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I started a quest to find terrific blues music and incredible musicianship when I was just a little kid. I also have a tremendous appreciation of fine musical instruments and equipment. One of my greatest joys all of my life was sharing my finds with my friends. I'm now publishing my journey. I hope that you come along!


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Showing posts with label Gina Sicilia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gina Sicilia. Show all posts

Tuesday, October 9, 2018

Blue Elan Records artist: Gina Sicilia - Heard The Lie - New Release Review

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Heard The Lie, from Gina Sicilia and it's a solid R&B release. Opening with title track, Heard the Lie, Sicilia blends pop, country and blues to come up with a solid radio track featuring backing by Herman Matthews on drums, Davey Faragher on bass, Arlan Oscar on keys and Josh Smith and Dave Darling on guitars. How Many Times is a strong soul track showcasing Sicilia's vocals as well as the top notch writing of Darling and smooth backing vocals of Bernie Barlow, Brie Darling, D'Andree Galipeau, Conner Pasich, Connie Cham and Kirk Pasich. Bad Company's Ready For Love is next with a bit more polish than the original with deep rich vocals by Sicilia, a light Latin beat and a nice key solo by Oscar. Janey Street's Angels Watching, is a really nice track with a perfect balance of melody and vocals. Another track with a dash of country is Sugar with just another example of Sicilia's flexibility. With Doug Livingston on dobro, this track is smooth as silk. A thicker Lating influence throws Light Me Up into pure dance mode with tight drum work by Matthews and nice keyboard accents by Oscar. Wrapping the release is Growing Dim, a soulful ballad with a simple rim shot and reverb infused guitar. This is a solid closer for a solid release. 

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  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 talent and trying to grow the audience for your favorites band! ”LIKE”

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Wednesday, June 21, 2017

Blue Elan artist: Gina Sicilia - Tug of War - New release review

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Tug of War, from Gina Sicilia, and it's soulful. Opening with I Don't Want To Be In Love, with solid pop foundation, is backed by Dave Darling and Zack Zunis on guitars, Dave Darling on bass and backing vocals, Matt Tecu on drums, Arlan Oscar on organ and piano. Showing that Memphis soul sound on He Called Me Baby, Sicilia belts out my personal favorite on the release with Ron Jennings on guitars, Ken Pendergast on bass, Scott Key on drums and Joel Bryant on B3. On contemporary radio track, Never Gonna End, Jennings, Pendergast and key are back but with Walter Runge on piano. Bluesy ballad, They Never Pay Me, features some of Sicilia's vocal work carried by the soothing B3 work of Runge and nice bass lines of Pendergast and with a curiously nice guitar solo by Jennings. 60's pop track, Tell Him, made popular by The Exciters, is a cover, fairly close to the original but with a fresh spin. Lennon /McCartney track, All My Lovin' is caressed by warm tremelo by Darling on guitar, fairly isolated with Sicilia's vocals. Nice cut. Wrapping the release is Heaven, an easy floating pop track with country style guitar riffs by Jennings and the tight drum work of Key. A cohesive set of tracks with good spirit.



View Bman Blueswriter's profile on LinkedIn

  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 talent and trying to grow the audience for your favorites band! ”LIKE”

 For added exposure - Blues World Wide Group "LIKE" 

  qrcode

 “Like” Bman’s Facebook page and get support for your favorite band or venue - click HERE

Tuesday, August 6, 2013

VizzTone's BMA Wish List

VizzTone's
Blues Music Award
Wish List!

We are so proud of the artists we're working with at the VizzTone label group! 
Of course, the BLUES MUSIC AWARD nominators haven't made their choices yet,
but If it were up to us...we'd see some of the nominations listed below.
Cick on the CDs to listen to the music, and we bet you'll agree!
Candye Kane
Coming Out Swingin'
(feat. Laura Chavez)

Coming Out Swingin’— the brilliant new record from feminist power poet and vocalist CANDYE KANE, her extraordinary guitarist and co-writer Laura Chavez, and her exceptional band. It’s a jukebox for the mind that moves the body and spirit with a broad selection of originals and hip covers.

• CONTEMPORARY BLUES FEMALE ARTIST
• CONTEMPORARY BLUES ALBUM
• GUITARIST (Laura Chavez)
• BB KING ENTERTAINER
• SONG: "Invisible Woman"
• ALBUM OF THE YEAR


2013 IBC Solo/Duo Winner
Little G Weevil
Moving

LITTLE G WEEVIL is an international Bluesman. Growing up in Budapest, Hungary, G fell in love with American Blues records, and soon became a successful Blues artist in his own country.  He felt the call of the American South and moved to the United States, living in Alabama, washing dishes and playing on Beale Street in Memphis, and finally settling in Atlanta Georgia. After winning first place as a solo artist at the 2013 International Blues Challenge , he recorded MOVING – a beautifully ambient album of deep, all-acoustic Blues.

