Bman's Blues Report

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Gettin' Together , by Michael Jerome Browne and it's a full plate of authentic blues, performed as written. Opening with Mississippi John Hurt's, Monday Morning Blues , Michael Jerome Browne on vocal and 12 string shows a true understanding of the original music with his articulate picking pattern and vocals, joined by Harrison Kennedy on vocal and harmonica. Excellent opener. Delmore Brothers' I've Got The Big River Blues is a terrific track with MJB on guitar and Mary Flower on lap slide guitar. Really nice. Mississippi born Rube Lacy penned Ham Hound Crave and MJB and guitar wiz Colin Linden really bring this track to life. On Bukka White's (BB King's cousin, Booker T. Washington) Fixin' To Die Blues was reimagined as a mountain duet featuring MJB on vocal and gourd banjo and Teilhard Frost on fiddle. This is a great track and it's hard to imagine it any other way. Slow blues, Blac...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, That's Where It's At! , from Michael Jerome Browne and it's quite fine. Opening with acoustic jazz instrumental, Don't Ask Me Why , Browne shows fleet fingered accuracy backed by the light and tight drum work of John Mc Colgan. Smoking opener with great chops. On shuffle track, Black Nights , Browne slips on the slide and settles down in a nice groove with bluesy vocals and again, Mc Colgan on drums. Harrison Kennedy joins on vocals on traditional delta blues styled Pharaoh , rich in tradition and earthy wealth. Very nice. Remember When is a cool folk ballad with clean acoustic picking and featuring vocal duet with Roxanne Potvin. Very clean. Rolling into Al Green's Here I Am (Come And Take Me) showing that Brown not only has the blues but a rich soul. His vocals are soulful and his guitar playing strong and supportive. Randy Newman's, Lousiana 1927 , never sounded so sweet with solid vocals, in...

Out Now: That's Where It's At! by Canadian Blues & Roots Artist Michael Jerome Browne  That's Where It's At! released on Borealis Records  borealisrecords.com   Get That's Where It's At! on iTunes https://tinyurl.com/y6b85c8f “He is a string wizard, deftly moving between and blurring the edges of his chosen genre with some conventional folk and Americana/singer-songwriter touches. Browne’s bold-sounding guitar playing is what has set him apart from ‘the also rans’ within the crowded Canadian blues scene. He’s an impressive, capable vocalist, and one of my favourites, but his guitar playing—all fingers, no picks—is completely enchanting.” – Fervor Coulee "…Browne strips down soul music from various eras and delivers the roots of it all in a most elegant fashion...he's totally a cat that you can't miss out on if you call yourself a roots fan....

Canadian Blues & Roots Artist Michael Jerome Browne Announces New Album and Tour Dates That's Where It's At! to be released on Borealis Records February 8, 2019   Michael Jerome Browne is a three-time Canadian Folk Music Award winner (Traditional Singer, 2015; Solo Artist, 2012 & 2008), Maple Blues Award winner (with 32 nominations since 1999), Kerrville (Texas) New Folk Finalist, four-time Juno Award Nominee in both the Roots/Traditional and Blues categories. He is a multi-instrumentalist, a songwriter, and a living encyclopedia of American Roots music. That’s Where It’s At! is Michael Jerome Browne’s latest collection, focusing on soul music through the lens of a traditional blues player. Recorded largely live off the floor in Sherbrooke and Montréal (Québec) and Hamilton (Ontario), Michael’s fingerstyle guitar and warm, unaffected vocals are front and centre, accompa...