Bman's Blues Report

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Live From Rosa's , from Linsey Alexander , and it really captures Alexander in his element. Opening with cool shuffle track, Please Love Me , Alexander on lead vocal and guitar starts electrifying the audience right from the first note. Joined by Sergei Androshin on guitar, Roosevelt Purifoy on keys, Ron Simmons on bass and "Big" Ray Stewart on drums, they set a tight groove. On blues classic made popular by Freddie King and later Eric Clapton, Have You Ever Loved A Woman , Alexander really digs in on guitar and with essential organ work by Purifoy, lays down my favorite track on the release. Alexander's vocals are real and his soloing inspired. Another cool shuffle is Goin' Out Walkin' and Alexander works his guitar against his vocals nicely. Hi steppin' Snowing In Chicago has a cool driving beat with fluid guitar lines and energized organ soloing by Purifoy. Wrapping the release is funky...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Two Cats , from Linsey Alexander and it's smooth with that sassy R&B overtone. With Alexander's strong vocals and soulful guitar work, strongly supported by Kenny Anderson on trumpet, Hank Ford on sax and Norman Palm on trombone, I'm Not Your Problem is a  nice opener. A blues with saunter, Where Did You Take Your Clothes Off Last Night? has a cool bass line by E.G. McDaniel and stinging guitar work by Alexander with nice harp work by Paul Hanover. Funky, That Ain't Right highlights the horn section and a high stepping rhythm by Bryant Parker is spot on. Ford lays in a real nice sax solo, followed by Anderson on trumpet and Palm on trombone giving the track punch. Another hi stepping blues number, title track, Two Cats , have a real nice balance with horn accent and guitar soloing. Very nice. Gospel flavored blues, Facebook Woman features some of Alexander's finest vocals with Roosevelt Puri...

I just received the newest release, Come Back Baby , from Linsey Alexander and it is full of grooving R&B Blues flavor! Opening with Little Bit Of Soap , a BB King style track with Bill McFarland (trombone), Chris Neal (tenor sax) and Ryan Nyther (trumpet), Alexander takes the lead on vocal as well as guitar shared with Breezy Rodio. High stepper Booze and Blues is driven by a nice bass line from Greg McDaniel and Roosevelt Purifoy weighs in with a sweet organ solo. Slow blues number, I Got A Woman , finds Alexander at his best with powerful vocals and searing guitar solos. Pooky Styx plays a nice simple contrast on drums as Alexander wails on. Very Nice! Come Back Baby is solid soul and Alexander is surrounded by horns. A very cool radio track with a nice melody and light airy guitar work. Harmonica wiz, Billy Branch, joins on Call My Wife , a classic Chicago style track. Branch's featured work on this track as well as simple, soulful guitar riffs from Alexander makes it ...

Chicago is the blues capital of the world, and if recent popularity is any kind of benchmark, Linsey Alexander just might be the hottest sound in town right now. Born in Mississippi and raised in Memphis, Tennessee, Linsey Alexander discovered on Chicago's south side a down to earth city that truly understands and appreciates music. In much the same way as many great blues artists before him, he grew up in a poor but honest and hard working family, learning early on that music has the power to lift the spirit and comfort the soul. In Linsey's own words, "Blues music is not hard- it's just a documentary about life." His first guitar - a gift from a family friend who played on the front stoop of Linsey's home in Memphis - was never retrieved from the pawn shop where he left it almost 50 years ago. Using the money to help pay his way to Chicago, he now plays a variety of Gibson and Fender guitars, and since 1959, Linsey Alexander has been perfecting the art o...

Chicago is the blues capital of the world, and if recent popularity is any kind of benchmark, Linsey Alexander just might be the hottest sound in town right now. Born in Mississippi and raised in Memphis, Tennessee, Linsey Alexander discovered on Chicago's south side a down to earth city that truly understands and appreciates music. In much the same way as many great blues artists before him, he grew up in a poor but honest and hard working family, learning early on that music has the power to lift the spirit and comfort the soul. In Linsey's own words, "Blues music is not hard- it's just a documentary about life." His first guitar - a gift from a family friend who played on the front stoop of Linsey's home in Memphis - was never retrieved from the pawn shop where he left it almost 50 years ago. Using the money to help pay his way to Chicago, he now plays a variety of Gibson and Fender guitars, and since 1959, Linsey Alexander has been perfecting the art of e...