Bman's Blues Report

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Phoenix Blues Rumble , from Bob Corritore and Friends and it's a great blues rumble. Opening with Big Fat Woman 489 LBS. a blues rocker featuring Chico Chism on vocal and drums, Henry Gray on piano, Paul Thomas on bass and Bob Corritore on harmonica. This is a solid opener with plenty of harmonica by Corritore. With a deep, New Orleans, R&B feel King Karl has the microphone on Mathilda , wailing some really soulful lines. With Johnny Rapp on guitar, S.E. Willis on piano Thomas on bass and Doug James on horns, this is a real standout. George Bowman has the mic for slow blues, I Was A Fool and it's one of my favorites on the release with Jon Atkinson on guitar, Danny Michel on rhythm guitar, Troy Sandow on bass and Brian Fahey on drums. Corritore is a standout on this track with thick, heavily hooded harmonica and Atkinson lays in a tasty guitar of his own to tie down the track. Shuffle, Nine Times Out Of Ten ...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, West Coast Toast , by Mitch Kashmar and it swings. Opening with hot shuffle, East of 82nd Street , Mitch Kashmar on harp is joined by Junior Watson on guitar, Fred Kaplan on keys, Bill Stuve on upright bass and Marty Dodson on drums. Mitch really rocks it on this one and Watson is throwing fire from the frets. Super opener. With a Latin flavor,Willie Dixon's Too Many Cooks , has a cool groove featuring Mitch on lead vocal, claves and harp. Dodson's precision playing and glistening chords from Watson set the pace and Kaplan's solo on piano is strong. Henry Glover's Young Girl is up next with Chicago style. With a solid bottom Kashmar vocals are tops and his harp playing is soulful and adventurous. Cool swinger, The Petroleum Blues , has a super 12 bar feel and and Kashmar sits nicely in the groove. Watson nails it on guitar again with a really nicely styled guitar solo. Slowing the pace down a bit, Mood ...

I just received the newest release, Stand Your Ground , by John Long and it has a great authentic feel. Opening with Homesick James' Baby Please Set A Date , Long is stroking the slide, Elmore James style, backed by Fred Kaplan on piano, Bill Stuve on acoustic bass and Washington Rucker on drums. This track could easily have been recorded in the 40's or 50's by Muddy with a rich early feel. In addition to Long's slide work, Kaplan's exceptional piano work is sweet! Great opener. Son House style creeps into Red Hawk and long shows his powerful vocal style as well as his command of House's excellent slide style. Excellent! On country style blues, Things Can't Be Down Always , Long continues to demonstrate his versatility in style and delivery. His vocals are pure and his playing clean. On title track, Stand Your Ground , Long introduces a bit of New Orleans feel with Stuve and Rucker. A cool rhythmic track with a more contemporary feel. Welcome Mat is an...

I just received the newest release, Hollywood Blvd , from Raoul and The Big Time and it's quite good. Opening with Nothin' Gonna Take Me Down , Raoul has enlisted some of the top blues talent on the continent including Rick Holmstrom on guitar, Jeff Turmes on bass, Stephen Hodges on drums and of course Raoul on harp and vocals. A loose blues infused stumble, this track is laced with hot guitar and harp riffs. Title track Hollywood Blvd , has a Latin R&B feel featuring Fred Kaplan on piano. Larry Taylor on bass and Richard Innes on drums give Raoul and Junior Watson a nice rhythm to lay out some great Chicago style solos. Bobby Blue Bland's Someday it given a really nice traditional feel and Raoul does a nice job on lead vocal. Frank Goldwasser really hits the target with hot guitar work on this track, backed by Darren Gallen on guitar, Terry Wilkins on bass, Tom Bona on drums, Pat Caret and Alison Young on sax and Jake Wilkinson on trumpet. Excellent! Shuffle track...

I just received the newest release (April 15, 2014), Taboo , from Bob Corritor e and I have to say it's absolutely spectacular! I won't have to review this in my car a month from now to know whether I will like it next time around. It is simply that good! Living in the Phoenix metro area for a long time, I have seen Corritore many times and been to his famous blues club, The Rhythm Room many times as well. I have to say that this is surpasses every live performance that I have ever seen Bob do, and will easily make it into one of the must have releases of the year. This all instrumental, yes, all instrumental release opens with Potato Stomp , a cool Chicago style blues track with Junior Watson on guitar, Doug James on sax, Fred Kaplan on keys, Kedar Roy on bass and Ray Innes on drums. Corritore is forward in the mix and playing strong. A nice sax solo leads to a stutter stepped guitar solo from Watson. Excellent! Many A Devil's Night , one of my favorite tracks on the rel...

I just received a copy of the newest release (September 17, 2013), Dangerous , by Sugaray Rayford and it's quite impressive. Rayford, well know as the featured voice of the Mannish Boys, has cut loose with his own release and he is backed by a huge list of talent. Opening with Country Boy and a strong smell of Chicago, Rayford's robust voice paves the way and Sugar Ray Norcia has the harp screaming. Anthony Geraci adds really nice key work on a solid bass by Willie J Campbell (bass) and Jimi Bott on drums. Stuck For A Buck has a bit of the James Brown shuffle going with Gino Matteo rippin fine guitar lead and Fred Kaplan warms the track with organ play. Rayford of course nicely handles lead vocals and a solid horn section made up of Ron Dziubla and Mark Pender cooks the track. On I'm Dangerous , Rayford and Norcia really grind deep in the blues. Norcia plays outstanding harmonica solos on this track making it one of my favorites on the release. Norcia shares the lead ...

COME DOWN TO TONIGHT'S BIG BLUES HARMONICA SHOW Friendly blues reminder for blues harmonica lovers!  See you TONIGHT - MONDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2012 - for the Blues Harmonica Heaven with a cavalcade of top notch blues greats!   All details below were sent in a previous e-mail. Your blues pal forever, Cadillac Zack ************************  BLUES HARMONICA HEAVEN!   ...IS BACK AGAIN!  STARRING...    LYNWOOD SLIM   BHARATH RAJAKUMAR   JUNIOR WATSON   FRED KAPLAN   RICK REED   RENA BEAVERS   AND TONS OF SURPRISE GUESTS!   (TONIGHT MONDAY, OCT. 29)   7:00 pm - Audience Seating Begins   8:00 pm until 9:30 pm - Harmonica Heaven Concert  9:30 pm til 1 am - Open Blues Jam Rages On   NO COVER AT THE DOOR!  THERE IS A TWO DRINK MINIMUM AT THE CLUB.  DONATIONS ARE NEEDED TO K...