Bman's Blues Report

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Struck Down , by The Fabulous Thunderbirds and it's one of their best. Opening with Struck Down By The Blues , Kim Wilson has the mic singing lead vocals on this BB King style track. Johnny Moeller and Steve Strongman handle the gripping guitar lead with Bob Welsh on piano, Rudy Albin Petschauer on drums and Steven Kirsty on drums. Excellent opener. Classic ZZ Top style, one line bass, drives Payback Time features Wilson and Billy Gibbons on lead vocals with great harmonica overtones by Wilson and featuring Gibbons on guitar. Very cool. Bonnie Raitt, Keb Mo and Taj Mahal share the mic on Nothing But Rambling , an easy shuffle with strong harmonica work by Wilson and Keb Mo on slide. Wilson back up front on romping shuffle, Whatcha Do To Me . Elvin Bishop lends his guitar work on his track giving it a nice kick and Wilson's harmonica work turns up the heat with his own spice. I really like Moeller's guitar work...

  I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Preach To My Soul , by Spencer Mackenzie , and it's a strong blues rocker. Opening with Baptized By Cold Water , Spencer Mackenzie on guitar and lead vocal hits the road running with a solid composition, strong vocals and cool riffs. Backed by Miles Evans on keys, Steve Pelletier on bass, Adam Cannon on drums, this is a real nice opener. Title track, Preach To My Soul , is a soulful radio oriented track with warm Hammond backing and a catchy melody by Mackenzie. Up tempo driving rocker, Test Drive, definitely has a lot of radio flash with cool vocals, prominent rhythm guitar and Evans contributing heavily on Hammond. R&B drenched, Your Turn To Cry , is one of my favorites on the release with a great melody and perfect horn support by Julian Nalli on sax and Stephan Dyte on trumpet. Ballad, Two Doves is a definite radio track showcasing Mackenzie's vocal skills and featuring Ross Hayes Citrullo on guitar. Wrap...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, The Strongman Blues Remedy, Volume 1 , from The Strongman Blues Remedy and it's chocked full of foot tapping blues. Opening with blues rocker, Hard Luck , leader Steve Strongman adds great slide riffs, bass and harmonica to his solid lead vocal efforts for a super radio track. Joined by Dave King on drums and Jesse O'Brien on keys this is a great opener. Dawn Tyler Watson has the mic on Fine Young Man , a solid radio track with country and blues roots. Slick slide work by Strongman and with O'Brien on keys and King on drums, another fine track. Slow blues, White Lightnin' is my favorite track on the release with Strongman's best vocals on the release and strong, soulful, fluid guitar lead, backed by Alec Fraser on bass. Excellent! Crystal Shawanda has the mic on Tell Me I'm Wrong and her vocals are sassy and powerful against the bluesy riffs of Strongman. Wrapping the release is Love Comin' I...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Tired of Talkin' , from Steve Strongman and it's his best release yet! Opening with title track, Tired of Talkin' with a wicked blues fused, southern rocker feel Strongman up front on lead vocal and guitar shows swagger. Backed by Dave King on drums, James Haggerty on bass, Jesse O'Brian on piano, Pat Sansone on on keys, and with Audrey Freed on guitars, excellent opener. Laid back, Still Crazy 'Bout You , is really cool with it's JJ Cale or Levon Helm texture. Strongman's dobro work complimenting his vocal work is the key. Funky, Just Ain't Right , is really fun with some strong slide work by Strongman, and tight bass/drum work by Haggerty and King and heavy organ by Sansone. Excellent! Hi octane blues rocker, Can't Have It All with Strongman on harmonica and guitar and snappy drumming by King really moves. Highway Man falls back into a more pure delta sound with dobro and vocal. This ...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, No Time Like Now , by Steve Strongman and he shows a lot of contemporary approaches. Opening with title track, No Time Like Now , Strongman, joined by Rob Szabo on bass and Adam Warner on drums presents a happy, dance style track with heavy tom tom work and a bubbly vocal line. Bring The Hammer Down has a solid lumbering feel with a solid blues format and traces of Billy Gibbons. I particularly like Strongman's  guitar work on this track accented by Szabo on keys.  Very cool. Another high energy, Money In The Bank , features Dave King on drums with a snappy feel and full vocal backing leading to a tight guitar solo. On BTO's You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet , Strongman changes things up a bit with a less driven cover and featuring Randy Bachman on guitar. Gospel inspired, Love, Love, Love has a great guitar riff, solid lead vocals and nice backing vocals with Alec Fraser on bass, Jesse O'Brien o...

I just received the newest release, Angel's 11 , from Angel Forrest and it's got a special feel. Opening with Hangman , a solid blues rocker, Forrest shows that she's serious business and ready for anything. With Johnny Flash on guitar, Dennis Coulombe on bass, Sly Coulombe on drums and Bernard Quessy on B3, this track could easily see a lot of radio play. All The Way has a real cool rhythm and perfect timing from Coulombe on percussion. Forrest has a special voice and this track is perfect for her. Rob MacDonald lays in a nice guitar solo rounding out this track. Spoil Me Up is a real cool, jazzy track featuring beautiful guitar work from Steve Strongman and nice horn work from Frankie Thiffault on tenor sax, Mathieu Mousseau on bari sax, and Nicolas Boulay on trumpet. Excellent! Hold On Tight has a bluesy rock/ country sound with a real cool bass line from Alec Mc Elcheran. Ricky Paquette steps up with some searing guitar lead and I particularly like Sly Coulombe, ...

