The King of Crazy Town
Conch Town Music
Long a resident of Key West, Florida, Bill Blue (real name) began his blues journey on the road playing with Arthur 'Big Boy' Crudup. After Crudup passed on, he signed with Adelphi and toured for about a decade. Tired of the road, he settled in on a houseboat in the Keys and didn't record again until a chance meeting with British producer Ian Shaw led to "Mojolation" in 2013. Shaw returned to produce this new recording featuring Blue's singing and guitar. There is a pretty big cast of backing musicians, the most notable being Mack Backer on guitar, harmonica and a vocal on one selection, Eric Erickson on keyboards, and a full horn section.
The strength of this recording is Blue's honest, gravelly singing and the sound production on a program of blues and blues-based rock. A good number of the songs here deal with irony and hypocrisy, starting with the opening "Do What I Say Don't Do What I Do," with the backing featuring a swampy tremolo guitar and a stunning slide guitar solo. It is followed by a tribute to his home state, "Carolina Time," with its insistent groove and searing guitar. The one song that Blue had no hand in writing is the driving interpretation of Eddie Hinton's "I Want It All," with a frenzied vocal and riffing horns. "Hunker Down" is inspired by the attitude of the Key West folks and is apparently a favorite during hurricane season. Then there is "Everybody's Leaving Town" with its droning slide guitar backing about people leaving town. The title track is an exuberant celebration of a night out in Key West.
"You Ain't Fun Anymore," is a vocal duet with Matt Backer and the rollicking performance certainly disproves that Blue ain't fun anymore. This writer's favorite track might be the low-key, atmospheric "Closing Time," about playing the band's set, while the staff of a club are sweeping the floor and placing chairs on tables. The album closes with the instrumental " Mojolation," with is a feature for Blue's slide guitar. Bill Blue has plenty of personality that is displayed throughout this splendid blues-rock album.
I received my review copy from a publicist. This review appeared in the March-April 2020 Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 389) although a few minor changes have been made. Here is a video of Bill Blue in performance.
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