Christone "Kingfish" Ingram - 662

Christone "Kingfish" Ingram - 662 - Alligator Records

Only 22, Christone "Kingfish" Ingram already made a mark with his debut album "Kingfish." He has been playing before people most of his life. "About that prior album, I observed that Kingfish was a terrific guitarist with a heavy blues-rock pull out all the stops on most of the electric tracks on this. I really don't enjoy his guitar fireworks as much as I do his singing. He is an outstanding vocalist with plenty of warmth and expressiveness with an unforced delivery." 

Like the prior album, Tom Hambridge produced this and plays drums on the album. Others in the studio on various selections include guitarists Kenny Greenberg and Bob Britt: bassists Glenn Worf and Tommy MacDonald, and keyboardist Marty Sammon. Max Abrams on sax and Julio Diaz on trumpet are heard on one song. One selection has "Kingfish" backed by Nick Goldston on Drums, Bass, Piano, Keyboard, and Acoustic Guitar with backing vocals from Brooke Stephenson. Most of the songs are by Kingfish with Hambridge and Richard Fleming.

There is a celebration of his North Mississippi roots on the title track that opens this recording with a searing guitar rockin' blues solo as celebrates the Mississippi Delta 'the birthplace of this he blues. Another song, "Not Gotta Lie," is a biographical snippet of his brief musical life as against a heavy funk groove with a blazing blues-rock solo before testifying blues is where he comes from and is his history. Then he celebrates Mississippi juke joints, "Too Young To Remember," where he sings about having heard about juke joints where whiskey used to flow. Kingfish may be too young to remember but old enough to know. There is more funk and searing blues-rock guitar on this track. Another bit of musical autobiography is "Something in the Dirt," where there is magic in the music, but must be something in the dirt as he sings about playing his first gig at Red's when he was 11.

Against a rock groove, he sings about life on the road as on "Long Distance Woman," the one who wakes him on the phone and accuses him of doing wrong. This listener prefers the Memphis soul-blues "That's All It Takes," with riffing horns and a more laid-back backing behind his outstanding singing and straight blues picking. Another song about a relationship breaking is "You've Already Gone," with an almost jazzy guitar attack. "I Got to See" sounds like a Robert Cray song with sterling rock and roll guitar and superb singing. He pulls all the stops on guitar on a terrific slow blues, "Your Time Is Gonna Come."

Also stunning are his observations on "Another Life Goes Back," where he wonders where hate comes from and how can we stop the madness. Kingfish's guitar playing evokes Albert King on this track. A bonus track, "Rock and Roll," is a tender song devoted to his late mother, backed by Nick Goldston, who provides the evocative backing. 

Even if some of the blues-rock trappings may not be to my taste, Christone' Kingfish' Ingram plays superbly throughout, whether rocking out or channeling Albert King. And he is one of the best young singers in the blues world today. If he did not play guitar, he still would have great appeal. With the outstanding "662," Christone 'Kingfish' Ingram further establishes himself as an impressive new blues voice.

I received a download to review from Alligator Records. The song, "662," is currently available as a single. The full album will be available on July 23. Here is "662.

Lil ‘Ed & The Blues Imperials Jump Start Their Houserocking Blues

Alligator Records has just released the labels eighth album by Lil ‘Ed & The Blues Imperials, “Jump Start. Only Magic Slim and the Teardrops has a lengthier tenure of playing down classic Chicago blues and like Slim, Lil ‘Ed Williams benefits from having stability in his group. In fact, the present line-up of cousin James ‘Pookie’ Young on bass; Michael Garrett on second guitar and Kelly Littleton on drums has been together for nearly 25 years, since right before Ed’s second album, Chicken Gravy & Biscuits. This helps explain the tightness of the performances heard here.

Fans of Lil ‘Ed & the Blues Imperials will find little new on this collection of hard driving slide blues and Chicago shuffles. With the exception of a J.B. Hutto cover, Ed wrote or co-wrote the songs here. There is a mix of a slow, straight blues such as You Burnt Me, where after being left out on the street Ed asks why would he want her back, and the amusing slide-burner Born Loser, on which Ed sings about living on the edge and walk on the wild side but opportunity knocked and his door was locked, and murphy’s law is his motto. On the driving House of Cards, Ed tells his woman that she was living in a dream and the game has turned around and her house of cards is tumbling down after dealing Ed a bad hand with her dating another man.

Jump Right In, is an amusing song about this woman telling him to jump right in to the pool and she’ll teach him to swim and when he is ready for his swimming test she’ll take him to her deep end. Michael Garrett takes the solo on this. Marty Sammon’s organ adds atmospheric to Life Is A Journey, which he wants to share with his woman. Musical Mechanical Electrical Man musically channels uncle J.B. Hutto’s Please Help, as he tells his woman he will fix her up as he has a plan. Ed’s evokes his uncle further on his fervently performed cover of Hutto’s “If You Change Your Mind” with Sammon adding piano behind Ed’s passionate sining and driving slide guitar. It may be the stand-out performance on an album that is consistently entertaining and full of heartfelt blues.

Like the entire body of recordings by Lil ‘Ed and the Blues Imperials, Jump Start will get the party rocking with its good-time houserockin’ blues.

I received a review copy from Alligator Records. Here is Lil 'Ed & the Blues Imperials at the 1993 Pocono Blues Festival. I was at this show. Nearly two decades later they are still going strong.