• ACOUSTIC BLUES ALBUM
• ACOUSTIC BLUES ARTIST
• ALBUM OF THE YEAR


Ruff Kutt Blues Band
That's When The Blues Begins

Deep Texas Blues featuring Zac Harmon, Finis Tasby, and Anson Funderburgh. Texan James Goode describes himself as an “old rascal and beat-up coach”, but this Rockabilly Hall-Of-Fame inductee, songwriter, bass player, and creator of the RUFF KUTT BLUES BAND certainly knows how to field one hell of a Blues team. This all-star aggregation hits a deep Blues groove and delivers Goode’s songs with the assured, relaxed intensity of seasoned pros.

• TRADITIONAL BLUES ALBUM
• ALBUM OF THE YEAR


Austin Young & No Difference
Blue As Can Be

Colorado’s multi-award winning teenage Blues phenom AUSTIN YOUNG is an electrifying performer and prolific songwriter. He has been devastating audiences at clubs, concerts and festivals. Blue As Can Be is a landmark worldwide debut from a young artist with a huge future.


• NEW ARTIST DEBUT
• GUITARIST

Gina Sicilia
It Wasn't Real

On her fourth release, GINA SICILIA continues to evolve and demonstrate a unique ability to stitch different genres into one personal, authentic sound that is all the Soul of Gina Sicilia.  Stunning writing, beautiful sonic landscapes and vocals to die for, It Wasn’t Real is a fearless leap forward that delivers.

• CONTMEPORARY BLUES FEMALE ARTIST
• CONTEMPORARY BLUES ALBUM
• SONG: "It Wasn't Real"

Long Tall Deb
Raise Your Hands

LONG TALL DEB Landolt delivers a solid dose of her patented “Soul/Gospel/Swamp” on her debut release, with striking performances on ten of Deb’s original songs with help from a bevy of heavy hitting guests. This is a tour-de-force for Long Tall Deb, and a joyous celebration of the arrival of an artist on the rise.

• NEW ARTIST DEBUT
• CONTEMPORARY BLUES FEMALE ARTIST
• SONG: "Married To The Blues" feat Big Llou

James Montgomery Band
From Detroit To The Delta

JAMES MONTGOMERY cut his teeth in the Detroit Blues scene of the late 60’s, moved to Boston, signed with Capricorn Records, and proceeded to lead a Blues band that was so hot they had budding local rockers like Aerosmith opening their shows. On the new CD, James traces his musical roots From Detroit To The Delta, with special guests Johnny Winter, Aerosmith’s Joey Kramer and Brad Whitford, James Cotton, the Uptown Horns, and seminal rapper DMC. Montgomery’s journey paysrespect to many styles of the Blues, from urban streets to Mississippi mud.

• ROCK BLUES ALBUM
• SONG: "Little Johnny" feat. Johnny Winter, Aerosmiths's Brad Hatfield and Joey Kramer

and a sneak peek, coming in September...
Dave Riley and
Bob Corritore
Hush Your Fuss

This is timeless juke-joint blues, performed by modern masters.The "Mississippi meets Chicago" blues partnership of singer/guitarist Dave Riley and award-winning Chicago blues harmonica player Bob Corritore has toured extensively in the USA, Europe and South America.  HUSH YOUR FUSS!, their third CD together, is a real down-home blues throw-down, featuring rootsy, old-school storytelling blues that puts you in rural Mississippi by way of Chicago, all in the well-honed style of DAVE RILEY and BOB CORRITORE.

• TRADITIONAL BLUES ALBUM
• HARMONICA: BOB CORRITORE

THANKS FOR LISTENING, WE HOPE YOU LOVE THE MUSIC AS MUCH AS WE DO!


