Bman's Blues Report

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, I'm All Burn , from Cathy Grier + The Troublemakers and it's a cool blend of R&B and blues. Opening with title track, I'm All Burn, Cathy Grier is upfront on vocal and guitar, backed by Deirdre Fellner on backing vocal, Jim Ohlschmidt on guitar, Larry Byrne on organ, Greg Roteik on bass, matt Liben on drums, Pauli Ryan on percussion, and with great horn work by Andrew Spadafora on sax, Joe Neimann on trumpet and Mike Lizzo on trombone. Down on My Knees is a cool pop R&R track with clean vocals, great bari sax work and a tight dance rhythm. One of my favorite tracks on the release is Backyard Blues with strong, soul vocals by Grier, solid slide by Greg Koch and Steve Cohen on harmonica.  Bluesy ballad, Easy Come Easy Go is a terrific showcase for Grier's voice and warm organ work by Byrne cements the deal. Very nice. Bobbi Gentry's Ode To Billy Joe gets a slightly funkier rework and with the ...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Are You Ready? - The Mississippi Sessions from Danny Brooks & Lil Miss Debi . Opening with straight up rocker and title track, Are You Ready? Danny Brooks leads the way on vocal and guitar with Debi on vocal, Chalmers Davis on B3, Joel may on drums, Micah May on bass on Geri O'Neal on bass. Jesus Had the Blues has a cool strut with soulful lead guitar and vocal by Brooks, and with James Lawlis on sax, Paul Mitchell on trumpet, and Peter Hysen on tuba. Very nice. With revival gospel styling, Let Me Know is full of energy with Danny and Debi trading vocal and vibrant drum work by May. Debi gets her lead vocal showcase on John Prine's Angel From Montgomery . A cool duet with Brooks on vocal, guitar and harmonica, this is the choice radio track for the release.  My favorite track on the release is One More Mile (To Mississippi) , a stripped down hill country style hollar with cajon and harmonica under lead vo...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Blues Brothers by Junior Wells and featuring many contemporary blues players. Opening with low slung, Blues Hit Big Town , Colin James weighs in on lead guitar with Wells on Harp. Good Morning Little School Girl lines up Pat Travers on guitar and James Montgomery on harp. I really like Montgomery's work and his interweaving with Travers on this track is tight. One of Well's most loved classics, Messin' With the Kid gets a rework with Tyler Bryant on guitar and his open tone with just the right amount of reverb works really nicely. Baby, Scratch My Back features Albert Castiglia and I always like his style. He doesn't overplay but his notes all count. Very nice. Eric Gales is featured on Lovey Dovey, Lovey One and his confident attack on this shuffle really works nicely. One of my favorite tracks on the release is Snatch It Back And Hold It, featuring Joe Louis Walker. His guitar work is fluid and fleet...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Straight To You Live , from Kenny Wayne Shepherd and it's a solid rocker. This is a double pack with a cd recording as well as a dvd video of the concert. Opening with Woman Like You , KWS of course leads the pack on vocal and guitar, backed by Noah Hunt on vocal and guitar, Chris "Whipper" Layton on drums, Joe Krown on keys, Scott Nelson on bass, Mark Pender on trumpet and Joe Sublett on sax. Shepherd sets a solid pace and with his trademark vocals and fluid lead runs sets up a good opener. Elmore James' Talk To Me Baby has a real nice shuffle pace with Pender and Sublett on horns and Shepherd on guitar and slide and some of his best vocals on the release. Real nice sax work by Sublett and a hot trumpet solo by Pender gives this track a real turbo boost. Bluesy ballad, Heat of the Sun is one of my favorites on the release with soulful vocals by Shepherd and explosive, melodic guitar work by Shepherd. Ve...