Provogue Records artist: Sonny Landreth - Bound By The Blues - New release review

I just received the newest release (June 9, 2015), Bound By The Blues, by Sonny Landreth and I think it may be his best yet! Opening with Delta blues track, Walking Blues, Landreth maintains a sense of the original but with just the right amount electric slide and drums to make it sound fresh. Very nice! Title track, Bound By The Blues, has a more modern sound but it's basic bones are very primitive. I like his mixture of acoustic and electric instruments and the driving beat which gives it it's certain footing. The High Side has a cool funk but set over a mostly acoustic sound. A unique track for these reasons alone but coupled with Landreth's skillful slide work and a catchy melody, it's really nice! Tampa Red track, It Hurts Me Too, again done stripped down with only basic backing to Landreth's vocals and slide this track is a screamer. It is great to see Landreth laying down on the blues straight up and he's doing it here. Excellent! Latin jazz influence on Where They Will has an entirely different flavor and I really like the smooth slide work on this track for a lot of reasons. Very cool! Skip James' Cherry Ball Blues has a total rework, but maintaining it's primitive grittiness. Fat slide runs and a solid blues base makes this one of the killer tracks on the release. Firebird Blues is done in memory of the great Johnny Winter. Winter, who dominated the blues rock scene for more than 40 years was a figure to be reckoned with,with lightning fast riffs, outrageous slide work and voracious energy. This is a nice 12 bar number with just basic cardboard box drum by Brian Brignac and ukulele bass backing by David Ranson. Robert Johnson's Dust My Broom is done shuffle style with a real nice drum lope. Instead of Elmore James style slide riffs which anyone else would have done, Landreth steps back and rips melodic slide lines of his own, giving in only on the track close with these sliding landmarks. Very nice! Big Bill Broonzy's Key To The Highway, played by just about everyone and especially popular by Derek & the Dominos with Clapton and Duane Allman, is up next. Landreth seems content to keep it simple as a basic blues track for a chorus or so but them opens the can and lets out the dogs. Fat slide tones and nicely thought through guitar runs, leading to a full blown slidathon makes this one of the releases strongest outings. Wrapping the release is cool instrumental boogie, Simcoe Street, with a great walking bass line by Ranson. Landreth takes a remarkable slide journey with tight backing by Brignac and Ranson capping a spuer outing by Landreth.

  If you support live Blues acts, up and coming Blues talents and want to learn more about Blues news and Fathers of the Blues, Like ---Bman’s Blues Report--- Facebook Page! I’m looking for great talent and trying to grow the audience for your favorites band! -  ”LIKE”

 

Chalet Music, LLC artist: Peter Novelli - St Amant Sessions - New release Review

I just received the newest release, St Amant Sessions, from Peter Novelli and it and it has a lot of variety. Opening with Louisiana Sunrise with a country 2 step feel, Novelli, a vocalist and guitar player is joined by slide player extraordinaire, Sonny Landreth, who lights it up. Boudin is a really cool funky jazz track with Novelli showing his own guitar chops on lead melodic guitar. Backed by Chris Senac on bass and Brian Brignac on drums this is one of my favorite tracks on the release. Je Ne Sais Quoi is straight up rocker with cajun twist. Featuring Sammy Naquin on accordion and Kevin McKendree on keys, Novelli shines on both guitar and vocal. Very nice! Spirit Passing By has a serious strut and is heavily driven by Brignac on drums. Novelli's guitar attack on this track is raw and carefree...I like it! Woman In My Dreams is a smooth pop track with a jazz structure. Backing vocals by Bob Henderson and Elaine Foster as well as a voracious guitar lead from Novelli makes this track stand out. Story In Your Mind is a smooth ballad with a nice harmonic guitar solo backed by McKendree on organ. Bob Henderson steps up with some nice sax work as well. A sure radio track. Shreveport Stomp, a boogie instrumental, has that Louisiana country instrumental flavor with slick guitar riffs and McKendree reinforcing on piano. Thinkin' or Drinkin' really gets down into the Louisiana mud with R&B style funk. Naquin adds tasteful accordion harmony on Novelli's lead vocals and Henderson and Foster on backing vocal. Henderson throws down a hot sax solo as well. Rounding out the mix is Novelli's stylistic guitar solo. Another of my favorite tracks on the release is I-10 Boogie with a real Elmore James style guitar riff over a boogie beat. Novelli really shines on guitar on this track taking it for a hard ride. A break into a more Cha Cha feel gives Chubby Carrier the opportunity to hit his triple row accordion and then into a New Orleans style piano groove for McKendree on keys, then into a Latin feel for guitar. Rolling back into a Texas blues/boogie this track is hot! Wrapping the release is Zydeco Ride, again with Chubby Carrier leading the way on accordion.

  If you support live Blues acts, up and coming Blues talents and want to learn more about Blues news and Fathers of the Blues, Like ---Bman’s Blues Report--- Facebook Page! I’m looking for great talent and trying to grow the audience for your favorites band! -  ”LIKE”

 

Aquinnah Records artist: Arlen Roth - Slide Guitar Summit - New Release Review

I just received the newest release, Slide Guitar Summit, from Arlen Roth and it definitely lives up to all the pre hype. Roth, well known for his own guitar styling, especially on the tele with the likes of Roy Buchanan and Danny Gatton, has put together a group of the best known slide players on the planet for a full blown celebration of all things slide. Opening with Do What's Right, Roth teams up with Jack Pearson on vocal and slide guitar as well as Tom Hambridge on drums and backing vocal and Tommy MacDonald for a country two step rocker. This track moves along nicely with lead and harmonic sliding... a terrific opener. Robert Johnson's Dust My Broom is next featuring Lee Roy Parnell on vocal and slide and adding Kevin McKendree on piano. With the feel of Elmore James and a nice thick slide texture, this track is hot. McKendree adds significantly to the mix with hot piano riffs. Much like a live recording, Parnell and Roth take turns on lead slide making for a hot track. Clarinetist Acker Bilk wrote this next track, Stranger On The Shore, and performed it on clarinet in the early 60's. It has since been performed by a number of artists including the Beatles but none quite as sensuously as this take by Cindy Cashdollar on lap steel with just a touch of Hawaiian flare. Beautiful. Sonny Skies features Sonny Landreth and Roth joined only by Eddie Denise on upright bass. A jazzy track with Roth's signature sound, this is a great showcase for tow of today's masters to team up and show how it's done. Jackie Breston's Rocket 88's features Johnny Winter on slide (his last session) along with Roth on slide and lead vocal. Scott Spray and Tyger MacNeal join on bass and drums respectively. A bright toe tapper, the two guys blend nicely and Roth pulls out some of his trademark riffs making this a particularly cool track. Lowell George's Dixie Chicken gets the full Little Feat treatment with Tommy MacDonald on bass, Kevin MacKendree on piano, Hambridge on percussion. Leroy Parnell takes the lead vocal and shares slide with Roth. I don't know about my readers, but there are a few places that you need to tread lightly and Lowell George territory is one of them. I think that these guys did a great job of paying tribute and MacKendree really did a nice job on Bill Payne's work as well. Excellent! Jimmy Ninino brings the first delta style acoustic track with only he and Roth and their guitars on Poor Boy Blues. Possibly my favorite track on the release. Following with Laura Nyro's And When I Die made popular by Blood, Sweat and Tears again only Vivino and Roth on acoustics. Keeping it simple and playing it pure country blues style gives it a new life. Jimmie Rodgers' Peach Pickin' Time In Georgia features Roth on lead vocals and Greg Martin joining him on slide. McKendree takes a real nice piano bar on the track but the release is about sliding and in country 2 step style, the boys do bring it! Paradise Blues is a simple quiet guitar ballad with nice Les Paul like harmonics and Hawaiian style blending. Rick Vito and Roth blend their guitar vocals nicely for a really pretty instrumental track. Cindy Cashdollar is back on lap steel again on Steel Guitar Rag and Roth this makes two. A simple instrumental track with just a twist of country styling shows the chops of these two guitar super stars. Smokey Robinson's ballad, You Really Got A Hold On Me is delivered nicely with Roth and Vito playing the lead and harmony on slide with no vocals. This is a great track and these guys give it new life in this instrumental form. Roy Byrd's Her Mind Is Gone features the incredible David Lindley on lead vocal and lap steel, joined by Roth on lap steel. Everyone knows that Lindley is one of the best guitar players on the planet and especially creative on lap steel. This is a great little blues addition from the masters, jamming together in one of the tightest acoustic blues jams in a while. Wrapping the release is Roth and Greg Martin on Amazing Grace with Hambridge and Tommy MacDonald. Nicely done and heartfelt it is a really clean and creative ending to a long awaited tribute to slide guitar featuring today's modern masters. Very nicely done.