 

Wednesday, June 5, 2013

Gina Sicilia Will Perform At The Bing Lounge June 21st

MEDIA BLAST

Gina Sicilia Will Perform At
The Bing Lounge June 21st
KINK-FM Presents Unique Live Streaming Music Experience

Vizztone Recording Artist Gina Sicilia will perform live at the music streaming Bing Lounge on June 21 at 12PM (Noon) Pacific Time with her band. The performance will take place at the KINK-FM station in Portland, Oregon. Gina will perform songs from her newest release “It Wasn’t Real”, that came out earlier this spring to rave reviews.
The Bing Lounge has become a virtual hot spot for music acts across the spectrum, and after the streaming, KINK-FM will archive it for later use and viewing.
You will be able to watch it from their channel: http://www.alphabroadcasting.com/binglive/
Produced by Grammy-winner Glenn Barrett, It Wasn’t Real was recorded at Morningstar Studios in Gina’s hometown of Philadelphia, and features the singer backed by a cadre of local all-star session players who bring a soulful intensity that matches Sicilia’s emotionally-charged vocals. 
The new album’s nine original songs showcase Gina’s growth as a songwriter who can deal with universal themes of love and fate, but is able to inject a personal deep-felt longing throughout with her commanding vocal style. The lone cover is a scintillating re-working of the great Etta James’ 1961 hit, “Don’t Cry Baby.” 
 “These songs mean a lot to me,” Gina says. “My goal is to write in a way that’s observant and soulful, and to get at the pleasures and the pressures of love, joy, family, and responsibility…all the complexities that are part of living. And with Glenn’s help and the support of the great band he put together, I think I’ve made my best album.”
So grab a bite and or a coffee, and check out Gina!

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

mmm, mmm, mmMemphis! ... and coming soon!

BRAND NEW FROM THE VIZZTONE LABEL GROUP
mmm, mmm, mmMemphis! 
and coming soon....

Hey All Y'all (note the vernacular, we're getting in the mood) —

Lots of VizzTone folks are heading to Memphis this week, so we wanted to take this opportunity to give one more shout out to our BMA nominees, talk about our Big Blues Party on Beale, and brag about our new and upcoming releases!

So first of all, one more big CONGRATS and GOOD LUCK to the Blues Music Awards nominees from our VizzTone/Vizzable family:


OUR NOMINEES...

Ann Rabson w/Bob Margolin / Not Alone - Acoustic Blues Album
Bob Margolin- Traditional Blues Male Artist of the Year
Phantom Blues Band - Blues Band of the Year
Tony Braunagel (Phantom Blues Band, Robert Cray Band) - Drums
Mike Finnigan (Phantom Blues Band) - Pinetop Perkins Piano Player
Diunna Greenleaf (Vizzable Music Artist) - Koko Taylor Award

      
Click the CD to listen or buy at VizzTone.com   ;-)
For those of you who'll be coming to Memphis, we can't wait to see you there!  And, if you're sticking around town for the Friday night AFTER the Awards, c'mon down to our amazing VizzTone Blues Party On Beale!  Check it out:


See what I'm sayin'??  This is gonna be one party that is NOT TO BE MISSED!

Lately we've been bragging about our BRAND NEW releases -
Click the album covers to take a listen, and you'll understand why!

         

       

...and we'll tell you more about these soon (trust us on that!),
but here's a quick peek at what's COMING VERY SOON....



Coming May 14!

RUFF KUTT BLUES BAND
THAT'S WHEN THE BLUES BEGINS

Deep Texas Blues featuring Zac Harmon, Finis Tasby, Anson Funderburgh, and James Goode.


Coming June 25

CANDYE KANE
COMING OUT SWINGIN'
featuring LAURA CHAVEZ

We are SO PROUD to welcome our good friends Candye Kane and Laura Chavez to the family!




Coming soon...

LITTLE G WEEVIL
MOVING

• 2013 International Blues Challenge winner


Did you know... you can preview Every song from Every artist at www.vizztone.com!

VizzTone Label Group artist: Gina Sicilia - It Wasn't Real - New Release Review

I just received the newest release, It Wasn't Real, from Gina Sicilia. Sicilia has a rich voice and a smooth delivery. Opening with the title track, It Wasn't Real, Sicilia delivers a sultry pop jazz track with nice sax work backing by Jay Davidson. Next up is a track that I became familiar with through my love for James Brown. This has a totally different feel with a more laid back swing type groove. Davidson again steps up with a sweet solo. Walkin Along The Avenue has a distinct 40's sound and possibly the coolest track on the release. Dennis Gruenling plays some really complimentary harp on this track and Joel Bryant adds a nice B3 line. City By The Water is a strong radio play track with a real bluesy feel. Davidson again gets the chance to shine with a real solid sax solo. The release is wrapped with country influenced Walkin' Shoes. Overall this release will appeal to a more adult audience with strong pop melodic tendencies. It is very well done.

