in place to be something special.

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	Coco Montoya Can’t Look Back Alligator Records - ALCD-4885
Review by Brian Augustine

.....This is Coco’s second album for Alligator and his most fully realized solo effort yet. It shows his talents both as a guitarist and vocalist from the very best angle he’s yet committed to recording. One reason for the change is his move away from the predominantly Albert Collins type of sound that has characterized his past solo outings.

.....Coco’s vocals take on the quality, of Delbert McClinton as he cultivates a rootsier, rockier presence than in the past. This change in approach and focus also carries over to his guitar playing that becomes more dynamic. These changes are a result of the different type of songs he chooses to cover. This imposed diversity in the arrangements of all this CD’s offerings. He only had a hand in writing of five of the discs thirteen tracks so the majority are covers.

.....Of particular interest are couple of the songs he chooses to cover. These cuts demonstrate his willingness to explore music far afield his past and experiment. One is the siminal Holland, Dozier, Holland penned Motown chestnut ‘Something About You’, recorded and made famous by the Four Tops in the early sixties. This doesn’t intimidate Coco takes it head on, rocking it up and not even particularly giving a nod to the songs illustrious origins. What this brazen approach accomplishes is to allow the listener to take his interpretation on its own merits. The other curiosity is the Stephen Bruton tune ‘Trip, Stumble and Fall’. Bruton’s most notable achievements have been as a producer. Most notable among these is the production efforts for alt-country artist, Jimmy Dale Gilmore on his acknowledged classic ‘After Awhile’. Coco renders with fat rock guitar, countered by a stuttering New Orleans second-line rhythm underpinning. Add to these the soulful pair ‘No longer a Part Of Your Dreams’ (feature a great sax solo by Joe Sublett) and ‘Holding Out For You’. These are two numbers would be great have playing while you go cruisin’. Then you have the funked up swing of ‘Back In A Cadillac’. To that add, the West Coast rock anthem feel of the CD closer ‘Free’. All this is pretty varied fare.

.....The weakest cut on the CD seems to be the only Albert Collins tune ‘Same Old Thing’. This has been Coco’s standard fare over his last few albums and has become numbing after repeated listenings. His vocals on these numbers, tends to be an effected growl and they sound forced. His guitar playing, although note perfect, sounds perfunctory. Hopefully, this divergent experiment will demonstrate to him the need for stretching himself.

.....This more eclectic approach suits what seems to have a natural inclination. His solos are tasteful and melodic and push each song along a grooving path. The inclusion of these R&B and Rock sources flow naturally and are likely what he was exposed to growing up. Any way you cut this seems to be a direction that could likely lead to continued artistic growth, critical acclaim and hopefully high sales figures.

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	Duke Robillard New Blues For Modern Man Shanachie - CD-9017
Review by Brian Augustine

.     This 1999 CD by one of the blues most storied guitarists is a tour-de-force that demonstrates what he has learned in over 30 years. As a founding member of Roomful of Blues back in 1967 and then taking on the enormous task of replacing Jimmie Vaughan in the Fabulous Thunderbirds in 1990, he never shirked a challenge. What he learned across that checkered history all comes together on this disc.

     Unlike some of his other theme recordings like the more Texas styled 1997 release Dangerous, or the jazzy 1999 Conversation in Swing Guitar he merges all his influences on this release. There is always danger in that strategy of losing focus and the album coming sounding like an incoherent hodge-podge.

     This album starts with a Chuck Berry style Rock’n’Roll tune ‘Jumpin’ Rockin’ Rhythm’ moves straight on to a loping Texas style blues number ‘Pony Blues’ with sax supporting his national steel guitar playing. Also represented is a Duke/Peacock horn dominated cut ‘Good Man’ with a sinewy guitar line weaving in and out. Then there’s the calypso flavored ‘You’re My One And Only’. Well you get the idea; he never sits still and repeats himself.

.....For the most part, he does pull off this eclectic hat trick. He only seems to falter a couple of times where he took on material beyond his vocal scope like on ‘Good Man’ and ‘Hurt Me’. Duke is even able to pull off two extended ‘Love Sick’ and the disc closer ‘Big Bottom Blues’, that clocks in at nine minutes, forty-six seconds. This latter tune also sports some dynamite baritone sax by Doug James that is just the right enhancement for Duke’s airy Wes Montgomery influenced guitar.

