Johnny Winter Live in Sweden 1987

Johnny Winter
Live in Sweden 1987   
Gazell/MVD

A live performance by Doctor John on which his trio is joined by Dr. John for several tracks, "Live in Sweden 1987" has been issued on CD and DVD. This performance is around his time recording Alligator with his trio of Jon Paris, bass and harmonica, and Tom Compton on drums. It is a pretty straightforward set, and the video is square format, not wide by any means.

This is typical Johnny Winter with his high energy attack with a rock edge. The set opens with a rocking rendition of his mentor, Clarence Garlow's "Sound the Bell," which is followed by a nice rendition of "Don't Take Advantage of Me," and then a rollicking treatment of J.B. Lenoir's "Mojo Boogie," with Paris adding harp behind Winter's slide guitar. Dr. John adds some New Orleans piano and vocal on "You Lie Too Much," with Winter providing solid backing, followed by a rocking treatment of Muddy Waters' "Sugar Sweet" with Paris adding harp and Dr. John taking some of the vocal. They also share verses on "Love Life & Money," with some fiery Winter guitar. The album closes with a furious tempoed, "Jumpin' Jack Flash." The DVD has a bonus song, "Prodigal Son" from a 1972 performance.

Very little here that will surprise Johnny Winter fans. The DVD comes from pretty straight-forward video of the performers (with a brief bit of Winter and band on the bus before the gig). There is a fair amount of Johnny Winter available on DVD and this may appeal more to his fans or to those not already having much by him on DVD or CD.

I received a review copy from the company issuing the DVD.This review originally appeared in the July-August 2016  Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 367).  Here is a performance of "Mojo Boogie."

Johnny Winter Seen and Heard Live From Japan

Johnny Winter has probably been performing for fifty years and its been nearly 45 years since his signing with Columbia. In the ensuing years he has recorded and toured extensively. It was not until April of 2011 though that he appeared in Japan with is current band of Paul Nelson on guitar, Scott Spray on bass and Vito Liuzzi on drums. A performance at the Zepp Tokyo Musical Hall was captured and now MVD Visual has issued Live From Japan, capturing one night’s performance of the blues and rock legend.

Being seated throughout his performance does not affect the fire of Winter’s performances which is heavily tilted towards blues on this evening which opens with some sizzling blues-rock before his trio before he comes on for a rendition of Hideaway. The video is quite well done although the tone of Johnny’s guitar seems a bit distorted. There are also a couple of interview segments interspersed in this hour and a half concert video.

While I would not say Winter has been my favorite blues vocalist, I have grown to appreciate his singing and immediately recognizable musical approach and admire the wide range of songs that he tears into on including Frankie Lee Sim’s She Likes To Boogie Real Low, Lazy Lester’s Sugar Coated Love, and Sonny Boy Williamson I’s Good Morning Little School Girl. An interview remembrance of Muddy Waters’ is followed by a rousing Got My Mojo Working, and the rock and roll side of Winter is displayed on Chuck Berry’s Johnny B Goode, and Larry Williams’ Bony Maronie. 

Other highlights include Winter's cover of Ray Charles' Blackjack, as well as reprising Winter's Alligator recording of Don’t Take Advantage of Me that morphs into his interpretation of the Rolling Stones’ Gimme Shelter. Guitarist Nelson takes a solo on It’s All Over Now, originally recorded by the Valentinos and covered by the Stones. After a short break, Winter and band return with Johnny now playing his Firebird guitar and slide for a rollicking medley of Elmore James’ Dust My Broom and Bob Dylan’s “Highway 61. It closes a well produced concert video and Live From Japan, will certainly be of interest to fans of Johnny Winter and the blues.

I received a review copy from MVD Entertainment. From a 2012 performance, here is Johnny Winer performing Blackjack.

Johnny Winter Was Careful Around Fools

Back in 2004 I did a review of Sony/Legacy reissues of Muddy Waters and Johnny Winter albums. The review originally appeared in the November/December 2004 Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 271). I have made minor stylistic edits. The review of the Muddy Waters reissues was posted on Friday, April 13.

