Lucky Peterson - I’m Back Again

 

Blues Boulevard’s new Lucky Peterson album I’m Back Again is a release of music from the excellent DVD/CD set on BlackbirdMusic/ Soulfood by The Lucky Peterson Band Featuring Tamara Peterson Live At The 55 Arts Club. The eleven performances on this release are available on the DVDs and the CDs of the earlier set, but are limited to those that featured Lucky and not the others which featured Tamara. Lucky’s backing band included Shawn Kellerman on guitar, Tim Waites on bass and Raul Valdes on drums. It is a hard-rocking, tight band that did a fine job supporting Lucky (heard on organ as well as guitar).

I wrote, reviewing the DVD/CD set, “The material ranges from Lucky’s reworking of blues classics such as You Shook Me, I’m Ready, and Who’s Been Talking, along with Johnny ‘Guitar’ Watson’s Ta’ Ta’ You. He takes out the slide for Dust My Broom, while getting really greasy on the B-3 on I’m Back Again, as well as Rico McFarland’s Giving Me The Blues. Listening to these performances again, my views haven’t changed.

Those having Live At The 55 Arts Club, will have no reason to buy this fine reissue, but others may want to get this strong sampling of Lucky Peterson (and his excellent band) today.

I received my review copy from a publicist. Here is Lucky performing Who’s Been Talking, although from a different performance.

Corey Harris - Fulton Blues

Corey Harris’ Fulton Blues, originally issued by Corey, has been reissued with a couple of bonus tracks added on Blues Boulevard Records. As noted on his Corey’s website, “Fulton is a community in Richmond, VA that is older than the city itself. From its docks on the James River, the first African captives were marched to the city’s slave market to be sold into bondage. This Black town on the east end of the city endured for more than 300 years until its land was seized and the families living there were forcibly evicted in the name of greed masquerading as progress.”

Fulton Blues presented some new and classic blues songs and “the fourteen songs on the album range from love, loss and longing to celebration, tragedy and triumph.” In addition to Corey Harris vocals, guitar and banjo, others on this recording include Chris ‘Peanut’ Whitley on keyboards; Gordon ‘Saxman’ Jones on saxophones and horn arrangements; Jason “Brother’ Morgan on bass; Ken ‘Trini Jo’ Joseph on drums, Hook Herrera on harmonica and Joshua Achalam on percussion.

This is the first recording I have heard Harris in a urban blues setting as on the opening Crying Blues, a lyric of lonesomeness with Saxman Jones providing simple horn riffs in support. It sounds like he may be playing two saxophones at the same time which may account for the somewhat simplistic horn arrangements. The solo Underground sounds like a blues about the underground railroad with its allusions to the devil being out on in the broad daylight and how the devil broke up the family. With its simple backing that evokes the late Ali Farka Toure, and Harris’ performance here is similarly mesmerizing. A solo original, Black Woman Blues, exhibits a John Lee Hooker-North Mississippi Hills groove.

While Harris is known is best known for his adaptation of delta styled blues, the title track is a start lyric about the now gone community set against a adept Piedmont finger style accompaniment with Herrera adding support. Herrera is also present on Harris’ moving rendition of Skip James’ classic Devil Got My Woman. Harris’ banjo feature, Black Rag is a lively number with lyrics suggestive of Blind Willie McTell’s Kill It Kid Rag, and also sports a nice saxophone break. An insistent R&B styled rendition of Catfish Blues, has strong sax playing. It is followed by a delightful cover of Blind Blake’s That Will Happen No More, and then Lynch Blues with an accompaniment that evokes Cherry Ball Blues, but stark lyrics that open “What do I see hangin’ beneath the tree …” Harris’ deep singing, his repeated guitar riffs and Herrera’s harmonica make for a deeply moving performance.

