Bman's Blues Report

I just received the newest release, Raw Sugar, from JJ Thames and it's rich. Following on the coattails of her spectacular release Tell You What I Know Thames keeps it rolling. Opening with Oh Lord , a simple spiritual blues, the instrumentation is kept to a minimum with Joe Seamons on acoustic guitar and backing vocal and Ben Hunter on mandolin surrounded by a wealth of warm vocals. Hattie Pearl kicks into high gear with Darryl Sanford on rockin piano and with Kimble Funchess on trumpet, Jessie Primer III on sax and Robert Lamkin on trombone. Shuffle track, I'm Leavin' features Eddie Cotton Jr. on guitar and Thames is really moving with Anthony Daniels on bass, John Blackmon on drums and Sanford on keys. Leftovers is a funky, jazz pop track with a strong bass line by Daniels. Thames' vocals are well blended and the melody is radio bound. Bluesy, Woman Scorned , sets a real nice stage with Cotton playing a smoking opener. Thames's delivery is powerful and...

I just received the newest release, One At A Time , from Eddie Cotton and it's a great followup to his first release, Here I Come which was on my favorites list from last year! This release is off and running from the start with title track, One At A Time , a soulful blues track with Cotton on vocal and hot guitar riffs. James "Hotdog" Lewis , who passed away only a week ago today adds some real nice keyboard work on this release.With Myron Scott laying down a nice bass line and Samuel Scott Jr. on drums this track is moving, nicely complimented by Kimble Funchess on trumpet, Jessie Primer III on sax and Mike Weidick on trombone. Very nice! With it's super walking bass line by Bennett, Be Careful has a classic blues sound but with a definite R&B overtone. Cotton has a great voice and Carlos Russell adds harp giving it a cool contemporary feel. People keep commenting that we have to keep the blues alive. This is positive proof that all you got to d...

I just received the newest release, Tell You What I Know, from JJ Thames and it's excellent. The opener is Souled Out , a rich mixture of soul and spiritual with Thames rich lead vocals backed by warm harmonic backing vocals on a gospel rhythm. Hey You walks the line between soul and blues again with rich spiritual backing. Thames has a super voice and Celeb Armstrong adds a guitar vamp reinforcing the blues root. I Got What You Need has a super R&B sound with Grady Champion on harp and rich horns by Richard Beverly (trumpet ) , Todd Bobo (sax)and Mike Weidick (trombone).Thames has a powerful instrument in her voice and she uses it amply. My Kinda Man has a real slinky feel and soft neo soul delivery. I really like this track. It just has that "right groove". Thames sings with strong convicted emotion making this song particularly powerful. No Turning Back has a bluesy feel with that R&B step. Sam Brady carries a lot of the support on keys and Vince Barran...

I just received the newest release (January 21, 2014), Here I Come , from Eddie Cotton and it's a hot mix of Blues, Soul and R&B. Opening with the title track, Here I Come , Cotton wastes no time letting you know that he has a great voice and a strong understanding of blues guitar phrasing. This R&B infused blues track is really hot! A Woman's Love , is another strong entry with soulful blues vocals and stinging guitar riffs. Sam Brady adds warmth on this track with organ but it's the spot on vocals and gripping guitar riffs that makes this track tick. Samuel Scott Jr adds drums and Myron Bennett bass for this, one of my favorite tracks on the release. Pay To Play is a fast paced shuffle track with a lot of BB King feel. Cotton steps up again showing his guitar chops and he is really on it. Nice! Friend To The End is a soul style ballad, vocals handled with the craftsmanship of Curtis Mayfield. Really Nice! Get Your Own has a big time James Brown feel but with...