Shemekia Copeland's Deluxe Alligator Blues

Shemekia Copeland impressed me the first time I saw her perform as she was with her father, Johnny Copeland. I had heard amazing things about this teenager and on the night in 1995 or 1996 at Tornado Alley in Wheaton, Maryland, she sang a few numbers backed by Johnny’s band exhibiting a poise as well as power that belied her age. I believe it was Bill Wax (now of XM-Sirius Bluesville) who said she reminded him of a young Irma Thomas. And her dad was beaming on stage listening to his baby perform. Her late father undoubtedly would not be surprised by how far his daughter as come, being one of the biggest attractions in the blues today.

Alligator, for whom Shemekia recorded her first four albums, has just issued the latest in its “Deluxe Edition” series of reissues with 16 selections (over an hour of music) compiled from these four releases as well as an Alligator Christmas release. Along with her live performances, these recordings have established her reputation and these do provide a good sampling of these recordings. She really shouts out these out against solid bands. What is striking is how good she is, how solid the bands are but the songs stand out more from what she invests in them as many of these songs are solid, if somewhat idiomatic. One song that stands out is her father’s “Ghetto Child,” which has become a cornerstone of her performances, but her lament on the state of current radio, “Who Stole My Radio?” is better sung than the lyrics perhaps deserve. Other songs like a toast to a lady’s salon in ”Sholanda’s,” are a bit more original. That song along with the fine late night lament “Don’t Whisper,” are songs Shemekia collaborated with others in writing. This latter number has a fine vocal where Shemekia has turned the heat down, but it still smolders. Other songs include here include the burning “Turn the Heat Up,” and the acidic “Salt In My Wounds.”

This “Deluxe Edition” includes a booklet with all the session information of the performances and a poster whose the back containing Bruce Iglauer’s reflections on her as well as rare photos of Shemekia. It is a fine retrospective of the music Shemekia Copeland recorded for Alligator and especially for those lacking a CD by her, serves as a welcome starting point to her powerful blues.

The review copy was provided by Alligator Records.

Roomful of Blues Has It "Hook, Line & Slinker"

After 43 years, Roomful of Blues shows no sign of slowing down. From its early days with Duke Robillard leading it in its reworking of classic jump blues with pianist Al Copley, saxophonists Greg Piccolo and Rich Lataille, the band has expanded from an initial focus on the R&B of the late forties and fifties to span more recent blues and rhythm grooves. Guitarist Chris Vachon has been a main driving force of the band for at least the past two decades and saxophonist Lataille still rips off his solos while they have a new vocalist in Phil Pemberton. They have a new album on Alligator, their fourth for the label, “Hook, Line and Slinker,” that shows the band not slowing down in the least.

The present release opens with a hot rendition of the Big Maybelle classic, That's A Pretty Good Love  that opens some slashing guitar by Vachon, a bit of Johnny ‘Guitar’ Watson crossed with Lafayette ‘Thing’ Thomas. Its interesting to hear a male sing this, and while Pemberton has a strong voice he almost is over the top here while the horns riff in support and rhythm cooks. Gatemouth Brown’s “She Walks Right In,” is a hot jumping number with some nice sax obligatto behind the vocal, before Vachon treats us to some fifties-styled Gatemouth Brown guitar followed by some booting baritone sax from Mark Earley as the other horns riff like a mini Count Basie Band. Then we go to New Orleans for a cover of the Smiley Lewis recording from which the album gets its title, although Pemberton’s vocal can’t cut Deacon John’s Jump Blues cover much less the original.

Pemberton’s frenzied rock and roll vocal along with Vachon’s slashing fretwork are front and center on the “Kill Me,” from the Don & Dewey songbook followed by a lively reworking of a Gatemouth Brown instrumental from the early fifties, “Gate Walks the Board where Vachon, Lataille, Earley, trumpeter Doug Woolverton, and pianist Travis Colby get solo spots . Pemberton can be quite an evocative singer we he cools down a bit as on the remake of Amos Milburn’s “Juice, Juice, Juice,” while “Ain’t Nothing Happening,” cracks the tempo up on a hot Crescent City boogie (earlier waxed by Paul Gayten and Little Richard) on which Pemberton sounds at home. “Win With Me Baby” is another Peacock Gatemouth Brown recording that for some reason Robey is given here sole composer credit. Solid vocal and guitar on this with the horns providing the right atmosphere. Lieber and Stoller’s “It” is a relatively obscure Jimmy Witherspoon recording with nice vocal and good playing while the rendition of “Come On Home” is a bit less frantic that Louis Jones’ original of this early sixties R&B rave-up, followed by a reflective Pemberton on “Time Brings About a Change,” from Floyd Dixon’s songbook, with Vachon almost in a Johnny Moore vein, Woolverton adding lovely muted trumpet and a terrific tenor sax solo. A remake of a Nappy Brown recording “Just a Little Love,” closes this out with Pemberton sounding very nice and the performance sports a booting tenor sax solo.

While some of my comments with specific to specific songs may have sounded critical, the simple fact that taking this album as a whole, this may be the best Roomful of Blues recording in a very long time. Roomful of Blues has shaken up the house and that is a very good thing.

My review copy was provided by Alligator Records.

Electrofied's Bad Case of Blues Has Promising Diagnosis

A really good guy, Tony Fazio, is the regular guitarist with Stacy Brooks, but also be seem playing with Charlie Sayles and other bands when a solid, reliable guitarist is needed. As busy as Tony is as a sideman, he has a project, Electrofied, that he is centrally involved in. Electrofied dates back to 2002 and was founded by Fazio and drummer Richard James Burgess. It presently includes vocalist Scott Taylor and bassist Rob Rusteburg, and they have issued in late 2009, CD, “Bad Case of the Blues” (Marva). It is a recording that has garnered some critical praise and a nomination as best blues/traditional recording for the Washington Area Music Awards. This writer has only caught a brief performance of them at a benefit for a local musician and was impressed by the group’s energy as well Scott Taylor’s presence as a vocalist.

