Chris Daniels And The Kings (together with Freddi Gowdy Blues With Horns Vol 1

Chris Daniels And The Kings (together with Freddi Gowdy
Blues With Horns Vol 1
Moon Voyage Records

The Colorado based Chris Daniels And The Kings brings together a touch of rock to their soul-blues mix. Both guitarist and vocalist King and vocalist Gowdy are cancer survivors, but still bringing it decades after they first started. The Kings are in their 33rd year while Gowdy's career goes back to the 1960's. The mood of this is funky, horn driven rhythm and blues as a cross between Memphis and New Orleans.

One of King's influences is Little Feet and its evident on the opening "Sweet Memphis" with guest Sonny Landreth's slide guitar (Calvin 'Bones' Jones takes most of the lead guitar on this album). The next number, a homage to age-old juke joints and down-home blues, "Fried Food/Hard Liquor," has Gowdy's authoritatively joining in the vocal after the instrumental breaks from harp (Clay Kirkland who is not credited on the album), guitar runs and sax on a performance with an arrangement that evokes Steely Dan. Gowdy himself co-penned the James Brown styled, "Get Off the Funk," and takes the terrific vocal on Sam Cooke's "Soothe Me," followed another strong performance on the Bobby Bland classic "Wouldn't Treat A Dog (The Way You Treated Me)." There are a couple of solid Johnny 'Guitar' Watson covers ably sung by Daniels, "Baby's In Love With The Radio," and "You Can Stay But That Noise Must Go," with the latter influenced by Walter 'Wolfman' Washington's rendition. Daniels captures the humor of Elvin Bishop's "Can't Even Do Wrong Right," while Gowdy channels Buddy Miles on a blues-rock take on Miles' classic "Them Changes," with everybody joining in on this jam.

The Subdudes' John Magnie on piano joins King on acoustic guitar and harpist Kirkland on the closing "Rain Check," with a back door porch feel. This low-key number contrasts to the strong, horn-driven, soul-funk-blues of the rest of this recording.

Strong vocals, first-rate material and an excellent backing make for some fine listening.

I received my review copy from a publicist. This review originally appeared in the November-December 2017 Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 375). Here they are performing.

 

The Texas Horns Blues Gotta Holda Me

 

Mark ‘Kaz’ Kazanoff may be the best known of The Texas Horns, a trio of horn players who have contributed to numerous fine recordings. Kaz brings his tenor sax and harmonica along with John Mills who plays baritone and tenor saxophones and Adalberto Gomez on trumpet to “Blues Gotta Holda Me” (VizzTone). Recorded in Austin in 2014 the three are joined by guitarist Derek O’Brien, and drummer Barry Frosty Smith along with a variety of guests who include Nick Connolly, Marcia Ball, Ronnie James, Johnny Nicholas, W.C. Clark, and Anson Funderburgh.

There is a mix of instrumentals and vocals (most of which are taken by Kazanoff) on a recording that breaks no new grounds perhaps, but makes for enjoyable listening and likely to be a favorite for dancers. The music is well played and there are plenty of strong horns solos. The standout vocal is a soulful one from W.C. Clark on Kazanoff’s original “Cold Blooded Lover,” while Marcia Ball does a credible cover of the Smiley Lewis classic recording “Go On Fool,” with the horns providing an unusual Mariachi tint to the performance.

Musically, the rendition of “You’re Driving Me Crazy” is better than Kazanoff’s bland vocal. The performance sounds like it was based on the Big Joe Turner rendition from classic “The Boss of the Blues” album on Atlantic. He takes a terrific tenor sax solo on this. Also his vocal on the Percy Mayfield classic “Lost Mind” lacks the grit of Mayfield’s original as well as the brilliance of the late Johnny Adams’ rendition. Finally, as much as he tries, he can’t bring the ebullience needed on a rendition of Louis Jordan’s “Caldonia.” Here he is company with others like Muddy Waters and Gatemouth Brown who have faltered on this.

The instrumentals are fun, finger popping tunes with the exception of a terrific rendition of “People Get Ready.” The opening “Soul Stroll” kicks this off with a nice shuffle groove while Mills’ “Kick Me Again” has a march like feel with some robust playing from Mills on the baritone and O’Brien on guitar. “Rippin’ and Trippin‘“ is a hot number for the jitterbuggers while the funking rendition of Hilton Ruiz’s ”Home Cookin’” has soulful grease from Connolly on the B–3 along with some tough playing from each of horns.

“Blues Gotta Holda Me” may not be a compelling recording, but it certainly is a fun and entertaining recording that is a welcome change of pace for blues listeners.

