Bman's Blues Report

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, The Sauce , by Sauce Boss and it's lively with plenty of slide guitar. Opening with Little Rhythm And Blues, Sauce Boss sings lead and lets his slide run wild with drum work by Brett Crook. Solid Opener. Delta 9 Blues is a sorrowful track with lush slide work and soulful vocals by Boss. Very nice. Robert Johnson's Stop Breaking Down has a rockin pace and features Neal Goree on guitar and Crook on drums. Solid contribution. Van Morrison's Gloria has a cool, back beat ad features Damon Fowler on lap steel supporting Boss on vocals. Wrapping the release is Left Handed Smile , a bluesy ballad with Boss on vocals and Fowler laying down some tasty riffs on guitar. This is a solid release with plenty of steel.    If you support live Blues acts, up and coming Blues talents and want to learn more about Blues news and Fathers of the Blues, Like ---Bman’s Blues Report--- Facebook Page! I’m looking for great...

 I just had the opportunity to review the newest release from Landslide Records , 40th Anniversary , a two disc compilation celebrating their 40th anniversary and a full house of great artists. Opening with Tinsley Ellis and the Heartfixers and Drivin' Woman . Ellis is a great choice to open this retrospective with his fiery guitar attack and tight rock shuffle beat. Strong opener. The Bluesbusters' track, If The Phone Don't Ring , is up next led by Little feat guitar and vocalist Paul Barrere in collaberation with Dregs keyboardist Lavitz and associated Feat personalities. This is a great track and solid addition to this release. Damon Fowler contributes Make The Best Of Your Time . Fowler was a great addition to Landslides lineup with his rugged vocal, strong rhythm and terrific slide work, I always look forward to his releases. Sean Costello was a unique talent and spectacular blues player. His contribution here is Motor Head Baby with it's slow swagger and Costello...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release (March 26, 2021), Alafia Moon , from Damon Fowler and it is a healthy dose of blues rock with a plenty of slide. Opening with Live It Alone , a cool, swampy, rocker, Fowler on slide and vocal leads the way with Chuck Riley on bass, Justin Headley on drums, T.C. Carr wailing on harmonica, Mike Kach on keys, Betty Fox on backing vocals, this is a great opener. Title track, Alafia Moon is a strong, country blues ballad with a great melody and warm backing vocals. Kach's organ work gives it a rich, almost spiritual feel and backing vocals add almost a contemporary Pink Floyd feel. I really like this track with it's rich core. Light, finger picked, The Guitar , is a really cool track with just a dash of Tex-Mex. Fowler really sounds comfortable in this story telling track and it's unassuming freshness. Hip To Your Trip is a modern funky blues, built around a framework of Broonzy's Key To The Highway. With a gre...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Come Undone , from Gracie Curran and it's meaty. Opening with title track, Come Undone , Gracie Curran is back with her newest release and a lot of soul. This is old school styling with Damon Fowler on guitar, Matt Walker on guitar and bass, Justin Headley on drums, Pat Harrington on drums, Victor Wainwright on keys, Doug Woolverton on trumpet and Mark Earley on sax really delivers the goods. Curran's vocal phrasing and style, with a touch of reggae is just right for an excellent opener! High energy swing track, Stay Up! , shows Curran is not only happy digging in deep but very light on her feet. Fowler's fleet fingered guitar work is nicely backed by Jeremy Powell on keys and New Orleans style horn work by Woolverton and Earley give this track extra zip. On shuffle track, Sweet Sativa , Fowler pulls out the slide giving the track a down home feel and playing off backing vocals, Curran has this track right...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release (August 23, 2019), Blue Basso , from Charlie Wooton Project and it's really good. Opening with funky rocker, Jaceaux , Wooton sets a terrific bass line with Keiko Komaki heating up the keys, Doug Winbish on bass and Jermal Watson on drums. Excellent opener. Rolling into a cool radio style R&B number, Arsene Delay has lead vocal on Reflections. Her vocals are sweet and float on the tune with glistening key work and jazzy guitar riffs by Daniel Groover. Come On Come Over has a great funky bottom, and instrumental style vocals, an aggressive bass line and a snappy drum line. One Night is a bluesy ballad with my favorite vocals by Delay. Anders Osborne sits in with a real nice guitar solo giving the track a bit more sting. Very nice. One of my favorite tracks on the release is Fulton Alley with really funky bass and guitar lines. This track, which really crosses over into fusion really humps. Excellent! Guitar wiz S...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, The Whiskey Bayou Sessions , from Damon Fowler and it's quite good. Opening with a modern take on James Brown style, It Came Out Of Nowhere , with it's cool back beat, Fowler's solid vocals, nicely stylized guitar soloing and backing by Todd Edmunds on bass, Justin Headley on drums, and Tab Benoit on rhythm guitar. Excellent opener. Fairweather Friend has some real funky juju on it with a really nice bottom and a guitar lead that really sits in the pocket. Johnny Nash's Hold Me Tight gets a real cool upbeat shuffle rhythm and a new life. This is a cool interpretation by Fowler with country flavored picking giving the track just that right amount of spice. Little Walter's Up The Line has a really strong drive and with just the right touch of guitar is set to get you moving in your seat if not on your feet. So you're itching for some of that famous Fowler slide work...wait no longer. Ain't Gon...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Good Little Thing , by Joshua Jacobson and it's got a laid back bluesy feel. Opening with Baby's Mama Really Don't Care, Jacobson on guitar and vocal sets the pace with cool rag style piano by Chris Flowers. Matt Walker on bass and Aaron Fowler on percussion round out the band. With a cool saunter, Codependent Kate , has a nice feel with Mookie Brill on harp, Clark Stern on piano and Pedro Arevelo on bass. Stern's piano work on Long Lonesome Day really stand out nicely and Jacobson's vocals are solid and spot on. Long time Allman Brothers lead guitar player, Dickey Betts, sits in on electric guitar on Pistol Packin' Papa adding his signature style. Damon Fowler steps up on acoustic slide guitar on Bipolar Mama and with Aaron Fowler's clever percussion work makes it one of my favorites on the release. Curley Weaver's Ticket Agent is a great track played by the book with the addition of...