  If you support live Blues acts, up and coming Blues talents and want to learn more about Blues news and Fathers of the Blues, Like ---Bman’s Blues Report--- Facebook Page! I’m looking for great talent and trying to grow the audience for your favorites band! -  ”LIKE”

 

Provogue Records artist: Robben Ford - Into The Sun - New Release Review

I just received the newest release (March 31, 2015), Into The Sun, by Robben Ford and I really like it! Opening with Rose Of Sharon a smooth bluesy track with a very clean melody, Ford strokes a well articulated solo making very use of single and double time for emphasis. Day Of the Planets actually has an garage rock feel but but delivered on a polished silver platter. Howlin' At The Moon hits the road with a funky staggered rhythm. Brian Allen on bass lays down a nice funky groove with Wes Little on drums and Ford plays off the funk delivering a solo that rides the rumble. Very cool! Rainbow Cover is a straight up rocker with organ highlights and clean guitar riff adornment. Juttified features guests Keb Mo' on vocal and Robert Randolph on pedal slide. An easy blues swing with rolling piano and stylized fiddle set a super floor for Ford to highlight his nicely stylized solo. Breath Of Me featured ZZ Hill on lead vocals for possibly my favorite track on the release. Hill's soulful vocals are nicely complimented by Ford on beautifully clean solo runs. Excellent! High Heels And Throwing Things has an interesting light funky jazz feel with an almost Steely Dan polish. Warren Haynes lends his hand at guitar on the track giving it a feel of it's own. Cause Of War has a low slung, lumbering feel, a solid melody and with a hot guitar riff following each line of vocals. A heavy "bass solid" romp with tight drums makes this track tick. So Long 4 U features Sonny Landreth has an almost Little Feat swampy feel. I particularly like Ford's vocal delivery on this track and Landreth's slide tone really sets this track off. Excellent! Same Train feeds up more of the jazzy funk and it really has a contageous groove. Ford on guitar and lead vocal is chased by a tight harp line which I really like. This track is infectious with Ford really digging in on guitar and Allen and Little holding a tight bottom. Very very nice! Wrapping the release is Stone Cold Heaven and Ford trades hot guitar riffs with Tyler Bryant. This track with it's swampy rhythm gets really steamy with Ford and Bryant trading riffs and rich backing vocals. An excellent completion to a very cool release.

  If you support live Blues acts, up and coming Blues talents and want to learn more about Blues news and Fathers of the Blues, Like ---Bman’s Blues Report--- Facebook Page! I’m looking for great talent and trying to grow the audience for your favorites band! -  ”LIKE”

 

Arlen Roth Gets His Mojo Workin' On New Album Deal with King Mojo/Garage Door Records, Due Out April 14; Acclaimed Guitarist Convenes a "Slide Guitar Summit" on Latest CD

Arlen Roth Gets His Mojo Workin’ On New Album Deal with King Mojo/Garage Door Records, Due Out April 14

Acclaimed Guitarist Convenes a Slide Guitar Summit on Latest CD, with Special Guests Johnny Winter, Sonny Landreth, David Lindley, Rick Vito, Jimmy Vivino, Jack Pearson, Lee Roy Parnell, Cindy Cashdollar and Greg Martin,

Produced by Tom Hambridge

RIDGEFIELD, CT - Guitarist Arlen Roth announces that his new CD, Slide Guitar Summit, which teams the acclaimed musician with fellow slide guitar greats Johnny Winter, Sonny Landreth, David Lindley, Rick Vito, Jimmy Vivino, Jack Pearson, Lee Roy Parnell, Cindy Cashdollar and Greg Martin, will be released April 14 under the terms of a new deal signed with King Mojo/Garage Door Records, distributed nationally by Burnside Distribution. Slide Guitar Summit was produced by Grammy-winner Tom Hambridge, and recorded at studios in New York, Nashville and Connecticut.

Called “The Master of the Telecaster,” Arlen Roth recently celebrated the upcoming release of Slide Guitar Summit with a special show at the City Winery in Nashville, where he was joined onstage by album participants Rick Vito, Jack Pearson, Lee Roy Parnell and Greg Martin for an amazing night of music. Fans that night were also treated to an advance screening of the one-hour film, Glass, Brass and Steel: The Making of Arlen Roth's Slide Guitar Summit Album.

“This Slide Guitar Summit album was a longtime dream come true for me,” recalls Arlen Roth about the recording sessions. “It's like a group of old friends getting together for a great time that is rooted in our serious and mutual love for what we do.”

Recording with the late Johnny Winter was also special for Roth, since it turned out be Winter’s last session before he passed away in 2014. “Getting to work with the legendary Johnny Winter was such an incredible feeling, and it got the album totally off on the right foot,” says Roth. “It was hard to believe that I was sitting there playing ‘Rocket 88’ with him, when I could remember being 16 years old and watching Johnny from the very front at Woodstock in 1969....this album is of course, dedicated to this slide and blues guitar master who always served to inspire us all.”

Roth has fond memories of all the tracking sessions. “Each player brought something unique to this project and the interaction between me and them is what I was looking for in making each track truly unique” he says. “And Tom Hambridge and I go way back together as musicians and as friends, so I was really happy to be able to see this great producer lend his magic touch to this project. I also loved how so many of the artists came in with some very strong choices for the songs for us to do, and how we got to pay tribute to many of the great slide players before us such as Lowell George, Elmore James and Duane Allman. I suppose the thing about this album that intrigues me the most is how with the common thread of slide guitar we were all able to touch upon so many styles, emotions, traditions and also break new ground at the same time!”

