Bman's Blues Report

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Live From Daryl's House Club , from Sean Chambers and it's a potent blues rocker. Opening with driving rocker, Cobra , Sean Chambers, notorious guitar slinger is joined by Pat DeSalvo on bass and Garnet Grimm on drums, both of Savoy Brown fame. With grinding guitar rhythm and a driving bottom, Chambers really gets things amped up. His guitar riffs are searing and relentless. Solid opener. Blues rocker, Red Hot Mama has a real nice feel with great vocals by Chambers who plays some real nice slide on this one. Louise is a smoking blues and Chambers really lets the dog off the leash on this one. His vocals are raw and his guitar tone is round and cutting. Very nice. Paying tribute to Kim Simmonds, they tee up a Savoy Brown favorite, Street Corner Talking with it's intimidating swagger. Maintaining Simmonds original arrangement but with his own take on guitar soloing, this 7 plus minute track is terrific. Chambe...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Happy Little Accidents , by Dominic Quarto and it's an energetic blues rocker. Opening with Wanna Good Time , Dominic Quarto is on lead vocal joined by Rip Carson on bass and excellent rockabilly guitar riffs and Jeff Taylor holding the rhythm in line on drums. Strong opener. In the slot, La Verne , has real swagger with Quarto on lead vocal, Bob Gothar and Carson on guitars, Taylor on drums, Jorgen Carlsson on bass and Tyler Nickeas, Daniel Fritts , Richard McGowen and Chris Edwards on backing vocals. With thunderous drums by Kenny Aronoff and a firm hand by Carlsson, Ely May rumbles. Quarto on vocal and Pettibone on guitar and harmonica, gives this track a definite 50's feel. With a country and western twist, Outlaw really has a great feel. With strong vocals by Quarto, Pettibone and Carson on guitars, and Taylor on drums, this is one of my favorites on the release. Closing the set is easy paced, country flavor...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release from Texas Scratch and it's a strong blues rocker. Opening with Texas Trio , TS finds a great groove. Featuring Jim Suhler (Thorogood), Buddy Wittington (Mayall) and Vince Converse (Sunset Heights) on guitars, these guys know how to cut a groove. With the drums of Jeff Simon (Thorogood) and Nathaniel Peterson (Savoy Brown) and Kirk Yano (Miles Davis, Savoy Brown) on bass, this is a strong opener. Led footed, What The Devil Loves , really has a snarling guitar lead and excellent lead vocal. John Nitzinger's (Texas Jellyroll Blues)  Louisiana Cock Fight makes a cool appearance here with blazing guitars and well blended vocals. Thumping drum work by Simon, this track is a solid addition. Do  Right By You is a cool, somewhat funky track with rugged lead vocals and some real nice slide by Suhler. Wrapping the release is Showdown , a light jazzy, boogie with fluid guitar runs and driving rhythm guitar. Solid closer...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Heavenly Cream - An Acoustic Tribute To Cream and it's a solid cover of much of Cream's catalog by top name artists. Opening with I Feel Free , Deborah Bonham, John's sister has the lead vocals, backed by Bernie Marsden on guitar, Malcolm Bruce (Jack's son) on piano, Neil Murray on bass and Frank Tontoh on drums. Solid opener. Theme For An Imaginary Western , written by Jack Bruce and Pete Brown is fronted by Brown on vocal and backed by Clem Clemson  (Humble Pie) and Malcolm Bruce on guitars, John Donaldson on piano, Mo Foster on piano, and Cheryl Alleyne on drums. This is a great track and always one of my favorites with Jacks vocals and played by Leslie West of Mountain. Ginger Baker penned, Sweet Wine , is a standout with Baker on drums Nathan James on vocal, Marsden on guitar, Mo Nazam on guitar, Bruce on bass, Pee Wee Ellis on sax, Henry Lowther on trumpet, and Abass Dodoo on percussion. Take It Back ...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Blu Ja Vu , from Tom Hambridge , and it's potent set of blues rock tracks with plenty of gusto. Opening with Ain't It Just Like Love , Tom Hambridge joins up with Buddy Guy on vocal, (Hambridge on drums and Guy on guitar) with bass by Tommy MacDonald, Kevin McKendree on on keys and featuring an explosive guitar solo by Guy. Strong opener. Rob McNelley on lead guitar really gets things cranking on Wear You Out with a driving beat and solid vocals by Hambridge. Shuffle, Blues Don't Care , features Kingfish on guitar and vocal and this track has great style. Hi power Brother John Boogie features harmonica superman, James Cotton with Glenn Worf on bass, Chuck Leavell on keys, and of course Hambridge on drums. Excellent! Another great boogie, Get Out Of Town features McKendree on vicious keys and Hambridge on vocal. Very cool. Stripped down blues, Johnny Winter , features excellent slide work by McNelley, Hambridg...