To these ears, Bad Case of the Blues” shows more promise than it displays a group that has arrived. That might be the result of the use of only a trio in the studio behind Taylor’s passionate vocals (although harmonica wizard Charlie Sayles guests on one track). Live one might not notice as much the simple, functional rhythm provided by Rusteburg and Burgess and the limited musical coloring guitarist Fazio provides. Not to say he plays bad, but having a rhythm guitarist or a keyboard player for the recording would have made it a fuller and richer backing.

The material is generally solid is somewhat generic in terms of themes. The opening title track has a good lyric about being mistreated and the doctor’s diagnosis about the pains Scott has been having isn’t heart trouble or bursitis, but simply a bad case of the blues. A solid vocal by Taylor and some strong guitar by Fazio. On the funky “Cadillac,” Taylor salaciously invites the lady to take a ride in his big and wide Cadillac, but the cluttered sounding accompaniment comes across as clunky behind Fazio’s buzz-tone solo. The addition of Charlie Sayles harmonica helps on “Life Is Like A Boomerang,” as does Burgess’ interesting drumming here. Sayles use of the harmonica’s high register provides a fuller spectrum of musical colors here. “Rub Me Down,” is a nice soulful slow blues as Taylor asks his lady to come on over and rub him down to help drive Taylor’s blues away. Its a pretty strong vocal and nice guitar where the simple backing works.

“Put Your Hands In The Air” is a song about loving the blues, while Charlie Sayles returns to add his embellishments behind Taylor’s vocal on “I’ll Go Insane,” with its lazy Jimmy Reed groove. Fazio takes a couple choruses of scorch the earth guitar on the solo break. One other fine slow blues performance is “It Ain’t Right,” with a especially strong vocal. “Rainbow” and “Early in the Morning,” however, reinforce this listener’s sense that Electrofied’s music shows considerable promise but they need to expand their musical palette in the studio. Think about the sound of Burgess’ drums (hint listen to recent recordings by the Brazilian Igor Prado Band and Studebaker John) and how that can enliven the somewhat dull sound heard here. That said, I certainly hope I can catch one of Electrofied’s all too infrequent performances around the Washington, DC area, and I certainly look forward to their future recording efforts as well.

This is available from cdbaby.com.
I received a review copy from Tony Fazio.

Tobias Gebb's Upper West Side Blues

Drummer Tobias Gebb and his piano trio, Trio West, derive their name from being from New York City’s Upper West Side, which is reflected by the title of the trio’s new recording, An Upper West Side Story (Yummy House Records). The trio provided a fresh take to Poinciara, done as a tribute to Ahmad Jamal, with pianist Eldad Zvulun playing a rather deliberate tempo while bassist Neal Miner and Gebb both play at different, faster tempos. Still,  everything holds together. Gebb’s original Brasil Bela, is a light bossa nova, followed Gebb’s “The Barnyard,” opening with some animal effects, on a lively blues burner that features some strong tenor from guest Joel Frahm, but also benefits from the trio’s restraint.

It is followed by a lovely rendition of Billy Strayhorn’s Star-Crossed Lovers, with nice brush work from Gebb. Saxophonist Frahm guests again on Autumn Serenade, with a light tango feel and a lovely vocal from another guest, Champion Fulton. Neal Hefti’s Cute, was part of Basie’s book in the 1950’s and Zvulun’s restrained, thoughtful piano is quite appropriate to this number, as Miner and Gebb keep it swinging nicely. Gebb rigged up castanets for the marvelous trio rendition of Will ‘O the Wisp, whose melody will be familiar from Miles Davis’ classic orchestral album, Sketches of Spain, while Fulton and Frahm return for a modern take on “What a Little Moonlight Will Do. Fulton does not try to emulate Billie Holiday, rather injecting her own style and then scatting and trade fours with saxophonist Frahm with the trio pushing things along. Two By Two is an original slow ballad with the trio’s members playing off each other.

Seamless tempo shifts is one intriguing aspect of the rendition of Irving Berlin’s How Deep Is the Ocean, while Gebb’s The Monument marks Frahm’s final appearance here on an intriguing melody that is a tribute to the Upper West Side New York Sailors and Soldiers Monument. A cha cha beat provides a fresh take to Lennon and McCartney’s And I Love Her, and further demonstrates the trio’s reflective invention and marvelous interplay throughout.

Not listed on the album cover or the liner notes is a bonus track (at the end) of animal effects (sounds like some sick geese), “Bird Sounds,” which one can easily skip. “An Upper West Side Story,” is a recording which will get more retellings from my CD player. It is available at cdbaby, amazon as well as their website, http://triowestmusic.com/home.html.


This review originally appeared in the November 2008 Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 310) at page 11.

I am not sure of the source of my review copy of this CD, whether recived from Jazz & Blues Report or the artist or a publicisit for the label.

Johnny 'Guitar' Watson's North Sea Funk-Blues Romp

Johnny ‘Guitar’ Watson was one of the most versatile, innovative performers of the past five decades. A multi-instrumentalist who first recorded as a rollicking Amos Milburn styled pianist before picking up from the late Guitar Slim to become a highly influential guitarist and showman whose impact was evident on the likes of Jimi Hendrix and even Etta James (listen to some of her vocals and Watson’s vocal on his single, “Cuttin’ In.’). Besides hard blues classics like “Three Hours Past Midnight,” and “Too Hot,” he recorded jazz piano for Chess, duets with Larry Williams for Okeh, and then his proto-type rap and funk records that got labeled Disco-blues in the seventies and inspired and got sampled by many hip hop artists. His last studio album “Bow Wow” was even nominated for a Grammy, and at last he had started performing in venues like the House of Blues. 


He had been touring overseas in Europe through the good times and bad, and was died while performing in Japan. Shout Factory’s relatively recent reissue of his DJM recordings fortunately has led to a recognition of the fact that continued to stay contemporary.