Guitar legend Arlen Roth is considered one of the most influential guitarists of all time, and during the course of his 45-year-career has toured the world and recorded with an amazing list of artists, including Simon and Garfunkel, Bob Dylan, John Prine, Phoebe Snow, Levon Helm, Ry Cooder, Eric Andersen, Dusty Springfield, Janis Ian and The Bee Gees, among others. His teaching and creation of the Hot Licks Video pioneered music and guitar education all over the world, with his videos having sold in excess of 2.5 million copies. His current online lessons and blogs for Gibson.com have over 1 million followers. Arlen was also the man behind the legendary blues film, Crossroads, creating the guitar parts, directing the guitar scenes and working alongside fellow guitarist Ry Cooder and actor Ralph Macchio during the film’s production. He was voted in the “Top 50 Acoustic Guitarists of All-Time” by Gibson.com and in the “Top 100 Most Influential Guitarists of All-Time” by Vintage Guitar Magazine. He has eight best-selling books to his credit, and his book, Hot Guitar, is a compilation of 10 years of his wildly popular column for Guitar Player Magazine.

Roth’s first album Guitarist, won the Montreux Critics Award for “Best Instrumental Album of the Year” in 1978, and his last album, All Tricked Out!, garnered four Grammy nominations. His new Slide Guitar Summit CD is similar in approach to his classic and legendary album, Toolin’ Around (1993), which featured duets with guitar greats such as Danny Gatton, Duane Eddy, Brian Setzer, Duke Robillard, Albert Lee, Sam Bush and Jerry Douglas, and which also became a film documentary. He followed up that album with Toolin’ Around Woodstock, with Levon Helm, Sonny Landreth and Bill Kirchen.

Arlen Roth continues to record and tour all over the world. His current band, The Cordobas, features Eddie Denise on bass, Shannon Ford on drums and Chris Foley on second guitar. His daughter, Lexie Roth, also sings with the band, and has become a superb recording artist, vocalist and songwriter in her own right, with many credits to her name, such as singing on the recent Les Paul tribute album (she sang "Vaya Con Dios”), plus singing the blues classic, “Night Life,” on the album with Levon Helm.

With songs that cover multiple genres of music, Slide Guitar Summit promises to reach a wide ranging audience of fans and promises to be one of the most celebrated albums of the year.

Arlen Roth is also the founder and CEO of the “International Guitar Hall of Fame and Museum,” which has been a long-time dream for him to create.

To download a hi-res color photo of Arlen Roth (photo credit: Diana), click here:

http://www.markpuccimedia.com/ArlenRoth.jpg. For more information, visit www.arlenroth.com, www.facebook.com/arlenroth and www.guitarhalloffame.com

Robben Ford - INTO THE SUN - Coming March 31

 

GUITAR LEGEND ROBBEN FORD’S NEW ALBUM INTO THE SUN

 CAPTURES HIS CONTEMPORARY SONGWRITING MASTERY

To Be Released Via Mascot Label Group On March 31^st  

Guest Appearances By Blues Icon Keb’ Mo’, Vocalist ZZ Ward,  

And Fellow Guitar Heroes Warren Haynes, Sonny Landreth,  

Robert Randolph and Tyler Bryant 

February 5, 2015 - Guitar virtuoso Robben Ford’s forthcoming new album Into The Sun (Mascot Label Group) shines a bright light on his artful, contemporary songwriting and the stunning playing that’s made him a favorite foil of Miles Davis, Joni Mitchell, George Harrison and other legends.

The five-time Grammy nominee describes the 11-song set as “one of the top recordings I’ve ever done” — a staggering observation considering his extensive discography, which embraces more than 35 albums under his own name and with his various bands. There’s also Ford’s session and sideman work, which includes hundreds of concert appearances and albums by Bonnie Raitt, Barbara Streisand, Charlie Musselwhite, KISS, Ruthie Foster, Jimmy Witherspoon and Rickie Lee Jones. 

Into The Sun, which follows last year’s critically acclaimed A Day In Nashville and 2013’s Bringing It Back Home, explores the breadth of Ford’s sophisticated, visionary writing and playing, creating a new chapter in his brilliant musical history. The album features a coterie of guests: Allman Brothers guitarist and Gov’t Mule frontman Warren Haynes on “High Heels And Throwing Things,” slide guitar guru Sonny Landreth on “So Long 4 U,” Americana and blues icon Keb’ Mo’ and pedal steel wizard Robert Randolph on “Justified,” vocal sensation ZZ Ward on “Breath Of Me," and along with gritty Southern rock newcomer Tyler Bryant on “Stone Cold Heaven.” Niko Bolas, whose credits include Neil Young, John Mayer and Keith Richards, engineered.

“The album is really upbeat,” Ford relates. “It has a positive vibe to it — a good time feel. There are a lot of different rhythms and colors and the way the instruments are used is really different on this. It makes me very happy to have something so diverse.”

Although Ford’s recent releases have been hailed as returns to his musical roots — which go back to his discovery of blues as a teenager in the 1960s – Into The Sun is a clear departure, using tradition as a springboard to incorporate his timeless vocabulary of jazz, pop, blues and rock into a modern framework for his poetic lyrics and the most graceful, emotionally nuanced and melodic vocal performances of his career. 

“This album is obviously of these times,” Ford says. “And the rule during the recording process was to have no lid on things. I’ve worked very hard to master my craft as a musician and a songwriter, but other than relying on my strengths in those areas, I made sure there was room for new ideas and everything my collaborators brought to the music. When you’re open to different concepts and approaches, the most beautiful things can happen.”

All of the music and most of the lyrics from Into The Sun came directly from Ford, but he also collaborated with ZZ Ward on “Breath Of Me” and enlisted the enigmatic Kyle Swan, whose own recordings liberally mix images and styles to build articulate modernist-pop tone poems. That quality reverberates in the four songs Ford co-wrote with Swan, married to the guitar giant’s own deep commitment to narrative. “Working with Kyle was part of my desire to toss up everything and see what might happen, to get a fresh perspective,” says Ford. 

“Justified” is a sheer gas with Keb’ Mo’ and Ford trading tongue-in-cheek vocal lines as Randolph adds soaring pedal steel punctuation over Jim Cox’s purposefully wobbly honky tonk piano. 

Into The Sun was recorded by Bolas, a collaborator of Ford’s since his all-instrumental 1997 album Tiger Walk. “Niko is simply the best tracking engineer I’ve ever encountered,” says Ford. “He gets great sounds instantly.” All the better to capture Ford’s glorious guitar tones, this time derived from four of his go-to instruments: a pair of Gibson SG’s from 1963 and 1964, his beloved 1960 Telecaster and his Gibson B-25 acoustic. As he’s done on every album he’s made since 1983, Ford used a Dumble Overdrive Special amplifier. 

“For me,” Ford says, “it’s all about the art. If you work hard at something you’re going to get better. I honestly think I reached a point with my writing on Into The Sun where I could just go with the flow and bring some of the best songs I’ve ever created to life.”

