Bman's Blues Report

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent  release, Beautiful Slop , from JJ Appleton and Jason Ricci and it's quite good. Opening with delta style acoustic blues, Don't Take Advantage Of Me , with JJ Appleton on vocal and slide guitar, Jason Ricci on harmonica and vocal and Derek Nievergelt on acoustic bass the band gets the raw efforts of the early blues pioneers down pat. Great opener. With certain tension, Hurt Myself, is a great contemporary blues piece with hoots and hollers by Ricci and tight guitar riffs by Appleton, leading to a real nice harp solo. Certainly my favorite track on the release. Geaux Nuts Kids is a cool, Zydeco style instrumental jam featuring harp and guitar with only vocal punctuation. Very cool. Another of my favorite tracks is Don't Badger The Witness with some of the hottest slide guitar riffs on the release. I like Ricci's rowdy vocal styling and trademark harp work. Wrapping the release is bluesy ballad, Stay, with onl...

I just received the newest release, Dirty Memory , from JJ Appleton & Jason Ricci and I really like it! Opening with Leaning Blues , JJ Appleton really nails the Elmore James feel on slide resonator and Jason Ricci is wailing on harp for a terrific acoustic blues feel. Blind Willie Johnson's Nobody's Fault But Mine is up next with an uptempo foot stompin' pace. With a more contemporary feel, Appleton delivers Can't Believe It's This Good . A cordial blend of vocal, tight harp riffs and mellow slide resonator, this track should have strong radio appeal. Nicely constructed pop track, New Man , is a really nice showcase for Ricci on vocal and harp. Jason Solo is an understatement but accurate. Rici takes his harp for a nice ride from train harp to the world of Lee Oskar. Very nice! Just Enough is a rambling blues track with a nice melody and harp and slide guitar in unison. Nicely blended, this is a cool track. The Rolling Stones', Black Limousine , has a...