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, The Parade , from Greg Sover Band and it's a strong rocker with roots in the blues. Opening with Wake Up , a firm rocker with a stiff drum rhythm and grinding guitar riff, GSB lets you know right up front that this is no ordinary blues band. With Sover on lead guitar and vocal, Garry Lee on bass, Allen James on guitars, Wally Smith on keys and Tom Walling on drums, this is a solid opener. On Feelin' Sumthin' , Sover dons a resonation and lays in a cool slide riff pitted with Willing's punctuating snare strike over Lee's active bass line to create a modern, country blues rocker. It's nice to see Jack Bruce's Politician , come out on a new release. I have always love this track and Sover handles Bruce's vocal lead nicely and his own lead guitar is exciting with excellent drumming by Walling and a great bass groove by Lee. Very cool. Wrapping the release is Never Gonna Stop , a classic style ro...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Stone Crazy , by Kevin Burt and it's a cool contemporary blues rocker with a pop edge. Opening with I Ain't Got No Problem With It, a free and easy rocker, Burt on lead vocal, guitar and harmonica is joined by Mike Zito on guitar, Doug Byrkit on bass, Matthew Johnson on drums, Lewis Stephens on keys and Jimmy Carpenter on sax. Purdy Lil Thing has a cool, swampy feel and Burt's deep, smooth vocals are excellent! Johnson's drum touch is terrific and guitar accents by Zito have just the right touch. R&B based, title track, Stone Crazy, has a laid back feel and Burt's vocals float nicely on a lush melody. You Get What You See is a smooth fusion between a blues shuffle and a Booker T jam. With it's driving guitar vamp and Carpenter's sax work, this is a cool track. With it's funky groove, Better Off Dead is one to be reckoned with. Burt lays in the pocket with the confidence of Bill With...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Live at the Isabel , from Miss Emily and it's solid. Opening with Sometimes It's Better To Lose, Miss Emily takes command of the Isabel Bader Centre for the Performing Arts with her powerful vocals. Backed by Van Sheen, James McKenty and Rob Baker on guitar, Gord Sinclair on bass, Seamus Cowan on bass, Zak Colbert on bass, Sean Jensen and Rob Radford on drums, Benni Vander on keys, Jon "Bunny" Stewart on sax, and Spencer Evans on piano. Who Is He is a slinky R&B number with a cool guitar vamp and lush backing vocals by Kelly Prescott and Chad Murphy on backing vocals. Gospel flavored Three Words , is one of my favorite tracks on the release with super dynamics and heartfelt vocals, accompanied by piano. Very nice. The Letter , made popular by Joe Cocker is up next and really a strong rendition, closely following Cocker's arrangement. Soulful ballad, Blue Is Still Blue is a great showcase for Em...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Bad Man , from Martin Lang and it's pure blues. Opening with Reefer Head Man , a real nice Chicago blues, featuring Martin Lang on lead vocal and harp, Little frank on guitar, Illinois Slim on bass and  Dean Haas on drums. Lang's phrasing and sense of feel is really classic sounding like original Chicago blues rather than a current day take. Very nice. He Don't Love You is a great track with some of Lang's best vocals on the release. His harp tone is warm and round and David Waldman on piano adds classic blues piano. Harp boogie, High as a Georgia Pine is a top notch track with Lang riding high on harp over a solid bass line by Illinois Slim. The Mix Up is another harmonica instrumental with a Latin flavor. Lang has a great feel for just how much harp to add with a great balance of guitar by Little Frank. Mood Indica is a cool, slow blues instrumental with really nice exchanges between Frank and Lang. V...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Brotherhood , from Terminal Station and it's a super blues rocker. Opening with instrumental, Barrelhouse , Terminal Station is off and running with Scott Smith on guitar, Jeremy Holmes on bass, Liam MacDonald on drums and percussion, Darryl Havers on keys and Vic Polyik on harmonica. Cool opener. Chicago Calling is a real cool blues track built around a slide guitar riff. With solid lead vocals and Little Feat like swampy rhythm and slide, clear precise piano work by Havers and the addition of harmonica lead by Polyik this track has a great feel. On bluesy ballad, If You Don't Know Me Now , Smith shows solid vocal footing in R&B with nice piano lead by Havers and a smooth melodic guitar solo of his own over the firm footing of MacDonald and Holmes. Energetic rocker, It's Not The End of the World has strong pop appeal with extensive vocal work, reinforcing snare work by MacDonald and slick, Allman influen...