Ford already has an impressive number of shows lined up to support the album, both in America and overseas. In addition to a lengthy list of tour dates, another notable upcoming appearance will be Robben Ford’s Traveling Dojo Guitar Camp at the elegantly rustic Full Moon Resort in Big Indian, NY in the Catskill Forest Preserve (about 30 miles west of Woodstock) from August 31-September 4, 2015.  Ford will host guitar enthusiasts and guitarists of all skill levels for this once in a lifetime opportunity.

In addition to his robust profile as a world-class musician, Ford is a highly sought-after educator with a series of acclaimed and groundbreaking interactive videos presented on a variety of formats including disks, downloads and mobile apps.  This Traveling Dojo Guitar Camp will include master classes, one-on-one sessions, landmark live performances with sit-in opportunities, and all-inclusive meal options and lodging accommodations.  Ford will be joined by special guest guitar virtuoso John Jorgenson; as well as Ford’s ace rhythm section (Brian Allen on bass and Wes Little on drums), who will conduct master classes on groove, time, and pocket; and Ford’s friend and trusted guitar tech, Rick Wheeler, a jazz virtuoso, will also conduct sessions on jazz guitar.  One of the most thrilling aspects of the Traveling Dojo Guitar Camp will be hearing these complimentary talents make music together.  A 10% discount off camp registrations is available through February 14.  To get more details on the camp and/or to register, visit: http://www.robbenfordguitarcamp.com/

ROBBEN FORD - INTO THE SUN Track Listing

1. Rose Of Sharon

2. Day Of The Planets

3. Howlin’ At The Moon

4. Rainbow Cover

5. Justified (with Keb’ Mo’ & Robert Randolph)

6. Breath Of Me (with ZZ Ward)

7. High Heels And Throwing Things (with Warren Haynes)

8. Cause Of War

9. So Long 4 U (with Sonny Landreth)

10. Same Train

11. Stone Cold Heaven (with Tyler Bryant)

ROBBEN FORD - INTO THE SUN EPK:

http://youtu.be/9Ud7A8OrU4Q

ROBBEN FORD – TOUR DATES

Feb. 17-21 - Miami, FL / Key West, FL / Nassau, Bahamas - Keeping The Blues Alive Cruise

Feb. 22 - Clearwater, FL - Clearwater Sea Blues Festival - Coachman Park

March 13 - Aschaffenburg, Germany - Stadttheater (with hr-Bigband)

March 14 - Rüsselsheim, Germany - Theater (with hr-Bigband)

ROBBEN FORD – INTO THE SUN - 2015 TOUR DATES

April 10 - Ft. Worth, TX - Main St. Fort Worth Arts Festival

April 11 - Oklahoma City, OK - Academy of Contemporary Music

April 12 - Kansas City, MO - Knuckleheads Saloon

April 14 - Minneapolis, MN - Cedar Cultural Center

April 15 - Milwaukee, WI - Shank Hall

April 16 - Evanston, IL - SPACE

April 17 - Columbus, OH - Woodlands Park Street Saloon

April 18 - Pittsburgh, PA - Rex Theater

April 19 - Sellersville, PA - Sellersville Theater

April 21 - Syracuse, NY - Wescott Theatre

April 22 - Londonderry, NH - Tupelo Music Hall

April 23 - Fall River, MA - Narrow Center For The Arts

April 24 - Beacon, NY - Towne Crier

April 25 - Norfolk, VA - Infinity Hall

April 26 - New York, NY - City Winery

April 29 - London, England - O2 Academy Islington

April 30 - Amsterdam, Netherlands - North Sea Jazz Club

May 1 - Breda, Netherlands - Mezz Concerts & Dance

May 2 - Groningen, Netherlands - Rhythm n Blues Night

May 5 - Leuven, Belgium - Het Depot

May 8 - Karlsruhe, Germany - Tollhaus

May 9 - Hamburg, Germany - Fabrik

May 10 - Cologne, Germany - Kantine

May 12 - Munich, Germany - Technikum

May 18 - Zvecan, Kosovo - North City Jazz and Blues Festival

               Kosovska Mitrovica - Cultural Centre “Trepca"

May 20 - Zurich, Switzerland - Kaufleuten Festival

May 30 & 31 - Oakland, CA - Yoshi’s at Jack London Square

June 2 - Portland, OR - Aladdin Theatre

June 3 - Seattle, WA - The Triple Door

June 26 - Carpentras, France - Auzon Le Blues

Additional dates to be announced soon…

Appaloosa Records artist: Fabrizio Poggi & Chicken Mambo - Spaghetti Juke Joint - New Release review

I just received the newest release, Spaghetti Juke Joint from Fabrizio Poggi & Chicken Mambo and it's a blast! Opening with Sonny Boy Williamson's Bye Bye Bird, Poggi on harp and lead vocals has the joint hopping already. Guitar riff master Enrico Polverari really drives the boogie and with reckless abandon... Boogie! Up next is Slim Harpo's King Bee with a New Orleans feel set up by the drum march styling of Gino Carravieri. Claudio Noseda lays down a really nice piano base and guitar slide king Sonny Landreth trades terrific riffs with Poggi. Excellent! Another boogie track, Little Milton's The Blues Is Alright is a special track being one of the best versions of this track that I have heard. Featuring the smooth guitar flair of Ronnie Earl, driving bass lines of Tino Cappelletti and strong back beat of Caravieri this track is cool! Original track, Devil At The Cross Road, has a real nice gait and stinging guitar riffs from Polverari. Excellent! On Junior Parker's Mystery Train, Noseda lays down some soft organ work and Poggi really lays on the harp. This is Chicago blues as it was when it was. Polverari shows he really knows how to grind the fretboard. Very cool! Tom Waits' Way Down In The Hole has a bit of a Latin feel and nice backing vocals. Poggi squeezes the harp with a seasoned hand, making it cry the blues. Again Polverari steps up and blows the doors open with his hot guitar riffs. Smooth. Sonny Boy's Checkin' Up On My Baby is a straight up 12 bar with a nice groove. Polverari takes full command with great blues riff prowess. Poggi lays back in the groove and rides the wave. Excellent! Blind Lemon Jefferson's One Kind Favor takes a Tex/Latin rhythm with strong blues overtones. Poggi handles vocals nicely and trades really slick riffs with Polverari making this one of the coolest tracks on the release. Bob Margolin feeds a hungry slide guitar on Mojo, a funky blues track backed by Noseda on organ. With excellent riffs from Margolin, Polverari and Poggi's classic harp styling, this track rocks! Even BB King's Rock Me Baby gets a taste of Latin. Noseda adds some New Orleans flavor with accordion and does a really nice job with a funky piano solo as well. Poggi and Polverari both take their turn on solo and never waste a note. Very nice! Nobody takes a very basic blues feel and builds it with rolling harp riffs from Poggi and additional lead vocals from Sara Cappelletti who really adds some spice. Polverari is hot on the frets with stinging lead guitar work and Tino C has the bass hopping. Another excellent track! I Want My Baby has strong New Orleans style rhythms reinforced by Stefano Spina on percussion and Claudio Bazzari on slide guitar. It needs to be pointed out that there is quite a bit of nice slide work on this release by a number of different players. Carravieri gets a chance to open up his drum kit for a tight solo... love it! Wrapping the release is Big Joe William's Baby Please Don't Go, in fairly traditional style but with back beat drumming by Carravieri. Poggi leads the way out on harp. This is quite an excellent release and one that I highly recommend.

