Bman's Blues Report

I just received the newest release, Southside Blues from Daniel DeVita and it's great! The feeling starts on the front of the cover with a blues player sitting in a dark wood trimmed room, surrounded by vintage guitars and amp equipment, holding a vintage mic and wearing blue and orange shoes. This screams old style Chicago! On yeah, and there is a mono stereo compatible note on the CD. Nice touch! This is the attention that DeVita has put into this really cool release. Opening with John Brim's, You Got Me Where You Want Me , DeVita leads on vocal and guitar, backed by Mariano D'Andrea on bass, Gabriel Cabiaglia on drums and featuring Nicolas Smoljan on harp. This track smells like Chicago! Excellent! On Little Walter's, One Of These Mornings , DeVita really lays out some tasty guitar riffs and this release is rolling. Muddy Waters' Standing Around Crying is up next and DeVita really nails it. The soulful vocals, the slinky slide and howlin' harp... excell...

I just received the newest instructional blues book, Chicago Blues Rhythm Guitar... The Complete and Definitive Guide by Steady Rollin' Bob Margolin and Dave Rubin and it has it all. This book starts at the beginning with simple tips on setup and history. Then as you start to get into the tablature, it's all written out there for you, beginning with a boogie shuffle on the bass strings.What's really cool is they go further and show it's application in a way that you know how to apply it. Sliding 9ths never sounded so easy. These give the track fullness say like on Stormy Monday. Comping gives your track a Freddie Green richness. And flat tire that odd note out used quite effectively by SRV on Pride and Joy. The box shuffle is a standard of Buddy Guy for example. Once you understand the root it makes it soo much easier to fill. Jimmy Reeds "two beat" style is also covered. Next E major and A Major keys are covered with basic runs. On this you can build th...

Guitarist John McKinley releases debut recording Window On The World Now on iTunes and  www.johnmckinleyband.com   View Window On The World EPK here Hailing from Roswell, New Mexico, guitarist John McKinley cut his teeth as a young man playing in a variety of rock, blues and horn bands, honing his skills as a guitarist and songwriter while relentlessly touring across the Southern U.S. With his debut recording, Window on the World , McKinley channels the sounds of his Texas influences:  Freddie King, Johnny Winter and ZZ Top. Add a dash of the cerebral voodoo of Frank Zappa and the deep soul of McKinley’s Mexican roots and you have a musical palette that serves up guitar-driven blues-rock paired with classic sing-a-long melodies.“I think this album has a lot of musical qualities, but it’s most definitely a guitar album. It’s more rock than blues - a cross-section of all the ...

I just received the newest release, I Mean Business from Lara Price and it's got spunk. Opening with R&B track, Get It When I Want It , Price leads the way on vocal backed by Derrick Martin on drums, Steve Evans on bass, Kid Andersen on guitar, Micheal Peloquin on sax, Micheal Rinta on trombone, Mike Rose on trumpet, Sue McCracklin and Maureen Smith on backing vocals. With it's Motown overtones, this track is cool! With a bit more of a Memphis sound, Cryin' Over You has a smooth, soul sound. With warm horn backing, Smith and McCracklin on backing vocal and with Mighty Mike Schermer on lead guitar, this track has strong commercial potential. With a Latin rhythm, traces of Procol Harem and a thick thread to Bond themes, Undone dances along nicely. Schermer rips a clean guitar solo punched up by the horn section and the driving bass work of Evans. Moon In The Mirror has super balance and may be my favorite track on the release. Price's vocals are creamy smooth...

I just received the newest release, I'll Be Home For Christmas from Kenny Neal and it has a bit of blues mixed into it's traditional and modern Christmas. Opening with upbeat 12 bar number, Christmas Comes But Once A Year , Neal takes the lead on vocal and harp with Vestie Jackson on guitar, Darnell Neal on piano, Frederick Neal on keys and Bryan Morris on drums. With a slower pace classic Christmas ballad, Silver Bells gets a R&B, Ray Charles flavor. Neal does a real nice job on lead vocals and guitar backed by Darnell, Fredrick and Bryan. Next up is a rolling version of Winter Wonderland featuring Syreeta Neal on lead vocal, Kenny on harp and guitar, and Kenny Neal Jr on bass and drums. Very nice! Syreeta does a real nice job on Merry Little Christmas backed by Joel Joseph on piano. On Please Come Home For Christmas , Kenny is back up front on lead vocal and guitar, backed by Fredrick on piano, Bryan on drums and Vestie and Darnell on guitars. Kenny's guitar s...