  I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Tryin' To Get Home , from Andy Cohen and it's a cool, rural blues release. Opening with Blind Boy Fuller's Step It Up And Go , Andy Cohen wastes no time in showing that he's a serious student of the blues and a solid vocalist. His finger picking work is strong and his vocal delivery perfect. Excellent opener. Cohen shows broad versatility sitting behind the piano on Louis Jay Meyers Memorial Stomp . This is a really nice piano blues and with great feel, and a strong composition by Cohen. Another Cohen original, Puffin' That Stuff is one of my favorites on the release. A short finger picked guitar rag, this track will be a favorite in concert and on the disc. Very cool. Mississippi John Hurt's Talkin' Casey , is a classic blues story track with Cohen punctuating Casey's story with acoustic slide. Very nice. Reverend Gary Rag is a great tune and a cool tribute to Davis by Cohen. With his fl...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, If You Can't Be Good, Be Good At It!, by Mick Kolassa and I think it's his best release yet. Opening with I Can't Help Myself, a R&B style track with a light funky beat featuring Kolassa on lead vocal and acoustic guitar, Jeff Jensen on electric guitar, Bill Ruffino on bass, John Blackmon on drums, Rick Steff on keys, Marc Franklin on trumpet, and Kirk Smothers on sax, this is a solid opener. With deep gospel richness, James Taylor's Lo and Behold has great guitar underpinnings and super vocal by Yullie Brae. Rocking title track, If You Can't Be good, Be Good At It! is clever and has solid guitar riffs by Jensen, and power horn work by Franklin and Smothers. My favorite track on the release, A Good Day For the Blues , features nice guitar work by David Dunavent and Jensen and some of Kolassa's best vocal work on the release. Smooth blues ballad, Slow and Easy Love gives Jensen a wide road to...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Blues Bash , by Duke Robillard & Friends and it may be his best recent release. Opening with Do You Mean It , Chris Cote is up front on lead vocal with Robillard on guitar, Bruce Bears on piano and Hammond, Mark Teixeira on drums and Jesse Williams on bass. With it's up tempo shuffle feel and super lead work by Robillard, super opener. Piano boogie, What Can I Do showcases strong piano by Bears and super sax by Greg Piccolo, Rich Lataille and Doug James and again. With Cote on lead vocal again and some really hot guitar riffs by Robillard, this track spins. With it's bluesy lope, Rock Alley is a great track to show Robillard at his best. His guitar phrasing is terrific and his feel is soulful. A bluesy sax solo by Lataille really adds great spice on this track. Very nice. Michelle Willson steps up on lead vocal on swing track, You Played On My Piano giving it a great feel and a rich, fat, sax solo by James r...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, So Much Trouble , from David Rotundo Band , and it's tasty. Opening with She's Dynamite , a strong blues rocker, features David Rotundo on lead vocal and harmonica, Milky Burgess on guitar, Ron Weinstein on organ and piano, Dean Schmidt on bass, Andrew Cloutier on drums and Darian Asplund on sax this is a super opener. Slower blues, I Must Be Crazy , is one of my favorite tracks on the release with solid lead vocal,  Weinstein really working the organ and fine guitar work by Burgess. Very cool. Too Blue , with it's easy sway is another cool track with haunting backing vocals by Annie Jantzer always strong lead by Rotundo and wailing guitar work by Burgess. Drinking Overtime is a swinging shuffle with over the top organ by Weinstein and solid sax by Asplund. Rotundo wails on harmonica and works his vocals into a frenzy. Trying to find it is a solid rocker with group vocal featuring Rotundo, Lee Oskar, Erik Yager...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Vortex , by Tim Woods and it's a solid blues rocker. Opening with Ready , a cool straight up rocker with solid gritty vocals by Tim Woods who also plays some pretty serious lead guitar, backed by Bobby Lee Rodgers on guitar, bass, drums and keys. Very cool. Title track, Vortex , has an interesting sound along the lines of Wishbone Ash with an almost ethereal feel, crisp drum work and strong vocal backing by Derek Woods and Ryan Woods. Sage is an interesting self perpetuating, guitar lead, instrumental with full organ backing by Rodgers. This is my favorite track on the release. Light shuffle, I Don't Know Yet really has a crisp, jazzy feel with a great strutting rhythm. Woods' vocals are breezy and his guitar lead is fluid and resolved. Very nice. Wrapping the release is Water Is Life , a firm ballad with primarily rhythm guitar backing with cool undercurrents of key and drums. This is a solid closer to an enj...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Star of Stage and Screen , by Bob Margolin and it is a continuation of his most recent acoustic release, This Guitar and Tonight. Opening with acoustic blues and title track, Star of Stage and Screen , Margolin is back with his voice and guitar. A cool, stripped down delta style shuffle, Margolin sits upfront with a mostly vocal track with a tight rhythm and some cool riffs. My favorite track on the release is After Party with it's up tempo shuffle beat, straight up acoustic rhythm guitar and some real nice slide, all by Margolin. Another favorite on the release is ruff and tumble, Let It Go with it's slide guitar signature riffs and Margolin's best vocals on the release. Wrapping the release is March 2020 In Stop Time , with Margolin working his words about the state of politics and the current US leadership. maintaining the track to mostly vocal with accent guitar, it's true to it's blues roots and...

  I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Soft Hard & Loud, from Dennis Jones and it's a cool blues rocker. Opening with Revolves Around You, with it's reggae/funky beat fueled by Cornelius Mims on bass, Raymond Johnson on drums and the vocal and guitar lead of Dennis Jones. His melodic, yet fiery lead work works nicely with this radio focused track. Cool opener. I Love The Blues is a solid blues ballad with Bennett Paysinger on B3 and along with Jones' warm vocals some real tasty guitar work. With a lot of fire, Front Door Man has a driving SRV like vamp. Layered lead guitar work by Jones really sets up this blues rocker nicely. Another track with a strong shot of radio appeal is funky blues rocker, Gonna be Alright . Fluid lead guitar soloing and a cool melody really sets this track apart. The anchor on this release and my favorite is slow blues, I'm Not , with it's T-Bone Walker structure and with Jason Freeman on B3. Jones really t...