 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 talent and trying to grow the audience for your favorites band! ”LIKE”

 

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Dynamic singer/songwriter Gina Sicilia - FREE TRACK

BRAND NEW FROM THE VIZZTONE LABEL GROUP
The VizzTone label group proudly presents It Wasn't Real, the new CD from dynamic roots music singer/songwriter Gina Sicilia.  This compelling release promises to expand her burgeoning career as one of the most creative, exciting and diverse artists in the genre today.

Produced by Grammy-winner Glenn Barratt, It Wasn’t Real was recorded at Morningstar Studios in Gina’s hometown of Philadelphia, and features the singer backed by a cadre of local all-star session players who bring a soulful intensity that matches Sicilia’s emotionally-charged vocals.  

The new album’s nine original songs showcase Gina’s growth as a songwriter who can deal with universal themes of love and fate, but is able to inject a personal deep-felt longing throughout with her commanding vocal style. The lone cover is a scintillating re-working of the great Etta James’ 1961 hit, “Don’t Cry Baby.” 

“These songs mean a lot to me,” Gina says. “My goal is to write in a way that’s observant and soulful, and to get at the pleasures and the pressures of love, joy, family, responsibility…all the complexities that are part of living. And with Glenn’s help and the support of the great band he put together, I think I’ve made my best album.”

Considered a true rising star in the blues world ever since her debut album, Allow Me to Confess, brought her world-wide acclaim in 2007, Gina manages to raise the bar even further with It Wasn’t Real, throwing down a music gauntlet of soul, power, grit and energy for others to follow. Her songs and performances gracefully cross genres on the new album, too, with echoes of soul, rock and even Americana woven throughout the tapestry of sound she’s created on the new disc, bringing Gina’s music to an even wider audience.

“Even though I’m mostly known in the blues world, I love and I’ve absorbed all kinds of music — R&B, country, doo-wop, jazz, soul, pop and blues. So when I get inspired to write a song, it’s likely to go anywhere and even combine those styles,” Sicilia explains. Threads of those genres can also be heard in her previous three albums, including 2008’s Hey Sugar and 2011’s Can’t Control Myself, which were all produced by Sicilia’s bandleader and guitarist Dave Gross.

“Working with Glenn took me out of the comfort zone Dave and I have together, and that made me a little nervous and forced me to push myself,” Sicilia recalls. “That gave me the edge and the encouragement I needed to explore the entire breadth of my vocal range, which I think people get to hear for the first time on this album.”

Gina Sicilia got her first true taste of performing in front of an audience at age 19 during the weekly jams held at Philadelphia blues and jazz club, Warmdaddy’s, beginning in 2005. She’d already acquired her eclectic musical taste from her parents, who played all kinds of music on their home stereo, including pop tunes from her father’s native Italy. But after she ordered a packaged-for-TV compilation album called Solid Gold Soul that featured Bobby Bland, Etta James, Otis Redding, Aretha Franklin and others, she become hooked on old-school soul, blues and R&B.

She had planned a career in journalism despite the encouragement of her musical mentor, Russell Faith, an important local composer and musician who’d written songs for Frank Sinatra. His death in 2004 galvanized Sicilia into action. “I started taking the subway by myself to the jams at Warmdaddy’s,” she says. “From the first time I got the courage to go onstage, the musicians there encouraged me.”

It was at the Warmdaddy’s jams that Gina met Dave Gross, and soon thereafter they started dating and performing together. Gross encouraged her to record, and Allow Me to Confess was released just after Sicilia graduated from Temple University and was free to begin touring. The album was soon picked up for distribution by the VizzTone Label Group and Sicilia rapidly signed with a national roots music booking agency.

“I see myself as always evolving, reaching for a new place where I want my music to be and a way I want it to sound,” she proclaims. “I don’t know if I’ll find that place, but I’ll never stop searching.”


Click to see the video of "Don't Wanna Be No Mother" from It Wasn't Real



"A solid set from a vocalist with real chops that just keep getting honed sharper, contemporary blues vocal fans will find this set indispensable.  Killer stuff throughout."
     – Chris Spector, Midwest Record

"One of today’s rising stars in the blues world is Philadelphia-based singer/songwriter Gina Sicilia. But one listen to her new release, It Wasn’t Real, and you’ll agree that she could be a star in any genre of music. Her versatility comes from the powerful vocal instrument that she possesses; it is a distinct voice that allows her to do just about anything she wants with it, and that is just fine by me. It Wasn’t Real could have been a double-CD and still not shown off everything Gina can do, I bet... The album is well-conceived, exquisitely-produced, and an exciting introduction to Gina Sicilia. What’s even more exciting is pondering what this woman (who can seemingly do anything) will do next."
     – Greg Victor, parcbench.com

