Bman's Blues Report

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Rise Above , from Billy J and it's a solid rocker. Opening with She's Mine, a cool 60's style rocker features Billy J on vocal and guitar, Yonrico Scott on drums, Charlie Wooton on bass, and Jeremy Baum on keys, this track could have turned up on an early Englisher metal rocker. Cool opener. Shuffle, Line Em Up is a slick blues rocker with a tight bass line and solid guitar riffs. Slow blues ballad, New Car , gives Billy a strong opportunity to step up and show his stuff soloing. With a play on words with the lyrics and a plenty of space to move, Billy sets a great table. She is a simple, mostly acoustic ballad that would seem to be a direct tune for the radio. With the melody of a Lindsay Buckingham composition, this track is mellow and tight with a nice melodic guitar solo. Wrapping the release is Boomerang , a strong rocker with a driving beat and ripping guitar lead. This is likely my favorite track on t...

I just received the newest release (November 19, 2013), a self titled EP by Billy J and it's pretty cool. Billy is joined on the release by Yonrico Scott (Derek Trucks Band) on drums, Charlie Wooton (Royal Southern Brotherhood) on bass Jeremy Baum (Shemeka Copeland) on keys and Stephen "Buzzy" Krist on percussion. Opening with She's Mine , a country funk with a strong lean to Deep Purple's and Golden Earring, Billy J wastes no time in showing his guitar chops and arrangements by Dave Fields guarantee a tight package. On My Baby's Blue , a straight forward blues rocker, Billy styles a track that should easily fit into many playlists with a solid melody and contagious hook. She , a quiet ballad, sounds like it could have been written by Stevie Nicks and the articulated acoustic guitar work by Buckingham. This is another clever pop like track and again shows strong commercial potential. New Car takes a different street altogether showing flashes of Big Brothe...