Sony/Legacy also reissued Johnny Winter’s Columbia debut album – Johnny Winter. There is a nice choice of material including Mean Mistreater, Be Careful With a Fool, When You Got a Good Friend, I’ll Drown in My Tears, Dallas and Good Morning Little Schoolgirl. Winter sometimes was a bit too frantic to me, particularly in his vocals, and I must confess I find his vocals most appealing when he doesn’t try to belt them out but rather sings in a more relaxed manner. So his vocal on Be Careful With a Fool doesn’t appeal to these ears as much as does his fret work, but I know others differ from me on this point.

Dallas is a splendid acoustic slide performance in which Winter engrafts his lyric upon a slide accompaniment evoking Robert Johnson’s Terraplane Blues. Mean Mistreater goes back to Leroy Carr and the accompaniment here (based on a Muddy Waters recording) includes Willie Dixon’s bass and Walter Horton’s majestic harp, with Winter giving one of his best vocals on this date. I am not sure if it was included in the original release, but there is also a terrific rendition of Texas Johnny Brown’s Two Steps From the Blues, that was made famous by Bobby Bland and Winter does a more than credible rendition of the vocal with a full backing group with horns. There is also an alternate of Dallas.

Although I have not heard Winter’s most recent album, I really enjoyed listening to his last two Point Blank discs over a decade ago. This reissue of one of his earliest albums is most welcome, and, stands up today as when first recorded.

Here is Johnny performing Be Careful With a Fool. 

Muddy Waters Recordings With Johnny Winter Had His Blues Hard Again

Following up the acclaimed and award-winning reissue, Muddy ‘Mississippi’ Waters Live, Sony/Legacy recently reissued the three studio albums Johnny Winter produced by the legendary Muddy Waters, Hard Again, I’m Ready and King Bee. Recorded after Muddy had ended his affiliation with Chess Records, there is no question that these recordings were among the most vital Waters recorded since the classic recordings from the late forties to mid-sixties with which his legend was established.

Hard Again was the earliest one and it opens with Muddy reprising his Mannish Boy with Johnny shouting in support with the band hammering out the beat and Muddy singing with a virility that a twenty-five year old wishes they possessed. The backing band here includes Winter, harpist James Cotton, Pinetop Perkins, Willie ‘Big Eyes’ Smith and Calvin Jones, who help Muddy reprise I Want to Be Loved. They take Brownie McGhee’s The Blues Had a Baby and recast it into a Muddy Waters song, and then take things Deep Down in Florida. The mix of old and new set the tone for the Waters Blue Sky releases.

I’m Ready was the second release and reunited Muddy with Big Walter Horton and Jimmy Rogers from his classic bands of the fifties. The rhythm section is perhaps a touch lighter here as Walter reprises the title track, (I’m Your) Hootchie Cootchie Man, Screamin’ and Cryin’ and Rock Me, along with Good Morning Little School Girl and 33, a slow blues that is a recasting of Eddie Boyd’s 24 Hours. Its also nice to hear Winter and Bob Margolin holding things together with their playing and Winter often adding his own inspired straight guitar as well as slide playing to compliment Muddy’s.

The final album, King Bee features more authoritative performances including Slim Harpo’s I’m a King Bee (with a strong Rock Me groove). (My Eyes) Keep Me in Trouble, Sad Sad Day, and Mean Old Frisco are classic recordings refreshed here along with Champagne and Reefers, which became a Waters staple in his later years.

Johnny Winter certainly must be thanked for showing that Muddy Waters remained among the true giants of American music and these recordings certainly kept him in the public eye.

This review originally appeared in the November-December 2004 Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 271) along with a review of a Johnny Winter reissue that will be posted here on Monday the 15th. Here is Muddy live with John lee Hooker as well as Johnny Winter.

