Bman's Blues Report

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Person of Interest , by Billy Price and it's got style. Opening with funky, Inside The Box , Billy Price is back with his next chapter. Notable for a leading vocal style for more than 25 years, Price is joined by Larry Fulfher on bass, Josh Sklair on guitar, Jim Pugh on keys, Tony Braunagel on drums and backing vocals by Masayn Lewis, Fred White and Will Wheaton. Of course there's a great horn section behind him including Ron Dziubla on sax, Eric Spaulding, and Mark Pender on trumpet. Great opener.  Bluesy ballad, Mercy , gives Price a chance to belt one out and warm keys by Pugh under the solid lead guitar work of Fulcher, and a sultry sax solo by Spaulding make this a solid radio contender. Title track, Person Of Interest , really has a funky pop sound in the vein of Steely Dan. Reggie McBride on bass lays in a great vibe and Pugh is killer on keys. Price's vocals are loose and free and Dziubla and Pender do ...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Live , from Teresa James & The Rhythm Tramps and it's jam packed full of blues, R&B and soul. Opening with In The Pink , a funky, R&B number with hot vocal work and keys by Terresa James, Terry Wilson on bass, Billy Watts on guitar, Herman Matthews on drums, Lee Thornburg on trumpet, and Ron Dziubla on sax. Solid opener. Put The Squeeze On Me has great blues feel and James really works it hard, old school style and Watts lays down a real nice guitar lead giving the track James Brown like fever. Soulful, Don't Make A Habit Of It , is a smooth, radio ready, track with a great melody and nicely showing off James' vocal work. With the addition of Paulie Cerra on sax this track has the strength of a Van Morrison track with the super soul of James. Very nice. One of my favorite tracks on the release is ballad, The Day The Blues Came To Call with a strong melody, expressive vocal phrasing and a nice gu...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent self titled release, Johnny & Jaalene and it's quite good. Opening with Phil Spector's Baby I Love You , Johnny Ramos, son of blues guitar player Kid Ramos and super 16 year old singer, Jaalene DeLeon, breathe fresh air into this 60's classic with solid vocals instrumentation and a great mix. Eddie Cochran's rockabilly tune Teenage Cutie has plenty of spark and tight guitar riffs giving it real oomph. 50's French tune, Let It Be Me , popularized in the US by the Everly Brothers is a real standout here with excellent vocal blending and clear, crisp guitar accompaniment. Lalo Guerrero's Los Chuco Suave is a natural here with excellent Latin styling and accordion by Jesus Cuevas. Excellent! Another huge 60's classic, Rosie (Hamlin) and the Original's Angel Baby is done with little alteration and is a perfect showcase for the purity of DeLeon's voice. featuring a nice sax solo by Ron Dziubl...

I just received the newest release, Bonafide from Teresa James & the Rhythm Tramps and it's a rocking blast! Opening with R&B track, I Like It Like That , James leads the way on vocal and over the top piano with super bass work by Terry Wilson, Guitar by Billy Watts and drums by Tony Braunagel. Excellent opener. On Spit It Out , James really hits her stride with Al Green like pace. This track really makes you want to dance with hot vocals and nice horn work by Darnell Leonard and with Mike Finnigan's excellent B3 additions. Funky, Hollywood Way has a super groove with Wilson crafting a nice bass line and real nice slide work by Billy Watts. Backing vocals by Wilson and Watts really add to the richness of this track and James' phrasing is tight! A cool soul track, You Always Pick Me Up , is right down the slot with warm vocals and all of the poise of the queen of soul herself. With a spiritual warmth and the addition of trumpet by Lee Thornburg and sax by Ron...

I just received the newest release, Bullets In The Bonfire Vol. 1 from Iko - Iko and its flavorful! A fifteen track retrospective of the band it has a lot of variety. Opening with Party Car , a New Orleans flavored track, the band is really hopping featuring strong vocals from Graham Wood Drout, super sax from Ron Dziubla and traditional drumming from Stewart Jean. Cajun tasting (I Never Had An) American Dream is a party track deluxe with cool lyrics. Celebration rolls more into the R&B styling and it's pop nature. A definite hook and familiar melody makes this a radio stopper. Dziubla really blows the walls out on this one giving it just the right spice. Live track Don't Mess With The Voodoo is a swampy rocker. Mike Bauer and Larry Williams lay out some smokin guitar riffs on this track and I particularly like the drum work of Jean. Miller's Woods has a solid pop rock style and some cool guitar slide riffs by Williams. Mike Mennel adds a cool under line on the b...

I just received the new release, Nasty Habit from Ron Dziubla and it's far out! I mean it's far out! This is a time machine musical trip with a man and his sax. Opening with Fine Time, Dziubla shows what sexy sax sounds like. An instrumental track when Dziubla isn't blowing the doors off, James Intveld is playing some mighty fine guitar riffs. Second up is Loose , a sax driven surf tune backed by Sam Bolle on bass and Pete Curry on drums. Get out your board moon doggie! (Stilladog ... check this one out! It's got your name on it!) Moan is a seductive sax ballad with some real grinding tone. Dziubla really groans this one out pulling out really great sounds. Featuring a nice light guitar solo this track could easily be a soundtrack from a 50's TV show. Slapped , another surf like rocker, showing hot sax riffs not seen on a blues record in such a collection in years. This track is also complimented by great guitar work from Intveld. The title track, Nasty Habit ,c...