I received my review copy from Vizz-Tone. Here is a video of them performing.

RIP Bob French

JazzFest 07 Last Day-1350, a photo by NoVARon on Flickr.

Word just came that Bob French passed away. This New Orleans legend was part of the studio crew at Cosimo's studios and played on countless classic New Orleans recordings. Later, he took over leadership of the Original Tuxedo Jazz Band from his father which he maintained for some time. His nephew Gerald now leads it.

Above he is seen at the 2007 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival where Marsalis Music celebrated its album of Bob. He was joined he was joined by friends and those he mentored including Harry Connick, Jr., Bradford Marsalis, Kid Chocolate and Trombone Shorty.

He also hosted a show on WWOZ for several years, championing New Orleans Music which he closed by saying that if you liked his show, tell all your friends and if you didn't like it, don't tell anybody. A character who was true to himself.

Hee is Keith Spera's obituary from nola.com, http://www.nola.com/music/index.ssf/2012/11/bob_french_longtime_original_t.html.

Below is Bob performing with the Original Tuxedo Jazz Band at the 2009 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.

Latvian Blues Band Is Really Good.

When one thinks of blues, one does not think of the Baltic Republic of Latvia, yet Duke Robilliard came across the Latvian Blues Band and thought enough of them to produce a CD by them. They have been together performing largely in Latvia, but also throughout Europe and visits to Canada and the United States. They were even part of the Blues Foundation's 2010 International Blues Challenge in Memphis. The band consists of Janis Bukovskis on vocals and guitar; Rolands Saulietis on drums; Reinis Ozolins on bass; and Richards Berzins on piano and organ with Janis Kalnins adding guitar on most of the selections. Several tracks have horns and Duke adds solos to a couple of the selections. The Chicago-based Blue Skunk has issued Unreal, the Latvian Blues Band’s first album.

One thing that is evident quickly is how well they have absorbed the blues musical language and their playing sounds as natural as some of the best US Bands. Bukovskis may display a very slight accent in his vocals, but his phrasing flows naturally. There are some adaptations of some classic blues and R&B but most of this are their originals and these are strong, idiomatic performances. There are so many delights here starting with the opening rendition of Evil. There interpretation is a strutting, horn based rendition that sounds like more like Stax than Howlin’ Wolf’s original recording or versions based on that. A great vocal with the rhythm section laying down a strong groove and Robillard taking a crisp solo. Baby Let Me Hold Your Hand, sports a nice pleading vocal from Bukovskis as well as dobro playing from him on a nice interpretation of a Professor Longhair recording.

An original like Confused is a terrific shuffle with biting guitar from Bukovskis, while on Feel Like Cryin’, they take the tempo and volume down which lends a jazzier flavor to a sober lyric about “a part of me is dying.” They add a reggae groove to Wake Up, on which Kalnins takes the guitar solo. Let the Door Hit You, which I believe was by the late King Biscuit Boy, is a delightful rocking performance with Kalnins soloing again. There is a folky quality on 5 Minutes Too Late, a trio performance with Bukovskis on bass as well as vocal, Kalnins on guitar (and taking a really nice solo) and Saulietis on drums. Further indication of the variety on this recording is the excellent rendition of Rosco Gordon’s No More Doggin’, with nice interplay between Bukovskis slide guitar and Kalnins guitar and a rhythmic flavor suggestive of the music of the North Mississippi Hill Country.

There is a wonderful, natural sounding pace about these performances. When playing an uptempo number, the Latvian Blues Band never sound frenzied or rushed and similarly their is an appealing relaxed feel to their slower numbers. Having had no idea what to expect from them, this writer was floored by the quality of the music here. This was an unexpected delight and I suspect others will be similarly impressed.
My review copy was provided by the recording company.

Walter Payton 1942-2010

20050428-2005_JazzFest_jpegs_-129, originally uploaded by NoVARon.

Word came that Walter Payton, veteran bass player on the New Orleans sceen who played on classic rhythm and blues recordings by Aaron Neville and Lee Dorsey as well as with Preservation Hall, passed away on October 28, 2010 after a lengthy illness.

Let me quote Keith Spera's obituary from the Times-Picayune

"Mr. Payton, the father of Grammy-winning trumpeter Nicholas Payton, was an exceptionally versatile musician in possession of an exceptionally engaging persona. A student of music theory and music history, he could easily switch from electric bass to upright acoustic bass, from rhythm & blues to traditional jazz to modern jazz. His recording credits include Aaron Neville's "Tell It Like It Is" and Lee Dorsey's "Working in a Coal Mine." He was also an accomplished classical musician who, for many years, kept a grand piano in his parlor."