Take a Sea Cruise With Joe Louis Walker

This is a review of the latest Joe Louis Walker CD from Stony Plain (his third for the label).

One would be hard pressed to find anyone in the past thirty years who has put together a body of recordings as deep and substantial as Joe Louis Walker. Especially his initial recordings on Hightone and then on Verve-Gitanes, Walker has been able to be forward looking as well as rooted in the tradition. Few approach his versatility as both a guitarist and as a vocalist. While his post Verve recordings may not have been on the same level as these earlier masterpieces (and one would be hard-pressed to name a half dozen other recordings the past two decades that approach these blues masterworks), Walker still remains a fervent and quite entertaining performer.

Now on Stony Plains Records, Walker has a new release, “Blues Conspiracy: Live on the Legendary Rhythm 7 Blues Cruise,” that he views as a companion to his two volumes of “Live at Slims” and the “Great Guitars,” that both date from the 1990s. This is a live recording taken from January, 2010 performances on the Cruise with most of these performances featuring Walker and his band joined by guest artists who were on the cruise. Walker’s Band included Linwood taylor on guitar,Kevin Burton on keyboards, Henry Oden on bass and Jeff Minnieweather on drums with guest appearances by the likes of Mike Finnigan on organ and vocals; Johnny Winter, Duke Robillard, Tommy Castro, Tab Benoit, and Kirk Fletcher on guitar; Mitch Woods on piano; Curtis Salgado on vocals; Jason Ricci, Kenny Neal and Watermelon Slim on harmonica; Keith Crossan and Deanna Bogart on saxophones; and Tom Poole on trumpet. These tracks all feature guests on the performances with the exception of one. A good number of the performances here are of songs Walker has previously recorded, but several selections seem not to be have been previously waxed.

From a standpoint of a fan, the guests add a dimension of special occasion that does not always translate to an audio recording. Also, the performances may take away from the focus of the performances with some rough edges and perhaps a bit more emphasis on soloing. Generally these pitfalls are avoided, and the performances are quite fine if they do not quite reach the level of the two volumes of “Live at Slims,” arguably among the toughest live blues recordings of the past two decades. Things start off on a solid note on “Slow Down GTO with Mike Finnigan’s organ joining Walker and his band (and its great that bassist Oden, a Boss Talker from 2 decades ago is back with Walker), and followed by “Ain’t That Cold,” where Johnny Winter’s slide embellishes Walker’s fervent singing. Curtis Salgado and Mike Finnigan share the vocals on the OV Wright classic, “You’re Gonna Make Me Cry,” which is enjoyable but slightly messy and frenzied in execution. Tommy Castro and the horn players join in on the rocking rendition of Travis Phillips’ Louisiana rock’n’roller “Eyes Like a Cat.”

Kirk Fletcher adds some nice guitar to the rendition of Lowell Fulson’s “Ten More Shows to Play,” but “Born in Chicago,” suffers from too many musical cooks with Jason Ricci, Nick Moss and Paris Slim adding solos for a performance that seems longer than it should have. In contrast, “Sugar Mama,” with Watermelon Slim added on harmonica, is the longest track, but allows Walker to stretch out for some inspired playing along with Slim’s nice harp on a performance that seems to take little time at all. Kenny Neal joins on “A Poor Man’s Plea,” adding some Slim Harpo flavored harmonica on Junior Wells’ “A Poor Man’s Plea.” “Its a Shame,” is the track showcasing Walker’s band and Linwood Taylor is featured on guitar here, followed by another jam as pianist Mitch Woods and guitarists Tab Benoit and Paul Nelson join Walker for “747.” Even if not as tight as Walker’s earlier takes on this song, this track is fun way to close this recording and certainly, warts and all, is a worthy addition to his considerable body of music that he has graced us with for such a lengthy period.


My previous reviews of Joe Louis Walker's Stony Plain CDs on this blog are of "Witness to the Blues" and "Between A Rock And The Blues."





For purposes of FTC regulations, the review copy was supplied by the publicity form for the record company.