Bman's Blues Report

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Ain't Wasting Time , from Nicky T And The Snake Charmers and it's dripping blues, soul and R&B music. Opening with Magic Sam 's, That's All I Need , Nicky T with soulful vocals and groomed guitar riffs gets into that Impressions groove. With Todd Glass on drums, Alex Lyon on bass, Chris Codish on keys, and Greg Nagy on backing vocals, this is a solid opener. Rock n Roller, Feel Like A Hundred , features a driving guitar lead with vocals by Nicky and super piano work by Andy Szymanski on piano. Pete Berg on drums and Frank Greenhalgh round out the band and this track is really moving. Gritty blues, The Glass really gets down featuring guitarist extraordinaire, Ronnie Earl on lead guitar and excellent vocals by Greg Nagy. This tracks really sails with the addition of Jon Johnson on drums, Mike Marshall on bass, Jason Bone on rhythm guitar, John Gavin on piano and warm organ work by Szymanski. Excell...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Heavy On The Blues , from Rory Block and it's a hip, blues rocker. Opening with Tommy Tucker 's High Heel Sneakers , Rory Block sets a great pace on acoustic guitar and excellent slide supporting her own vocals on this rocking track. Buddy Guy 's funky, What Kind Of Woman Is This is very soulful with Block squeezing the vocals and sharing guitar lead/slide with Jimmy Vivino . Right in the slot. Spiritual, Hold To His Hand is one of the strongest tracks on the release with Block overlaying her own voice over her own voice choir style for a very nice outcome. Charley Patton 's Down The Dirt Road Blues has a real earthy feel with Block grinding out the blues vocally and deft finger style accompaniment on acoustic guitar. Memphis Minnie 's Me And My Chauffeur is a great track with Block's notable acoustic guitar accompaniment and warm slide styling. Her vocals on this track are particularly effecti...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Live! At The Fallout Shelter , by  Diane Blue All-Star Band and it's a funky blues party. Opening with I Got A Good Thing and a cool R&B feel, Diane Blue on vocal gets things rolling with Lorne Entress on drums, Dave Limina on Hammond and Chris Vitarello on guitar. Reggae infused blues track, I Cry has a real nice feel with Limina setting up a cool bass line  (on keys) under Diane's solid vocal phrasing. Vitarello lays in a real nice guitar solo with fluid runs and gripping punctuation. Guitar virtuoso, Ronnie Earl takes center stage on slow blues, Leave Me Alone and of course he has some of the sweetest blues phrasing on the planet. Frequently paired with Diane, I think that he brings out the best in her. This is a deeply soulful track with warm Hammond work by Limina and of course an excellent solo by Earl and Vitarello. My favorite track on the release. Blues rocker, Take A Look is a strong radio contend...

