Bman's Blues Report

Walter Becker, the guitarist and bassist for the popular rock band Steely Dan, died Sunday. He was 67. News of Becker's death was confirmed by a tribute post on his official website, though no cause of death was given. Becker was forced to bow out of two Steely Dan performances earlier this month after undergoing an unidentified "procedure," according to bandmate Donald Fagen. Fagen released a heartfelt statement on the passing of his longtime collaborator, praising Becker's skills as a musician and his killer sense of humor. "Walter Becker was my friend, my writing partner and my bandmate since we met as students at Bard College in 1967," Fagen wrote. "Walter had a very rough childhood — I'll spare you the details. Luckily, he was smart as a whip, an excellent guitarist and a great songwriter. He was cynical about human nature, including his own, and hysterically funny. Like a lot of kids from...

I just received the newest release, Time On My Hands , by Jon Herington . Most of you probably know Jon from his work with Steely Dan or as a featured musician on any number of studio tracks but this is Herington's own solo effort and it demonstrates a broad knowledge of musical styles as well as great chops. On Shine, Shine, Shine ; the opening number, Herington sticks close to his efforts with Fagen and Becker with a cool jazz rock track with flashy, intricate guitar riffs and vocal harmonies. Sweet Ginny Rose has a Bo Diddley rhythm and Steve Miller like vocals but with eastern sounding flanged, distorted guitar and and again harmonic vocals. On Ain't Got You , a bluesier tune, with a bit of the Philly sound, Herington lays out the best of his tracks so far. It is definitely radio bound and has real smart soloing. Herington's vocals on this track are individualized and it sounds a bit more original. Backed by Dennis Espantman on bass and vocal, Frank Pagano on drums ...