Bman's Blues Report

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Battle of the Blues, Chicago vs Oakland id it's drips soul. Opening with Broke Ass Man , a sweaty, R&B track by Mz. Sumac, you got honest to goodness soul and hot vocals over warm organ and piano  by Chris Burns, and deep bass by Aldwin London. Willie Nelson's, Ain't It Funny How Time Slips Away has a great soulful take by Aldwin London, a super singer and bass player with soulful sax by John Brumbach singing to the music. Very nice. Take It Easy features the lap steel soloing of Freddie Roulette over a cool Twist Turner melody.  Rusty Zinn's slashing guitar style steps forward on Good Morning Mr. Blues and the vocal prowess of Nat Bolden. Pure blues all the way with Leo Q. Allen on trumpet, a great track. "Mr Excitement", Del Brown belts out a soulful, Now That I've Gone . Showing incredible soul prowess, Brown has a powerful voice that carries the understated instrumentation. Brum...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent Landslide Records Tribute to Sean Costello and it's really cool. Opening with Same Old Game , Albert Castiglia puts up a rumbling 2 step and lays down some real nice guitar work for an excellent opener. Steve Marriner brings How In The Devil with it's perfect shuffle beat great vocals and harp work. Title track, Don't Pass Me By has an almost spiritual feel with Victor Wainwright leading the way. This is an excellent blues ballad with great tension and stinging guitar work. Bob Margolin's guitar work on Low Life Blues is really outstanding with super Muddy Waters like slide and riffs. I always love the Mississippi All Stars and their rural approach and their treatment of Father is no different. With fat slide work and excellent vocals over a basic essential drum beat and keys make the track my favorite on the release. Debbie Davies brings shuffle track, Don't Be Reckless With My Heart and does a great jo...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Pocket Full of Nothin' , from Big Dave McLean and it has a great feel. Opening with Songs of the Blues , a strutting blues rocker with Big Dave on guitar and vocal, Steve Dawson on  excellent slide guitar, Gary Craig on drums, Jeremy Holmes on bass, Chris Gestrin on piano, Malcolm on trumpet, Jerry Cook on bari sax and Dominic Conway on tenor sax. Solid opener. I really like McLean's expressive vocals on Backwards Fool with the National steel guitar behind for contrast and Aiken's muted trumpet as an accent. Very nice. Boogie track, Voodoo Music has a great groove and Dawson's tremolo over his slide work creates a cool shimmer. A strong, slower blues entry is Just To Be With You . McLean creates a real dark atmosphere with his powerful vocals and Dawson's slide work is tight and energized. Very nice. Wrapping the release is ballad, There Will Always Be A Change . With it's springy, country blue...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Live , from Teresa James & The Rhythm Tramps and it's jam packed full of blues, R&B and soul. Opening with In The Pink , a funky, R&B number with hot vocal work and keys by Terresa James, Terry Wilson on bass, Billy Watts on guitar, Herman Matthews on drums, Lee Thornburg on trumpet, and Ron Dziubla on sax. Solid opener. Put The Squeeze On Me has great blues feel and James really works it hard, old school style and Watts lays down a real nice guitar lead giving the track James Brown like fever. Soulful, Don't Make A Habit Of It , is a smooth, radio ready, track with a great melody and nicely showing off James' vocal work. With the addition of Paulie Cerra on sax this track has the strength of a Van Morrison track with the super soul of James. Very nice. One of my favorite tracks on the release is ballad, The Day The Blues Came To Call with a strong melody, expressive vocal phrasing and a nice gu...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Change In The Weather - Janiva Magness Sings John Fogerty , from Janiva Magness and it's vibrant. Opening with title track, Change In The Weather , Magness really pushes the tempo with strong, revival like pace and featuring Dave Darling on guitar with tight riff insertions and backed by Gary Davenport on bass, Steve Wilson on drums, Zachary Ross on guitar and dobro, and Arlan Oscar on keys. Smart opener. Someday Never Comes gets a traditional British approach with Magness taking the ballad approach on the melody and with a double time beat under the chorus. I've always been partial to Wrote A Song For Everyone with it's "Band" like rhythm. Magness shines clearly on this one with excellent backing vocals by Bernie Barlow, Dave Darling and Zachary Ross. Taj Mahal sits in of Don't You Wish It Was True with his trademark vocal and overall country blues feel. Very cool. Although Bad Moon Risin...