Bman's Blues Report

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Particles of the Infinite, by Alex Anthony Faide and I really like it. Faide, originally from Buenos Aires, Argentina, has for decades been the go to session guitarist in Europe and South America. Now moved to Seattle and previously under the tutelage of Robert Fripp, founder of King Crimson this is his first solo effort.  Particles Of the Infinite is a 9 part composition, formatted much like a King Crimson suite of movements with distinct passages and eccentric time signatures. Faide, on guitar and bass, is joined by Matt Chamberlain  (David Bowie), Pat Mastelotto (King Crimson) and Alessandro Inolti (Echotest). If you know any of Fripp's work, you know that it's difficult to articulate anything descriptive that is meaningful about his compositions and in the case of Faide, the work defies being nailed down. Let's just say if you heard this composition at random, and truely knew Fripp's work, you would see ...

  I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Live At 3rd and Lindsley from Hurricane Ruth and it's got real swagger. Opening with Roll Little Sister , Ruth shows "her take no prisoners" attack with her raw, energetic vocals, joined by Scott Holt on slide and Nick Nguyen guitars, Calvin Johnson on bass, Lewis Stephens on keys and drum master Tom Hambridge driving the train. Strong opener. Dirty Blues really has enough grime on it to be a Keith Richards deal. Ruth knows how to work it and Holt's slide work combined with Hambridge's drum work makes this a firm contender. Slow blues, Faith in Me takes Ruth out of her classic blues rocker stance and into a more soulful mode. Holt steps up with a solid guitar solo, with some real nice phrasing, joined by Stephens on piano. Cool track and obviously a crowd pleaser. Fenton Robinson's (Peppermint Harris) As the Years Go Passing By is up next and features Ruth teaming up with ex Wet Willie and Je...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, That's My Name , by Bob Stroger & The Headcutters and it's a full house of Chicago blues. Opening with What Goes On In The Dark , Bob Stroger on lead vocal and bass shows no wear for his 90 year tenure. With Ricardo Maca on lead guitar, Joe Marhofer lays in some real  nice harmonica riffs over the support of Arturo Garcia on bass, Leandro Barbeta on drums, Luciano Leaes on Hammond and Braion Johnny on sax. Solid opener. On slow blues, I'm A Busy Man , Stroger's composition is strong and his vocals firm. I really like Marhofer's approach on harmonica, Maca lays in some soulful soloing of his own on guitar and Leaes' piano riffs are essential. Boogie track, Something Strange has a cool walking bass line and melody by Marhofer. Stroger's vocals are light and nimble. My favorite track on the release is Jr Parker's Stranded In St. Louis with quite a bit of solid slide work by Maca and some ...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Emotional Gangster , from Popa Chubby and it's a cool, aggressive blues rocker. Opening with driving, Tonight I'm Gonna Be The Man , Popa Chubby rips on slide over a rumbling beat. With tandem vocals he sets the pace and charging drums keep the tension. A cool, bluesy melody and blues rooted slide riffs saturate the track. Solid opener.  On Morganfield's Hoochie Coochie Man , Chubby gives the blues classic his own twist, retaining the bluesy roots but interjecting just a taste or rock. With a droning bass line he never gets to fast but he does take the time to show his chops on Water's original phrasing. Very nice. Harmonica wizard Jason Ricci sits in on Save The Best For Last , a low slung shuffle with a Jimmy Reed feel. Chubby really lays on the beat giving it a pronounced lope and his vocals are prime. Ricci and Chubby trade phrases making this one of my favorites on the release. Elmore James' Dust M...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Turquoise Blue , from Micki Free , and it's a fiery blues based rocker. Opening with Ridin' - 420 , Micki Free unleashes his hard driving rocking sound with solid lead vocal and guitar, backed by ken "Mojo Man" Riley on bass, Mark "Muggy Do" Leach on keys, Soaring "Hawk" Lopez on really driving drums and Trish Bowden on backing vocals. His lead work is white hot with plenty of flare for a power opener. Heavy Mercy opens with a great guitar riff and builds with a droning bass line and relentless, soaring, overdriven guitar. A ripping cover of Hendrix's All Along The Watch Tower gives Free a "rock standard" to unleash on and he does a real nice job. Slipping into a blues groove on Spring Fever, Free takes a shuffle approach with stinging guitar riffs over a guitar/keys melody and tight underpinnings by Lopez and Riley. Another slice of the pie, World On Fire , features And...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, I Ain't Playin' (May 20, 2022), from Diunna Greenleaf and it's chocked full of R&B, blues and soul. Opening with Koko Taylor's Never Trust A Man , Diunna Greenleaf on lead vocal slips into a funky blues, Albert King style, With Jerry Jemmott on bass, Jim Pugh on keys, Kid Andersen on guitar and Dmar Martin on drums with Mike Rinta on trombone, Aaron Lington on sax and Jeff Lewis on trumpet. Power opener. In Big James Montgomery's If It Wasn't For The Blues , Greenleaf really shows powerful phrasing and excellent command for that funky blues that we all love so much. With a great bass line by Andersen, Lington on flute, Rinta on trombone and Lewis on trumpet, and Igor prado on lead guitar, this is a really strong track. Original shuffle, Sunny Day Friends has a loose feel and Greenleaf really slides into the pocket. Jemmott's bass line is terrific, Andersen's guitar lead is strong and  P...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Table For Five , from Juan Carlos Quintero and it's really tasty. Opening with Arthur Schwartz's Alone Together , Juan Carlos Quintero opens the gate and lets it flow. This is a masterful display of melodic guitar lead, over a tight Latin rhythm by Eddie Resto on bass, Aaron Serfaty on drums and Joey DeLeon on percussion and with excellent piano work by Joe Rotondi adding melodic rhythm on piano. Excellent! Luiz Bonfa's Manha De Carnaval is slowed down from it's traditional presentation to more of a Bolero feel with beautiful guitar lead by Quintero, teamed with Rotondi's piano accent. Very nice. Original composition and title track, Table For Five... at The Cumbia Inn has a cool, Columbian rhythm with a steady cymbal and tight rhythm guitar leaving plenty of space for melodic guitar lead soloing by Quintero and really nice percussion by DeLeon and Serfaty who also play an extended  solo on Horace Si...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Major League Blues , from Jose Ramirez , and it's solid contemporary blues. Opening with title track, Major League Blues is a cool shuffle featuring Jose Ramirez on lead vocal and guitar and with Jimmy Johnson sitting in on guitar as well. Bob Stroger on bass, Willie Hayes on drums, Roosevelt Purifoy on B3 and Billy Flynn round out the band for this solid opener. On soulful ballad, I Saw It Coming , Ramirez is really out front on vocal with Purifoy creating a warm B3 envelope for his vocals. Flynn and Ramirez really do a nice job on lead guitar with solid melodic lead soloing. Here In The Delta is a cool contemporary blend between Hill Country flavored music and solid BB King styling. I really like the heavy tom tom work by Antonio Reyes, working nicely with Purifoy on B3 and the nice guitar work by Flynn and Ramirez, his own solid vocals and cool backing vocals. Kenny Watson Jr on bass adds to the heavy bottom makin...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, WildRoots Sessions Volume 2 , from The WildRoots and it's a lot of fun. Opening with bluesy I.O.U. , Patricia Ann Dees and Victor Wainwright on lead vocal, we got a swampy New Orleans style funk, charged by Eddie Zyne on drums and Stephen Dees on bass. With a perfect harmonica vamp by Stephen Kampa and including Charlie DeChant on sax, Todd Sharp on guitar, David Kent on keys and Alberto Cruz on congas, this is a solid opener. Reba Russell and Patricia Ann Dees harmonize nicely on lead vocal on Long Way To Go over cool, acoustic and slide guitar by Greg Gumpel, Stephen Dees on bass and percussion and real nice harmonica riffs by Kampa. Very nice. Shuffle track, The Bad Seed really rocks with Bryan Bassett on lead guitar and Dyer David on second lead and lead vocal. backed by Lucky Peterson on Hammond, S Dees on bass, Top Thomas on rhythm and Scott Corwin, this is one of my favorites on the release. Bryan Bassett step...