  If you support live Blues acts, up and coming Blues talents and want to learn more about Blues news and Fathers of the Blues, Like ---Bman’s Blues Report--- Facebook Page! I’m looking for great talent and trying to grow the audience for your favorites band! -  ”LIKE”

 

Acclaimed Guitarist Arlen Roth Convenes a "Slide Guitar Summit" on New CD, Due January 13

Acclaimed Guitarist Arlen Roth Convenes a Slide Guitar Summit on New CD, Due January 13,

with Special Guests Johnny Winter, Sonny Landreth, David Lindley, Rick Vito, Jimmy Vivino, Jack Pearson, Lee Roy Parnell, Cindy Cashdollar and Greg Martin, Produced by Tom Hambridge

CD Release Performance with Special Guests Set for Nashville’s City Winery on January 20 to Include Screening of Film Documentary on the Making of the Album

RIDGEFIELD, CT - Guitarist Arlen Roth, the “Master of the Telecaster,” announces a January 13 release date for his new CD, Slide Guitar Summit, which teams the acclaimed musician with an incredible lineup of fellow slide guitar greats – Johnny Winter, Sonny Landreth, David Lindley, Rick Vito, Jimmy Vivino, Jack Pearson, Lee Roy Parnell, Cindy Cashdollar and Greg Martin – for what promises to be one of the most celebrated albums of the new year. Produced by Grammy winner Tom Hambridge, Slide Guitar Summit was recorded at studios in New York, Nashville and Connecticut. Roth will release the new CD on his own Aquinnah Records imprint.  

Arlen Roth will celebrate the release of Slide Guitar Summit with a special CD release show at the City Winery in Nashville on Tuesday, January 20, where he’ll be joined onstage by many of the guitarists on the new album (http://www.citywinery.com/nashville/). Fans at the album show premiere will also be treated to a screening of the film documentary about the making of the album (Doors open at 5:30 PM; show time: 7:00 PM). An announcement of additional Slide Guitar Summit CD release shows in the northeast will be forthcoming. 

“This Slide Guitar Summit album was a longtime dream come true for me,” recalls Arlen Roth about the recording sessions, “and it's like a group of old friends getting together for a great time that is rooted in our serious mutual love for what we do.”

Recording with the late Johnny Winter was also special for Roth. “Getting to work with the legendary Johnny Winter was such an incredible feeling, and it got the album totally off on the right foot,” says Roth. “It was hard to believe that I was sitting there playing ‘Rocket 88’ with him, when I could remember being 16 years old and watching Johnny from the very front at Woodstock in 1969....this album is of course, dedicated to this slide and blues guitar master who always served to inspire us all.”

Roth has fond memories of all the tracking sessions. “Each player brought something unique to this project and the interaction between me and them is what I was looking for in making each track truly unique” he says. “And Tom Hambridge and I go way back together as musicians and as friends, so I was really happy to be able to see this great producer lend his magic touch to this project. I also loved how so many of the artists came in with some very strong choices for the songs for us to do, and how we got to pay tribute to many of the great slide players before us such as Lowell George, Elmore James and Duane Allman. I suppose the thing about this album that intrigues me the most is how with the common thread of slide guitar we were all able to touch upon so many styles, emotions, traditions and also break new ground at the same time!”

Guitar legend Arlen Roth is considered one of the most influential guitarists of all time, and during the course of his 45-year-career has toured the world and recorded with an amazing list of artists, including Simon and Garfunkel, Bob Dylan, John Prine, Phoebe Snow, Levon Helm, Ry Cooder, Eric Andersen, Dusty Springfield, Janis Ian and The Bee Gees, among others. His teaching and creation of the Hot Licks Video pioneered music and guitar education all over the world, with his videos having sold in excess of 2.5 million copies. His current online lessons and blogs for Gibson.com have over 1 million followers. Arlen was also the man behind the legendary blues film, Crossroads, creating the guitar parts, directing the guitar scenes and working alongside fellow guitarist Ry Cooder and actor Ralph Macchio during the film’s production. He was voted in the “Top 50 Acoustic Guitarists of All-Time” by Gibson.com and in the “Top 100 Most Influential Guitarists of All-Time” by Vintage Guitar Magazine. He has eight best-selling books to his credit, and his book, Hot Guitar, is a compilation of 10 years of his wildly popular column for Guitar Player Magazine.

Roth’s first album Guitarist, won the Montreux Critics Award for “Best Instrumental Album of the Year” in 1978, and his last album, All Tricked Out!, garnered four Grammy nominations. His new Slide Guitar Summit CD is similar in approach to his classic and legendary album, Toolin’ Around (1993), which featured duets with guitar greats such as Danny Gatton, Duane Eddy, Brian Setzer, Duke Robillard, Albert Lee, Sam Bush and Jerry Douglas, and which also became a film documentary. He followed up that album with Toolin’ Around Woodstock, with Levon Helm, Sonny Landreth and Bill Kirchen.

Arlen Roth continues to record and tour all over the world. His current band, The Cordobas, features Eddie Denise on bass, Shannon Ford on drums and Chris Foley on second guitar. His daughter, Lexie Roth, also sings with the band, and has become a superb recording artist, singer and songwriter in her own right, with many credits to her name, such as singing on the recent Les Paul tribute album, plus singing the blues classic, “Night Life,” on the album with Levon Helm.

Arlen Roth is also the founder and CEO of the new “International Guitar Hall of Fame and Museum.”

Slide Guitar Summit Track Listing

Do What's Right: Jack Pearson & Arlen Roth

Dust My Broom: Lee Roy Parnell & Arlen Roth

Stranger on the Shore: Cindy Cashdollar & Arlen Roth

Rocket 88: Johnny Winter & Arlen Roth

Sonny Skies: Sonny Landreth & Arlen Roth

Her Mind is Gone: David Lindley & Arlen Roth

Peach Pickin' Time in Georgia: Greg Martin & Arlen Roth

Paradise Blues: Rick Vito & Arlen Roth

Dixie Chicken: Lee Roy Parnell & Arlen Roth

One Child Born (And When I Die): Jimmy Vivino & Arlen Roth

Steel Guitar Rag: Cindy Cashdollar & Arlen Roth

You Really Got a Hold on Me: Rick Vito & Arlen Roth

Poor Boy Blues: Jimmy Vivino & Arlen Roth

Amazing Grace: Greg Martin & Arlen Roth

Cleopatra Records Inc - A Blues Tribute To Creedence Clearwater Revival - New release Review