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Damn! I Spilled the Blues , by Brody Buster and it's quite good. Opening with Old Dogs , Brody Buster handles, lead vocal, guitar, harmonica and drums. You would think that one component or the other would suffer but it's clear right up front that he has mastered all of the trades. His vocal and harmonica work is clean and crisp and his guitar tone rich and warm. Stripped down rocker, Bad News , teams drums, vocal and guitar covering all the sounds of Black Keys and adding harmonica. Excellent! My favorite track on the release is guitar boogie, Alligator Blues with it's tight boogie guitar rhythm, harmonica trim and super lyrics. A real cool tune. Like 'em Like That follows in the same vein with an almost Houndog Taylor feel. Buster's guitar work is really cool and his harmonica work is strong. Super. Week Long has the texture of a dirty trucker with beads of sweat and Pabst Blue Ribbon beer. A gr...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, This Guitar and Tonight , from Bob Margolin and it's an acoustic blend of folk and acoustic blues. Opening with delta style title track, This Guitar and Tonight , Margolin, who handles lead vocal and guitar in tandem with Jimmy Vivino on acoustic guitar lays it out like he was Skip James or Robert Johnson, pure and simple. The guitar playing is tight and vocals wailing. Solid opener. Margolin gets his Muddy on with Waters like slide work on Over Time . Margolin spent years in Muddy's band and plays his own soulful take on the classic slide style. Dancer's Boogie is a lively track with hot jazz style guitar riffs and Margolin's best vocals on the release. Harp master, Bob Corritore joins Margolin on Blues Lover , a romping shuffle. One of my favorites on the release is country style story blues, I Can't Take Those Blues Away . Margolin delivers the story over a solid guitar vamp. With a more contempo...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Visions , by Alice Howe . Visions opens with Twilight , a mostly acoustic folk/pop track with Alice Howe on lead vocal, harmony and acoustic guitar backed by Freebo on bass and harmony, JT Thomas on electric piano, Fuzzbee Morse on electric guitar, John Molo on drums and Augie on harmony vocal. Still On My Mind is a pure radio track with a great melody surrounding Howe's pure vocal. With the addition of Jeff Fiedler on electric slide guitar, a warm presentation. With a smooth changeup on What We Got Is Gold , JT is on accordion adding yet another dimension to this warm palette and Freebo's skill full bass hand adds really nice interest. Sam Cooke's Bring It On Home To Me is sweet and pure. Not too much drama and just the right amount of presentation provides a nice showcase for Howe's vocal with Lee Thornburg on trumpet and Paul Perez on sax. Muddy Waters' classic, Honey Bee gets a total rework wit...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Cypress Grove , from Jimmy "Duck" Holmes and it's a excellent slice or real delta blues. Opening with Skip James' Hard Times , Holmes is right there, front and center playing guitar and singing the blues just like God planned it. I mean it doesn't come much fresher than this. Get it while you can! Title track, another Skip James composition, Cypress Grove , has great feel and pace with Holmes joined by Eric Deaton on bass and Sam Bacco on drums and percussion. Don't be expecting a trap set... were talking basic...  Very nice! Muddy Waters' Rock Me has a super grinding bass line and with the addition of Marcus King on guitar and Dan Auerbach on lush slide, has strong texture. Another James track, Devil Got My Woman , is a super showcase for Holmes vocal styling and guitar work. I mean this track hurts it's so good. Excellent! All Night Long is really a short jam track which features ...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Blue Soul from Dov Hammer and it's a harp fueled release full of blues, boogie, rock and country music. Opening with shuffle track, Make It Count , Dov Hammer on lead vocal and harmonica is joined by Gil Katzir and Yair Fine on guitars, Amos Springer on bass, Nir Segal on drums, Assaf Rozov on backing vocals and Sholomo Deshet on percussion. With a New Orleans, Bo Diddley beat, I'm Gone has great rhythm and a solid harp fed melody and Tzafrir Lichinstein on tight, snappy drums. Very cool. Yair Fine's resonator guitar work really digs in on rock solid delta style blues The Fighting Blues under the vocals and harmonica of Hammer. My favorite on the release. Blues rocker, Tear It Down , is a real foot stomper with Deshet adding to the rhythmic undertone on washboard and Dov's reinforcement of the train feel on harmonica. Taking My Time has a funky beat without going bass heavy and interjecting percussion ...