I refer you to Mr. Spera's full obituary:

I had the pleasure to see him perform several times at JazzFest. I took the above picture at the 2005 JazzFest, and I saw him this past April as well. His Snap Bean and Gumbo File combos brought great joy to listeners. Albums of him as a leader are available on a variety of labels. I particularly like the one on the 504 label from an in-store show at the Louisiana Music Factory that has Evan Christopher on clarinet. Many of the New Orleans musicians whether playing traditional style jazz or modern jazz, like his son, have been touched by this gentleman. I am sure they will have quite a second-line to celebrate his life.

Ray Charles' Rare Gems Rare No More

I am writing this from Nashville ( I am there until Sunday when I return to DC), and visiting the Ryman Auditorium this afternoon. Among the exhibits there is one one June Carter and Johnny Cash. Included was some photos and video clips from the television show that Johnny Cash did for two years on ABC television that included performances from the Ryman. Ray Charles was among the guests that Cash had on his show and coincidentally, a duet between Cash and Charles is the centerpiece of a new Concord album that is scheduled for release on October 26, Rare Gems, Below is a review of this release.


“Rare Gems: The Undiscovered Masters” is the title of a new ray Charles release on Concord that contains, as its title suggests, previous issued recordings which come from the seventies through the nineties. From the publicity, some of these tracks were relatively stripped down to which some sweetening was added. The centerpiece of this is a duet with Johnny Cash, “Why Me, Lord?”, a Kris Kristofferson song, that was supposed to be part of a duet project that never was completed. Musically, there should be little in terms of surprises as the music here is centered in the blues/soul, country and pop fused with jazz that Charles mined throughout his legendary career.

The opening “Loves Gonna Bite You,” and the rousing big band “It Hurts To Be In Love,” are clear reminders of his blues soul roots, while “Wheel of Fortune,” which Dinah Washington (and Kay Starr) recorded in a 1952, is a more jazzy performance with strings sweetening the big band setting. “I’m Gonna Keep On Singin’,” with electric piano and guitar sounds sounds like an 80s or 90s recording with some spoken breaks in the number. “There'll Be Some Changes Made,” is usually taken at a brisk tempo, while Charles transforms it into a slow blues here, with plenty of greasy organ and solid blues guitar (could that be that Tony Matthews at the original session), with Charles apparently imitating guitar with his electric piano before the actual guitarist enters with a solid solo. The groove of “Isn’t It Wonderful,” sounds not far from what Billy Preston, who had an important association with Charles might have recorded, and again more bluesy guitar can be heard here. “I Don’t Want No One But You,” is one of several tracks with synthesized horns, in the backing, with Charles singing how much he needs his lady, and come back and Ray will make it right in a typical fashion. Charles’ rendition of Hank Cochran’s “A Little Bitty Tear,” is a country-flavored rendition of a number that may sound familiar when one hears it, and the country flavor continues on “She’s Gone,” that suggests some of Jerry Lee Lewis’ country recordings of the seventies. The duet with Cash, “Why Me, Lord,” is only a taste of what might have been if the duet album by Cash & Charles had ever been completed. Cash takes the lead on singing this gospel number with Charles joining in on the choruses and taking an electric piano solo.

There is nothing that might suggest they were scraping the bottom of the vaults simply to release unissued material. The music here will not harm Charles’ reputation. In contrary, the music on this is quite good. One expects that Charles’ many fans will be delighted by these previously unissued recordings.


For purposes of FTC regulations, this was provided by a publicity form for Concord Records.

WAMA, Can someone explain why?

Can someone explain why none of the following still have yet to receive any recognition by the Washington Area Music Association: Sonny Warner, Bobby Parker, Little Royal, Curtis Pope, TNT Tribble, Frank Motley, Lloyd Price, Bill Boskent. I mean Lloyd Price's lack of recognition is especially curious given that he was based in DC for several years and during this time set up his own recording label, recorded some of his most important recordings and even had a CD of DC area R&B performers. I mean are the folk in charge of WAMA that ignorant of DC's musical history.

My two-year old comments are still pertinent.
http://inabluemood.blogspot.com/2008/03/wama-when-will-you-shoe-blues-some.html

Also, Steve Kiviat's had an interesting write-up of this year's WAMMIEs in his City Paper Blog that is well worth your consideration:
http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/artsdesk/music/2010/03/01/the-wammies-are-good-performances-and-good-intentions-good-enough/#more-19413