.....All told, this CD represents a tasty example of this talented player’s repertoire.

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	Bose Branham Vet’s Lament Indie - (call 530/622-3313)
Review by Brian Augustine

.....This EP length disc is one of those unheralded treats that make exploring music so much fun. Bose presents the blues with a genuine feel and vocal styling, reminecient of Boz Scaggs in his first Silk Degrees phase.His accompaniment includes Sammy Piazza who has major league credentials as the drummer for the likes of Elvin Bishop. He also has played with some of the greats since the beginning of the 70’s. People like Michael Bloomfield, Luther Tucker, Rod Piazza and Dr. John. His mentor was none other than blues harmonica legend James Cotton. Therefore, it can be seen he certainly has the pedigree.

.....As mentioned above, Bose vocals recall the soulful Boz Scaggs and he does this without sounding affected or forced. His singing in fact is natural sounding and compelling and owes as much to 1970’s white soul in style as to 1950’s and 60’s blues singers. His harmonica playing reflects the man he learned from James Cotton and sometimes fellow traveler Carey Bell. All five of the tunes presented here are written by Bose and in traditional Chicago blues arrangements. There is nothing amateurish in the arrangement or performance of the material. That said, lyrically and melodically he does not stray to far from the tried and true elements of the Chicago blues form on four of the five cuts. The exception is the title cut ‘Vets Lament”’ This is the most insightful and accurate reflection I’ve heard on record of what it is like to be a returning VietNam veteran. He accomplishes this without bravado, polemics or pandering.

.....What I’d like to hear now from Mr. Branham is a full-length effort and him tapping into whatever songcraft that produced Vets Lament, for each song of the new effort. That would be a terrific and classic disc.

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	Cold Blood Vintage Blood :Live! 1973 Dig Music - 104
Review by Brian Augustine

.....This disc only serves as further evidence of how good this band was in their heyday. Cold Blood was one of a triumvirate of Bay Area bands that pioneered funk in the late 60’s early 70’s (the others being of course T.O.P. & Sly & the Family Stone). The band was always known for their energized dynamic live performances, yet this is actually the first one to be committed to a recording. The tracks were laid down in a small Bay Area recording studio in front of a small live audience back in 1973, hence the title. I don’t know what took them so long to put this set out, or where the original tapes have been languishing all these years.

     The fact that this was a live show in a recording studio led to superb results in sound quality and that particular night the band was loose and hitting on all cylinders. All the cuts are tunes they’d already committed to vinyl on studio albums, so no surprises there. On the other hand, the extemporaneous performances make these entirely different readings of the material. Also, these versions are much longer than the same songs committed to vinyl so many years ago. Still with the musicianship and intensity of performance, the band has no problem keeping the listener riveted to each note and waiting to see what comes next.

     Throughout Lydia Pence demonstrates why many considered her the vocal equal of the great Janis Joplin. Listen to her play off the horns on Feel So Bad’. Then catch the scat contest she engages in with Skip Mesquite and his sax on Kissin’ My Lov’”. Then there is the controlled vocal chord shredding squealing on the gospelish I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free’. Rarely has anyone demonstrated such vocal chord shredding pyrotechnics and it makes me wonder why she never achieved the acclaim she deserved.

     Then on the jazzy Funky On My Back she demonstrates the ability to be smooth and mellow things out. She gives a wonderful multi-octave delivery that blends seamlessly into a duet with keyboardist Raul Matute. This cut also contains one of the most frenzied horn bridges I can recall hearing.

     My biggest complaint is that it is so short and only contained five tracks. It almost seems like a tease, but any length of music this good is welcome.