Gibson Custom  and  Epiphone  "Signature Artist"  JOHNNY A.   Announces 2020 “JUST ME AND MY GUITARS” WEST COAST TOUR DATES Boston, MA – Acclaimed guitarist Johnny A. announces that he will be returning to the West Coast for a series of tour dates beginning on January 9, 2020. “Most of these venues will be a first for me and I'm excited to be bringing the ‘Just Me...And My Guitars’ show to them,” says Johnny A. “As I usually only get to the West Coast once a year, I'm counting on all my friends and fans to please help me get the word out.” About Johnny A. “Just Me...And My Guitars" A Celebration of the British Songbook of the 60's: Johnny A. again takes an adventurous musical left turn with his “Just Me...And My Guitars” performances to present his distinct, instrumental guitar approach for the very first time in a completely “solo” intimate atmosphere...combining his keen arrangement instincts and guitar skills with his adept und...

Acclaimed Guitarist/Songwriter Forrest McDonald Unleashes 11 Original Tracks on his 15th CD, Blues in a Bucket , Due February 7 from World Talent Records Acclaimed guitarist/songwriter Forrest McDonald announces a February 7, 2020, release date for his new CD, Blues in a Bucket , on World Talent Records. Recorded mixed and mastered at Dogwood Recording & Mastering in Oxford, Georgia, with Ron Benner engineering, Blues in a Bucket showcases Forrest McDonald’s guitar mastery in full bloom, aided and abetted by a stellar cast of backing musicians, featuring the dynamic lead vocals of Andrew Black and special guest vocalist Becky Wright. Award-winning guitarist Forrest McDonald has been performing and recording earth-shaking, soul-stirring music distilled in the blues for nearly six decades. His insightful song writing skills embrace the journey of an adventurous explorer who plunges head first into every twist of fate life throws his way. The add...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Blues Meets Girl featuring Sean Carney and it's pretty cool. British blues veteran, Mr. Downchild, joins forces with Kasimira and Sean Carney on this latest outing. Opening with Nightgown , a solid Chicago blues style number featuring Mr. Downchild on strong harmonica lead, Kasimira on vocal, Sean Carney on guitar, Scott Flowers on drums, and Ray Deforest on bass this is a super opener. Cool swinging rocker, Didn't See It Coming has Downchild on lead vocal and gives Carney a great opening to show Chuck Berry like riffs making this one of my favorites on the release. A cool track with authentic old style foot stomping blues influence is Backstabber , primarily Downchild on vocal, guitar and harmonica with Carney on guitar. Very nice.  With it's Latin overtones, Home To My Baby is a strong blues track featuring Downchild on lead vocal and guitar. Flowers' drum rhythms and Deforest's bass lines make th...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Lost & Found , from Odds Lane and it's mixes rock, pop and blues for a catchy set. Opening with Don't Give It Away , a solid rocker with a great bass line by lead vocalist, Doug Byrkit, and spanking drum beat by Brian Zielie with solid guitar work by Mike Zito. Lost and Found is a super radio track with just a sprinkle of country flavor. Byrkit and Zielie have a real flair for radio style melodies and this may be the best one on the release, topped with a straight but cool guitar solo. Moth To A Flame is set over a James Brown style boogaloo beat. This will keep your feet tapping and Zito's slide guitar work hits solid on target. Very nice. A solid blues rocker, Blood On The Van , has a great thumping bass line, underscored guitar lead by Brykit along with smooth vocal blending with Zeilie and nicely executed slide work by Zito. Latin influenced, Little Too Late , has a bright, almost jazzy feel with ba...