Bman's Blues Report

Mike Zito, Bernard Allsion, Vanja Sky Blues Caravan 2018 Release: 19.10.2018 Format: CD + DVD Video Label: Ruf Records GmbH EAN: 0710347126027 This was no ordinary club tour. This was the Blues Caravan 2018. If you’ve followed Ruf’s rolling revue since it started life in 2005, you’ll already know that these shows are must-see events, throwing together three stellar artists on one bill – then letting the chemistry do the rest. Traditionally, the Blues Caravan lineup has showcased the...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Straitjacket , from Jeremiah Johnson and it's quite good. Opening with title track, Straitjacket, Jeremiah Johnson has a hot one on his hands. With a driving beat, a rolling bass line by Tom Maloney, Benet Schaeffer on drums Frank Bauer on sax and Mike Zito on rhythm guitar, Johnson on guitar and lead vocal this is a solid opener. Blues fused but with a great R&B style back beat, Getting Tired is one of my favorites on the release with a hot sax/bass lead and strong guitar fronting. another really cool track is Blues In Her Eyes with a great melody, solid vocals and crisp guitar lead. Rock and roller, Keep on Sailing has a strong boogie underpinning and slick slide work by Zito. Slow blues number, King & Queen , has some of the best vocals by Johnson on the release and an extended guitar solo on this 6 plus minute track is gold. Excellent! Zito move upfront on 9th and Russell , a slower country rocker wit...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release (August 17, 2018), Bad Penny from Vanja Sky and it's a pop rocker with zip. Opening with title track, Bad Penny , Vanja Sky wastes no time in demonstrating her no prisoners attitude with a swaggering track that could easily be from the Lynyrd Skynyrd songbook. Leading the band on guitar and vocal Sky is backed by Mike Zito on guitar, Terry Day on bass, Matthew Johnson on drums and Lewis Stephens on keys. Low Down And Dirty is my favorite track on the release with what to me sounds like Mike Zito on vocal and slide guitar. This track has a gritty two step feel with cool guitar lead and vocals by Sky making this track hot hot hot! All Night has a poppy/rock feel with firm rhythm guitar and polished vocals by Sky. Ballad, Inside Pain has a smooth Mark Knopfler guitar feel and a solid radio melody. Another of my favorites is Give Me Back My Sou l with a great SRV /Texas lope with Dave Smith on bass and Yonrico Scott ...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, First Class Life , by Mike Zito and I really like it. This is an excellent follow-up to Zito's 2017 release, Make Blues Not War that I reviewed last year and I think that he's on a great run! Opening with Mississippi Nights , a country blues flavored rocker, Zito leads on guitar and vocals, backed by Lewis Stephens on keys, Matthew Johnson on drums and Terry Dry on bass. Winding his slide out he really gets it cranking. What an opener! Title track, First Class Life not only has great style and feel, it has a real story and excellent slide work making it one of the top tracks on the release (and a super radio track to boot). Slower blues ballad, The World We Live In , has a strong melody and Zito's vocals are spot on. His guitar work, in response to his lead vocal is nicely punctuated. With the country funk of a Dickey Betts composition, Mama Don't Like No Wah Wah , has a real moving groove with Zito, j...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Blue Eyed Soul Volume I , by J.T. Lauritsen & The Buckshot Hunters and it's very cool. Opening with R&B track, Anything I Can Do , J.T. shows just how smooth he can be on lead vocal backed by Ian Frederick Johannessen and Arnfinn Torrisen on rhythm guitar, Morten Nordskaug on bass, John Grimsby on drums, Paul Wagnburg on B3 Jens Petter Antonsen on trumpet and trombone and a nice guitar intro by Dave Fields. Stay With Me All The Time is a classic with a super melody and really nice balance. On Allen Toussaint's Nothing Takes The Place Of You , J.T. really shines with his soulful lead vocal with Borge-Are S. Halvorsen on sax, Deanna Bogart on backing vocals and nice solo guitar work by Mike Zito. Excellent! Funky blues number, You Got Me Down has a great bass line compliments Nordskaug and the clean cowbell work of Grimsby is not at all lost. Guitar solos by Johannessen and Torrisen give the track that s...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, I Got The Blues , from Freddie Pate and it's quite cool. Opening with Willie Dixonesque, Let the Juke Joint Jump , Pate on lead vocal and guitar has a flashy, yet stylistic guitar style and just enough raggedness to his vocals to give it edge. Backed by Terry Dry on bass, Matt Johnson on drums, Lewis Stephens on keys and Mike Zito on rhythm guitar, this is a cool opener. On Elmore James, Sho-nuff I Do , Pate really belts out the blues and with grinding tone, tells it with his guitar. Stephens' piano work dances above the solid bottom of Dry and Johnson giving this track an authentic feel. Hank William's Hey Good Lookin' gets a 60's rock (Watusi)  make over and I really like it. Alan Toussaint's Nothin Takes The Place Of You has a strong soulful delivery and exhibit's Pate's best vocals on the release. 12 bar number, and title track, I Got The Blues has a strong roll and Elmore James like...

