Laura Tate Live From El Paso

Laura Tate
Live From El Paso
811 Gold Records LLC

A career as an actor and singer, performing on stage and television, and directing music videos and documentaries, Laura Tate has this new album recorded in her present hometown of El Paso. Tate recruited a fine band for this live recording, that was a benefit concert. The band's foundation was pianist Jeff Paris on piano, Doug Hamblin on guitar, Terry Wilson on bass, and Tony Braunagel on drums. Also present is a horn section of Lee Thornburg on trombone, Darrell Leonard on trumpet, and Joe Sublett on saxophone. Teresa James adds backing vocals.

One shouldn't be surprised by Tate's singing. Her smooth, fluid phrasing, clean intonation, and ability to shade and build a performance's intensity are notable. There is a quality to these performances, including the striking backing she receives. Her songs transverse a range of material opening with Mel Harker's "No Place to Hide," that strikes these ears as a sophisticated performance that would have been at home on a 1960s pop recording of a Brill Building song. Then there is her updating of Thin Lizzy's "The Boys Are Back In Town."

Starting wistfully, the tempo kicks it up a notch into a swinging rocker that showcases her deft singing. Darrell Leonard's searing trumpet and Doug Hamblin's biting guitar complements her sultry Peggy Lee sounding vocal on "I Need a Man." Allen Toussaint's "Hittin' on Nothin" has a groove reminiscent of Don Covay's "See Saw." With Jeff Paris emulating Toussaint's Crescent City piano, Tate solidly interprets the Irma Thomas recording with strong solo breaks by Sublett and Hamblin. There is a touch of vinegar to her vocal on the reflective "Still Got the Blues," followed by the swamp-soul flavor of "Nobody Gets Hurt." Also standing out is her dreamy vocal on "Cowboy Jazz," and the buoyant jump blues, "Big Top Hat."

The sweet soul of "If That Ain't Love" is the final track on this splendid recording covering a range of musical modes. Tate, as indicated, is a top-flight singer who is splendidly supported on this excellent recording.

I received my review copy from a publicist. Here she sings "Still Got the Blues."

Laura Tate Let's Just Be Real

Laura Tate
Let's Just Be Real
811 Gold Records

Texas born vocalist Laura Tate has a resume that goes way beyond the blues and soul rooted music on this recording. She is an actress who performed in musicals and other theatrical productions, as well as television shows like "Dallas: and HBO's "First and Ten," as well as engaging in film production and directing music videos, commercials and documentaries. As far as her vocal influences, she states "I grew up listening to everything from rock and roll and Motown to show tunes, and soulful ballads. I loved Tony Bennett, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, and other greats from the past along with the Beatles, James Brown, Bonnie Raitt, Carole King, and Linda Ronstadt. I have been singing their songs ever since." Her vocals on this is supported by a terrific studio band including the producer, arranger and engineer, Terry Wilson on bass guitar; Billy Watts on guitars; Jeff Paris on keyboards and mandolin; Tony Braunagel on drums; Lee Thornberg on brass; and Paulie Cerra on saxophones. Leslie Smith adds percussion and Teresa James on backing vocals.

This is a wonderfully recorded album full of fresh songs, most in a classic rhythm & blues vein and even the covers are not your typical standards including a wonderful reworking of a Thin Lizzy favorite, "Boys Are Back In Town." Tate is a soulful singer with a relaxed, unforced delivery that gets one's attention with the opening "Nobody Gets Hurt," that has hints of classic Hi Records as well as the easy rocking groove of "If That Ain't Love." She is quite good, if not quite on the level of Irma Thomas, whose Allen Toussaint penned "Hitting on Nothing" she does a nice cover of. The studio band captures the feel of the 1963 original and includes a nice tenor sax solo.

After a jazz-tinged late night blue ballad "Can't Say No," Tate reworks "Boys Are Back In Town," into a reflective lament for an outstanding performance, "Still Got the Blues" is a superb urban blues with a relaxed vocal and Watts playing strongly on guitar. "I Need a Man" is another solid blues performance with a vocal that might be described as Peggy Lee crossed with Etta Jones. It has a fine piano solo from Paris. The title track is another lovely ballad marvelously played and followed by the swampy, southern-rock blues, "I Know You Live." Watts contributes both slide guitar backing and a tremolo laced background riff while Paris takes a brief solo on the his. The Stephen Bruton penned "Big Top Hat," evokes Louis Jordan while Tate sings the lyrics with plenty of sass.

"Wildest Dreams," is a solid country-rock performance in the vein of seventies Linda Ronstadt that is the final track on a first-rate recording by a fine singer that is wonderfully backed throughout.

I received a review copy from a publicist. Here is a video of her performing.