Chris Gill Between Midnight and Louise

Chris Gill
Between Midnight and Louise
Endless Blues Records

Mississippi blues guitarist and vocalist Chris Gill got into the Delta and Bentonia style Blues from sitting on Jack Owens' porch listening and learning from Jack Owens and Bud Spires. The Bentonia influence continues today as he still hangs out and jams with Jimmy "Duck" Holmes at the Blue Front Cafe. He writes original songs in what he characterizes as a mix of Juke Joint Boogie and Piedmont style fingerpicking. His cites as influences Taj Mahal, Mississippi John Hurt, Rev. Gary Davis, Elizabeth Cotten, and Lightnin' Hopkins. Gill plays both fingerstyle and slide guitar and has been a finalist in the International Blues Challenge.

Gill's skill as a fingerstyle guitarist is evident on the instrumental "Thank You For Another Day" with deft picking that sounds like a pleasant fusion of Mississippi John Hurt and Blind Blake. It is followed by "Song For Honeyboy," which has him playing in a classic Delta blues vein and showcasing his accomplished slide guitar (with echoes of Muddy Waters). The song was inspired by reading Honeyboy Edwards' autobiography. An alluring love song, "You Never Know (That's What Love Will Do)," features amiable fingerstyle guitar with echoes of John Hurt and Taj Mahal to go with an appealing vocal.

Played on a Baritone Mule guitar, "Rolling Man" features a percussive accompaniment to a song about a hobo's travels. Next up is another evocation of classic delta blues, "Fleas and Ticks." Tracks like this and "Song For Honeyboy" show how ably Gill performs in the Delta style. "Souvenir of the Blues" was inspired by a homeless man on Beale Street and is a moody tune with some thoughtfully played slide guitar. "Long Distance Highways" is more of a folk-country number with reflections of playing on the road and home with nimble picking. A dear friend of Gill, Vincent Brawley, wrote, "I Fell in Love With Blues." Brawley passed away a few years back, but Gill does a marvelous salute to his friend about a song listening to WDIA and Mexican radio stations.

The title track is another crisply played instrumental with a dreamy feel. It is the closing track on an album of performances in the blues tradition but with Gill's own memorable slant on acoustic blues.

I received my review copy from a publicist. Here is a performance of "Souvenir of the Blues."

Grady Champion Tells Us Tough Times Don’t Last

Tough Times Don’t Last is Grady Champion’s newest recording on his Grady Shady Music label. The 2010 International Blues Challenge winner is back with some new songs and supporting musicians that include Caleb Armstrong (guitar, production, string arrangements), Marquis Champion (bass), Lil Cal Jackson (drums), Nathan Keck (guitar), Chris Gill (guitar), Granard McClendon (guitar), Larry Addison (piano). 

This opens with a shuffle “My Time Baby,” that has some nice harp from Grady. While the backing is solid and his harmonica is strong. His vocals lack the presence of his vocals, perhaps because the harmonica likely was overdubbed. Missing You is a blues ballad sung very soulfully with a touch of Sly and the Family Stone in the groove. Trust Yourself has a message of not giving up your soul to someone else, rather to be free one needs to trust oneself.” It would have been a stronger track with real horns instead of synthesized ones. 

On Broke Cadillac, Grady sings that his relationship with his lady is like driving a broken down cadillac. His plays the guitar lead displaying a fuzzy tone but his playing would have benefited from more clarity. His guitar is stronger on the solid blues, co-written with Eddie Cotton, Things Ain’t What They Used To Be. The title track carries an optimistic message that tough times don’t last, but tough people do. Cookie Jar is an amusing back door man song in the tradition of Little Johnny Taylor’s Open House At My House. Chris Gill adds 12 string acoustic guitar for Glory Train, a gospel blues on which Grady entreats people to give up their bad habits while the closing song, expresses his wishes for the holidays, What Would Christmas Be Without You. 

The material is one of the strengths of this recording. Grady is in good voice and his harmonica playing is quite strong, the recording sounds like heavy overdubbing was used and the performances don’t come across as crisp as they might be otherwise. Tough Times Don’t Last would have benefited from less overdubbing as well as real horns instead of synthesized horns on a couple of tracks. It is enjoyable, but I suspect as Grady performs some of these songs, they will come across more potently. 

I received a review copy from a publicist.

D'Mar and Gill Are Real Good Friends

The combination of acoustic guitarist and vocalist Chris Gill and Derrick "D'Mar" Martin on drums and congas is heard on Real Good Friend (Airtight). While at first sight one might wonder if this duo is another in the vein of North Mississippi Hill Country groups, they are not as rhythmically heavy in their style. Martin embellishes Gill's vocals and guitar playing as opposed to the the no holds bar approach on some North Mississippi Hill Country styled recordings.

Gill wrote most of the songs (the one cover is My Babe) and sings with a definite warmth and plays very adeptly whether finger-picking or adding slide runs while Martin's percussion adds a swinging feel. The songs suggest, without copying, the classic country blues. One example is the title song where Gill opens with a spoken reference to Honeyboy Edwards and Robert Johnson before his delta-flavored, slide accompaniment to a lyric about riding the rails and jump off and get to the hobo jungle. Maybe Baby is built upon a delta groove and features nice slide. Martin's drumming and percussion helps this performance percolate. He never is flashy but it always sounds like he has added just the right amount of syncopation.

Crawfish Boogie is an infectious medium tempo salute to the mudbugs with a catchy vocal chorus (with D’Mar adding a vocal response) and a kazoo solo before some nice finger-picked guitar. It is followed by the jazzy sophistication of Harmony Street as Gill whistles and displays a different side of his guitar playing. The contrast in these two performances shows how the two are able to paint a varied musical palette here. The rest of the album is as engaging with Tore Down, a focused blues with a strong vocal, standing out. This concludes with an instrumental, International Blues Stomp, that matches Gill’s adroit slide playing and the duo’s refreshingly understated approach.

D'Mar & Gill have provided here solid performances of interesting and original songs. The performances of Real Good Friend are rooted in the blues tradition but provide their own slant on acoustic blues and will delight folk-blues lovers. Recommended.

My review copy was provided by a publicist.