Bman's Blues Report

  I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Tribute , from Joe Krown , and it's a New Orleans soaked release. Opening with Allen Toussaint's, All Of It , renown piano and B3 player player really gets things going, backed by  Mark Brooks on bass, Doug Belote on drums and with some searing guitar riffs by Leo Nocentelli. Powerful opener. Dr. John's Such A Night maintains all of the spirit of the Daytripper's original with Ivan Neville on lead vocal and Kassie Netherland backing, Jack Miele and John Fohl on guitar and of course Krown really  working the piano. On Ode to Mr. Davis , Krown lays back in the slot with cool piano and B3, joined by excellent sax work by Joe Sublett, Belote and Brooks. Very nice. Lightning Hopkins' Feel So Bad , features Wolfman Washington on vocal and guitar. I have always loved his style and his vocal, paired with his own funky guitar riffs makes this my favorite track on the release. wrapping the release is a stirring ...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Tribute , from Jack De Keyser and it's  straight up rocker. Opening with the driving, Are You Ready? , De keyser on lead vocal and guitar is joined by Alan Duffy on bass, Nick Succi in piano and organ and Peter Grimmer on drums. De Keyser has a distinctive and particularly active guitar style and this is a solid opener. With the addition of Richard Thornton on sax, On the Money has a funky sound along the lines of Stax but with great blues guitar soloing. Very cool. Coming Up has a definite driving rock beat with traces of Don Nix and Jeff Beck. Duffy's romping bass line accented by Succi on piano and de keyser's scorching guitar soloing makes this my favorite on the release. Supernatural has a Spanish flavor and with it's smooth melody, works nicely with Carlos Santana like guitar riffs. Blues ballad, You Turned My World to Blue , will be my choice for radio track on this release with it's catchy mel...

Lonnie Mack (born Lonnie McIntosh, 18 July 1941, Dearborn County, Indiana) was an American rock, blues and country guitarist and vocalist. Mack's early 1960s instrumental hits “Memphis” and “Wham!” influenced a generation of guitarists and whose singular mix of blues, country and gospel inspired performers such as Keith Richards, Stevie Ray Vaughan, the Allman Brothers Band and Danny Gatton, died April 21 in Nashville. He was 74. Alligator Records announced the death but did not disclose the cause. Mr. Mack lived in Smithville, Tenn. “Memphis,” an instrumental variation on Chuck Berry’s “Memphis, Tenn.,” and Mr. Mack’s follow-up, “Wham,” cut through the predictability of 1963 Top 40 radio, where teen idols and reverb-drenched surf instrumentals ruled. Mr. Mack’s guitar work combined the harsh attack of urban blues with the frenetic tempos of rock-and-roll. His guitar — an arrow-shaped 1958 Gibson Flying V — was as distinctive as his playing style: chords that rang with an or...