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	Charlie Musselwhite One Night In America Telarc Records - CD-83547
Review by Brian Augustine

.....One thing that characterizes most exceptional recording efforts is the confidence and courage of the musician in charge, who isn’t afraid to bend rules and traditions. This recording obviously fits that profile in courage. Charlie certainly is set for it at this point in his career. He’s established himself since the release of 1967’s Stand Back Here Comes Charlie Musselwhite as one of the premiere bluesmen alive today. He has also had a series of critically acclaimed blues albums throughout the 90’s that have kept him fresh in the blues audience’s mind. He’s also been tabbed to have his harmonica grace so many other artists’ albums that he’s probably lost track, I know I certainly have. So nothing he does on one disc is going to taint that reputation.

.....This project he designed to represent all the forms of American music he heard growing up in and around Memphis. So, it’s a song cycle that diverges significantly from the work most people are used to hearing from this graying Mississippian. This difference all starts with the album title One Night In America’, which is taken from the chorus of one of the most thought provoking social commentaries ever written by Los Lobos’ One Time, One Night’. A song written describing how people face arbitrary violence in gang ridden L.A. It takes on whole new and generalized dimension in Charlie’s hands.

.....This disc consists of twelve tunes, eight covers and four originals, that were all written sometime over the last five decades. But never mind that, they all go through the blender and could have been written yesterday or a hundred years ago. He chooses his covers from divergent sources. They include Johnny Cash’s Big River’, in which he injects some blues flavoring, while maintaining the country vocal flavor. Then there’s R&B great Ivory Joe Hunter’s Cold Grey Light Of Dawn’. This latter song conveys the depth of despair that only a despondent alcoholic could understand. The accent of Marty Stuart’s melancholy country style guitar lines adds to the song’s sense of hopelessness. This diverse approach and material continues with numbers like Albert Brumley’s Rank Strangers To Me’, Pontus Snibb’s, Walking Alone’ and Kieran Kane’s In A Town This Size’, characterize all the covers here. What they all have in common is that they all evoke childhood memorie.

.....The tunes most recognizable as coming from Charlie are three of the four he penned for this effort. They would have fit nicely on any of his albums, from 1990’s Ace Of Harps to 1999’s Continental Drifter. The fourth, I’ll Meet You Over There, is an instrumental in this incarnation but you can look forward to it being re-recorded in the future, once he puts word to it.

.....One of the things that make this CD sound so different is the choice of musicians he works with. The core band consisted of Saturday Night Live’s guitarist G.E. Smith, and well traveled bassist T-Bone Wolk and Pat Hanson drums. Country spice is added when Marty Stuart pipes in playing guitar and mandolin. Jazz/blues overtones accompany the guitar contributions of longtime (although much younger) friend Robben Ford. The real atmosphere here though is derived from the female singers Christine Ohlman and Kelly Willis when they provide either duets and/or back-up vocals to several numbers.

.....This is not the straight ahead blues album you’d expect from Charlie Musselwhite, but if you want to support his stretching his musical boundaries, then you should try this disc on for size.

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	Bettye Lavette A Woman Like Me Blues Express - BE10004
Review by Brian Augustine

.....This CD is the equivalent of a debut for this veteran blues diva. The rationale for this statement is because it’s her first full-length recording in 20 years. The easy comparisons of her voice and style are to Betty Wright (The Clean-Up Woman) and Irma Thomas. Long languidly held notes that characterize the ballads and her strong R&B sensibility that marks the uptempo numbers are the reasons for those impressions.

.....One of the things that struck me immediately was a certain professional sheen on this recording. Likely this is the result of her collaboration with Dennis Walker who not only twisted the knobs on this disc but either wrote or co-wrote most of its tunes. He is best known for his work with Robert Cray, especially his breakthrough album. On this disc, two cuts might sound familiar to fans of Robert Cray. He recorded both ‘The Forecast and ‘Right Next Door, and these songs are a frequent part of his live repertoire. What makes the numbers stand out is that Bettye flips them to a female perspective. In so doing, she makes these tunes her very own.

.....Although, most of these songs are covers (the exception being the disc closer ‘Hey, Hey Baby), the production and tempo seems planned to give her maximum room to stretch her considerable vocal talents. Primary examples of this is the achingly nostalgic ballad ‘Thru The Winter or the emotion fest of ‘Thinkin’ ‘Bout’ You’ and ‘It Ain’t Worth It After A While’. The more jazzy tunes are no less stylistically charged, check out the muted tones that convey the desolation of Salt On My Wounds, or the driving ‘Serves You Right. This disc even contains song capable of being a single, the feisty and syncopated ‘When A Woman’s Had Enough. It has all the elements, its catchy, its chorus sticks in your brain and you can dance to it.