The original release of Fulton Blues closed with the full band on an instrumental Fat Duck’s Groove, that allowed Harris to display his electric guitar playing with his crisp and clean fretwork. A couple of live performances are bonus tracks that were not included on the original release. Both Better Way and Esta Loco reflect Caribbean influences on Harris, ska on the former and latin on the latter. These are pleasant performances, if not having quite the gravitas of the rest of this CD. Fulton Blues is an impressive recording that illustrates Corey Harris’ ability to revive and invigorate older blues songs and styles. 

I received my copy from the publicist or the record company. I had purchased a copy of the original release. Here is Crying Blues from Fulton Blues.

Duke Danger Finds If It Ain't One Thing, Its Another

The Belgium Blues Boulevard label, a subsidiary of Music Avenue, had issued a number of CDs that make available releases of blues-rock and blues that will be of differing interest to blues enthusiasts.

Duke Faglier aka Duke Danger has been playing music since a Daytona Beach youngster and played in groups that included Duane and Greg Allman. Inspired and influenced by such blues legends as Albert, B.B. and Freddie King; James Cotton, Little Milton as well as soul legends like Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett, James Brown and Ray Charles, he toured with Wayne Cochran and shared stages with Clarence Carter, Bo Diddley, The Tams, Jackie Wilson and Albert King. Toss in some touches of Roy Buchanan, Eric Clapton, Duane Allman and Albert Collins, one has an interesting foundation for blues laced with rock’n’soul.

Touring with Jerry Lee Lewis for 13 years certainly has helped him mature as a performer. His new album, If It Ain't One Thing, Its Another, is a highly listenable set that has a rocking feel but always blues-soul rooted. He sings with plenty of heart and grit although with a slightly limited range, and has a nice band to support his fretwork. Special note is of saxophonist John Longo as well as Bunky Keels on keyboards. He is also a pretty fair songwriter that suits his grainy voice. If he can’t completely pull off Damn Your Eyes, his originals like the title track or Love at First Sight, by Bud Reneau & Don Goodman, show how his vocals possess a definite charm reminiscent of Elvin Bishop.

On the latter tune he effectively employs an echoey treble to add atmosphere. Perhaps this listener’s favorite track has Duke ‘rocking all my life, but’ Now I’m Singing the Blues, with ripping sax and honky tonk piano from Keels. One More Last Chance is a nice ballad and there is lively funk-tinged rendition of Rufus Thomas’ That Woman Is Poison. Longo adds a jazzy flavor to Tuffer Than Tuff, credited to Cole Porter but is actually Jimmy Witherspoon’s Money Get Cheaper. For some reason credited to Duke as Who’ll The Next Fool Be, the album closes with a capable rendition of Charlie Rich’s classic Who Will The Next Fool Be, and the influence of Jerry Lee Lewis (who did a killer recording of this) can be heard in the vocal as well.

This review originally appeared in the March 2009 Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 314) where it was part of a review of three Blues Boulevard releases. The review copy was either sent by Blues Boulevard or the publication.

Tommy McCoy Lays His Demons Down

An Ohio native, but living in Florida since 1967, Tommy McCoy has been playing blues ever since. In 1986, journeying to San Francisco and recorded his first project with Mark Hummel. He toured with Johnny Thunder, played in a band with three former Allman Brothers and then did a session in Austin with the late Stevie Ray Vaughan’s rhythm section. A couple years later he entered Kingsnake Studios with a studio band that included Lucky Peterson and recorded Lay My Demons Down, which led to touring the UK as well as a tour of Norway with the late Florida bluesman Rock Bottom.

