Bman's Blues Report

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, 20 Years On The Road, from Tomislav Goluban and it's chocked full of great blues harp. Opening with blues rocker, Express Ride, blues harp wiz Tomislav Goluban really has it cranking, backed by the Tobacco Road Blues Band (Peter Prammerdorfer on guitar, Mike Diwald on guitar, Christian Egger on bass and Klaus Sauli on drums. On shuffle, Searchin' For My Baby features Skylar Rogers on lead vocal and she does a real nice job. With Goluban on harmonica, Hrvoje Funda on guitar, Vid Kotarski on guitar, Jurica Leikauff on keys, Tomislav Kusar on bass and Dragutin Hojsak on drums, a real nice jam. With a twist of country, Ryan Donohue leads the way on No Means No. Mike Sponza and Funda on guitars, Vid Bajevic on trumpet, Mario Sincek on trombone, Damjan Grbac on bass, and Igor Vugrek compliment Goluban on harmonica. Another track with a taste of country is Speedin' Train featuring the super vocals of Teresa James. Golu...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Blue Credentials , from Malaya Blue and it's a solid blues rocker. Opening with Your Act Has Worn Thin , Malaya up front on vocals leads this heavy bottomed hi stepper joined by Brett Lucas on lead guitar, Richard Cousins on bass, John McCullough on Hammond and Sam Kelly on drums. R&B flavored, I Can't Find No Love , has a real nice feel. Malaya hits a really nice slot and Lucas' lead guitar response is spot on. Soulful ballad, I'm Having Dreams Again , is my favorite track on the release and also the radio selection from my perspective. With it's solid melody and some of Malaya's best vocals on the release, coupled with some nice slide work by Lucas hits the spot. Funky Good Intentions, Bad Results is another strong entry with a great bass line by Cousins and some strong blues riffs by Lucas backing up Malaya. Blues rocker, Bring Me Your Sin has a terrific beat and Lucas really unloads both w...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Still , from Malaya Blue and it's a solid release with plenty of soul. Opening with title track, Still , UK singer/songwriter, Malaya Blue is joined by Nat Martin on guitar, Stevie Watts on keys, Mike Horne on drums and Eddie Masters on bass. Really nice vocal phrasing and a solid melody makes this a strong opener. With a funky beat and and some cool organ work, Down To The Bone has a great groove and Martin's guitar soloing is really tasty. One of my favorite tracks on the release is Why Is Peace So Hard with it's gospel overtones. Malaya really works this track and the organ work on Watts drives it home. Excellent! R&B track, You Kiss My Troubles Away has a great beat and with it's rhythmic vocal delivery, a solid radio presence. Another of my favorite tracks is jazzy R&B track, Settle Down Easy with a strong bass line from Masters and a solid vocal delivery by Malaya. Wrapping the release is ...