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Showing posts with the label Mikey Junior

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Zac Harmon & The Drive - Live - New Release Review

By Bman -
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 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Live , from Zac Harmon & The Drive and it's super! Opening with soulful, NTRO , Nate Robinson on bass and Gino Iglehart on drums set a solid foundation, with Corey Lacy building on keys and lush guitar work by Zac Harmon and Kingston Livingston really setting the bar. Terrific opener. Blue Pill Thrill has super movement and soulful vocals by Harmon. Lacy on keys works the rhythm with Robinson and Iglehart and Livingston and and Harmon play stinging riffs on guitar really giving this track some kick. Deep blues track, Feet Back On The Ground features Albert King like stinging riffs and super soulful vocals by Harmon. Keeping the music floor low allows Harmon plenty of space to go dynamically from soft to wow quickly adding real emotion to the track. Excellent! Boogie Down is a strong jam with a firm piano base by Lacy giving Harmon plenty of headroom for vocal corralling. Lacy lays in some real tasty keyboar...
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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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Blue Heart Records artist: Mike Guldin - The Franklin Sessions - New Release Review

By Bman -
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 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, The Franklin Sessions , from Mike Guldin and Rollin' and Tumblin' and it's a solid set of contemporary blues. Opening with The Franklin Shuffle , Mike Guldin leads the way on vocal and guitar, backed by Yates McKendree on drums, James Pennebaker on guitar, and David Santos on bass. With a nice guitar lope and sparkling piano work by Kevin, this track cuts a nice groove. With a nice soulful feel, The Right Thing finds The McCrary Sisters backing Guldin on vocals, Kevin on organ, Yates adding some real nice lap steel, Bill Sharrow on bass, Tim Hooper on piano and Billy Wear on drums. Very cool. Yates really shines on guitar on Blow Wind Blow with a super bass groove by Sharrow, and Wear on drums. Guldin on lead vocal and Kevin really getting the organ going makes this one of my favorites on the release. Smokin' Woman has a deep groove with Sharrow leading the way on bass. Guldin's vocals have just the r...
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Forty Below Records artist: Tony Holiday - Motel Mississippi - New Release Review

By Bman -
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 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Motel Mississippi , from Tony Holiday and it's quite good. Opening with Rob & Steal , a contemporary take on the sound of thumping drums and floating guitar riffs that I associate with Hill Country music. Tony Holiday on vocal, A J Fullerton on guitar, Dave Gross on guitar, Aubrey McCrady  on guitar, Victor Wainwright on keys, Terrance Grayson on bass, and Lee Williams Jr. on drums, this is an excellent opener. With a classic Willie Dixon bass line by Grayson, and a modern mix, Trouble is really a cool track. Holiday's vocals are strong and harmonica by Jake Friel, wild keyboard soloing by Wainwright and eccentric guitar riffs really add a lot spice to this track. Very nice. Asie Payton's Nobody But You has a great southern R&B feel (think Polk Salad Annie) with smooth vocals and choppy guitar riffs contrasting with windblown slide guitar. Very cool. Wrapping the release is Yazoo River with it's ...
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Blue Heart Records artist: Mike Guldin - Tumblin' - New Release Review

By Bman -
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I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release,  Tumblin' , by Mike Guldin and it's a cool mix of blues boogie and country. Opening with title track, Tumblin' , Mike Guldin on lead guitar, backed by Billy Ware on drums, CJ Clark on bass and with some great organ by Tim Hooper these guys are jammin. Taj Mahal's She Caught The Katy really sounds great with Guldin on lead vocal and guitar with Hooper on piano and organ, with a great bass line by Bill Sharrow and featuring some real nice slide by Bill Thatcher. Very nice. Two stepping, Raise a Ruckus is a cool country rocker and features James Pennebaker on slide guitar and Kevin McKendree on B3 and Tim Hooper on piano. Another country flavored rocker, You Just Can't Lose , has solid radio appeal with a stomping rhythm and a strong hook. With Guldin on lead vocal and guitar, backed by Sharrow on bass, Hooper on piano and Wear on drums, this is a strong track. Wrapping the release is Waterfall , a quiet ...
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8th Train Records artist: Tom Craig - Good Man Gone Bad - New Release Review

