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Bob
Corritore
Early Blues Sessions
VizzTone / SWMAF |
Phoenix blues
impresario Bob Corritore has long been
taking blues artists into the studio on their
visits to the desert, especially once he opened
the Rhythm Room, one of the best blues clubs
around, in 1991. With the cooperation of
VizzTone Records and his own Southwest Musical
Arts Foundation, Corritore has released a
plethora of albums containing these gems from
his vault.
Corritore's latest
outstanding release, Early Blues Sessions,
is a deeper dive into recordings that date back
as far as 1984, either never issued or
re-mastered. Needless to say, Early Blues
Sessions is a fantastic collection of cuts
from many artists who are no longer with us,
making it still another essential piece of any
self-respecting blues aficionado's collection.
The instant classic
here is a Little Milton single, recorded in 2002
when he came to town for the Phoenix Blues
Society's Blues Blast festival. "I Want To Be
The One" was written by Milton specifically for
this session, an old-school blues gem that gives
a hint of what this iconic blues figure sounded
like early in his career. It's even better than
imaginable with Henry Gray accompanying on
piano. Of course, like on every cut, Corritore
provides his customary tasteful harmonica
accompaniment.
Gray also stars on
his own composition, "Showers Of Rain," with the
exemplary guitar playing of Bob Margolin adding
that extra dose of deep Chicago blues. We get
another Chicago legend with Jimmy Rogers on his
own mid-tempo blues shuffle, "She Loves Another
Man."
I'd be remiss in
going too far into this review without
mentioning the two songs featuring Robert
Lockwood Jr., first with the up-tempo
instrumental "Naptown Blues," propelled along by
Corritore on harmonica and Eddie Hollis on the
B3 in support of Lockwood's very fine guitar
playing. Lockwood was joined by Gray on piano on
the 12-bar Robert Johnson classic "Ramblin' On
My Mind." Listening to this latter song evokes
memories of listening to those seminal Johnson
recordings.
I also can't omit my
praise and admiration of the man who brought a
large wallop of Chicago blues to the Phoenix
area, former Howlin' Wolf drummer Chico Chism.
While small in stature, Chico was larger than
life, and we hear why on his version of the
Eddie Boyd classic, "Five Long Years.," with
guitar from Johnny Rapp and piano from the
legendary Pinetop Perkins. Chico was a godfather
to everyone connected in any way to the Arizona
blues scene, and he is still missed more than
anyone can imagine.
Lil' Ed often made
his way to the Phoenix area, appearing at
several Blues Blast festivals as well as plenty
of club dates, and on one of those trips
Corritore got him into the studio to record "Hip
Shakin'," written by Ed's uncle, J.B. Hutto.
Taking us on a trip to Louisiana is a number by
guitarist / singer Jimmy Dotson, "Tired Of Being
Alone." At just one minute and 52 seconds, it's
short but the rapid tempo packs a lot of sound
into that timeframe.
Chicago blues
drummer Sam Lays shows up on two songs,
displaying powerful vocals on the Big Boy Crudup
slow blues "So Glad I'm Living," and later
returning to the drum kit while singing another
slow blues, "My Fault," a Brownie McGhee
original that includes nice piano work from Tom
Mahon as well as a killer harp solo from
Corritore.
We return to
Louisiana for two cuts by Clarence Edwards,
first a slow blues, "Coal Black Mare," another
Crudup composition, followed by his own up-tempo
stomper, "Hear That Rumblin'." Staying on the
bayou is a swamp classic, "Cool Calm Collected,"
from singer King Karl, who spent the last years
of his life in Arizona. Good positioning by
Corritore in keeping these three south Louisiana
numbers back to back to back on the album.
Dave Riley, another
bluesman who settled in Arizona, does his own
acoustic blues tune, "On My Way," showing his
raw, raspy vocals. Equally unique singer Tomcat
Courtney, a Texas native who eventually made his
later blues career in San Diego, shouts out his
primal vocals on his own "I Wonder."
One more cut to go.
I've perhaps saved
the best for last.
The album closes
with an absolute killer number. Lowell Fulson
sings his own country blues tune, "West Texas
Blues," with the vocals being supported by his
acoustic guitar playing and Corritore's subtle
harmonica riffs. We hear a standard blues theme
of having a matchbox to hold our clothes. Yes,
indeed!
This review already
mentioned that Early Blues Sessions is an
essential addition to every blues collection,
but let's hear it again. Get this album ASAP. I
also recommend buying a physical copy of the CD
so that you get all of the liner notes, session
info, and some very fine photos of these
legendary blues cats in the studio.
--- Bill Mitchell