I just received the newest release, Inside Out from Roly Platt and I really like it. A mixture of classic ballads, jazz, R&B and deep seeded blues this release has a lot of breadth. Opening with Joe Sample's, Put It Where You Want It , Platt that's a jazz track and replacing horn with harp it has a real nice effect. Joined by Al Cross on drums, John Tilden on guitar and Lance Anderson on keys this is a super opener. Mad River has a real nice Texas boogie style driven by Russ Boswell on bass, Platt, Tilden and Anderson each take nice solo lines. Dropped down a few clicks, Steve Strongman takes the lead vocal spot and adds guitar on Good Mind To Wander . Platt rides high with his harp on the melody of this likely commercial track. Congo Strut has a jazzy feel of course featuring the slick but gritty harp work of Platt. Anderson adds some real nice electric piano work giving the track a nice transition to a hot guitar solo from Tilden. Yes, everyone has done an interpr...

Steve Strongman Wins JUNO Award for Blues Album of the Year     Photo: Liam Richards/The Canadian Press     Kitchener raised, Hamilton Ontario resident Steve Strongman will be clearing space on his mantle for more hardware after receiving a coveted JUNO Award for Blues Album of the Year f or his recent release "A Natural Fact". The award was handed out this past Saturday at a gala dinner at the Queensbury Convention Centre in Regina.  "Winning this Juno is amazing. I am so proud to be included in such great company with the other nominees. I share this with all the people that made A NATURAL FACT so special, especially my producer Rob Szabo. This was a team effort. I also want to thank Mel Brown, who continues to inspire me." Strongman said. Other deserving nominees in the category were Shakura S'Aida, Colin James, Jack de Keyzer and Steve Hill. For a full list of 2013 JUNO Award winners visit junoawa...

        www.stevestrongman.com   Steve Strongman adds a JUNO nomination for   Blues CD of the Year! Big night for Steve Strongman -  3 Maple Blues Awards   Guiatrist of the Year, Album of the Year & Songwriter of the Year!       STEVE STRONGMAN A NATURAL FACT   W INS RECORD OF THE YEAR! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpZcD75ThcA Promotional video for Steve Strongman's new album, "A Natural Fact".       Steve STRONGMAN wins   Guitarist Of The Year    2nd year in a row at the Maple Blues Awards   !        New acoustic CD to be released in April 2012! ...

Steve Strongman JUNO Award Nomination, Maple Blues Awards & Winter Tour   Just six weeks in to 2013, Steve Strongman has already achieved years worth of accolades and recognition for his latest release "A Natural Fact", including a JUNO nomination for Blues Album of the Year. "I’ve dreamed about this for years and it has finally come true," Strongman said. The JUNO nomination follows Strongman winning three Maple Blues Awards at the gala ceremony in January, where he received awards for Guitarist of the Year, Songwriter of the Year, and along with Rob Szabo, Recording/Producer of the Year for "A Natural Fact".   Strongman had been nominated for six Maple Blues Awards, including nominations in both categories for Electric Act of the Year and Acoustic Act of the Year , as well as Entertainer of the Year. Strongman also had the honour of performing at the gala awards concert, and a rousing showcase at Blues Summi...

    Ottawa’s MonkeyJunk, Toronto’s Suzie Vinnick and Hamilton’s Steve Strongman Win Multiple Awards   (January 21, 2013) Toronto, ON - Internationally renowned Canadian Blues Artist from Coast-to-Coast were honoured by their peers at the 16 th Annual Maple Blues Awards gala in Toronto last night as a sold out crowd of blues lovers gathered to celebrate Canadian blues at Koerner Hall.   Ottawa’s MonkeyJunk and its members took home three awards, including, Electric Act of the Year, Harmonic Player of the Year (Steve Marriner) and Drummer of the Year (Matt Sobb).  Hamilton guitar slinger Steve Strongman also received three awards including Songwriter of the Year, Recording of the Year for his recent release "A Natural Fact" and Guitar Player of the Year. Now based in Toronto, Saskatoon native Suzie Vinnick won awards for Acoustic Act of the Year and Female Vocalist of the Year.     Nova Scotia’s Matt Minglewood was ...

      It has been an exciting summer and fall for guitarist Steve Strongman. A full schedule of festival performances, concerts and appearances has kept this award-winning blues artist quite busy. Throughout the summer months Steve performed for thousands of fans at festivals including Trois-Rivieres en Blues, Mont Tremblant International Blues Festival, Donnacona   au rythme du   Blues , Limestone City Blues Festival and a coveted opening spot for the legendary Robert Cray.   This was all capped off with Strongman being nominated for six Maple Blues Awards, including nominations in both categories of the Electric Act of the Year , and Acoustic act of the Year. Other nominations include: Entertainer of the Year Guitarist Of The Year Songwriter Of The Year Recording/Producer Of The Year for "A Natural Fact". Strongman will be performing at the gala awards concert and  has been invited to showcase at the Blues Summit in T...

(October 26, 2012) Toronto, ON - The Toronto Blues Society will be celebrating its 16 th annual Maple Blues Awards by honouring nationally and internationally recognized Canadian Blues artists from across the country on January 21, 2013. The nominees are recognized both for their talent as well as their contribution to the growing Canadian blues music scene.   Hamilton’s Steve Strongman leads the way with nominations in six categories, Toronto’s Shakura S’Aida and Paul Reddick , and Ottawa’s MonkeyJunk earned nominations in five categories. Quebec blues artists are well represented with nominations for Nanette Workman, Michael Jerome Brown, Ben Racine, Stephen Barry, Dawn Tyler Watson and Guy Bélanger. British Columbia’s  thriving blues scene is represented with nominations for The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer , Steve Kozak, Colin James, David Hoerl , David Gogo and Kenny “Blues Boss” Wayne. The Blues Booster of the Year Award will be ...