 I just had the opportunity to review the newest release, Supernatural Soul , by Ben E. King and it's solid. Opening with classic, Stand By Me , King on lead vocal is joined by Bette Smith on vocal and Ronnie Earl adding his clean virtuosity on guitar. Bassmaster, Bootsy Collins fires up a strong riff on Supernatural Thing, Part I under soulful vocals by King. Spanish guitar master, Rafael Riqueni joins King adding an authentic flavor to another classic hit. I really like King's cover of Ashford and Simpson's, I Had A Love . Kings vocals are full and soulful, floating on a bed of guitar, synthesizer and warm backing vocals. Very nice. Wrapping the release is Drifters Medley featuring This Magic Moment/Dance With Me//There Goes My Baby/Save The Last Dance For Me. Kings vocals are smooth and fresh with tight instrumental backing. Solid closer for a solid release.    If you support live Blues acts, up and coming Blues talents and want to learn more about Blues ne...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Six String Soul , a double cd release by Dave Specter and it's great. Celebrating 30 years on Delmark, with remastered recordings from throughout his career and celebrating many guests. Opening with Buzz Me Specter on guitar, is joined by Barkin Bill Smith on vocal and Ronnie Earl on guitar as well as Ken Saydak on organ, Dez Desormeaux on sax, Red Groetzinger on sax, Mike McCurdy on bass and John Hiller on drums. Very cool. Specter really stretches out nicely on solo guitar on slow blues, Railroad Station . Smith, on lead vocal does a real nice job and Bob Stroger on bass anchors the track. Saydak's piano is a nice accent and sax soloing by Groetzinger is really nice. I really like instrumental, Specter's Walk, with it's deep jazz groove. Specter cruses on guitar, Desormeaux's sax solo is rich, and Saydak's organ work is strong. Tad Robinson has lead vocal on Sweet Serenity . I've always been ...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release (June 11, 2021), Memphis Moonlight, by Deb Ryder and it's a cool, R&B based blues release packed with talent. Opening with I'm Coming Home , a sassy R&B track features Ryder on lead vocal with Tony Braunagel on drums, Johnny Lee Schell on guitar, Mike Finnigan on B3, Travis carlton on bass, Mark Pender on trumpet and some super sax riffs from Joe Sublet. Cool opener. With a bluesier feel and a touch of gospel on These Hands, Ryder really hits the groove vocally and Alastair Green's addition on slide is a super perk. Schell's backing vocals and the addition of Pieter Van Der Pluijm on harmonica adds real texture. Driving rocker, Blues Is All I Got had a solid bass line by Schell andwith Braunagel on drums and van Der Pluijm on harmonica. Classic slow blues, Love Is Gone is a real standout giving Ryder a chance to show the richness of her vocals and featuring the king of blues guitar phrasing, Ronn...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, The Blues , from William Shatner, yes that William Shatner. What's it like...you'll have to see for yourself.  Opening with blues classic, Sweet Home Chicago , Shatner teams up with Brad Paisley who throws down some cool blues and country riffs along with Jurgen Engler on guitar, bass and banjo, Chris Lentz on keys and Adam Hamilton on drums, bass, guitar and harmonica. Shatners vocals are freeform and emotional. Otis Rush's I Can't Quit You Baby , features Kirk Fletcher who runs some real nice glues riffs of his own and manages Shatner's freeform vocals nicely. Cream's Sunshine of Your Love is up next, mostly in spoken word and I gotta say that Hamilton's work on drums is exceptional and Landreth wails on slide. Deep Purple's Ritchie Blackmore takes BB King's, The Thrill Is Gone to the next level and Shatner's vocals are as relaxed as I've ever heard on this track. Pat Travers ...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Rise Up , from Ronnie Earl & The Broadcasters and it's smokin! Opening with a simple, acoustic guitar cover of traditional I Shall Not Be Moved , gives you no clues that Earl is about to open a can of Whoop on us. Shuffle, Higher Love , with a solid intro by Earl and Dave Kimina on B3 gives the stage over to super blues vocalist, Diane Blue and she fits like a glove. Settling down into a super groove laid out by Kimina on B3, Forrest Padgett on drums, Paul Kochanski on bass and Peter Ward on guitar, Earl really steps up with some of his beautiful blues phrasing. Fenton Robinson's R&B track, You Don't Know What Love Is is a super platform for Blue and Earl. Blue's vocals are perfectly suited for this style of music and her feel and sense of timing are super. Blues For Lucky Peterson is the first of a number of slow blues tracks where Earl really stretches it out. Busting out at over 10 minutes, you ...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Living In The Shadows , from Tyler Morris , and it's a cool blues rocker. On this, his second release, Morris plays lead guitar and sings with band mates Terry Dry on bass, Matthew Robert Johnson on drums and Lewis Stephens on B3 and Wurlitzer. Gary Moore's hard driving rocker, Movin' On , sees the band on full tilt with Morris throwing every rock based riff you can think at it. Quick fingered runs, and bends with just a bit of distortion to make it sound dirty gives this track it's sting. Joe Louis Walker and Mike Zito guest on vocals on Tony Joe White's Polk Salad Annie . Maintaining that original swamp rock feel this is a cool track with Morris working the slide nicely  over the steady drumming of Johnson. Bluesy ballad, Temptation , is Morris' best showcase of his vocal strength and Stephens' B3 enhances the tension giving Morris a nice platform to play melodic blues runs on guitar. Amanda...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Get Here Quick , by The Texas Horns and it's smokin'! Opening with Guitar Town , a real Texas style blues, cooked up with  Anson Funderburgh and Johnny Moeller on guitars and Gary Forsyth on lead vocals. Kaz Kazanoff on tenor, John Mills on bari and Al Gomez on trumpet and this track is hot. With a bit of New Orleans flavor, Instrumental, Feelin' No Pain is all horns to the floor with excellent piano work by Red Young, bass by Russell Jackson and Tommy Taylor on drums. Mills lays out and excellent sax solo and Moeller shows why he is regarded as one of the top bluesmen in Texas today. Title track, Better Get Here Quick is another instrumental with rich tandem sax lead and excellent guitar accents by Moeller. Gomez steps up with some crisp lead work of his own and Youngs takes a nice few bars of his own. Very cool. An excellent New Orleans style instrumental, 2018 , has a super march style snare lead by John ...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Train To Key Biscayne , from Peter Ward and it's energetic. Opening with The Luther Johnson Thing , Luther Guitar Junior Johnson is upfront on lead vocal with Peter Ward on guitar, Mudcat Ward on bass, Neil Gouvin on drums and Anthony Geraci on piano. A cool shuffle with slick guitar lead, nice harp and excellent vocal phrasing, a super opener. Laid back, almost country styled, title track, Train To Key Biscayne features Sugar Ray Norcia on lead vocal and Jiri Nedoma on piano. Ward's warm guitar soloing backed by the sax work of Aaron Gratzmiller gives it a cool retro feel. One of my favorite tracks on the release is Blues Elixir (Ronnie's Here) featuring Ward on lead vocal and really nice trademark guitar lead work by Ronnie Earl. Backed by Nedoma on piano and with solid harp work by Norcia, this is a really cool track. Johnny Nicholas is up front on lead vocal on Change (Ain't Never For The Good) a...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Why Did You Have To Go , from Anthony Geraci , and it's rich. Opening with R&B title track, Why Did You Have To Go , Sugar Ray Norcia is upfront on lead vocal backed by Michael Mudcat Ward on bass, Marty Richards on drums, Sax Gordon on sax, Doug Woolverton on trumpet and with stellar guitar styling by Monster Mike Welch and piano wizardry by Anthony Geraci. Excellent opener. Bluesy ballad, Angelina, Angelina is really strong with really nice piano work by Geraci and lead vocals by Sugaray Rayford. Welch is back again with signature tone, backed by Willie J Campbell on bass and Jimi Bott on drums. Very nice. Soul track, Two Steps Away From The Blues , features Michelle "Evil Gal" Willson on lead vocal with warm piano and B3 work by Geraci. Norcia is back on vocal and harp on Time's Running Out , an easy shuffle, joined by nice pace piano work by Geraci and the strong guitar accents by Ronnie Earl. ...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Blues On My Shoulders , from Peter Ward and it's quite good. Opening with solid shuffle, She Took It All , Peter Ward on guitar and lead vocal sets a great pace with Mudcat Ward on bass, Neil Gouvin on drums and Sugar Ray Norcia on harp. Excellent opener. Surf rocker, Which Hazel , is a solid rocker along the lines of Chuck Berry with a strong surf twist. Clever lyrics and guitar riffs by Ward give this track a lot of gas. On title track, Blues On My Shoulders , Anthony Geraci adds nice piano and I particularly love the guitar work by Monster Mike Welch. Collaborate is all about lush chords and sassy sax and Ward's guitar work with Sax Gordon Beadle's sax work is just that. Excellent! Shuffle track, It's On Me is another outstanding entry on the release with a hot sax solo from Beadle and hot fingering from Ronnie Earl and Ward. Very nice. Southpaw is a hot number with a smoking B3 solo from Rusty Sco...