I just received the newest release from Cleopatra Records, A Tribute to Creedence Clearwater Revival. Opening is a rousing Fortunate Son with Mike Zito and Sonny Landreth on slide guitar. These guys tear it up...nuf said! The Mynabirds are up next with Bad Moon Rising, a female interpretation of the track sounding like a blend of U2 and Crissy Hines with a Bo Diddley rhythm. Proud Mary is covered by Blitzen Trapper. An easy rocker with light drums, vocals, a few tidy guitar riffs and keys. Down On The Corner is covered by Spirit Family Reunion with a solid Cajun flavor. A raspy but solid lead vocalist, nicely blended backing vocals and accordion cover most of the melody with addition of banjo and harmonica as well as assorted percussion instruments. Have You Seen The Rain is covered by Dead Man Winter. This is a simple vocal track with minimal instrumentation (tambourine and acoustic guitar) and I think that it's one of the purest tracks on the release. Looking Out My Back Door is covered by LeRoux and has a solid New Orleans feel with upfront snare drumming. Nicely blended vocals over this funky march is really quite pleasant and key and guitar solos are shot but tight. Duke Robillard covers Who'll Stop The Rain bringing along a troop of heavy hitters like Bruce Bears, Brad Hallen and Mark Teixeira. Duke takes the lead vocal and keeps fretwork to mostly nice atmospheric chords with a short break. Bears plays a real nice solo punching up the track. South Memphis String Band featuring heavy hitters Jimbo Mathus (drums and vocals), Alvin Youngblood Hart (guitar and vocal)and Luther Dickinson on bass takes the hard line rick road and sets a cool stage for slide work over the hot rocker Up Around The Bend. Susie Q gets a bluesy lope by Will Wilde. A nice blues rocker with hot harp work and relentless rhythm guitar and drums makes this another contender for top track. Run Through The Jungle gets a real bluesy rock version that is pure Smokin' Joe Kubek & Bnois King. Another hot track, Kubek lays down some nice riffs here. Kirk Fletcher covers Green River with some of the richest guitar work on the release. Fletcher definitely knows his way around the guitar and spares no mercy here! Wrapping the release is Born On The Bayou covered by Trampled Under Foot. The dimension of a solid female vocalist in Danielle Schnebelen over what is other wise a solid Creedence mix makes for a cool wrap of a cool release.

  If you support live Blues acts, up and coming Blues talents and want to learn more about Blues news and Fathers of the Blues, Like ---Bman’s Blues Report--- Facebook Page! I’m looking for great talent and trying to grow the audience for your favorites band! -  ”LIKE”

 

Cleopatra Records artist: Eli Cook - Primitive Son - New Release Review

I just received the newest release (April 29, 2014), Primitive Son, from Eli Cook and it's a rockin, snarling blues guitar release. Opening with War Horse, Cook and gang (Wade Warfield on drums and Rob Richmond on bass) crank up a Led Zep feel with a southern twist. It has a mesmerizing groove and cool guitar riffs. Revelator has a bit more pop to it adding Vinny Appice (drums), Jorgen Carlsson (bass and B3) and Steffen Presley and Greg Hampton on backing vocals. Sweet Thang has a slinky sound and features Tinsley Ellis on additional guitar. High In The Morning, a southern influenced track features Sonny Landreth on some slick slide work. Reese Wynans adds some Vocals remind me quite a bit of Black Label Society. Won't Be Long is a real nice little acoustic ballad featuring Cook on acoustic slide and vocal. Motor Queen steps out with real attitude... a club swingin blues rocker with Leslie West joining on guitar. This track has a lot of attitude and is one of my favorites on the release. Be Your Fool, still with more of a rock blues swagger, features Rod Piazza on harp but certainly has more of the flavor of Led Zep, Skynyrd or G&R than the old masters but still quite entertaining. Swing A Little Harder is a stripped down track with only Cook on vocal, bass and guitar and Wade Warfield on drums. A blend of spoken lyrics and heavier rock gives it a different style sound. Again the closest thing that I can compare it to is BLS. With interesting guitar riffs and a solid beat... cool track. Shake The Devil Down is consistant with the bulk of the release with solid vocals and well executed guitar riffs over a solid bottom. Tall & Twisted is again accompanied by acoustic guitar and understated drums by Warfield and bass from Rob Richmond. Modern country blues. The Great Southern Love Kill has a hotter flame featuring Artimus Pyle on drums and Pat Travers on additional guitars. A more straight up blues rocker and an easier melody actually brings this track across a bit more crisply. Smokin hot guitar riffs on this track break the uneven but consistent drum rhythms. Amphetamine Saint has a real blues rock swagger. I like Cook's vocal style more on this track and guitar heavy Eric Gales adds nicely to the mix. Title track, Primitive Son, is more vocal heavy with instruments more in the back. A straight forward blues rocker, this track definitely demonstrates the relationship between blues and progressing metal. Wrapping the track is Burying Ground, a heavy blues rocker with interesting guitar work and a heavy drum beat. Cook is carving out a niche for himself in this heavy blues rock/metal sound and I'm certain he will find a strong audience.

  If you support live Blues acts, up and coming Blues talents and want to learn more about Blues news and Fathers of the Blues, Like ---Bman’s Blues Report--- Facebook Page! I’m looking for great talent and trying to grow the audience for your favorites band! -  ”LIKE”

 

Justin Time Records Signs New Orleans-Based Blues/Rock Guitarist Brent Johnson; Debut CD, "Set the World on Fire," Due April 8 & Features Specials Guests Alvin Youngblood Hart & Sonny Landreth

Justin Time Records Signs New Orleans-Based Blues/Rock Guitarist Brent Johnson

Debut CD, Set the World on Fire, Set for April 8 & Features Specials Guests Alvin Youngblood Hart & Sonny Landreth

MONTREAL, CANADA – Canadian label Justin Time Records announces the signing of New Orleans-based blues/rock guitarist Brent Johnson and will release his debut album, Set the World on Fire, on April 8. Johnson is backed on the new CD by his road-tested band of Bill Blok (bass, backing vocals), John Perkins (drums) and Wayne Lohr (keyboards), along with special guest guitarists Alvin Youngblood Hart, who adds his scintillating touch on three tracks, and legendary slide master Sonny Landreth on one song. Set the World on Fire was produced by Brent Johnson and recorded/mixed by Ben Lorio at The Music Shed in New Orleans.

“My sound is rooted in the blues, though I don't pretend to be a purist, and I don't want to be," Johnson explains. “I write music based on my experiences and the sounds I grew up with; I never want to pretend that I had the same experiences as the old bluesmen did, so I'm not going to go around trying to sound like them. What I do is put the emphasis on the feeling of the music, the passion, the urgency, the directness - that's the goal.”

Brent Johnson has achieved his goal quite admirably on the appropriately-titled Set the World on Fire, as he burns up the speakers with an incendiary mix of both electric guitar and slide guitar sounds on the album’s 11 cuts, including seven originals and covers of “Meet Me in the Morning” (Bob Dylan), “Meet Me in the Bottom” (Howlin’ Wolf), “As the Years Go Passing By” (Albert King) and “The Hucklebuck” (Paul Williams). Justin Time Records owner Jim West has been a longtime fan and gave Brent free rein over the material and production. As this is his first album release, Brent is looking forward to releasing and touring these original songs and feeling the reaction to his work from an audience.