I just received the newest release, I Can't Change from Billy The Kid & The Regulators and it's quite good! Coming out of the gate with title track, I Can't Change , Billy and the Regulators hit the funky groove with Reggie Watkins on trombone, Rick Matt on sax and JD Chasin on trumpet. Billy Evanochko, Jon Vallecorsa and James Dougherty on guitar and vocals lead the way and Yolanda Barber's complimentary backing vocals are excellent! Arnold Stagger on bass and Brian Edwards on drums really anchor the bottom and stylized guitar soloing tops this super opener! On Ain't Gotta Prove Nothing, Billy leads the way vocally and with voracious guitar work. Another track with a serious funky feel driven by Stagger, this track moves! Radio styled, R&B ballad, What Are We Fighting For has a catchy melody and warm horn work, nicely complimented by Dougherty's singing slide work. R&B styling on Story of the Blues suits this band well. This is a tight track ...

BLUES FANS: VOTE FOR THE BLUES BLAST MUSIC AWARDS! Voting for the 2014 Blues Blast Music Awards is now open to anyone who is a Blues Blast magazine subscriber. Subscriptions are FREE and an automatic part of the voting process on the website. Blind Pig artists and recordings are well represented on the ballot: "REMEMBERING LITTLE WALTER" Traditional Blues Album Unequaled live tribute to the harmonica icon from five of the finest harp players on the current blues scene - Billy Boy Arnold, Charlie Musselwhite, Mark Hummel, Sugar Ray Norcia , and James Harman .  The album was named winner of two major 2014 Blues Music Awards - "Best Traditional Album" "Album of the Year." It also received a 2014 Grammy nomination for "Best Blues Album." BILLY BRANCH    Song of the Year - "Going To See Miss Gerri One More Time" “Going To See Miss Gerri One More Time” is a moving song about a lost chapter in the cultural hi...

NEW VIDEO FROM DAMON FOWLER - "SPARK" Blind Pig Records has released another live video from roots guitar guru Damon Fowler - "Spark," a track from Damon's latest release, Sounds of Home . In its CD review Living Blues magazine called the song "a rocking Nashville boot-knocker, recalling the swagger of the Georgia Satellites with vintage twang spilling out the sides." To watch the video, please click HERE . USA Today said the album, produced by Gulf Coast-based guitarist Tab Benoit, "nails the region's bluesy, easy-rocking, gospel-tinged sound." Blues Music Magazine added, "Fowler simply has never played better, showing off a notable control while continually stirring in new elements of Americana, R&B, and grease-popping soul." For more info on Damon and the CD, please click HERE .  For downloads of this and other songs from the album, please visit iTunes HERE . Damon Fowler B...

