Mavis Staples Live in London

Mavis Staples
Live in London
Self-Produced

This gem of a live performance was recorded by the great Mavis Staples at London's Union Chapel over two July 2018 nights. She was backed by Rick Holmstrom – guitar and background vocals, Jeff Turmes – bass and background vocals, and Stephen Hodges – drums. Donny Gerard and Vicki Randle also provided backing vocals. She powerfully sings songs written by Ben Harper, Jeff Tweedy, her father Roebuck Staples, David Byrne, George Clinton, Curtis Mayfield, and others, along with one she co-wrote with Tweedy.

With a career extending seventy years, she continues to amaze with the vitality and nuanced phrasing of her vocals. Holmstrom's trebly, at times acidic guitar and the simple, functional backing from Turmes and Hodges, provide austere support for Mavis' robust, expressive vocals. The result is an album of compelling performances by a living legend.

This recording is available as a download on Bandcamp, https://mavisstaples.bandcamp.com/album/live-in-london.

I purchased this. This review appeared in the March-April 2020 Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 389). Here Mavis Staples is heard and seen performing "No Time For Cryin'" from this album.

Kid Ramos' West Coast House Party

Kid Ramos
West Coast House Party
Evidence

Kid Ramos' second Evidence album, West Coast House Party, features a who's who of some of the more prominent blues guitar pickers on the West Coast blues scene along with a variety of vocalists and other players.

Musically, this album leans to the jump blues scene that thrived on the West Coast, with two takes of a T-Bone walker instrumental,  Strollin  With Bone, spotlighting Gatemouth Brown and Duke Robillard along with Kid Ramos, sandwiching other tracks. Other guitarists here include Junior Watson, Rick Holmstrom, Rusty Zinn, and Charlie Baty, while Zinn, Robillard, Watson, James Intveld, Kim Wilson, Janiva Magness, Big Sandy Williams, and James Harman handle the vocals. Jeff Turmes anchors the horns, while Fred Kaplan is on piano, LarryTaylor on bass, and Stephen Hodges is on drums.

It is a tight band that swings, and Ramos gets to trade guitar solos with his peers and special guests. The vocals are generally quite good, although overshadowed by the originals. James Intveld is a capable singer on Roy Brown's  Love Don't Love Nobody,  but not merely in Brown's league as a singer (admittedly few are), and even Kim Wilson can't quite equal a Smiley Lewis on a jump blues like Real Gone Lover.

Within its admitted limitations, this record still possesses considerable appeal. The music is wonderfully played and the result is a lively blues party disc great for dancing and/or listening.

I wrote this review in 2000 and it likely was published in the D.C. Blues Calendar. I likely received a review copy from Evidence Records or a publicist. Here is Kid Ramos as part of The Fabulous Thunderbirds from 2003.

Janiva Magness Does Move Me

Janiva Magness has certainly established herself in the past few years as among the finest singers of blues and classic rhythm & blues. She has a new Alligator release coming out soon which i hope to post a review of next week. The following review originally appeared in the May 2006, DC Blues Calendar, then the DC Blues Society’s newsletter. I was provided my review copy from either the record label or a publicist.

Since first listening to one of vocalist Janiva Magness’ recordings, this writer has become impressed by her singing. I hear echoes of the great women R&B divas of the forties through sixties in her without her sounding like she is imitating anyone,. She has developed her own distinctive, recognizable sound where she has avoided developing any detracting mannerisms and impresses with her clean, soulful delivery. With Canadian guitarist Colin Linden, she has co-produced her latest recording, Do I Move You? (Northern Music), and its another superlative effort from her.

Linden shares guitar duties with Rick Holmstrom and Jeff Turmes (Turmes also plays bass and saxophones on several selections)), Richard Bell on Piano and B-3, John Whynot on the Wurlitzer and Stephen Taylor Hodges on drums. Turmes and Linden have contributed several originals to complement the fine interpretations of songs from several different sources, including a wonderful rendition of the Delbert McClinton and Gary Nicholson penned soul-ballad, You Were Never Mine.

Magness brings to life a range of emotions and moods from the opening I’m Just a Prisoner, where she is a prisoner to her love for the man, the celebratory I Want You to Have Everything, where lets her man know there is nothing too good for him ever since he told her he loved her, to the closing A Man Size Job, where she finds the younger man able to do the man sized job her former lover could not fill. A Turmes’ original Don’t Let Your Memories, is a wistful acoustic performance with a reflective lyric and a melody that evokes Key to the Highway. The title track is a Nina Simone penned blues that Magness delivers so seductively. Linden adds some nice atmospheric guitar, judiciously employing reverb with the rhythm section just right without any overstatement.

The production here is exemplary, providing atmosphere and enhancing the wonderful vocals here. The performances keep sounding fresh after listening to this several times over a few weeks time on a truly splendid release.

Here is Janiva in performance.

Jeff Turmes' "Five Horses, Four Riders" Is Blues & Roots Gem

Jeff Turmes is a multi-talented bass player, vocalist and songwriter that currently is in Mavis Staples' touring band. He has graced numerous recordings including Mavis' Grammy Award winning album, You Are Not Alone. His most recent recording Five Horses, Four Riders (Fat Head Records), mixes blues and roots for a rich musical stew. The production here is austere, and the tenor of the performances is similar to his recent work with Mavis Staples.


One can hear echoes of John Lee Hooker boogie groove on the opening Something Must Have Happened, one of three performances that include Turmes' Mavis Staples bandmates, guitarist Rick Holmstrom and drummer Stephen Hodges on drums. "Honey Man," with its Mississippi Hills groove, suggests to me my good friend Memphis Gold's style. Turmes employs atmospheric slide slide along with banjo in support of his unusual lyrics on Give Satan a Chance.


There is a folky mood on the title track with deft acoustic guitar and a lyric of four menacing men coming for Turmes' wife. Don't The Moon Look Real is a playful, swinging number to which Holmstrom adds twang, while Turn Your Heart In My Direction is a lovely ballad with the yearning vocal embellished by moody trumpet. Banjo accompaniment lends an old-time flavor to Weeds Like Us, followed by his acoustic blues accompaniment to Hew To The Roadside, with its advice that one needs to hew to the roadside if one wants to last. Overdubbed bass clarinet and baritone sax add a bottom under his adroit guitar playing.


The bluesy Jack-a-Hammer has a simple, repeated vamp as Turmes singing how this woman wears a man down. Loser's History is another folky number with topical lyrics as his banjo is framed by cello and violin. Turmes ability to craft lyrics that catch the listener's attention is also showcased on God Came Down from Heaven, followed by the emphatic groove on the bluesy When My Baby Wakes Up, with effective employment of baritone saxophones. The closing Iron City is a lovely instrumental displaying his deliberate guitar picking.


The production throughout is austere, and the tenor of the performances is similar to his recent work with Mavis Staples. Turmes' straight-ahead vocals, supported by the spare backing, adds to the performances atmosphere throughout. There is precision and restraint in the playing throughout resulting in substance rather than flashy pyrotechnics. Five Horses, Four Riders is a marvelous collection of blues and roots songs that linger in one's mind after hearing. Highly Recommended.

My review copy was received from a publicist for this release.