There have previously been a couple of fine DVDs of his European performances (from TV shows) available. The British Charly Films has just issued “ Live in Concert -1993,” centered on his North Sea Jazz Festival performance. Its a performance not that different from the other DVDs I have seen by him. This is Watson the funkster whose blues roots are always evident. The ban kicks off with a funk number “Booty Ooty” before bringing him up for “Strike on Computers,” mistitled here as “Jam,” with his complaints how computers are replacing human beings even in the musical realm. 


I suspect that those expecting to see him rip things up on guitar will be disappointed, as he only plays guitar at length on a couple numbers as well as on keyboards, focusing on his singing and interacting with the audience. The songs included are typical including “I Need It,” “Superman Lover,” “Ain’t It a Bitch,” and the long extended “A Real Mother For Ya.” His funky version of “Gangster of Love,” displays how his music evolved from the original recordings which adapted the “Hootchie Kootchie Man”/ “I’m a Man” melody, whereas “Three Hours Past Midnight” is his longest exploration in the blues here, with his playing focusing as much on musical textures as on blistering guitar runs. And he plays the band like he plays guitar, evoking sounds from them, bringing up his saxophone player to wail or play some harp and letting his keyboard players loose.

What sets this apart from the other Watson DVDs are the included extras. These include three numbers from a 1996 German blues festival including a marvelous blues “ Wrong Doing Woman” which incorporates “Three Hours Past Midnight”; a 14 odd minute memoriam from German TV that includes interviews with Watson a clip of him performing “Bow Wow,” as well clips of the video he did to promote that song; a radio interview from 1987; footage of a young Watson on British TV including a snippet of his wild guitar, a piano boogie and playing rhythm guitar behind Bo Diddley; another video performance, this time from 1980 and a biography and discography.

Bill Dahl provides a concise overview of his life in the booklet that accompanies this which includes a listing of his recordings and recordings he appeared on including those with Larry Williams, George Duke, Frank Zappa, Frankie Lee and Herb Albert. These extras are as valuable as the North Sea Jazz Festival performance and make this clearly the Johnny ‘Guitar’ Watson DVD to pick up.


This DVD was originally reviewed in the October 2008 Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 309) at page 24.

I likely received a review copy of the DVD from Jazz & Blues Report.

Fletcher Henderson Bio Well Worth Spending Time WIth

The following review of James Magee’s marvelous Fletcher Henderson’s biography originally appeared in the September 2010 Jazz & Blues Report (Issue329) which can be downloaded at jazz-blues.com.

The Uncrowned King of Swing: Fletcher Henderson and Big Band Jazz
Jeffrey Magee
Oxford University Press
Despite his importance in the history of Big Band Jazz, Fletcher Henderson has not been the subject of as much discussion as his stature warrants. Musicologist James Magee helps address this shortcoming with an overview of Henderson’s life, training to be a school teacher, musical career, and, most importantly, detailed analysis and discussion of his music, ranging from his early blues accompaniments, the legendary big band and then his career arranging for Benny Goodman’s Big Band, alluded to by the book’s title. At the same time, Magee challenges some of the simplified interpretations of jazz history in analyzing Henderson’s importance, brushing aside the simple dichotomies between dance music and art music to have a more realistic and accurate discussion of Henderson’s music.


Fletcher Henderson’s musical career coincided with the shift in the music industry from sheet music sales to phonograph record sales. Instead of furthering his science education, he became a song plugger for Pace and Handy Music Company and then music director for Pace’s Black Swan label, a label striving for cultural respectability as well as blues, where he played a significant role in the rise of Ethel Waters, and later toured with the Black Swan Troubadours.


The would be chemist had arrived in the forefront of black musical life and was leading an orchestra when he applied for an opening at the Roseland Ballroom in 1924, then looking for versatile non-jazz bands. His band was a disciplined band whose members were able to read and handle a wide repertoire, and Magee notes how the band evolved with any number of celebrated musicians such as Coleman Hawkins joining him. Like the white orchestras he competed against, Magee notes the wide variety of new arrangements of songs from Tin Pan Alley that dominated the band’s repertoire, which also included a fair amount of material from the race records.


Two figures would help Henderson emerge as one of the leading jazz big bands. One was Don Redman, who built upon innovations by such arrangers for Paul Whiteman as Ferde Grofé. McGee uses musical examples from the band’s early recordings to show how Redman imaginatively rearranged stock arrangements of the time, employing stop-time, cymbal punctuation and other devices. The other major individual was Louis Armstrong who left King Oliver’s Creole Jazz Band in Chicago to join Henderson, and whose year and a half would help accelerate the band’s growth and maturation.


While much has been made about how Armstrong transformed the Henderson Orchestra into a jazz’ band, Magee’s analysis is far more sophisticated and also shows how Redman’s arrangements help feature Armstrong’s trumpet and showcase the star as he doctored existing stock arrangements. Magee provides detailed analysis of the rendition of “Wolverine Blues” to illustrate this point. Included are some musical examples, some of which are more descriptive and others more fully notational.


The framework is set and Magee continues to trace the band’s history after Armstrong and Redman leave, as the repertoire goes beyond that for ballroom dancing. The triumphs and pitfalls of the band’s history are detailed from their successful residency at Connie’s Inn to the band’s dissolution. Henderson’s own emergence as an arranger after Redman’s departure is chronicled, and after the dissolution how Henderson became one of the foremost arrangers of the Swing era and the crucial role he played for Benny Goodman’s Kingdom of Swing.


To demonstrate this point, detailed musical examples are provided of some of the seminal recordings Goodman made using Henderson’s arrangements. Henderson died in 1952 and there is some discussion of his legacy. Included is a list of Henderson’s arrangements for Goodman, an extensive bibliography and a discography that is frustrating because so many of the reissues are hard to find. While the detailed musical analysis may deter casual readers, Magee’s cogent analysis is well worth spending time with.