.....In all she and her players and producer have fashioned a strong entry that should rightfully expose Bettye to a wide audience and give her the acclaim that has so far unjustly eluded her.

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	Eddie Cotton Extra Undadawg Records - 6039CD
Review by Brian Augustine

.....Eddie is a young man that has been receiving a groundswell of word of mouth praise. His tenor voice conjures up images of Al Green. A bit more soulful and edgy and with less sheen than that 70’s R&B icon, but nevertheless the comparison is certainly evident. He even covers one of the Reverends most famous numbers ‘Take Me To The River. On this jam, check out the synth charts that the imitate horns of James ‘Hot Dog’ Lewis provides, they are amazing.

.....From all reports, this release is slicker and more polished than his previous efforts. One tradition noted that he continues to carry on is the vocal dexterity touted by reviewers. These are the efforts that have garnered him the most critical acclaim. On this disc, he moves effortlessly from R&B ballads to flat-out blues.

.....The grittiest, bluesy tunes here are the driving self-penned honky-tonk gem Time Will Tell, the Howlin’ Wolf number Killing Floor, and the Willie Dixon song Let Me Love You Baby. On these tunes, his primary guitar influence is obviously Albert Collins; elsewhere his guitar effects a hollowed, jazzier sound of Wes Montgomery. This results in these tunes having an airy almost light sound.

.....As for track selection, the CD contains six originals among it’s thirteen cuts. For the most part, it’s an intimate R&B party record, with some blues and gospel overtones. Unlike prior releases, gone are the overt gospel influences in favor of using it as shading and coloration. Introduced this time out are the sophisticated R&B meets Jazz. His tenor wouldn’t tolerate anything as harsh and primitive as gospel or straight out country blues. This album with it’s subtle shadings seems meant for late night listenings with some special other.

.....He continues to employ most of the same musicians who were with him as on his last two outings. This includes both his debut CD and his live release Live At The Alamo. These musicians are Myron Bennett on bass, Derrick Martin on drums and Chalmers Davis and James ‘Hot Dog’ Lewis on keyboards. This familiarity with his supporting cast results in a tight sound where it’s obvious each knows what to expect from the other.

.....Although this may not be his landmark album Eddie does change up on his audience and demonstrates his versatility and all without missing a beat. This release CD should broaden his fan base without risking losing anyone he has already become a fan.

	Jackie Greene Rusty Nails Dig Music - DIG111
Review by Brian Augustine

.....As soon as I began listening, I began casting about for comparisons for this 22-year-old local multi-instrumentalist, singer/songwriter. The first vague similarity I had was to Jacob Dylan and Wallflower. This was even before the end of the opening song; 'Pale Blue Monday' had finished. I thought this had folk/alt single written all over it. The second cut 'Santa Fe Girl' came up and I realized that this guy was no one trick pony. Its pulsating rhythms and fluid melody carried me away with the song.

      Listening to the vocal phrasing on 'The Lord Mistreats Me', even a strong connection to daddy Bob was apparent. You could tell he'd listened a lot to 'Rainy Day Woman', 'Stuck In Memphis' era Dylan and was strongly influenced. Another comparison that jumped out at me was, like them; he tends to address big points through small stories, usually in the third person. Even the picture on the CD liner notes reinforces this whole Dylan connection.

      Oh, he has other influences as well, the title cut 'Rusty Nails' reminds me of social critic, Tonio K. in a countrified mood. Mixed in are some gruff, then whimsical vocals and satirical lyrics that bring up images of John Prine and Tom Waits. All the while these influences stay just, no where could he be said to be imitating these artists though they are obvious sources that inspired him. They inform his sense of humor and keen observations of human nature, not dictate it. This whole effort belies his youth and he strikes me as a major talent. Weather he ever reaches his potential is something we will have to see, but this record certainly demonstrates it. 