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Fight The Good Fight , from Vaneese Thomas , and it's a great mix of R&B and soul. Opening with powerful track, Raise The Alarm , with it's hi stepping Al green styling really gets this release amped up. Thomas has a great voice and plays keys with Wayne Warnecke on drums and bass, Al Orlo on guitars, Jon Cobert on organ, Marc Frankiln on trumpet, Kirk Smothers on bari sax,  Lannie McMillan on tenor sax, and with Emily Bindiger and Kati Mac, this track is a home run. My radio choice for the release is Same Blood Same Bone , a soulful track with excellent lead by Thomas and beautiful backing vocals by Lisa Fisher, a hot guitar solo by Orlo and punchy horns. Very nice. Ballad, Time to Go Home has a gospel richness... Thomas' vocal over Orlo on acoustic guitar and mandolin and the addition of Joe Mennonna on Accordion. Wrapping the release is soulful ballad, Lost In The Wilderness . A strong showcase for the ve...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Keys To The Kingdom , from The Kenneth Brian Band and it's a solid blues rocker. Opening with title track, Keys To The Kingdom , Kenneth Brian is back on guitar and lead vocal, joined by Chris Cano on drums, and Brandon Owens on bass and keys. With rowdy lead guitar work and heavy drumming, there's no doubting the southern rock influences. Sweet vocal blending on bluesy ballad, Hard Heart really make this a solid top runner for the release. There was a band in the 70's called Rare Bird that has really nice, not overdone blending like this and it really did carry the band. Solid guitar soloing stays close to the melody yet sets the track off nicely. Very nice. War is a punchy rocker in the vein of Led Zep with heavy snare work by Trey Allred, gangly guitar lead by Dave Catching and driving bass work by Wes Davis. With the addition of slide guitar in the flavor of southern rockers this track kicks butt. Another ...