A review copy of this book was provided by the publisher

Robert Lockwood's Complete Trix Recordings Is Blues Reissue Blues Gem

Continuing my retrospective of the music of the late Robert Lockwood, Jr., here is a review that appeared in May-April 2004 Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 267). The drummer on the Contrasts session, George Cook, had been a member of an organ trio that included Rashaan Roland Kirk. The cover illustrated was from an earlier reissue of this material. This CD is out-of-print, but worth checking out on ebay and other sources for out-of-print CDs. The word legend is overused, but it is an appropriate one when discussing Robert Lockwood, Jr. Perhaps best known for his relationship to Robert Johnson, Lockwood was a pioneering electric blues guitarist in the Mississippi delta who played with such legends as Sonny Boy Williamson, Little Walter, Eddie Boyd, and Roosevelt Sykes, and was a session guitarist in demand in Chicago. Living in Cleveland since the sixties, an appearance at the second Ann Arbor Blues Festival in 1970 led to his reemergence in the National blues scene, although this time as the leading figure of his group. Savoy Jazz has just reissued The Complete Trix Recordings which makes available his 1973 album Contrasts and his 1975 session, Does 12. This was previously issued on Muse-Trix around 1978 and it’s great to have this back in print. Contrasts included 14 tracks, some with just bassist Gene Schwartz and others with a full band which included tenor saxophonist Maurice Reedus and drummer George Cook. Opening with the stunning slide guitar of Little Boy Blue, the album includes a remake of Robert Johnson’s Dust My Broom (which Lockwood initially recorded prior to Elmore James, although his recording was not issued until after James’) along with St. Louis Jimmy’s Come Day, Go Day, his uptown Hold Everything, and the wistful Forever on My Mind. The progressive boppish tinge to the music is evident on the instrumental Majors, Minors and Ninths, which is a feature for saxophonist Reedus. Does 12 refers to the fact that Lockwood had started using a twelve-string guitar that his wife Annie gave him. Guitarist Mark Hahn is added and Jimmy Jones replaces George Cook on a session that swings and drives hard. From the opening funky reworking of Rosco Gordon’s Just a Little Bit to the cooking reworking of the radio theme from the King Biscuit radio show, King Biscuit Time, the album again shows the breadth of the musical reach of Lockwood and band. There are band reworkings of several Robert Johnson numbers including Terraplane Blues and Walkin’ Blues, a nice feature for Reedus on the Gene Ammons derived, Red Top and a choice blues ballad, Selfish Ways.   Listening to the subtle nuances in Lockwood’s tone and his mix of chord and single note runs is are a refreshing break from the dime a dozen Stevie Ray clones out there. This is very nice stuff indeed. I was likely provided a review copy of this CD by Jazz & Blues Report.

Joe Pitts Brings Us Ten Shades of Blues

Singer-guitarist Joe Pitts is a name new to these ears, but this Arkansas native has put together a hard hitting self-issued release Ten Shades of Blues, that looks at him covering some of his inspirations and others he just likes. With his rhythm of Jimmy Lynnon bass guitar and assorted drummers, keyboards and harp, he handles ten songs that display his gravelly, unforced songs and his fluent guitar. Initially hearing the blues-rock of the British invasion, he discovered Albert, B.B. and Freddie King, Muddy Waters, Elmore James and Robert Johnson and others on the blues highway.

Interesting opener is Breaking Up Somebody’s Home, with his guitar centered performance derived more from Albert King’s recording than other renditions, and he takes a solo that displays his own style. There is loose accompaniment for his take on Muddy Waters’ Cross-Eyed Cat, with some nice harp playing, slide guitar and more modern-styled guitar on the coda. His vocal is pretty solid here but his vocal is a bit over the top on Walter Trout’s Clouds on the Horizon, on which he plays some screaming guitar. With an insistent groove, his vocal is more restrained in delivery and he does a nice take on Luther Allison’s Pain in the Streets. The organ playing adds a nice touch to the backing on this track.

Eric Gales'  Freedom For My Demons brings blistering blues-rock guitar over a melodic line that evokes Stormy Monday, as he fervently delivers the lyric about the demons are dealing and what he’s selling sure looks fine but give Joe some freedom from his demons and some peace of mind. Put the Shoe on the Other Foot, is a nice rendition of an Albert Collins recording with some nice playing that suggest Collins without trying to be a sound-alike, while Pitts’ rendition of I’m Worried, is a bit more in the vein of Allman Brothers than Elmore James with a bit of distortion on his vocal.The jazzy, low-key No Stranger to the Blues, features some atmospheric rhythm guitar and biting single note chicken scratching runs with a nice vocal.

A bit more rock flavoring is heard on the guitar on a nice shuffle take on John Mayall’s Walkin’ on Sunset, with Terry Bradley adding slide guitar here. The disc concludes with Peter Green’s The World Keeps On Turning, on which he takes to an acoustic guitar and his fingerpicking that contrasts nicely with some chording as he sings about nobody sees him crying or knows how feels while his relaxed delivery contributes to a moving vocal performance. Its a nice end to a collection of generally solid, engaging performances. This should be available from cdbaby, itunes and other sources. Weblinks for Joe Pitts include http://joepitts.com/ and http://www.facebook.com/pages/Joe-Pitts-Band/54309185026.


The review originally appeared in the Dec.15 2010-Febuary 1, 2011 Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 332) to which I made a few minor edits. I received a review copy from the publicist for this recording.

Tom Principato's Potent Blues-Roots Mix

For several decades, a mainstay of the blues and roots rock scene around Washington, DC, Tom Principato has been known for his guitar playing with his distinctive mix of swing jazz, rockabilly, blues and rock and roll. He has over several decades mesmerized audiences with his fiery guitar, yet he is also more than a simply capable vocalist and he can play rock and roll, unlike some hard rock players out there. He has shared stages with other legendary guitarists such as Danny Gatton and Roy Buchanan, and showed he was their equal. And while his music often shows rock edges, he is capable of conjuring T-Bone mixed with Johnny ‘Guitar’ Watson on a straight blues of great originality while adding a dose of Chuck Berry and James Burton when he is in the mood to rock. He plays fluidity with imagination and a searing tone that grabs the listeners attention.