     The only thing here that approaches the blues in reality is the closing number, the six minute 'Freeport Boulevard'. This also contains his most scorching guitar solo as well. When all is said and done even this number reflects his alt sensitivity that he brings to it. On this disc Jackie is responsible for all guitars, dobro, keyboards and harmonica, bringing in only a rhythm section of bass and drums and a fiddler. 

      This may not be a blues album, but it certainly is not a bad album either. My best wishes go to him and hope he finds a way to market his sound that I believe has the potential to be big.

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	The Hoodoo Kings The Hoodoo Kings Telarc CD-83532
Review by Brian Augustine

.....This trio, that makes up the title group, by no means are new. In fact, they are all three long time Louisiana musical mainstays getting together to make music. They tend to spread the lead chores around fitting the musician to the tune rather than the other way around. How else can you explain the weird choice of 'I Fought The Law'. This unusual cover, though not the best cut and lacks energy, shows courage as the lead vocalist is Eddie Bo who insinuates a smooth B.B.King style.
'Stumble And Fall' finds Raful opening with a speaking blues with his earthy voice, then 'Rockin' Tabby Thomas jumps in with his energized angry vocals. This is my favorite cut on the album. It's a song about how others come around like vultures to just wait and make a profit off of others misery. Great guitar work also characterizes this cut. On 'Monkey Business', a syncopated number with slide guitar, we find Tabby Raful along with Eddie Bo swapping vocals.

     This trading of vocal chops is what characterizes this effort, along with some very ingenious covers. Their ability to nail the essence of a song is really demonstrated when cover Bob Dylan's 'If I Don't Be There By Morning'. It opens with a gentle, delicate guitar riff and evolves into Tabby and Eddie exchanging vocal licks.

     They of course make room to express their own chops as well. 'Mean And Evil Woman' highlights Tabby's loopy, tension filled guitar and Eddie's piano provides a steady foundation. Raful's harmonica is the playful root that drives, 'I've been mistreated' a smooth upbeat urbane number. On the cut you'd expect 'I am A Hoodoo King', they all take turns on lead vocals and instrumental solo breaks on this shuffle number.

     This CD is a fun tribute to three of Louisiana's elder statesmen of the blues and a rare example of musical cooperation and how it's supposed to work. It's not a big splashy release, but it's ultimate goal of satisfying the listener is certainly achieved.

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	Tim Gonzalez & Friends A Tribute To Danny: Straight From The Heart SVR Records - 10014
Review by Brian Augustine

.....Tim Gonzalez is the latest entry into the sweepstakes, for best contemporary blues harmonica players. He's going up against the likes of Norton Buffalo, Curtis Salgado and R.J.Mischo. How does he fair, pretty well actually. He doesn't blow them away, but he does establish his own niche. He does this with his Lee Oskar inspired work on 'Groove Thang' and his latin solo break, on of all thing, the venerable classic 'Summertime'. What other blues harmonica player has ever thought to play a Latin Blues solo to this tune, only Tim Gonzalez. My first take, was that it was a false step, recording this old chesnut. It has been done hundreds of times with at least a dozen versions considered definitive, then comes that harmonica solo.

      As a debut it is expected that he'd run the gamut, this shows the breadth of the musicians talent, he doesn't disappoint, Chicago blues is represented by 'Can't Hold On' , the jump style is alluded to on 'Greyhound Driver' . A Jazz feel is conveyed on the instrumental 'For Mona's Love'. This tune would have felt comfortable in the grooves of Lee Oskar's 1976 solo debut. It conjures up images of lazy summer days, with Tim's harmonica sending fluid sounds wafting across the soft warm air. The Delta swamp sound is referenced on the appropriately titled 'Mississippi Blues'. Throughout this blues stew he demonstrates his level of comfort with and command of, each of these styles.

     This project is definitely Tim's, his harmonica is front and center throughout the disc. He's ably assisted by a solid, if revolving rhythm section, consisting of mainly David Northrup on drums, but with Rick Brothers or Pat McDonald substituting on three tracks. There are also a trio of bass players with Randy Coleman being most frequently used. The most valuable sideman award on this recording, has to go to Johnny Neel for his keyboard contributions throughout and most especially his dynomite vocals on the powerful roadhouse opener 'Murdered By Love'. Another meritorious supporting cast award goes to Anthony Gomes for his throaty vocals and piercing guitar on his own song that he contributed to this CD 'Voodoo Moon'. This number is a syncopated romp, along the lines (same tempo and rhythm) of 'Congo Square '. These two tunes certainly are two of this discs high points.

