Teresa James & the Rhythm Tramps Live

Teresa James & the Rhythm Tramps
Live
Jesi-lu Records

Teresa James impressed this writer with her last two recordings, "Bonafide" and "Come On Home." The Texas-born, Los Angeles-based James & The Rhythm Tramps have a new "Live" CD from four-nights at Bogie's in Westwood Lake, California. As noted on the inside cover, there were four different versions of the Rhythm Tramps reflecting various tour schedules. The core band here includes her vocals and keyboards, husband Terry Wilson on bass, Billy Watts on guitar, Herman Matthews on drums, Lee Thornberg on trumpet, and Paulie Cerra or Ron Dziubla on saxophones. Others on some tracks include drummers Jay Bellarose and Tony Braunagel on drums, Joe Sublett on sax, and Darrell Leonard on trumpet.

"Live" is a lively mix of originals from Wilson and choice covers of blues and R&B sung passionately with strong, idiomatic backing. James opens with "In the Pink," naming some musical heroes, and singing that getting into the blues she now is in the pink. It is followed by a treatment of The Five Royales "I Like It Like That," with James' rollicking piano solo. There is a swamp-pop flavored "Put the Squeeze On Me," and the subtle, sultry soul of "Easier Said Than Done" with a terrific sax solo from Ron Dziubla.

Wilson's deep soul ballad "Forgetting You" takes us to Memphis with perhaps James' most intense singing with the horns coming off like The Memphis Horns, and Paulie Cerra short sax solo matching the fire of James' singing. More of a Motown groove is heard on "She's Got a Way With Men," who James sings won't have her way with her man. Cerra shines again here. Guitarist Watts plays Harvey Fuqua to James' Etta James on the fervent revival of the Fuqua-James 1960 Chess duet, "If I Can't Have You." It is followed by the New Orleans groove of Allen Toussaint's "Shoorah, Shoorah," with Tony Braunagel taking over the drum chair with James taking a piano break followed Joe Sublett's booting tenor sax solo.

Another standout track is a stunning slow blues performance, "The Day The Blues Came To Call," written by James and Wilson. It also has an incendiary guitar solo in addition to James' impassioned vocal. Other choice tracks include a strong cover of William Bell's "Everyday Will Be Like a Holiday," and the Tex-Mex feel of Glen Clark's "I Want It All," with James taking a crisp piano break. A hot, rocking salute to her home state, "Long Way From Texas," closes "Live" with James singing about making it home with fiery guitar and tenor sax solos. It concludes a terrific live blues and soul CD,

I received a review copy from a publicist. This review originally appeared in the November-December 2019 Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 387). Here Teresa James & the Rhythm Tramps perform "Forgetting You."