  NEW DAMON FOWLER VIDEO - "TROUBLE" Stripped-down Performance At Relix's NYC Office Last winter when Damon Fowler and his band stopped by the New York City office of roots music magazine Relix for an interview, they also regaled the publication's staff with an acoustic performance of "Trouble," a track from their lastest Blind Pig release entitled Sounds of Home .  Damon co-wrote the original composition with album producer Tab Benoit and Ed Wright.   Relix just released the video, posting in on their website and featuring it in their weekly newsletter.  Accompanied by Chuck Riley on bass and James "Country" McKnight on percussion, Damon movingly demonstrates the musical qualities the magazine praised in its album review: " On Sounds of Home , he showcases his tasty lead work and subtle, soulful singing."  To watch the video, please click HERE . For more info on the CD, please click HERE .

NEW VIDEO FROM DAMON FOWLER - "OLD FOOLS, BAR STOOLS, AND ME" Blind Pig Records has just released a video of the Damon Fowler Band performing a live version of “Old Fools, Bar Stools, and Me,” a track from their highly-acclaimed new release, Sounds of Home . Typical is this quote from Blues Music Magazine , "Fowler simply has never played better, showing off a notable control while continually stirring in new elements of Americana, R&B, and grease-popping soul." And here are some quotes about the song: “Fueled by a reverberating, quaking dirge, ‘Old Fools, Bar Stools, And Me’ tells of a liquored-up loser aware of consequences and regret but unable to avoid either.  This is a common blues theme struck in an uncommon, chilling way.”  - Hittin’ the Note “This one is a slower song with some shimmering guitar but it is the combination of Damon’s wistful vocal and the title chorus that gives it that country feel.”  - Blues Bl...

Photo: Brian Blauser/Mountain Stage DAMON FOWLER ON NPR'S "MOUNTAIN STAGE" Roots Guitar Guru's Performance To Be Broadcast Friday A performance by Damon Fowler and his band will be broadcast on National Public Radio's "Mountain Stage" program this Friday, April 25th .  Their live performance was recorded in February in Charleston, West Virginia, where the band played four songs from their new album, Sounds of Home , to a standing ovation. The radio show will be heard on over 130 stations around the country.   For a complete list of stations and broadcast times, please click HERE . The following week their set will be available for streaming at Mountain Stage's website and via mobile devices through the free NPR Music app. To watch the Damon Fowler Band performing the title track of the new CD in their home state of Florida, please click HERE .

NEW DAMON FOWLER VIDEO "SOUNDS OF HOME" LIVE PERFORMANCE photo: Bob Hakins Blind Pig Records has released a video of the Damon Fowler Band performing "Sounds of Home," the title track from their newly-released album.   The CD, which debuted at or near the top of roots sales and airplay charts, has been gathering widespread acclaim: "Where the swamp meets the cotton field; there lies the music of Damon Fowler. Sounds of Home signifies Damon Fowler's progression into the ranks of the Americana elite." - Living Blues "The covers are well-chosen, but Fowler's originals and nimble guitar work are the reasons to visit." - USA Today "A blend of sacred steel, backwater blues and howling, greasy swamp rock, Fowler's music is a primal, atavistic sound that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up."  - No Depression To watch the video, please click HERE . For more info, or to purchase ...

DAMON FOWLER'S "SOUNDS OF HOME" TOPS CHART! Sounds of Home , the latest CD from roots guitar guru Damon Fowler, is #1 this week on the Roots Music Report's Blues Chart!  The album debuted on the Billboard Blues chart shortly after its release and now it's the most played album on blues radio in the country.  It's also been getting critical acclaim, as evidenced by these quotes: The covers are well-chosen, but Fowler's originals and nimble guitar work are the reasons to visit." - USA Today "A blend of sacred steel, backwater blues and howling, greasy swamp rock, Fowler's music is a primal, atavistic sound that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up. This one will pin your ears back and track swamp fonk all over the place." - No Depression "Where the swamp meets the cotton field; Sounds of Home signifies Damon Fowler's progression into the ranks of the Americana elite." - Livi...