  I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release of Son Houses recordings, Forever On My Mind which was recorded at Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Indiana on November 23, 1964. This recording is incredible but extremely significant for me. I believe that Son House is possibly the best blues player that ever walked the earth and if not, certainly in small company. This release is not only extremely clear, but just looking at the cover brings House to life. I, like most grew up seeing House in those shaggy old films and mostly in black and white photos. Here pictured is House, likely in the late 60's or early 70's bringing him from an ancient blues player to a man who lived during my lifetime. Looking more real than my memory of my childhood friend, Richard Coalman who could easily have been born before House. This release is made up of tracks that House released elsewhere except the opening track, Forever On My Mind, which had never been released by House. With ...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Finesse, from Sergio Pereir a and it's really quite nice. Opening with White Lion , Sergio Pereira on guitar and vocal is joined by Reza Khan on rhythm guitar, Rodrigo Ursaia on flute, Helio Alves on piano, Mark Egan on bass, Mauricio Zottarelli on drums and Emelio Martins on percussion. A relatively smooth track a cool radio opener.  Morning Mist is an uptempo Brazillian Samba with melodic acoustic guitar and vocal by Pereira and marcus Teixeira on electric guitar, Paulo Paulelli on bass and Zottarelli on drums. Very nice. Ralph Moore on alto sax adds in on the intro on Quase 9 and really nice vocal by Pereira makes this a really strong tune. Helio Alves on piano lays in the first line of solo, followed by Moore, joined by Andre Vasconcellos on bass, and Emilio Martins on percussion. A nice breeze of cool air.  Desfilandoa Vitoria is very lively with a punctuated rhythm with the addition of Rodrigo Ursaia...

  I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Vortex , by Kenny Shanker and it's a cool bop filled ride. Opening with the title track, Vortex , Mike Eckroth sets the tone with a piano intro and progressive melody, dashed up with Yoshi Waki on bass and Brian Fishler on drums. Kenny Shanker takes the lead on sax with aggressive style taking the track quite a bit higher and then hands off to guitar man Daisuke Abe who crafts a really nice fluid lead line of his own, resolving with Bill Mobley on trumpet for a solid close. Lulu's Back In Town has a laid back feel with Shanker setting up the tune, and Abe and Eckroth each adding very nice solo blocks for a really nice track.  Hunter steps up the feel a bit with an aggressive rhythm and the over the top attack that I'm coming to expect from Shanker. Abe and Eckroth both stretch nicely before returning to Shanker for a solid conclusion. Dave Brubeck's classic, The Duke is in line and Shanker and Eckroth l...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release (April 22, 2022), Aesthetic , by Aaron Bazzell and it's a smooth debut effort. Opening with Tomorrow Today , Boston born, Atlanta raised, Bazzell leads the way of this instrumental journey on alto sax, joined by Keith Brown on piano, Jonathan Michael on bass and Brandon Donald on drums. Given a percussive piano structure, Donald really lays down a creative rhythm and Bazzell's alto work is straight up melodic. Brown breaks loose with a solid piano interlude adding another dimension. Solid opener. Unrequited is a soulful ballad with Bazzell leading the melody, cradled nicely in the piano counterpoint. Again, Brown's sensitive piano aesthetic adds to the track nicely. Latin rhythm by Michael and Donald on Purpose sets a nice oath for the melodic lead work of Bazzell and Brown. This is the most aggressive track on the release with Bazzell pushing the conventional envelope of the release and also being my favorite...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Secular Rituals , by Wayne Alpern and it's expansive and thought provoking. I want to start out by saying that the cover for this release has a unique, quiet beauty with hints of a landscape obscured by fog and cleanly designed title and artist notation surrounding a red diamond. Brilliant work by Darline Braz and Kasa Objects. Because the release to me is more a cohesive composition with movements than separate "songs" I will try to describe what I am experiencing aurally rather than isolate specific segments of the passages and note participants. The release opens with Utopia with a varying digital rhythm pattern and notes that seem to hang in the ether. This layering of different digital loops and patterns creates a soothing intro to this release. Victims of Venom is really a cool track with an underlying world music influence. Digital tom tom sounds, jungle sounds and a digital small keyboard create qui...

  I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Pawns , from Micah Graves and it's terrific! Opening with title track, Pawns , Micah Graves leads a group of excellent musicians on a creative path. Based over a central piano/keys vamp by Graves is reinforced by Robby Cruz on trumpet, Dick Oats on alto sax, Yesseh Ali on tenor sax, Zach Guise on bass and Julian Miltenberger on drums. Ali is the first to break loose with a creative solo line with incredibly tight drum rhythms by Miltenberger. Zach Fischer is next in line with warm guitar lead over a subdued, drum/piano rhythm, breaking back to Miltenberger and Graves tight rhythm interaction and horns. Very nice. Adding vocals by Danielle Dougherty and Shafiq Hicks on Lost In Time In Central Square , this track is much more straightforward and radio forward with a carload of instrumental excellence. Ali is first up on solo this time and his tones are fat and rich, followed by a funky keyboard solo by Graves and nicely...