"Gina Sicilia is a woman of many talents…This is her fourth studio album to date and is by far her best work. This is powerful! …Gina Sicilia is the real deal, pouring herself heart and soul into every performance."
     – Bill Wilson, Billtown Blues Association


 

Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Dynamic Roots Music Singer/Songwriter Gina Sicilia Readies New CD, "It Wasn't Real," for April 30 Release on VizzTone Label Group


Dynamic Roots Music Singer/Songwriter
Gina Sicilia Readies New CD, It Wasn’t Real, for Release April 30 on VizzTone Label Group

New Album Produced by Grammy-Winner Glenn Barratt



PHILADELPHIA, PA - Dynamic roots music singer/songwriter Gina Sicilia announces an April 30 release date for It Wasn’t Real, her new CD on the VizzTone Label Group, which promises to expand her burgeoning career as one of the most creative, exciting and diverse artists in the genre today.

Produced by Grammy-winner Glenn Barrett, It Wasn’t Real was recorded at Morningstar Studios in Gina’s hometown of Philadelphia, and features the singer backed by a cadre of local all-star session players who bring a soulful intensity that matches Sicilia’s emotionally-charged vocals. 

The new album’s nine original songs showcase Gina’s growth as a songwriter who can deal with universal themes of love and fate, but is able to inject a personal deep-felt longing throughout with her commanding vocal style. The lone cover is a scintillating re-working of the great Etta James’ 1961 hit, “Don’t Cry Baby.” 

“These songs mean a lot to me,” Gina says. “My goal is to write in a way that’s observant and soulful, and to get at the pleasures and the pressures of love, joy, family, responsibility…all the complexities that are part of living. And with Glenn’s help and the support of the great band he put together, I think I’ve made my best album.”

Considered a true rising star in the blues world ever since her debut album, Allow Me to Confess, brought her world-wide acclaim in 2007, Gina manages to raise the bar even further with It Wasn’t Real, throwing down a music gauntlet of soul, power, grit and energy for others to follow. Her songs and performances gracefully cross genres on the new album, too, with echoes of soul, rock and even Americana woven throughout the tapestry of sound she’s created on the new disc, bringing Gina’s music to an even wider audience.

“Even though I’m mostly known in the blues world, I love and I’ve absorbed all kinds of music — R&B, country, doo-wop, jazz, soul, pop and blues. So when I get inspired to write a song, it’s likely to go anywhere and even combine those styles,” Sicilia explains. Threads of those genres can also be heard in her previous three albums, including 2008’s Hey Sugar and 2011’s Can’t Control Myself, which were all produced by Sicilia’s bandleader and guitarist Dave Gross.

“Working with Glenn took me out of the comfort zone Dave and I have together, and that made me a little nervous and forced me to push myself,” Sicilia recalls. “That gave me the edge and the encouragement I needed to explore the entire breadth of my vocal range, which I think people get to hear for the first time on this album.”

Gina Sicilia got her first true taste of performing in front of an audience at age 19 during the weekly jams held at Philadelphia blues and jazz club, Warmdaddy’s, beginning in 2005. She’d already acquired her eclectic musical taste from her parents, who played all kinds of music on their home stereo, including pop tunes from her father’s native Italy. But after she ordered a packaged-for-TV compilation album called Solid Gold Soul that featured Bobby Bland, Etta James, Otis Redding, Aretha Franklin and others, she become hooked on old-school soul, blues and R&B.
               
She had planned a career in journalism despite the encouragement of her musical mentor, Russell Faith, an important local composer and musician who’d written songs for Frank Sinatra. His death in 2004 galvanized Sicilia into action. “I started taking the subway by myself to the jams at Warmdaddy’s,” she says. “From the first time I got the courage to go onstage, the musicians there encouraged me.”
               
It was at the Warmdaddy’s jams that Gina met Dave Gross, and soon thereafter they started dating and performing together. Gross encouraged her to record, and Allow Me to Confess was released just after Sicilia graduated from Temple University and was free to begin touring. The album was soon picked up for distribution by the VizzTone Label Group and Sicilia rapidly signed with a national roots music booking agency.

“I see myself as always evolving, reaching for a new place where I want my music to be and a way I want it to sound,” she proclaims. “I don’t know if I’ll find that place, but I’ll never stop searching.”

For more, visit www.ginasicilia.com.
  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 talent and trying to grow the audience for your favorite band!