"SOUNDS OF HOME" DEBUTS ON BILLBOARD CHART!  New Damon Fowler Release Critically Acclaimed       "Sounds of Home" the new Blind Pig release from roots guitar guru Damon Fowler , debuted this week at #12 on the Billboard blues chart! Damon chose swamp blues master Tab Benoit to produce the album at Tab's rural Louisiana home studio, and their collaboration has resulted in Damon's strongest effort to date.  Damon has spent much of the last year touring with the critically-acclaimed group Southern Hospitality, whose Easy Livin' Blind Pig release was also produced by Tab. Americana publication No Depression said of Sounds of Home , "A blend of sacred steel, backwater blues and howling, greasy swamp rock, Fowler's music is a primal, atavistic sound that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up.  Fowler is that rare artist whose studio recordings pack as much of a wallop as his live shows. This one will pin y...

I just received the newest release (January 21, 2014) Sounds Of Home , from Damon Fowler and it's really super. Opening with a swamp funky blues, Thought I Had It All , with fat but fleet slide riffs Fowler shows beef on the strings  and Chuck Riley reinforces the meat on bass. James McKnight is tight on drums and Fowler is off to a great start with a cool melody and strong vocals. Nice! Title track, Sounds Of Home , is a blues rocker with a fairly sterile vocal lead but a kick butt guitar riff in contrast. Interesting. Trouble has a R&B/jazz feel to it. Laid back and snappy, Fowler does it easy with short bursts of guitar riffs. Quite cool. Spark is a country rocker with a catchy melody. Authentic telecountry riffs float the track and Eagles like vocal harmonies make it a solid radio number. Old Fools, Bar Stools and Me just smells like an old dive bar... I mean I can smell the tube amp that Fowler is driving to tube distortion (Think Hot Blue and Righteous). This is ce...

DAMON FOWLER COMPLETES NEW RECORDING "SOUNDS OF HOME" PRODUCED BY TAB BENOIT Roots guitar guru Damon Fowler has just finished recording his third solo project for Blind Pig Records, after spending much of the past year touring with the band Southern Hospitality.  Entitled Sounds of Home , the album is scheduled for a late January 2014 release.  It was produced by award-winning swamp blues master Tab Benoit at his Whiskey Bayou Studio in rural Houma, Louisiana.      Damon decided to join forces again with Benoit, who produced the critically acclaimed Southern Hospitality album at the same location.   That CD, Easy Livin', was just named the winner of the 2013 Blues Blast Music Award for "Best New Artist Debut."  On Sounds of Home , Tab sings background vocals on several tracks and contributes pedal steel and acoustic guitar on others, while Big Chief Monk Boudreaux is a special guest on the title track. Damon f...

I just received the new release, Easy Livin' by Southern Hospitality and it's quite enjoyable. This band features three well known blues artists, Damon Fowler, JP Soars and Vistor Wainwright as well as bassist Chuck Riley and drummer Chris Peet. This release has a number of flavors of music due to the diverse but related styles of each artist. Opening with Southern Livin' , a funky little easy going pop blues, the band sets a baseline for music to come. This is a well written track with some of the commercial blood of Wet Willie or Little Feat, with a soul twist, but with life of it's own. Long Way Home , a Soars penned track has a bit more rock to it and features a short instrumental break featuring each of the players giving a taste of what is to come. Kind Lies & Whiskey is a really cool Fowler penned swing almost country blues. I really like this track with it's laid back attack. Wainwright plays a nice piano solo on this track. On another Soars penned ...

BLIND PIG SIGNS SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY The South has long been known for its hospitality and down home music.   Recently the region has seen the emergence of a musical group of young musicians who are masters of their craft and embody the soul and spirit of Dixie. Or as Blues Revue said, "There's a new entity in the blues world, a diverse, powerful group with enormous potential." The Band creating all the buzz, called Southern Hospitality , is comprised of lap steel guitar master Damon Fowler , guitarist extraordinaire JP Soars , and keyboard wizard Victor Wainwright . Blind Pig Records is proud to announce the signing of Southern Hospitality, which is about to record what promises to be one of the most exciting CDs in 2013.   The album will be produced by Tab Benoit, winner of three Blues Music Awards this year, including the prestigious "B.B. King Entertainer of the Year."  Said Tab, "I'm looking forward to working wit...