His latest CD on his own Powerhouse label is “A Part of Me,” a release that at least is dedicated to his family as the collage of family photos of a young Tom and his parents makes up the cover. He brings some special guests on this including Sonny Landreth on slide guitar, Chuck Leavell and Brian Auger on keyboards and Wayne Jackson of the Memphis Horns on drummer. Among DC area musicians assisting Tom here are Tommy Lepson, mostly on backing vocals, and Steve Wolf on bass.

The eight originals by Principato include three instrumental tracks. The opening “Don’t Wanna Do It,” with a simple message about not wanting to but having to let his woman go but she wouldn’t listen, features crying slide guitar from Landreth to support Tom’s gritty vocal. “Sweet Angel” is a celebration of the higher power that helps guide Tom through good and bad times with a lovely melody and some crisp, biting guitar and a very appealing heartfelt vocal with Leavell standing out on the B3 organ. “Part of Me,” is a bluesy ballad with horns as Tom reflects about someone who was part of his life and now is gone with Tommy Lepson on the Hammond here as well as adding a harmony vocal to a real soulful vocal by Principato in addition to some stunning guitar.

Brian Auger is on organ from the instrumental “Down the Road” with its lazy tempo and wonderful guitar from Principato whose fluidity, use of sustain as well as space is noteworthy. One of the numbers that Tom does in performance that is among this writer’s favorites is Sonny Landreth’s “Congo Square.” Tom’s celebration here of New Orleans, Congo Square, the second line and brass bands, “Down in Louisiana,” is a similar exhilarating rock and roll gem that surely will become a staple of his performances although his vocal sounds slightly stilted. Kudos to Steve Wolf on bass and Joe Wells on drums from the crisp groove here. “Back Again & Gone” is a lovely sonic exploration with some swing jazz guitar flavoring while “Stranger’s Eyes,” again with Tommy Lepson on organ is another song about relationships changes as he looks as someone now through “Stranger’s Eyes.” The album ends on an instrumental take of “Stranger’s Eyes,” that cranks things up a notch.

“A Part of Me” is a typically strong album by Tom Principato with a varied collection of material, superbly and imaginatively performed and sung straight from Tom’s heart. For more information on this release and Tom Principato, check out Tom’s website, http://www.tomprincipato.com.


For purposes of FTC regulations, I was sent a review copy by the publicist for this release.

Little Al Thomas' Long Blues Ride

Chicago singer Little Al Thomas has been a fixture around south side Chicago blues clubs for decades prior to recording “South Side Story” for Cannonball just before that label folded. He was born in Chicago and grew up with the music and records of Tampa Red, Sonny Boy Williamson, and Lonnie Johnson and had a long stint singing with guitarist lacy Gibson. Blues Boulevard has issued “Not My Warden,” a 2009 recordings of Thomas backed by guitarist John Edelmann and the Deep Down Fools who also include Marty Binder on drums, Rob Binder on keyboards and either Eddie Galchick or Mike Scharf on bass. Included are thirteen tunes, with twelve being originals for about an hour of music.

For some reason the accompaniment to the opening “ Long Ride to the Southside,” conjures up a Sheryl Crow recording, but introduces us to Thomas’ strong vocals as Edelmann adds some whining slide while Binder takes a nice solo. Thomas has a straight-forward style as he belts out the lyrics. Folks in Chicago, I suspect can easily identify with the message of Edelmann’s “I’m Gonna Buy a Politician,” with its mesmerizing John Lee Hooker groove as Thomas delivers the message of working too hard as “its time to improve my position, I’m gonna buy me a politician,” although the lyrics get somewhat repetitive. The title track is a slow shuffle as Thomas wonders about whether his love is a crime and declares “you are my wife, not my warden,” and “you are no ball and chain, and I’m not doing time.” while Edelmann takes a lengthy solo.

“Ready Freddie,” is a nice driving instrumental taken at a relaxed tempo allowing Edelmann to stretch out. The slide is out again for the rocking shuffle, “Wonder What You Think,” as Little Al asks about whether money can buy love. “Don’t take the Keys,” has a jazzier feel to it with Binder being more prominent in accompaniment and Edelmann tone a bit lighter and more directly swinging here. “Anger Heats My House,” also has nice guitar while Binder takes us deep down on the B3 while Thomas please for peace in his house. “Big Time Operators” sounds like a vintage sixties B.B. King influenced recording with Thomas complaining about the seedy side of the music business and the big time operators on the music scene who don’t look like politicians but act as thugs. “West Side Wind,” another energetic instrumental shuffle is followed by a cover of “Reconsider Baby,” with Edelmann playing with a jazzier feel and tone, mixing in chords with his single note runs, and the jazzy flavor continues on the latin-accented closing instrumental “Coronado,” where Edelmann effectively adds some tremolo to his tone.

While the lyrics on this CD are hardly memorable, Thomas is such an robust and soulful singer that one does not notice this. The backing also sounds stronger as one gets into the album. They add more than simply providing varied, rock-steady grooves and Edelmann and Binder provide plenty of solid solos. Its been about a decade since Little Al Thomas‘ last recording, and “ Not My Warden” has made this wait worthwhile.

For FTC regulations, I received a review copy from wither the record label or a publicist.

Breuker Kollektief's Marvelous Musical Smorgasbord

The website Destination-Out (http://destination-out.com) has continued its important series of digital reissues of out-of-print vinyl albums from the FMP label. Among the latest is that by the Willem Breuker Kollektief’s “Live in Berlin.” Originally issued in late 1975, it was one of the early works by the Breuker Kollektief which Breuker created after being dissatisfied with existing European free jazz big bands like the Instant Composers Pool and the Globe Unity Orchestra. Breuker, who passed away in 2010, wanted more focus on theatrical and compositional elements, not simply musical free-for-alls.