Guitar Master Ronnie Earl Set to Release New CD, The Luckiest Man, on November 17 from Stony Plain Records  Stony Plain Records proudly announces the November 17 release of the latest CD from multi Blues Music Award-winning guitarist Ronnie Earl and his band, the Broadcasters, The Luckiest Man . Ronnie Earl calls the album, “A traditional blues album of remembrance, love, and unwavering resolve to live with faith and gratitude.” The new disc was recorded at Woolly Mammoth Studios, Waltham, Mass.; Keep the Edge Studio, Quincy, Mass.; and in Groton, Mass. Listen to a sample of The Luckiest Man here: http://bit.ly/WatchLuckiestMan On The Luckiest Man , Ronnie and the Broadcasters, both current as well as some of the earliest members, contribute to the new album, which follows the sudden loss of Jim Mouradian, the band’s beloved bass player following a show in January. Mouradian was also a respected guitar luthier, family man and a gentleman. This musical journey throu...

Boston-Based Guitarist Peter Ward Sets October 20 Release Date for His New CD, Blues on My Shoulders , on Gandy Dancer Records Special Guests Include Ronnie Earl, Sugar Ray & the Bluetones and Sax Gordon Beadle BOSTON, MA – Guitarist Peter Ward announces an October 20 release date for his new CD, Blues on My Shoulders , on Gandy Dancer Records. Besides Ward on guitar and vocals, special guests on the new disc include multiple Blues Music Award-winning guitar legend Ronnie Earl, Sax Gordon Beadle on sax and the members of Sugar Ray and the Bluetones: Sugar Ray Norcia (vocals and harmonica), “Monster” Mike Welch (guitar), Anthony Geraci (piano), Michael “Mudcat” Ward (Peter’s brother – bass) and Neil Gouvin (drums).  “It pleases me to present Blues on My Shoulders , my first solo project,” Peter Ward says about the new album. “I wrote the words and music to 12 of the 13 songs. I grew up wearing out the vinyl records trying to understand how Robert Jr. Lockwo...

Guitar Legend Ronnie Earl Is Right at Home on Maxwell Street , New Stony Plain Records Album Coming September 9 EDMONTON, AB – Stony Plain Records announces a September 9 release date for Maxwell Street , the new CD from three-time Blues Music Award winner as “Guitarist of the Year,” Ronnie Earl and his band, the Broadcasters. Maxwell Street is named in honor of the late blues pianist and previous member of the Broadcasters, David Maxwell, and is also a nod to Chicago’s famed Maxwell Street, where blues musicians gathered to play outside for the Sunday market crowds. Ronnie Earl and the Broadcasters are: Ronnie Earl – guitar; Lorne Entress – drums; Dave Limina – piano and Hammond B3 organ; Jim Mouradian – bass; and Diane Blue – vocals. Special guest guitarist on the album is Nicholas Tabarias. Maxwell Street was produced by Ronnie Earl and recorded at Wellspring Studios in Acton, Massachusetts, and Wooly Mammoth Studios in Waltham, Mass. Ronnie formed his band, ...