The Mike Duke Project … Took A While

The Mike Duke Project
… Took A While
Little Village Foundation

It certainly did take a while for this recording Mike Duke to see the light of day. Bob Brown, who produced this album, recounts in the liner notes how he came across Duke's songs and music. In 1981 Brown, then manager of Huey Lewis & the News, received a cassette of four different songwriters, one of which was "Hope You Love Me Like You Say You Do," Brown called Huey Lewis, and it was included on his second album and became a top 40 hit. Brown notes that Duke's vocal on the demo blew him away. Shortly after that, Brown called Duke who sent him more demos, and two of which were also recorded by Huey Lewis. Brown and Duke eventually met and moved from the Atlanta area to the West Coast. Duke had been in the rock band, Wet Willie. He was a member of the house band at Slim's in San Francisco and with Delbert McClinton for most of the 1990s.

While many of the selections come from demos from decades ago, they sound very good opening with the nice deep soul performance "Little Miss Pigtail." Duke is a striking singer who injects plenty of feeling into his vocals as on 'Let Her Go and Start Over," a recording where one can hear the outlines of what would be a hit for Huey Lewis. Duke's vocal does not take a back seat to the better known Lewis. He still has quite a robust voice as on a 2019 recording "Let Me Be Your Fool Tonight." Although his backing band is the Zydeco Flames, this track has more of a Tex-Mex feel to it. "That's What I Like About the South" is a 1991 trio performance with Jack Pearson on guitar and Ike Harris on bass. This low-key performance has a relaxed, jazzy tinge and Pearson takes a single-note acoustic guitar solo. Another 2019 track, "I'm Not Sad Tonight" evokes some of The Band's recordings, while "Ain't No Easy Way," is a soul-flavored pop song that one might imagine a group like The Eagles having recorded. Then there is the country-flavored "Honey I Love You," and the passionate, gospel-flavored "Torn & Scarred."

After the variety of well-played and wonderfully sung performances, this recording closes with a live solo piano instrumental "Nicasio," with a New Orleans accent. It may have taken a while, but Mike Duke is a first-rate singer and performer as well as songwriter. Recognition of his talents is long overdue.

I received a review copy from a publicist. This review originally appeared in the November-December 2019 Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 387). Here is a condensed promo for the CD.