On the Destination-Out website, “Live in Berlin” is described “This live date finds his big band gleefully incorporating everything from pop standards, light opera, funeral marches, and shoo bop into their freewheeling brand of free jazz. The Kollektief offers both drama and inspired moments of humor, making for sheerly enjoyable music that’s joyful and fun!” The mix of free jazz, bebop, street music, tango, vaudeville and European musical hall fare with more than a few hints of Kurt Weill has long been a favorite of these ears since seeing this band at the original Tralfamadore Cafe in Buffalo in 1976 or 1977 and obtaining the original vinyl album at that time.

The members of the Kollektief at the time of this recording were Willem Breuker himself on saxophones & clarinets; Bob Driessen on alto saxophone; Maarten van Norden: tenor saxophone; Ronald Snijders: flute; Boy Raaijmakers: trumpet; Willem van Manen: trombone; Bernhard Hunnekink: trombone; Jan Wolff: French horn; Leo Cuypers: piano; Arjen Gorter: double bass; and Rob Verdurmen: drums and if one checked the personnel on various Breuker recordings throughout the years, many of these names would be present or on their own efforts on the BVHasst label Breuker established.

Substantial portions of this are taken from two of Breuker’s extended compositions, “La Plagiata” and “Anthology.” The former piece is ‘plagiarized’ from a variety of sources, both from serious music and street sources as the Snijders’ flute does a funeral march before a frantic sounding march-like tango segment with some blistering tenor set against a hot riff then Cuypers’ trance-like piano as the tenor squeals, honks and twists and turns with another tenor sax adds its own serpentine lines and honks before the full band leads a transition into the Music Hall. It is only the beginning of a whirlwind of musical scenarios and moods that continues throughout.

There is the fiery tango beginning of “Jan De Wit” that sets the tone for some inspired, and soaring, sax as Verdurmen underpins it with a hot march rhythm with Cuypers adding a trance-like piano backing before the horns add a quote “I’m an old cowhand” before the Kollektief restates the main theme and Cuypers takes the spotlight, at times enthralling with his use of repetition before a more linear and melodic approach that quotes japanese folksongs that leads into “Jalousie-Song” that opens like it was from a Gilbert & Sullivan operetta before the trombones add some gruff commentary. This magical musical circus continues until the closing, “Our Day Will Come,” which opens as if channelling Archie Shepp’s tribute to James Brown (“Mama Too Tight).” They play with similar reckless abandon with a rocking repeated riff until the rousing tango treatment of the melody of the Ruby and Romantics recording and then exuberantly singing it in Dutch.

I recall that the Breuker Kollektief performed “Our Day Will Come,” that night thirty four odd years ago in Buffalo, and the performance that evening was very similar to the overall character of “Live in berlin.” Breuker, of course had many other recordings with the Kollektief as well as other projects. One recording of Breuker, apart from those of the Kollektief, that I am particularly fond of his was “The Compositions Of Eric Dolphy” on BVHaast that was issued in 2006. Bill Shoemaker’s cogent, contemporaneous review of that recording can be found at the Point of Departure music journal, http://www.pointofdeparture.org/PoD5MomentsNotice.html.

For more information on this digital download, http://destination-out.com along with a download of a marvelous solo Sam Rivers album, “Portrait.”

Roy Hargrove's Music Is Food For Ears

This review of Roy Hargrove appeared in the October 2008 Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 309) on page 19. As I type this introduction, I am getting ready to see him this evening (January 8) at the Kennedy Center in Washington DC for the first of the two sold-out shows. Among the young lions who has emerged in jazz the past few decades, Hargrove brings forth fresh jazz while rooted in the tradition, whether lading his quintet, fabulous big band or simply being a member of the Dizzy Gillespie All Star Band. Earfood is his most recent quintet release I believe.


It is astonishing that Roy Hargrove is not yet 40, as his recording career almost spans a full decade. His latest album is Earfood for Emarcy and features his trumpet and flugelhorn with his working band of Justin Robinson (saxophone), Gerald Clayton (piano), Danton Boller (bass), Montez Coleman (drums).

A solid modern date which is intelligently programmed with a few choice chestnuts mixed in with Hargrove’s intriguing originals that transverse a wide landscape of moods and grooves. The sizzling opening, Cedar Walton’s “ I’m Not So Sure,” kicks off like an Art Blakey cooker, while the mood shifts on “Brown,” with nice mute playing from Hargrove, but the whole group is terrific. The empathy they display is an element is one the crucial reasons why this is such a solid effort. “Starmaker” is another lovely ballad with strong solos from Hargrove, Robinson and Clayton. “Joy is Sorrow Unmasked,” is a melancholy tinged tone poem followed by the bouncy bop of “The Stinger.” “Mr. Clean” is built on a funk bass line, somewhat evoking Cannonball Adderly and similar soul-laced jazz, while “Speak Low,” is another ballad with Robinson sitting out and Hargrove playing marked by its ruminative flavor.

A live performance of Sam Cooke’s “ Bring It On Home to Me,” takes us back to the church and the blues with Robinson and Hargrove engaging in a spirited call and response before Hargrove launches into perhaps the most fervent playing here followed by Clayton sounding like he is playing in church. It is a spirited close to a terrific collection of performances by one of the leading groups playing today.
I received a review copy of Earfood either from Jazz & Blues Report or from Emarcy Records or a publicist for this release.

Roy Gaines' Excellent New Frontier Lover

Influenced by T-Bone Walker, Roy Gaines has a six-decade career as a blues guitarist and singer. He has done countless sessions with the likes of Bobby Bland, Junior Parker and Jimmy Rushing and recored a number of albums over the years. Roy just issued on his Black Gold label Tuxedo Blues which I will be addressing in the next few weeks. In 2000, Severn records issued New Frontier Lover. It was his last US issued recording until Tuxedo Blues. Gaines did subsequently have a CD issued on the Japanese P-Vine label, “Guitar Clashers from Gainesville, Tokyo,” with Japanese guitarist, Mitsuyoshi Azuma. The following review of New Frontier Lover appeared in the January-February 2001, Jazz & Blues Report (issue 249).


