Bman's Blues Report

I just received the newest release, Chin Up , from John Campbelljohn and it's a fusion of country and blues. Opening with swing boogie, The Mumble Boogie , Campbelljohn steps right up with his notorious slide guitar and steps on the gas. Backed by Neil Robertson on drums and Ronald Hynes on bass this track cooks. I Got It All brings it down a few notches and with more of a country 2 step feel. Smooth and easy is how he handles the guitar work on this track with clever vocals and a radio melody. Meet My Maker is a stripped down blues number with guitar harmonics and rudimentary drums. A cool slide solo on this track sweetens the pot. I really like the different feel of The Poor Man Plays . It has a swampy funk and backing vocals by Martha Mae Campbell, Megan Baxendale and Stan Carew. Very cool! Castaway is a blues rocker with a simple repetitive riff. Driving bass line from Hynes and a wide open slide solo cap this track. Attitude has some of the coolest slide work on the relea...

Release date: March 10, 2015         Multiple award winning East Coast blues guitarist John Campbelljohn is set to release his 12 th album, titled Chin Up on March 10, 2015.   A master slide guitarist and songwriter, Campbelljohn hails from Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, and over the course of his four decade-long career has won or been nominated for countless music awards including Maple Blues Awards, East Coast Music Awards, Real Blues Awards, Music Nova Scotia Entertainer Of The Year, Blues Recording Of The Year & Musician Of The Year.    His newest release, Chin Up features 12 original tracks covering a myriad of topics and sub-genres all highlighting Campbelljohn’s prowess as a guitarist and vocalist.  From the up-beat opening number “The Mumble Boogie” the progressive blues sounds of “Meet My Maker”, the rocking blues track “Castaway”, and the folk blues based “How Stupid Is That”, Cambel...