Brent describes himself as “always a guitar slinger ... I always loved songwriters and wrote songs for myself.” Interestingly, despite an omnivorous musical appetite and a very distinct love of blues, Brent, when pushed, would list his four favorite songwriters as eclectic Houston guitarist Chris Whitley, Austin's own Ian Moore, (a writer himself influenced by world, folk and blues music), along with British stalwarts Elvis Costello and Joe Strummer. He describes his favorite music as “raw, honest and dirty.”

Johnson’s passionate vocals and soulfully powerful guitar work shines throughout the new album. On “Meet Me in the Morning,” he and Alvin Youngblood Hart trades licks in a serious blues guitar conversation (Alvin on electric, Brent on slide). They go at it again on the original song, “The Ticket,” driving home a strong blues message. On “Long Way Back to New Orleans, he’s joined by Sonny Landreth, who adds his signature slide guitar, helping to push the track towards his Crescent City hometown. Hart returns one more time on the Howlin’ Wolf classic, “Meet Me in the Bottom,” where both he and Brent channel the chugging sounds made famous by the Wolf’s iconic guitarist, Hubert Sumlin.

On an album filled with highlights, two additional songs are also worth mentioning. On “As the Years Go Passing By” (perhaps best-known from the great Albert King’s version), Johnson delivers a tour-de-force 13 minutes-plus of emotionally-charged singing and guitar playing that adds to the track’s intensity. And on “The Hucklebuck” (a 1949 number one R&B hit by saxman Paul Williams), Johnson shows he can swing and rock with the best of them on an instrumental that showcases his versatility and musical maturity as a guitar player. 

A guitar prodigy from the age of four, South Texas born Brent Johnson always knew where he wanted his playing to take him. Drinking in the very best of blues, jazz, rock, punk, country and world music, by the time his family moved to New Orleans in his teens, he was predestined towards a career in music.

Writing his own material, Brent formed several high school bands, all with a lean to the blues; and then joined the group Under the Gun, who built a considerable following on the local live circuit in Louisiana and beyond. As admiring of the style of The Clash, Albert King, Charlie Parker, Jimi Hendrix, Albert Collins or Black Flag and Thelonious Monk, Brent's passion for playing was immediate and intense for his audience.

By serendipity, New Orleans' legendary “Braille Blues Daddy” Bryan Lee heard Brent's playing and immediately recognized his virtuosity, drive and dedication to his craft and to the blues. At 22, Brent was seconded into Bryan Lee and the Blues Power Band, with whom he has recorded and toured nationally and internationally for the past ten years.

“Playing with Bryan has really helped me open my ears,” Brent says. “For example, Bryan always had keyboard players before I joined him, so I had to learn how to play like an organist, like a horn section - how to play rhythm like a group of instruments - instead of solely like a guitarist. I've learned how to swing, how to play be-bop and also how to take that aggression that I love and give it room to move - new colors to paint with.”

Through his long association with Bryan Lee, Brent has played many major jazz and blues festivals around the world and had the pleasure of playing with such outstanding blues artists as Buddy Guy, Lonnie Brooks, Eddie Shaw, Gatemouth Brown, David Maxwell, Bruce Katz, Kenny Wayne Shepherd and Howlin' Wolf associate Hubert Sumlin.

In between touring with Lee, Brent went out on the road with John Perkins (drums) and Bill Blok (bass) playing Brent's original compositions, with himself on vocals. They garnered a great response and decided to go into the recording studio, with the inclusion of Wayne Lohr on keyboards.

As his debut album is released, Brent emphasizes his commitment to keep writing his own songs. “I want to bring something to the audience that sounds familiar, but that is our own in the end,” he states. Always demonstrating his creativity in his playing, he is excited and confident in putting his own songs before the public. “I believe there are no limits,” he declares. “I'm going to have fun with this for a long time!”

To stream the track, “Don’t Make a Sound,” from the new CD, click here: https://soundcloud.com/jill-kettles/brent-johnson-dont-make-a

For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/brentjohnsonband or www.justin-time.com

BRENT JOHNSON TOUR ITINERARY

3/28-3/29            The Shed BBQ                                                                                   Ocean Springs, MS
4/8                         The Hideaway Café (Suncoast Blues Society)                       St. Petersburg, FL           

4/9                         The Little Bar                                                                                      Goodland, FL
4/10                       Englewood's on Dearborn                                                            Englewood, FL
4/11-4/12            B. B. King Blues Club                                                                       W. Palm Beach, FL
4/13                       Ace's                                                                                                     Bradenton, FL
4/14                       The Rockstar Lounge                                                                      Lake City, FL
4/16                       The Alternate Root Television Taping                                      Boston, MA
4/18                       Jonathan's Landing                                                                          Magnolia, DE
4/25                       Teddy's Juke Joint                                                                           Zachary, LA
4/26                       Murky Waters                                                                                   Gulfport, MS
5/02                       Ruby's Roadhouse                                                                           Mandeville, LA  

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Bluesman Sonny Landreth to Teach and Perform At 3rd Annual Crown of the Continent Guitar Workshop & Festival August 26 – September 2, 2012

Bluesman Sonny Landreth to Teach and Perform
At 3rd Annual Crown of the Continent Guitar Workshop & Festival
Held at the Flathead Lake Lodge in Bigfork, MT
August 26 – September 2, 2012

Sonny’s gearing up for the Crown of the Continent Guitar Foundation’s workshop and festival as the Blues Artist in Residence, August 26-September 2, 2012. This is an exceptional occasion to study closely with and spend time with Sonny at one of the world’s premier dude ranches. He’ll also be performing. Sonny will be joining renowned faculty members, Matt Smith and Dennis McCumber of National Guitar Workshop, both seasoned NYC educators and blues players in small intimate workshop settings. www.cocguitarfoundation.org <http://www.cocguitarfoundation.org>

Sonny will be teaching two not to be missed master classes during the week where you can see up close and personal his own unique slide and right hand playing techniques.

The weeklong event includes 6 days of workshops, master classes, playing with professional rhythm sections, jamming, and nightly concerts. Participants and their family members will have a wonderful week of music and Montana activities. Also available for family members during the week is a watercolor workshop <http://cocguitarfoundation.org/watercolor-workshop.html> taught by renowned western artist Nancy Cawdrey.

There are eleven workshops offered in seven guitar genres with leading faculty from the National Guitar Workshop and additional Artists in Residence: Chris Hillman, Julian Lage, Patty Larkin, Dennis Koster Herb Pedersen and Lee Ritenour. In addition to the Blues workshop with Sonny and faculty Matt Smith and Dennis McCumber, there are: Classic Rock, Jazz, Classical, Acoustic, Singer-Songwriter and Beginners. A new course has been added this year for Bass players featuring Clipper Anderson, Melvin Davis, Jorge Roeder, and Dave Overthrow.

Jazz pianist and composer, Dave Grusin (recipient of one Academy Award and twelve Grammy Awards) will be a special featured artist.

In addition, Lee Ritenour’s 3rd Annual Yamaha Six String Theory International Guitar Competition will be held during the workshop week on August 29th.