I just received the newest release, Dirty Memory , from JJ Appleton & Jason Ricci and I really like it! Opening with Leaning Blues , JJ Appleton really nails the Elmore James feel on slide resonator and Jason Ricci is wailing on harp for a terrific acoustic blues feel. Blind Willie Johnson's Nobody's Fault But Mine is up next with an uptempo foot stompin' pace. With a more contemporary feel, Appleton delivers Can't Believe It's This Good . A cordial blend of vocal, tight harp riffs and mellow slide resonator, this track should have strong radio appeal. Nicely constructed pop track, New Man , is a really nice showcase for Ricci on vocal and harp. Jason Solo is an understatement but accurate. Rici takes his harp for a nice ride from train harp to the world of Lee Oskar. Very nice! Just Enough is a rambling blues track with a nice melody and harp and slide guitar in unison. Nicely blended, this is a cool track. The Rolling Stones', Black Limousine , has a...

I just received the newest release, I Ain't Lyin'... , from Charlie Musselwhite and its Chicago style blues pure and simple. Opening with Latin flavored, Good Blues Tonight , Musselwhite is joined by Matt Stubbs on guitar, June Core on drums and Steve Froberg on bass. With classic Musselwhite harp styling and a snazzy guitar solo by Stubbs this is a cool opener. Elmore James' Done Somebody Wrong , is up next and has classic 70's arrangement not unlike Beck and Page or the Allmans but with Musselwhite's signature vocals and harp riffs. Stubbs has a clean guitar dialog which, with cool vibrato has a punch of it's own. Long Lean Lanky Mama is one of my favorite tracks on the release with it's freewheeling harp and deliberate guitar attack. Very nice! Slow blues, Always Been Your Friend , really gives Stubbs a solid floor to solo on guitar and Musselwhite delivers nicely on harp and vocals. Morganfield style, If I Should Have Bad Luck , is a great toe tappe...

I just received the newest release, Over Your Head , by Josh Smith and I really like it! Opening with aggressive blues rocker, How Long , Smith takes no time at all establishing his presence. A heavy bass line by Calvin Turner, drums by Lemar Carter and solid vocals and lead guitar by Josh Smith, this track hits hard. With rock solid footing, Smith sets the track on fire with creative guitar riffs. His work is also complimented by Joe Bonamassa on guitar. Excellent! Title track, Over Your Head , is a well written rocker with grinding guitar riffs and gravelly vocals. I really like Smith's poise and guitar attack which shows both composure and explosiveness. Very cool! Strongly blues oriented, When I Get Mine , has a modified shuffle feel with cool blues guitar phrasing over a melodic bass line. Very smooth! Walking jazz bass line by Turner sets the pace for Still Searching with Jeff Babko on keys. This is a really nice improvisational piece that has a great groove. First Hand...

I just received the newest release, Blood In My Eyes For You , from Bert Deivert & Copperhead Run and it's quite good! Opening with Big Joe William's Baby Please Don't Go , Deivert do an uptempo version, leading on vocal and mandolin and backed by Fredrick Lindholm on drums and percussion, Janne Zander on guitars and Per-Arne Pettersson on bass. Son House's Death Letter has a smooth sink to it with cool slide riffs under the melody. With mandolin highlights accenting, this is one of the best redo's of this track I have heard. Sleepy John Estes' Mailman Blues is up next and taken in strong 12 bar format. Lead by a strongly reinforced rhythm pattern by Zander and Pettersson, Deivert's vocals and mando playing are super and a strong slide effort by Zander is tops. Original, Black Nanny , has a much more contemporary sound with bass intro by Pettersson. Zander's slide work and Deivert's mando work are nice compliments to Deivert's vocals. V...

                                                                        "Butterflies & Snakes" By Crooked Eye Tommy Climbing National Radio Charts, Receiving Great Reviews From California To Croatia!     Ventura County Blues Society Nominates "Butterflies & Snakes" In 'Best Self-Produced CD' Category, 2016 International Blues Challenge         "The World's Gonna See...What A Crooked Eye Can Do"   - from "Crooked Eye Tommy" on Butterflies & Snakes       When Tommy Marsh and Crooked Eye Tommy released Butterflies & Snakes in August of 2015, little did the Ventura County-based blues musician realize how well the...

      It's A BLUESPOWER Special Holiday Show Benefiting Children's Hospital Los Angeles Featuring Some Very Special Guest Musicians From The Southern California Blues, Music Community   Wednesday, December 23, 7-10 pm/COSTELLO'S in Mission Viejo     *Hosted By Kenny "Big Daddy" Williams & the BLUESPOWER Band* ...