Louisiana's LeRoux One of Those Days

Louisiana's LeRoux
One of Those Days
Self-produced

Decades ago, the Louisiana band LeRoux were signed to a major label, played on album rock stations. At the time, they toured with such groups as the Doobie Brothers, the Allman Brothers, Heart, Marshall Tucker, and others. This, their seventh album, is the first in a decade. The present configuration of this group is comprised of Jeff McCarty on lead vocals; Jim Odom on lead and rhythm guitar, and backing vocals; Tony Haselden on lead and rhythm guitar, slide guitar, and backing vocals; Rod Poddy on piano, Rhodes piano, and backing vocals; Nelson Blanchard on Hammond organ and backing vocals; Joey Decker on bass guitar and backing vocals; Randy Carpenter on drums; and Mark Duthu on percussion. Other musicians heard here include Tab Benoit, who plays guitar on one number, Leon Medica, who replaces decker on bass on three songs, and Tim Courville, who plays drums on one selection.

The publicity for this release and LeRoux's website describe this as contemporary blues. Calling this contemporary rock album as blues makes the description of music as "blues" meaningless. Blues may influence LeRoux, but that does not make this recording a 'blues' album. Listening to the title track or "The Song Goes On," the Doobie Brothers, not Otis Rush, is evoked. If not blues, the title track still is a humdinger of a raucous rock performance. It has a terrific lyric about getting Memphis barbecue, going to a Mississippi crossroads, and visiting the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans to see if the animals talk to you. McCarty shows himself to be an expressive singer here and throughout.

Among other songs of note include the "Lucy Anna" with its rollicking New Orleans groove (pianist Poddy is outstanding on this song), and "Don't Rescue Me," which evokes Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young to these weathered ears. "After All' is a swamp-pop flavored ballad with a heartfelt McCarty vocal. Then there is a very appealing understated instrumental, "Sauce Picante," before the album closes with the band remaking one of their signature songs, "New Orleans Ladies," which features Tab Benoit's guitar solo. It is an excellent rendition of this classic rock song with a superb vocal and Benoit's superb solo, which makes a fitting close to this recording.

I received my review copy from a publicist. Here is a video associated with this recording.