What a rare opportunity this is to study with Sonny and share a passion for guitar and bass with fellow participants in an inspirational and personalized setting. All surrounded by Montana’s famous western hospitality.

The 2011 workshop sold out. The 2012 workshop has limited availability, so early registration is advised! For more information and to register go to www.cocguitarfoundation.org <http://www.cocguitarfoundation.org> or call (406) 837-2574.

If you like what I’m doing, Like ---Bman’s Blues Report--- Facebook Page! I’m looking for great talent and trying to grow the audience for your favorites band! - ”LIKE”
Please view video highlights of the 2011 workshop & festival:

Landfall Records:Elemental Journey - Sonny Landreth - New Release Review

I have been listening to the newest recording by Sonny Landreth, Elemental Journey to be released on May 22. This is a really different recording for Sonny Landreth in that not only is the music somewhat unstructured (more orchestrated) or hyper structured dependent upon your perception and also that it has no vocals. What I mean regarding the structure is that most of the music that I review has a very basic structure and much of it a formula. A very simple formula. Any experienced listener can listen to the average song, say here's the singing, this is where the guitar solo will be...there will be singing after that and this is the end. This recording is much more complex than that and really quite heady. Landreth has enlisted guitar wiz Joe Satriani and Eric Johnson to assist in the implementation as well as members of the Acadiana Symphony Orchestra to pull off this masterpiece of fluid music. The recording, made up of 11 tracks is really put together as a sonic story pulling components of many types of music into the fabric with different instruments leading you in every path and weaving a auditory picture of the journey that you're taking, creating space and sonic dynamics to accentuate the milestones. I find it really interesting to see musicians experiment outside of the box that they are typically confined to and applaud Landreth on this very successful project.
If you like what I’m doing, Like ---Bman’s Blues Report--- Facebook Page! I’m looking for great talent and trying to grow the audience for your favorites band! - ”LIKE”

Sonny Landreth's first-ever all-instrumental album features Eric Johnson, Joe Satriani

SONNY LANDRETH’S 11^th ALBUM ELEMENTAL JOURNEY

IS FIRST ALL-INSTRUMENTAL OUTING

May 22 release features Eric Johnson, Joe Satriani, Robert Greenidge

and Steve Conn.

BREAUX BRIDGE, La. — Sonny Landreth’s 11th album, bearing the fittingly evocative title Elemental Journey, is something very different from the Louisiana slide wizard. Released on his own Landfall label on May 22, 2012, the new CD is Landreth’s first all-instrumental effort and his most adventurous work to date.

“From day one on the guitar, many genres of music have had an impact on me” says Landreth. “For these recordings, I drew from some of those influences that I hadn’t gone to on previous albums with my vocals. Trading off the lyrics this time, I focused solely on the instrumental side and all this music poured out. Then I asked some extraordinary musicians to help me layer the tracks in hopes of inspiring a lot of imagery for the listeners.”

Like its predecessor, From the Reach (2008), Elemental Journey features guest stars, in this case handpicked by Landreth for what each could bring to a particular aural canvas. Joe Satriani delivers an astonishing, ferocious solo on the audacious opener “Gaia Tribe,” the returning virtuoso Eric Johnson casts his seductive spell on the dusky dreamscape “Passionola” and steel drum master Robert Greenidge brings his magical overtones to the balmy, swaying “Forgotten Story.”

Drummers Brian Brignac, Doug Belote and Mike Burch, each of whom Landreth has worked with in the past, lend their particular feels to various tracks, working with Sonny’s longtime band members, bass player Dave Ranson and keyboardist Steve Conn. Tony Daigle, another key member of Sonny’s team, engineered and mixed the album, while Landreth produced.

“One of the things I’ve always loved about a good instrumental song is that it can be more impressionistic and abstract,” Landreth notes. “Though melody is always important, it’s even more significant with an instrumental. So what I wanted to achieve was something more thematic with lots of melodies and with a chordal chemistry that was harmonically rich. That’s when I got the idea to treat the arrangements with more layering and to have the melodies interweave like conversations. I also wanted it to be more diverse, to not adhere to any categories. I wanted to leave it wide open to possibility.”

The album blossoms forth with unexpected yet seamless juxtapositions. For example, Spanish moss atmospherics enwrap visceral bursts of rock and jazz on “Gaia Tribe,” and Sonny’s slide swoops and soars over a Jamaican-inspired groove with Greenidge’s Trinidadian pans on “Forgotten Story,” while “Wonderide” finds zydeco romancing classical.

“On ‘Wonderide,’ you can hear some of Clifton Chenier’s Creole influences and then it morphs into a classical motif with the strings playing more complex changes,” Sonny points out. “When I started experimenting with it, I realized that the tempo for a good zydeco groove could easily transition into the fingerpicking style of phrasing found in classical guitar music. Then it was a matter of adding the strings to give it more depth with tension and release, expanding the overall sound.”

Strings play a featured role on five of the pieces. The string arrangements by Sam Broussard — moonlighting from his gig as guitarist in Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys — are played by members of Lafayette’s own Acadiana Symphony Orchestra, conducted by its music director, Mariusz Smolij, a world-renowned maestro. The strings are employed in a particularly inventive way wherever they appear on Elemental Journey, frequently embellishing the tunings that Landreth uses for slide guitar — “sometimes in unison like a horn section, sometimes as a legitimate quartet or full blown orchestra,” Sonny explains.

The concept occurred to him after Smolij invited him to perform with the Acadiana Symphony Orchestra for a 2005 Christmas show for which he played Bach’s Cantata 140. “It was something I’d always wanted to do,” says Sonny. “I’d played the trumpet in school band and orchestra from grade school through college, so I was exposed to classical music and jazz, but I’d never played anything like that on slide guitar! So that really fired me up, and it became the backdrop for some of the classical influences on this album.”

There’s a particularly thrilling moment in the first track, “Gaia Tribe”, that occurs when two seemingly antithetical elements lock in an embrace. “When I first heard Joe’s solo,” Sonny recalls, “I went, ‘This is incredible! I love it but it just comes up out of nowhere — how am I gonna make it fit?’ After talking to Joe, I realized this was a great opportunity to raise the bar creatively. That’s when I got the idea to double the surprise factor and have the strings make their first appearance for the album in the middle of his solo. The next thing I know, a song that had started out as kind of a simple surf thing had become this wild ride of an epic piece and one of my favorite productions.”

Landreth’s music has always been evocative, a vibrant mixture of indigenous sounds and images informed by Delta blues and Faulkner alike. But here, by eschewing lyrics and vocals, he’s located something especially pure and unfettered. “What I’d hoped to end up creating was sonic stories without words,” he says. “And because there are no lyrics, it’s really important to connect on an emotional level. All of the titles for these songs have meaning for me — some of them are impressions from post-Katrina, Rita, the Gulf Spill, friends of mine and their experiences — so that’s part of it too. Still, I want listeners to feel something that resonates with them personally. I’ve always tried to make music that engages you on a deeper level that way.”

Prepare to be engaged . . . and transported.