      The real heart though is a trio of Tim's self-penned instrumentals. His harmonica playing on these songs gives vitality to the swing/jump styling of 'Groove Thang', the syncopated nostalgia to his tribute to his deceased brother, and the boyancy to the lilting 'Straight From The Heart'. Each of these tunes owes a debt, to one of Tim's obvious influences, Lee Oskar the harmonica player for the great 70's band, 'War'. His incorporation of this style is so complete and natural, it seems unfair to Tim to make the comparison with any other player. 

      In fact, to hell with comparing Tim to any body else. He most definitely shows himself to be his own man, beholden to no others and has laid out an album that gives the audience a sampler of what he is about. What he seems to be about is laying out some tasty harmonica based rock and blues.

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	Frankie Lee Here I Go Again Blues Express - BED-0001-2
Review by Brian Augustine

.....This soul drenched, R&B CD is a recording that Wilson Pickett wished he had made for his comeback. The disc was seemingly molded from the bottom clay from the river that flows through Memphis or out to sea at Muscle Shoals. Frankie's vocal performance throughout is extraordinary; it combines the intensity of Wilson Pickett with the smoothness of Don Covay and the power of Sam Moore. Other reviews have labeled him if as todays Otis Redding and indeed this disc contains' a tip of the hat to the man on 'Open The Door', but if anything, this appellation doesn't recognize his other obvious influences. 

     In melding these influences, Frankie comes up with an honest integration of his experiences. As a youth, he came up as many others in this time and place singing southern gospel in church. Then in the early 60's, he recorded for the famed Don Robey Duke/Peacock label and was a contemporary of Bobby Bland and Sonny Rhodes. This exposure led to him being picked up by the Ike & Tina Turner Revue. Later in the 60's, he worked with many of soul and blues stars. These included, Junior Parker, O.V.Wright, Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, Joe Hinton and Albert Collins. This being only a partial list of the luminaries he played with until the late 70's. Finally, he broke out on his own, no longer a sideman he moved to the San Francisco Bay Area. It was in one of his early back-up bands that he hired the then young and unknown guitarist Robert Cray.

     The material he chooses on this offering are mostly covers, but they blend seamlessly as if woven by a master. The two self-penned originals are the bluesy title cut 'Here We Go Again' and the sing/speak number which is the albums weakest link, the repetitious moral paean 'The Snake'. The title cut let's puts everybody on notice that he can write an instant soul/blues classic.

      Of the covers, many are perennials, such as Robert Johnson's' Crossroads', Eugene Smiley's 'I Really Love You', Chester Burnett's (AKA Howlin' Wolf) 'Smokestack Lightnin' and Hamilton Arthur's 'Cry Me A River'. Where these songs have been done innumerable times by innumerable artists, he breaths new life into them with his soul infused voice and style and unusual approach.

     'Crossroads' comes off as a pleading soulful ballad with a great Bobby Murray, Albert King like guitar solo. 'I Really Love You' is a Stax/Volt style soul scorcher and 'Smokestack Lightnin' is characterized by it's smooth vocal delivery, backed by a country blues guitar, while 'Cry Me A River' is given a distinct jazz treatment. Whichever way you cut it, he makes these oft-recorded tunes his own in such a way you don't even think of comparing his renditions to the originals. Other standout tracks are the Little Milton style take on Robert Cray's 'Playin' With My Friends' and the rockin' CD closer 'Rock My Soul'. 

     Frankie's ability to make familiar material seem new and fresh is the overriding theme on this recording. He coaxes every note through his powerful vocal filter and has a knack of finding appealing alternative arrangements to familiar material. Another attraction this disc offers is that it captures the same immediacy of his legendary live performances. It dosen't seem over produced or rehearsed thanks to the work of Bobby Murray and Steve Savage. In the end, it makes one wish he visited the studio more frequently.

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