By Bman -
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 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Good Man Gone Bad , by Tom Craig and it's solid blues rock. Opening with I'm Working Too Hard , Tom Craig on lead vocal and guitar sets a firm pace with Dave Gross on bass and Vin Mott on drums. With it's melodic guitar lead and bluesy edge, a solid opener. What's A Man Gotta Do has great drive along the lines of Willie Cobb's dynamic, You Don't Love Me. With tight drum patterns, strong guitar lead and with the addition of Mikey Junior on harmonica, a super track. On Chicago style blues track, Treat Your Daddy Nice , Craig really gets the band revved up. With a great guitar vamp and Big Daddy Lamberson on harmonica, this is a strong track. One of my favorite tracks on the release is Change My Way Of Living with it's easy sway and soulful vocals by Craig. Of particular interest is Craig's smoking guitar blues and addition of Doug James on bari sax, Hailey Brinnel on trombone and Mike Scott ...
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Greg Sover - Jubilee - New Release Review

By Bman -
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I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Jubilee , from Greg Sover and it's solid. Opening with driving rocker, Emotional , lead vocalist and guitarist, Sover leads the tour and a heavy bass line by Garry Lee sets the pace. Backed by Allen James on electric guitar, Tom Walling on drums and Wally Smith on keys, this track feels a bit retro. Title track, Jubilee , has a strong blues feel with Mikey Junior on harp. Slide resonator work by Sover gives the track a real cool feel. Hand On My Heart is a soulful yet jazzy track along the lines of Sting. Nicely placed guitar riffs and elegant piano placement makes this one of my favorites on the release. Don Robey's As The Years Go Passing By has a smooth blues feel with solid vocals and stinging guitar riffs. With an aggressive attack, Temptation has classic 12 bar structure but with explosive, overdriven guitar riffs. Sover slices and dices on this track making it the outstanding guitar track on the relea...
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Off To Memphis For The BMAs!

By Bman -
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New Mikey Junior album on VizzTone

By Bman -
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     NEWS FROM THE VIZZTONE LABEL GROUP VizzTone is proud to welcome a new artist to the family with this slammin' new album ! MIKEY JUNIOR TRAVELING SOUTH What is the future of the blues?  Who will lead the charge? Well, for blues fans in the Northeast United States, that question is routinely answered every night Mikey Junior hits the stage. His infectious personality and absolute command of his medium leave little doubt the blues is in good hands. Self-taught from his impressive collection of blues vinyl, Mikey was a full time musician before he graduated high-school. By the time he was in his early twenties, seasoned players were taking notice and it wasn’t long before one blues society after another scrambled to get him to their stage. Before long, Mikey was a staple of the summer blues circuit on the East Coast. So it came as no surprise that his newest r...
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Swingnation Records artist: Mikey Junior - Traveling South - New Release review

By Bman -
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I just received the newest release (March 25, 2014), Traveling South , and it's great! Opening with Traveling South, Mikey Junior shows that he's got a great voice for the blues and absolutely great harp chops and tone to match. A stripped down track with emphases on drums by Michael Bram this track has a dark sound and guitarists Dave Gross and Dean Shot and Mikey on harp really make the best of it! Excellent! Nobody Does It Like It Like Me has a nice lumbering pace driven mostly by Matt Raymond on bass. This is old school blues with emphases on vocal and harp... but that is old school...not old! It's really nice! Morning On My Way opens with tom tom beat and guitar riffs. Mikey's vocals are really super and his harp work paired with the sparing use of crisp guitar inserts it mighty fine. Mill Tavern has a great pace with just the right amount of syncopation that gives New Orleans music it's flair but with harp and guitar instead of horns. Jeremy Baum adds re...
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