  I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Blues All Around , from Savoy Brown and I think it's their best in years. Opening with Falling Through , Kim Simmonds sets the pace of the set with some authentic delta style riffs on electric guitar breaking into a classic boogie style rocker. With Simmonds on vocal and lead guitar, this band has more miles than most anyone short of the Stones. Simmonds, who passed away in December has held the blues rock boogie torch for 57 years and has released 42 albums...yes...42. Having personally seen at least 4 or 5 different lineups of Savor Brown (all with Simmonds), I have been a long time fan. On Going Down South , Simmonds pulls out the slide and this is a guy who really knew how to play it. From some of the best days of the band in the 70's and Tell Mama to now, Simmonds shows a super command and feel for slide guitar. Due to Peripheral Neuropathy as a side effect of chemotherapy Kim plays quite a bit more slide on...

  I just had the opportunity to review Bonham-Bullick 's self titled release and it's a smooth blend of pop, rock, soul, R&B and country. Opening with See You Again , a certain radio composition with a solid melody and featuring Deborah Bonham on lead vocal and Peter Bullick on guitars, Gerard Louis on keys, Ian Rowley on bass, and hard Newman on drums. On Albert King's, Can't You See What You're Doing To Me , Bonham gets into a cool groove and Bullick lets his blues rock chops fly. Delving deeper into the blues, Charles Brown's Trouble Blues is rich with ambiance and Bonham really works it. Bullick's guitar phrasing is poised and soulful. Very nice. I particularly like the arrangement on When This World Comes to an End , with it's suspenseful setup and then how it breaks into a more outright rocker. Reminds me of a favorite blues rock track Religion by Ten Years After. It Ain't Easy , that was made popular by David Bowie back in the 70's ho...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release (July 9, 2021), That's What I'm Talkin About , from Sean Chambers and I really like it. Chambers put together this release as a tribute to Hubert Sumlin who he played with  for over 4 years, in fact the title of the release is due to it being a phrase that Hubert used frequently. Opening with blues rocker, Hubert Sumlin's Chunky , a funky instrumental, features Chambers on lead guitr, Bruce Katz on B3, Andrei Koribanics on drums and Antar Goodwin on bass.  With strong blues rock guitar lead and solid phrasing, this is a super instrumental opener. Howling Wolf's Rockin' Daddy gets a really hnice Wolf like vocal lead and Chambers' guitar lead is nothing short of electrifying. On St' Loius Jimmy Oden's Goin' Down Slow , Chambers works the space with excellent phrasing and his attack has fire that I've rarely heard from contemporary blues players except SRV. Excellent! On Willie Dixon...

  I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Ain't Done Yet , from Savoy Brown and they are definitely on a solid path again. Opening with blues rocker, All Gone Wrong , Kim Simmonds is up front on lead vocal and guitar and Simmonds is developing into a very solid lead vocalist. His guitar  playing and blues chops are as good as any, possibly one of the best electric/contemporary lead blues rockers ever. Joined by Pat DeSalvo on bass and Garnet Grimm on drums, the band sounds tight. With it's droning bass line and steady drums beat, Borrowed Time has a classic feel. Simmonds uses a Multivox FullRotor for shimmery guitar effects and keeps the underpinnings of the track spartan. Boogie rocker and title track, Ain't Done Yet has classic Savoy Brown styling with crisp lead work by Simmonds and a solid base. Latin flavored, Feel Like A Gypsy , is a cool radio style track with a smooth, "Santana" like feel. Simmonds is a talented player and improvi...