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, All Out , from Fuel Junkie and I really like it. Opening with title track rocker, All Out , with horns blazing. Featuring Mark LcClerc on lead vocal and tenor sax, Philippe Brochu-Pelletier on tenor sax, Patrice Luneau on bari sax, Antoine Loiselle on guitar, jean-Francois Charest on bass and Philippe Fleury on drums and adding Lex French on trumpet, Andy King on trumpet, Jean-Nicolas Trottier on trombone and Olivier Lizotte on bass trombone this leaves a powerful vapor trail. High Stress, Low Money has a strong new Orleans feel with tight march style drumming by Fleury and interwoven tenor sax lead by Leclerc and Brochu-Pelletier over the solid bottom of Luneau on bari for a great follow-up. With a low down funky beat Can You Dig It? is a cool bluesy jam with great lead by Charest on bass and Loiselle on slide guitar. Excellent! Slow blues, Bad Luck , showcases the soulful vocals of Leclerc and allows plenty of room f...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Play The Blues , by Doug Duffey and BADD and it's straight up with a twist. Opening with shuffle track, The Things That We Used To Do , Doug Duffey takes the basic original blues premise and bends it. With basic piano, bass and drum accompaniment, holds a solid shuffle beat under solid vocal but then in walks Dan Sumner on lead guitar and plays outside of the routine shuffle beat. Pretty cool matrix with cool backing vocals. On Evil, a mod funky blues track, soulful vocals command the spotlight but you can hardly miss the introduction of rhythm guitar riffs that fall more into the pop/punk genre. A fat bluesy guitar solo by Sumner and it's contagious beat makes this one of my favorites on the release. Blues based rocker, Drink It On Down , is another of my favorites with  distinct Keith Richards dirty rock feel. A springy, piano rocker, You Got That Somethin' , has a most commercial feel with it's simpl...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Believe In Love, by Mark Crissinger and it's full of surprises. Opening with Believe In Love , with it's romping bottom, courtesy of Jay Stevens on bass and Bill Hicks on drums, Mark Crissinger has the front on lead vocal and guitar, backed by Darcy Phillips on keys and Pierre Komen on sax. Boogie track, I Hear You're Talking , really gives Phillips the floor to work his magic and Crissinger country style vocal and guitar riffs solidify the sound. Another track with a two step feel is La Hoochie Coo with twangy guitar riffs and smooth harmonica by Marty Howe. Heartache and Trouble has a strong melody and with soothing vocals and melodic harmonica line, a definite radio track. My favorite track on the release is Hard No , with it's cool rhythm and catchy tune. Solid guitar work, drum foot work and warm backing gives it that extra punch.  Wrapping the release is country rocker, Hornby with it's sp...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Click Click Spark from Troy Gonyea and it's hot. Opening with rocker, (Do The) Curl Up And Die , Troy Gonyea who handles lead vocal, guitar and harmonica is setting this live audience up for a real treat. Backed by Brooks Milgate on piano, Marty Ballou on bass and Marty Richards on drums, this is a great opener. One of my favorite tracks on the release is Magic Sam's That's Why I'm Crying with it's dramatic soulful bluesy lead work. Gonyea's vocals are smoking, with Milgate on B3 and his guitar playing is excellent with strong lead phrasing and glistening fanned chords. On Willie Dixon's Bring It On Home , it's Gonyea's vocal/harmonica pairing that does the ticket. Holding tight to the classic styling, Milgate's piano adds texture. Tell Heaven is a terrific track that makes you sweat. A low, gritty blues, it digs in deep with John Lee Hooker like grip and Gonyea's wailing...