Roy Gaines’ latest, New Frontier Lover (Severn), is among the best of 2000. David Earl has put together a terrific band behind him including Steve Gomes on bass and Benji Porecki on keyboards and there are some nice horn parts on most tracks. Its a collection of new material, although one can hear echoes of some of the greats Gaines was a contemporary with and played with.

Many of the songs have memorable hooks and some of the catchphrases from the tunes will be lingering in your mind after you listen to this The title track is funky number where Gaines gets to boast about his prowess. It is followed up by my favorite track, The World’s Biggest Fool, a terrific slow blues suggestive of Guitar Slim’s Something to Remember You By, with the band sounding like Slim’s band on his Atlantic sessions. What’s the Reason is a nice shuffle with a latin tinge to it while Roy is in a T-Bone Walker vein on You Can’t Make Nobody Love You, although Gaines plays with a somewhat dirtier tone here than Walker.

Roy’s Theme is an instrumental evoking classic instrumental shuffles like Gatemouth Brown’s Okie Dokie Stomp, and Roy’s driving attack here compares favorably to the best of them. Hinds Ends & Elbows is another hook-laden song, with Gaines’ hot vocal and guitar evoking the memory of the late Johnny Copeland. Gaines also handles a medium tempo Chicago blues shuffle, My Woman, My Blacksnake and Me, with Steve Guyger adding his harp to the blues stew. Guyger is also present on the rollicking closing number, Roll Your Own Biscuits.

This release has been one I have been listening to constantly since I got the advance of it. I am not sure if it will be in the stores when you read this, but it is one that is sure to be on my best of 2000 list. Look for it.

This was on my Best of 2000 Blues list and the music holds up well a decade later. This should still be readily available. I received a review copy from Severn Records for the review.

Jack Towers RIP- Recorded Legendary Ellington Band at Fargo ND

Word has spread slowly that Jack Towers passed away December 23, 2010 at the age of 96. He had been suffering from Parkinson’s disease.

Towers was known as one of the premiere restorers of musical recordings in the United States. This reputation was based on recordings he and a friend Dick Burris made of the Duke Ellington Orchestra playing a dance at the Crystal Ballroom in Fargo, North Dakota, on November 7, 1940 where they had hauled a bulky Presto-S disc cutter to record the Ellington Orchestra playing before around 600 young people. 


The evening’s music was captured on 16-inch aluminum discs coated with acetate that enabled the recording of approximately 15 minutes per side, as opposed to the roughly 3 minutes that fit on an average 78 rpm recording. And while Towers, friends and some insiders (such as some members of the Ellington Band) knew about these recordings, the release of a double vinyl album in 1980 was a revelation to jazz and music historians capturing a wide ranging repertoire of the Ellington Band in an informal setting.


The release of the Ellington Fargo Recordings was awarded a Grammy in 1980 for best Big Band Recording. It included some fragments of songs as well as extended performances of others known only from shorter studio recordings. It was also recorded with arguably the finest edition of the Ellington Orchestra which included Jimmy Blanton on bass and Ben Webster on tenor saxophone, along with such Ellington stalwarts as Barney Bigard on clarinet, Johnny Hodges on alto saxophone, Rex Stewart on trumpet, Harry Carney on baritone sax, Tricky ‘Sam’ Nanton and Juan Tizol on trombone and Sonny Greer on drums. Ray Nance had just joined the band, replacing the recently departed Cootie Williams.

Original CD release of the Ellington Fargo Recordings

And the band sounds great on any number of features. There is the great half valve playing on Stewart on “Boy Meets Horn,” the fiery “Harlem Air Shaft,” the exuberant “Koko,” and so much more. While the opening of “Stardust” is missing, Ben Webster is reported to have carried a disc with his performance for the rest of his life, and it was a performance that he would return to many times after leaving Ellington. The sound is very good except the vocal microphone (from which the Duke announced some tunes) is off the recording mike so that Ivy Anderson’s vocals are low in the mix.


In the CD era, the Fargo Recordings have been issued on CD including some segments of performances that previously were not issued on the original 2-LP release. There are some criticisms about the release of the complete material even half minute fragments, but the current CD release is of an historic document. In any event, today, folks can upload to their computer and edit our those selections they do not wish to listen to. It is currently available from the Storyville label from Europe both on “The Duke At Fargo 1940 Special 60th Anniversary Edition” and as part of the 8-CD “The Duke Box,” a collection of radio air-checks and concert recordings. These are recordings I have listened to many times and will do so many more.

While this is the centerpiece for Jack Towers, he was a radio broadcaster for many years, working for the USDA and became head of radio broadcasting. After he retired from the USDA in 1974, he devoted himself to remastering rare recordings, primarily of jazz groups including the legendary Dean Benedetti recordings of Charlie Parker, and rare works by Count Basie, Benny Goodman and other greats. His legacy is great among Jazz collectors and enthusiasts of which I am one of many.

Some material for this blog was based on Harvey Siders’ JazzTimes review, http://jazztimes.com/articles/12323-the-duke-at-fargo-1940-special-60th-anniversary-edition-duke-ellington-and-his-famous-orchestra and from Matt Schudel’s December 28, 2010 Washington Post obituary,http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/12/28/AR2010122804198.html.

Robert Lockwood Jr Was a Steady Rolling Man

I was a senior at Case Western Reserve University when I first met Robert Lockwood Jr (often referred to as Robert Jr. Lockwood) and interviewed him for the university paper (I wish I still had a copy of that article). Later I did interview him which was run in the Jazz & Blues Report when he passed away in November 2006 at the age of 91.


