Bman's Blues Report

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release (May 21, 2021), Trio In Tokyo from Rob Stone, Elena Kato and Hiroshi Eguchi and it's a solid entry in Chicago blues. Opening with shuffle, No Money , Stone on vocal and harmonica leads the way with Elena Kato on piano and Hiroshi Eguchi on bass. This is a cool acoustic piece with tight rhythm work. With R&B bones, Come Back Baby really showcases the strength of katon on piano under the lead vocal work of Stone. Very nice. Big Jay McNeely's classic R&B track,  There Is Something On Your Mind , gets an even bluesier feel with harmonica and the solid piano work of Kato under the strong vocals on Stone. Jump track, Jack You You're Dead , made popular by Louis Jordan and later by Joe Jackson is punched up with the fleet finger work of Kato, strong the bass line of Eguchi and the punchy harmonica and vocal work of Stone. Blow Fish Blow! is a strong instrumental featuring the lead harmonica soloing by Stone. H...

I just received the newest release, Trouble Don't Last , from Chris James and Patrick Rynn and it's a fresh look at Chicago style blues with a stripped down approach. Opening with Shameless , James leads off on guitar and lead vocal, Rynn on bass, Rob Stone on harp and June Core on drums. With it's quick steady pace, Stone and James each take real nice solos making this a great opener. Next up is Calvin Frazier's classic, Lilly Mae . James' vocals on this track are super and Aki Kumar shows why he is so requested as a guest harp player. Rynn drives this track on bass as Kumar and James solo. Excellent! Freddie King track, Lonesome Whistle Blues , (written by Toombs, Teat, Moore) is in full swing with Kumar and Stone trading riffs with James on vocal and guitar. Walking bass by Rynn and tight drumming by Core makes this one of my favorite tracks on the release. Digging down in the groove, Going Down To The Ocean , is another real smart track. James has both the vo...

      NEW FROM THE VIZZTONE LABEL GROUP ROB STONE gotta keep rollin' NOW AVAILABLE! click to preview or download from VizzTone.com Deeply Rooted Original Chicago Blues - Today with EDDIE SHAW, JOHN PRIMER, HENRY GRAY, CHRIS JAMES, PARTICK RYNN, DAVID MAXWELL VizzTone proudly welcomes Rob Stone to the Family! Deeply rooted in traditional Chicago blues, yet delivering high-energy house-rocking performances with a thoroughly contemporary impact, Rob Stone is one of the busiest young bandleaders on the blues scene today, with blasting harmonica and cool, streetwise vocals. Stone started his career in Boston and Colorado, before moving to Chicago in 1993 to join the band of legendary blues drummer Sam Lay.  Touring internationally with Lay’s band for four years introduced Stone to blues fans worldwide. Rob and Sam continued to perform and record together ove...

I just received the newest release (September 9, 2014), gotta keep rollin' , from Rob Stone and it smells of sweet Chicago. Opening with a strong Chicago style blues, Wait Baby , Stone is out front singing and blowing his harp backed by Chris James on guitar. Cool harp work and solid guitar riffs over a solid beat provided by Patrick Rynn (bass) and and Willie Hayes (drums)provides for a great opener. John Lee Willamson's easy stepping Wonderful Time features nice piano work from David Maxwell and a different slice of Stones super vocal work. His harp work complimented by James on guitar makes for an happy go lucky track. Another Chicago style shuffle track, Lucky 13 gives Stone a wide road to play his harp and he takes every inch of it. Cool vocal phrasing, a tight guitar solo from John Primer and a cool melody makes for one of the most memorable tracks on the release. Anything Can Happen features Eddie Shaw on sax and he tears up the solo opportunity as you would absolu...

This Stone Has Gotta Keep Rollin’ – Chicago Blues Singer/Harmonica Master Rob Stone Delivers High-Energy Mojo on His New CD for VizzTone Label Group, Due September 9 Special Guests on Stone’s First Album for VizzTone Include Blues Hall of Famer Eddie Shaw, John Primer, David Maxwell and Henry Gray NEWTON, MA – The VizzTone Label Group announces a September 9 release date for Gotta Keep Rollin’ , the new CD from Chicago blues singer/harmonica master Rob Stone, distributed nationally by Redeye Distribution. Joining Rob Stone and his battle-hardened group of band mates Chris James (guitar), Patrick Rynn (bass) and Willie “The Touch” Hayes (drums), are several special guests, including newly-inducted Blues Hall of Famer Eddie Shaw (sax), guitarist John Primer, Blues Music Award-winning piano player David Maxwell and Henry Gray, former piano man for the legendary Howlin’ Wolf. From the first notes of the lead-off track, a rousing take on Johnny Jones’ “Wa...

I just received the newest release, Barrelhouse Stomp , from Chris James and Patrick Rynn and it's a roller! Opening with contemporary Chicago style blues track, Goodbye, Later For You , in traditional fashion, Rynn and James open the release featuring super harp support from Rob Stone and piano work from Aaron Moore. James is always solid on vocals and he lays down nicely phrased riffs on guitar. Just Another Kick In The Teeth has a funky swing to it featuring Eddie Shaw on sax (as well as Jonny Viau, Norbert W Johnson) and Jody Williams on guitar. Viau opens I Feel So Good with a honkin good sax solo and James does a nice job of delivering on this classic blues track with contributions from Willie Big Eyes Smith (drums) and Aarom Moore on piano. Messin' With White Lightning has a spankin quick pace and Jody and James are on it with guitar riffs. Hot piano riffs from David Maxwell highlight this track and Willie Hayes is tight on drums. On slower paced swing track, Befo...

Stone got started early on his harmonica-blowing odyssey. At age 18, he slipped into a blues joint in his native Boston to check out harp legend Charlie Musselwhite and was instantly transfixed. He bought his first harp the very next day. Before long, Rob was playing with rockabilly legend Sleepy LaBeef and learning the finer points of his instrument from ex-Muddy Waters harp man Jerry Portnoy. Relocating to Colorado in 1990, he got his feet wet on bandstands around Colorado Springs. Then in ‘93, Sam Lay rolled into town. He invited the young harpist to sit in, and he must have liked what he heard: Lay hired him the next year. James and Rynn were the bedrock of Sam’s band, and the three forged an unshakable bond touring top blues clubs and festivals internationally. “We had a lot of shared experience that made us connect like brothers,” says Rob. Stone left Lay’s combo in 1998 and formed his own band, the C-Notes. They made their self-produced debut CD, No Worries, that year, earning c...