Bman's Blues Report

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Colorcrimes , by Eliza Neals , and it's high energy blues. Opening with Heal This Land , featuring Neals on vocal and Michael Puwal on guitar really generate a lot of energy based on original blues. Solid opener. Title track, Colorcrimes , is a strong, soulful track with nicely blended vocals by Neals and featuring Puwal on guitar, Doug Woern on bass, Mark Leach on B3, and Justin Headley on drums. Very nice. Shuffle, Candy Store , has a super feel and nicely showcases Neals vocals. With Puwal on guitar, Skeeto Valdez on drums, Paul Randolph on bass, John Galvin on B3, and Kymberli Wright on backing vocal, this track really hits the groove. Wrapping the release is Friday Night (All Day Long) , a blues rocker with a funky backbeat. With it's memorable melody and solid harmonies, this is the radio track for the release and a solid closer.    If you support live Blues acts, up and coming Blues talents and...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Badder To The Bone , from Eliza Neals and its a power blues rocker. Opening with United We Stand   with heavy tom tom's on a Bo Diddley beat by Jeffrey Fowlkes and slide guitar by Michel Puwal, Neals is on a roll. On slow blues, Queen of the Nil e, Neals shows real soul on vocals, playing piano and taking names. Backed by Jason Kott on bass and Tim Grogan on drums, and featuring Lance Lopez laying down some excellent blues riffs on guitar and Peter Keys on B3, this is an excellent track. With a tango rhythm and nicely blended vocals, the stylistic guitar work of Puwal makes Bucket of Tears a real standout. Soulful, Heathen , drips with southern soul under the vocal control of Neals and with the thick B3 and piano work of John Gavin. Steve Winwood's Can't Find My Way Home is always great to hear and Neals puts her special touch on it with firm vocal lead and nice backing, topped with strong guitar lead work by...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Sweet or Mean , from Eliza Neals and joined by guitar player/band leader Popa Chubby, it's a screamer. Opening with Pawn Shop Blues , a solid shuffle Neals picks up where she left off with her gritty vocals and Chubby with romping slide guitar, backed by Dave Keys on keys, Chris Gambari-Vega on bass, John Medeiros Jr. on drums and including Ian Hendrickson on sax and Michael Leonhart on trumpet. Rocker, Bitten By The Blues has solid radio feel with it's lightly Latin flavored rhythm and smooth melody with Chubby playing a rocking, Santana influenced guitar lead style. Livin With Yo Mama is a cool, slinky, boogie track with sassy vocals and some of my favorite guitar riffs on the release. Knock Knock Knockin is a pared down blues rocker with Chubby on acoustic guitar bringing Neals' farther forward in the mix vocally. Very nice. Wrapping the release is a slightly different mix on Pawn Shop Blues , a sweet cl...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, 10000 Feet Below , by Eliza Neals and it's quite cool. Opening with a pop blues number, Cleotus , featuring Eliza Neals on vocal and Howard Glazer on guitar and slide. A cool opener with solid roots. On Another Lifetime , Glazer lays down a real nice guitar intro for a steamy blues ballad. Neals' vocals are strong and Glazer's guitar work is tight, backed by Skeeto Valdez on drums, Paul Randolph on bass solid keyboard work by Neals. On rocker, Burn The Tent Down , Glazer's guitar work is raspy and overdriven, nicely complimenting Neals vocals. On boogie style track, You Ain't My Dog No More , Brian Clune leads the way on drums with John Abraham on bass and with hot slide riffs by Glazer, delivers a hot number with a Thorogood flavor. Very cool. A solid pop entry, Cold Cold Night features Paul Nelson on guitar and nicely blended vocals not unlike Buckingham Nicks. Unbridled guitar playing is the tick...

I just received the newest release, Breaking and Entering , from Eliza Neals . Opening with Detroit Drive , a stripped down blues rocker featuring Neals on vocals and Howard Glazer on dobro and Eric Maluchnik on drums, Neals sets the tempo for this newest release. Title track, Breaking And Entering has a slow bluesy feel featuring Glazer laying down some heavy grinding electric guitar, Tim Grogan on drums, and Paul Randolph on bass. Neals' vocals are soulful and silky smooth, gritty and everything in between. Jekyll And A Hound is a radio style track featuring Neals on vocal and Rhodes piano with a catchy melody and some particularly cool guitar riffs from Mike Puwal. Goo Goo Glass has a cool rock groove and cool slide work from Glazer. Gabe Gonzales hits the drums and Paul Randolph lays down a nice bass line. Another strong radio track, You , features a particularly nice melody and lead guitar from Kenny Olson. Pretty Gritty is a snappy rocker featuring Neals on lead vocal, ...

I just received a new release by Eliza Neals , messin with a fool , and it has a definite, contemporary sound. The first thing that I like about it is that i can't really categorize it. It's a good sign that it doesn't sound like everything else (or a certain body of works). The recording opens with Misery , a R&B style track with with a 50's vibe. Tino Gross throws out a cool guitar riff on this track too! Neals has a voice comparable in quality with Bonnie Raitt but with stylistic approaches that are more power pop or punk. It sounds fresh and not overused. Man's Man is a simple stripped down rock song with bluesy singing but keeping it's edge. Lets say the Yeah Yeah Yeah's sing Stax. ESP is a cool track and the vocals are smoother and really lean toward soul and Bonnie Bramlett. The arrangement of the music remains uneven and interesting as opposed to predictable. Rather Go To Jail has a cool Latin feel but is more stylistic than bluesy. Rainin in...