Robert was one of the most interesting and underrated blues artists who ever lived. He is known as Robert Johnson’s stepson, and was taught many things by Johnson. However he developed a guitar style that reflected considerable jazz influences. He was a member of the King Biscuit radio program and then leading his own band for a competing flour company, Mother’s Best, was one of the first blues electric guitarists to be heard through the Mississippi Delta region, and influenced countless guitarists. This continued in the 1950s when he moved to Chicago and became house guitarist for Chess Records as well as teaching folk like Freddie King techniques. Around 1960, he accompanied Sonny Boy Williamson to Cleveland, Ohio where they played Gleason’s for several months,. Robert liked Cleveland and ended up staying and raising a family there until his death and making a number of albums over the years.

This is the first of a series from reviews of Robert’s recordings over the years that I will be posting here. The following review of “Steady Rolling Man” appeared in November 1992 issue of Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 176).  This CD was recently rereleased by Delmark and should be readily available. 

Robert Jr. Lockwood’s first album as a leader, Steady Rolling Man, has just been made available on compact disc by Delmark. Recorded with the Aces in 1970, shortly after Robert had made a surprise appearance at the 2nd Ann Arbor Blues Festival, this is a solid, straight-ahead session with reworkings of several Robert Johnson tunes (the title track, Ramblin’ on My Mind and Kind-Hearted Woman) several of the songs he recorded for Bluebird (Take a Little Walk with Me and Mean Red Spider), originals in a similar vein (Western Horizon, and Blues and Trouble), and three instrumentals, Steady Groove, Lockwood’s Boogie and Tanya.

All of the performances are marked by the relaxed interplay between Lockwood’s guitar, Louis Myers’ guitar, Dave Myers’ bass and Fred Below’s propulsive drumming. Alternates of Worst Old Feeling and Lockwood’s Boogie are added to prior releases. The instrumental Steady Groove provides a good description of the contents, as Lockwood and the Aces participated and were responsible for the groove for many classic Chess recordings. These are enjoyable, solid performances, as Robert delivers the vocals in an unadorned style, although they are not as charged as the live Japanese recordings Lockwood and the Aces made that were issued on an Advent album that has unfortunately never been issued on compact disc in the United States. Solid, unpretentious blues.

For purposes of FTC regulations, I likely received this from Delmark Records.

Rick Coleman's Blue Monday-Fats Domino Bio

I briefly blogged about Rick Coleman’s biography of Fats Domino back in May, 2006 which I would subsequently review in Jazz & Blues Report (August 2006, issue 285). That was one of my earliest blog entries here, but since this excellent biography is available in paperback, it is worth bringing to folks attention once more. I note that the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame honored Fats Domino and Dave Bartholomew's contributions this past fall. This book should not be hard to locate.

BLUE MONDAY: FATS DOMINO AND THE LOST DAWN OF ROCK’N’ROLL
by Rick Coleman

(DA CAPO 2006)

Antoine ‘Fats’ Domino is one of the most significant performers of the last half of the twentieth century, yet because of his easy-going persona and his rather quiet life outside of performing, his contributions to blues and rock’n’roll have not been given their due. This biography by Rick Coleman, who authored the booklet for the Bear Family box set of Domino’s Complete Imperial Recordings, is twenty years in the making and hopefully will result in Domino being recognized as the pillar of modern American music that he is. The fact that Fats is unappreciated perhaps reflects a certain Eurocentrism that marks much of pop music writing and rock media that inflates the importance of popular, but derivative rock artists at the expense of true music innovators. After all Lynard Skynard is in the Rock’N’Roll Hall of Fame, but the much more original Johnny ‘Guitar’ Watson is not.

Domino is a private man and somewhat shy, despite his ability to thrill audiences when performing. Coleman traces his biography and development as a musician in the context of the times including his father’s move to the Ninth Ward area, then a relatively rural area near the Industrial Canal, to the horrible events around Hurricane Katrina which devastated Domino’s home that was still on the same tract of land his father had purchased decades before.

Domino grew up in one of the most remarkable musical cities this country has ever had. Coleman traces its history, including the infamous history relating to segregation of the races which is invaluable in understanding Domino’s impact, not simply on music but in bringing people of different backgrounds together. Given the general easy going image of Antoine ‘Fats’ Domino, one is likely to be surprised when reading this about the riots his live performances often engendered. These riots were most often the result of those who objected to whites and blacks attending an event together, and even worse in the racist eyes of many, dancing and socializing together.

Influenced by Amos Milburn especially, Fats Domino was one of the greats in a long-standing New Orleans piano tradition. Roy Brown’s Recording of Good Rockin’ Tonight, is the earliest shot in the musical revolution of modern rhythm and blues that generated rock and roll. From when he went in the studio and cut his speeded reworking of the traditional New Orleans song Junker’s Blues as The Fat Man, Domino had a recording career that for about a decade and a half outsold anybody except for Elvis, and his music inspired performers including Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis, John Lennon and countless others.

Coleman traces Domino’s recording and performing career as well as the major events of his personal life, but without focusing on scandals and then continues when Domino had ceased to be a major recording artist but remained a powerful live attraction on the oldies circuit and in Las Vegas. From when he first traveled to Europe in the mid-sixties, the adulation he received overseas led to regular tours there. And furthermore the level of his music remained consistently high. There is plenty of material here that was unfamiliar to me. I was not aware that of the many Domino-Bartholomew compositions, Domino’s chief contributions were the lyrics and the basic music, which Bartholomew worked and elaborated on. Also, I was not aware that Bartholomew generally played a very limited role in Domino’s live touring as we are given the details of the various persons who were members of the band and some of their foibles as well as musical contributions. But names like Earl Palmer, Roy Montrell, Herb Hardesty, Lee Allen and other names familiar to rock’n’roll and R&B collectors are part of this story as is label mate Rick Nelson.

Coleman has put together an impressive work that is long overdue. There is a factual quality of much of this, but again that is partly the result of Domino’s own private nature. He is best when describing some of the recordings and performances and there is a thorough list of sources although a list of recordings would have been very welcome here, or at least a listing of available recordings. But this is simply a small quibble on a most impressive work about a true Giant and Legend.

I must confess that I do not remember if I purchased this or received a review copy from the publisher.