Mike Zito First Class   Blues-rock is a tightrope – and Mike Zito has never lost his footing. At times in his storied two-decade career, the Texas bandleader has rolled up the amps and rocked as hard as anyone. Yet his lifelong fascination with the blues has always reeled him back in. And now, having shaken the rafters with 2016’s acclaimed Make Blues Not War, First Class Life finds Mike diving deep into the only genre that can do justice to his hard-won true stories of hardship and redemption. “Make Blues was pretty extreme and rocking,” he reflects. “This time, I was definitely thinking more blues.” Released in 2018 o...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Up All Night , from Albert Castiglia and it's smokin! Up to his 7th release now and still getting better, Castiglia opens with Mike Zito's Hoodoo On Me blistering his way on guitar and leading on vocal. Joined by Jimmy Pritchard on bass and Brian Menendez on drums, this is a great opener. With a heavy footed rock beat, I Been Up All Night is a classic funk rocker. Castiglia has great presence with fluid blues riffs and raspy vocals over the big bass lines of Pritchard and tight drumming of Menendez. Excellent! Driving rock n roller, 95 South is a super track highlighted by real nice slide work by Sonny Landreth. Another Mike Zito track, Quit Your Bitching has beautiful slow blues phrasing and may be my favorite track on the release. Smooth vocals, inspired guitar soloing lead the way. Cyril Neville's Unhappy House Of Blues has a solid blues bass with a great harp topping by Johnny Sansone. Another rock...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Dream Train , from Alastair Greene and it's a smokin' rocker. Opening with title track, Dream Train , Greene on lead vocal and guitar, joined by Jim Rankin on bass and Austin Beede on drums really hit the road hard including fiery slide work by Greene. Big Bad Wolf is a great boogie rocker with grinding guitar rhythm and slashing solos. Excellent! Billy Gibbons penned, Nome Zayne   has a heavy bottom and cool pinched guitar harmonics. One of my favorite tracks on the release is blues ballad, Another Lie , featuring features Walter Trout on guitar and Mike Finnigan on organ and some of the best Greene guitar riffs on tape in a while. Excellent! Acoustic instrumental, Song For Rufus , shows Greene's guitar virtuosity with serious intent. An exceptional piece of recording and playing. Dare Devil is a cool 12 bar number with a nice solo from Dennis Gruenling on harp, Mike Finnigan on organ and of course Greene o...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Plays The Blues , from Jimmy Carpenter , and it's cooking. Opening with Magic Sam's You Belong To Me , and it's puffing smoke like Jr Walker. Saxman/vocalist, Carpenter really steps out on this release with authentic R&B style sax with Mike Zito on guitar accented nicely by Tony Diteodoro on guitar, Matthew Johnson on drums, Bob Bridges on bass and Marc Adams on keys. Jimmy Plays The Blues is an excellent soulful blues in the style of T Bone Walker. Using Carpenter's sax as the lead instrument, wailing out the melody, this track is hot. Solid shuffle track, Blues With A Feeling features tight guitar riffs and nice piano work paving the way for singing sax solo work by Carpenter. Freddie King's Surf Monkey has that great 60's vibe with Zito playing against Carpenter on lead lines. Very cool. Otis Rush's All Your Love has great feel with nice tom tom work by Johnson and shimmery guitar w...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release from Anthony Rosano and the Conqueroos and it's a hot fusion of rock and biting blues. Opening with 20 Days , a tight rocker featuring Anthony Rosano on lead vocal and stinging fat slide guitar, Jeremy "JB" Bustillos on  vocal and harp, Paul Warren on bass and Scott Smith on drums. Shuffle, Give Me Strength has a cool groove with Warren romping the bass, harp attack by JB and a slick guitar solo from Rosano. You Don't Know Me is a mover and Rosano's guitar tome is warm and meaty. With a great beat and stinging guitar riffs, this track is super. Boogie track, Wicked Grin is hot with unbridled guitar riffs and a cool sax solo from JB. Excellent! Funky, Shakin' In The Veins , features really cool slide work by Anders Osborne  and with a definite southern flair, cool harp work by JB pushing the track even further. Bound To You is a solid ballad with a scorching guitar intro. I particularly l...

The Bender is Sept 7.8.9.10, 2017 Big Blues Bender Announces Fabulous Lineup for Sept! LAS VEGAS, NV. – The Big Blues Bender, one of the most talked about Blues events in the country, has announced an impressive 2017 lineup. The Big Blues Bender offers what could be their best artist lineup to date, offering a wide variety of first-class music and entertainment including, Mavis Staples, Dr. John, Tab Benoit, Walter Trout, and many more. This four-night all-inclusive music experience delivers eighteen hours of live music, daily, on three indoor stages and a fabulous pool stage all under one roof, featuring the most talented and sought after Blues artists to...