Bman's Blues Report

           "Nelson tackles not just traditional blues, but rock, country and even a bit of jazz. It’s quite the mix, but Nelson deftly pulls off the transitions. One thing about Nelson is that he’s a heck of a talent on the guitar: if Brian Wilson thought he was starting fires in the neighbourhood where he was recording Smile just by making music, Nelson pretty much starts infernos every time he touches his instrument’s strings. The guy can shred, particularly at slide guitar, and his voice is somewhat reminiscent of heartland rocker John Hiatt. " - PopMatters Drew Nelson , conceivably one of Canada’s most criminally underrated musicians, is back with his first album in eight years and a renewed determination to reignite a successful career that he had almost turned his back on. The Ottawa based singer/songwriter/guitarist decided to focus on domestic life for a while after many years of playing 200-plus dates. “I gre...

I just received the newest release, The Other Side , from Drew Nelson and it's quite interesting. Opening with Seven Days, a country influenced blues number, Nelson shows his Dylanesque vocals backed by some of the sweetest slide melodic to be heard in a while. Nelson who plays guitar is backed by Matt Sobb on drums, Steve Marriner on bass, baritone guitar, harmonica, keys and guitar. Make It Right has a little bit of a Jimmy Reed feel with Marriner on harp and keys. There is really a lot going on here instrumentally here and I really like it! On Reggae flavored Stick Around you get a pseudo island feel ... a cool pop track. On Bird On A Wire , is given a real country flavor with nice steel guitar adornment by John Steele. One More Chance is an excellent Chicago style blues with super harp and key demonstrations by Marriner. Nelson does some of his best vocals on this smokin' track. Step back and hear Muddy Waters come alive on slide! Nice! Valentine has a bit of that spag...