Blues Boulevard has reissued Lay My Demons Down, co-credited to Lucky Peterson, whose organ helps anchor and spark the performances. Included are 15 performances that are pretty straight-forward efforts. Most tunes are originals such as the rocking Blues Thing, with his recitation of various blues artists and grooving with a feeling playing the fender in a bar with sawdust on the floor as well as the slow Bitter Soul to Heal, a nice slow tune with a bit of a Boz Scaggs feel. He picks acoustic guitar for several tracks including the They Killed That Man, with its narrative of taking a life without a reason why. The title track has him talking about drinking, smoking and staying up all night doing things that ain’t right but things are wrong unless he lays his demons down and changes the life he is living. Its a nice lyric that is well played. He provides his own arrangement of Jimmy Rogers’ Ludella, giving it a funk groove while adding a shuffle beat to Robert Nighthawk’s Bricks in My Pillow, with some broomdusting lap slide from Laptop Randy. He adds an insistent beat to Tampa Red’s Crying Won’t Help You.

Musically this is a solid effort. Tommy Mccoy is a good songwriter, an able singer and a solid guitarist, and receiving solid backing throughout produced an engaging disc that maybe will garner attention from those who missed it the first time around.

My review copy was either provided by Jazz & Blues Report or Blues Boulebard. It was written for Jazz & Blues Report, but I am not sure if it was ever published. Here are videos of him performing.

Little Al Thomas' Long Blues Ride

Chicago singer Little Al Thomas has been a fixture around south side Chicago blues clubs for decades prior to recording “South Side Story” for Cannonball just before that label folded. He was born in Chicago and grew up with the music and records of Tampa Red, Sonny Boy Williamson, and Lonnie Johnson and had a long stint singing with guitarist lacy Gibson. Blues Boulevard has issued “Not My Warden,” a 2009 recordings of Thomas backed by guitarist John Edelmann and the Deep Down Fools who also include Marty Binder on drums, Rob Binder on keyboards and either Eddie Galchick or Mike Scharf on bass. Included are thirteen tunes, with twelve being originals for about an hour of music.

For some reason the accompaniment to the opening “ Long Ride to the Southside,” conjures up a Sheryl Crow recording, but introduces us to Thomas’ strong vocals as Edelmann adds some whining slide while Binder takes a nice solo. Thomas has a straight-forward style as he belts out the lyrics. Folks in Chicago, I suspect can easily identify with the message of Edelmann’s “I’m Gonna Buy a Politician,” with its mesmerizing John Lee Hooker groove as Thomas delivers the message of working too hard as “its time to improve my position, I’m gonna buy me a politician,” although the lyrics get somewhat repetitive. The title track is a slow shuffle as Thomas wonders about whether his love is a crime and declares “you are my wife, not my warden,” and “you are no ball and chain, and I’m not doing time.” while Edelmann takes a lengthy solo.

“Ready Freddie,” is a nice driving instrumental taken at a relaxed tempo allowing Edelmann to stretch out. The slide is out again for the rocking shuffle, “Wonder What You Think,” as Little Al asks about whether money can buy love. “Don’t take the Keys,” has a jazzier feel to it with Binder being more prominent in accompaniment and Edelmann tone a bit lighter and more directly swinging here. “Anger Heats My House,” also has nice guitar while Binder takes us deep down on the B3 while Thomas please for peace in his house. “Big Time Operators” sounds like a vintage sixties B.B. King influenced recording with Thomas complaining about the seedy side of the music business and the big time operators on the music scene who don’t look like politicians but act as thugs. “West Side Wind,” another energetic instrumental shuffle is followed by a cover of “Reconsider Baby,” with Edelmann playing with a jazzier feel and tone, mixing in chords with his single note runs, and the jazzy flavor continues on the latin-accented closing instrumental “Coronado,” where Edelmann effectively adds some tremolo to his tone.

While the lyrics on this CD are hardly memorable, Thomas is such an robust and soulful singer that one does not notice this. The backing also sounds stronger as one gets into the album. They add more than simply providing varied, rock-steady grooves and Edelmann and Binder provide plenty of solid solos. Its been about a decade since Little Al Thomas‘ last recording, and “ Not My Warden” has made this wait worthwhile.

For FTC regulations, I received a review copy from wither the record label or a publicist.