Guy Davis has established himself as amongst the most gifted interpreters of acoustic blues alive. Back in the July-August 2003 DC Blues Calendar, I had the following review of his album Chocolate to the Bone which also was published then to help promote his performance at that year's Herndon Blues Festival, an acoustic blues festival that alas is no longer happening. I believe Red House Records sent me a review copy. Chocolate to the Bone is the new Red House release that
Guy Davis will be supporting on his upcoming appearances. The sixth
album for the multifaceted performer covers a lot of musical
territory with most of the performances finding Davis backed
by a small, mostly acoustic group that provides a bit of string
band feel to performances that range from a tribute to John
Estes (Limetown set to the melody of Brownsville Blues-Rolling & Tumble Blues); his original Tell Me Where the Road
Is which has the flavor of a Taj Mahal performance; and the
rollicking Step It Up and Go, with a jug band flavor contributed
by Howard Johnson’s tuba and some frenzied slide guitar in
the vein of Tampa Red. Other delight's includes his rendition of John Lee Hooker’s I Believe I’ll Lose
My Mind, that catches the brooding character of Hooker’s
slow blues with nice slide guitar added; Davis’ Honey
Babe with nice fingerpicking and genial vocal about
going to Baltimore to see the woman, chocolate to the bone,
he will love till the day he dies; and the traditional children’s
song, Shortnin’ Bread. Other covers on this include Charles Brown’s
Driftin’ Blues; the rarely covered Blind Lemon Jefferson
classic, Matchbox Blues; and Ishman Bracey’s Saturday
Blues. Railroad Story is a short harmonica blues dedicated
to Sonny Terry and Reverend Dan Smith. The music here is
handsomely performed throughout and the playing is
supportive of Davis’ vocals as opposed to hogging the
spotlight itself. This recording is as entertaining as any Davis has produced and will be welcome by his fans and
undoubtedly those who see him perform. Here is a video of Davis with a band performing Saturday Blues.
Vicksburg Blues (Red House Records) is the first collaboration between pianist and clarinetist Butch Thompson and singer-guitarist Pat Donohue. The two have been staples of the blues, jazz and folk scenes in the Twin Cities, and have been regular performers for several decades on the national radio show, A Prairie Home Companion.
Donohue is one of the leading fingerstyle guitarists alive, while Thompson is amongst the leading interpreters of traditional jazz and ragtime piano. Thompson, mentored by the late Little Brother Montgomery, shows himself here to be quite a fine blues pianist, while Donohue got to see Big Joe Williams, Lightnin’ Hopkins and Jesse Fuller in the seventies before becoming one of the most accomplished guitarists in the tradition of a Blind Blake and Big Bill Broonzy, both of whom were comfortable playing with jazz musicians. Blake for example recorded with the likes of Johnny Dodds.
The album has them interpreting a number of classic blues from Leroy Carr, Blake, Jelly roll Morton and Little Brother Montgomery as well as early jazz numbers from Clarence Williams and Clarence Johnson, and King Oliver. The pair also contribute five originals as well as a composition Thompson collaborated with Little Brother. From the opening moments of Carr’s Midnight Hour Blues to the closing Thompson original Yancey Blues, their deft and imaginative playing and Donohue’s natural and heartfelt singing make for a truly delightful recording.
The opening Midnight Hour Blues certainly displays the empathy the two have four each other (and the melody was lifted by Robert Johnson for From Four Until Late). Its followed by Carr’s most famous song, How Long, How Long Blues with Thompson’s playing evidencing his love for Jimmy Yancey’s wistful style. The vocal and playing on Blind Blake’s gambling blues, Poker Woman (“I won a woman in a poker game, I lost her to another just the same”) evokes to me some of Big Bill Broonzy’s recordings with pianist Black Bob. Thompson conjures up Little Brother Montgomery’s piano style for Vicksburg Blues with Donohue singing strongly and sparely adding his guitar here.
Thompson’s velvety clarinet comes to the fore on If I Had You, while another Leroy Carr, Papa’s On the Housetop is a playful and rollicking performance, true to the spirit of the eighty year old original recording and followed by the pensive rendition of Jelly Roll Morton’s 219 Blues. Better Days is a lively feature for Donohue’s fluid playing followed by his Blues For Two, where he plays National Resonator style guitar in the vein of Tampa Red with Thompson adding his solid piano. Sunday Rag is a lovely original rag that Thompson and Montgomery co-wrote. Thompson plays straight ragtime here with Donohue’s complimenting him in a fashion I think Reverend Gary davis would have approved of. More lovely clarinet is heard from Thompson on James P. Johnson’s You Can’t Lose a Broken Heart.
Instrumentals, such as King Oliver’s Workingman Blues, takes us back to the early twenties with the interesting, if subdued playing. After the lively original “That D Strain,” the album closes with the melancholy Yancey Blues, Thompson’s tribute to the legendary Jimmy Yancey. It concludes this truly splendid album of traditionally oriented blues and jazz. This is simply the finest album of blues piano and guitar duets in a number of years and certainly one of the finest new blues albums I have heard in 2012.
I received my review copy from Red House Records. This is scheduled for release on August 14. Here is Butch Thompson doing an instrumental How Long, How Long Blues in the vein of Jimmy Yancey and then Pat Donohue doing Mississippi John Hurt's Spike Driver Blues.
While the folk magazine Dirty Linen writes about singer-songwriter Ray Bonneville that “he creates his own powerful and unique version of the blues,” after listening to his Red House release Goin’ By Feel it would be more accurately described as an atmospheric bluesy folk-rock recording, incorporating a variety of influences from blues, country and other sources.
Bonneville was born and raised in Canada but moved down to the States and has dual citizenship which enabled him to become immersed in the roots scene. Playing rack harmonica in addition to a deft, understated guitar, there is a Dylanesque quality about many of these performances (exemplified by Sabine River, with its lyrics about a Northern lady down in New Orleans). Another song, I Am the Big Easy is a celebration of New Orleans although acknowledging the city has been brought to its knees by a storm.
Bonneville is a marvelous singer-songwriter whose understated performances certainly make questions of categorizing his music a secondary concern. The combination of strong original material and the evocative performances certainly make for a solid listening experience.
This review originally appeared in March 2008 issue of Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 302). A review copy was either sent to the publication who sent it to me or from the label or a publicist. Here is a clip of him doing I Am the Big Easy.
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