February 1999
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets ...and check out this previous reissue of the early sides by Koerner, Ray & Glover
|
--- Tony Nowicki The Queen and her hive are back for one more time around on the new Queen Bee and the Blue Hornet Band CD, Front To Back (Sharkstooth), which offers up new tracks, as well as live treasures from their long and distinguished career together. Lead singer Tanya Browne and guitar player Marc Ross make up the heart and soul of this band, as they have since its inception. With her career ready to take off, and his family life being so important, the two have decided to end a long run together. Tanya will surely be heard from again, and hopefully, so will Marc. The new stuff shines, as sax player Doug Bernstein delivers a powerful and soulful performance on "I Put a Spell On You," and Ross soars on the instrumental masterpiece "Ana McKinley." The rhythm section of Jack Wilkinson on drums and Rene Witzke on bass is tight throughout, making for a wonderful backbone for the fantastic play during solos. When listening to this disc, no one could possibly miss the fantastic "Lets Buzz," and the highlight of any of their live shows, their version of Bobby Troups "Route 66." In addition, the live tracks highlight past performances of The Hive throughout their touring career. All in all, this disc is a great way to remember just what Queen Bee meant, and just what they will always mean great times and great blues. Have you ever been to Chicago? Blues harp player George "Mojo" Buford has, judging by his new disc, Harpslinger (Blue Loon). (Editor's Note: This disc was recorded earlier in the decade, and reissued in 1998). Mojo has played with Muddy Waters, and he brings every bit of his years of experience along with him. He even brought along another harp player, which isn't as unusual as it may sound when it comes to Chicago blues. The guitars are strong throughout, with Dan Schwalbe giving solid performances throughout, and even dazzling a little on "Oh Baby" and others. Mojo has a great voice, and he uses it to its full extent on the hypnotizing "Champagne and Reefer." The band cooks throughout, staying just far enough behind the beat to make anyone kind of shake their heads along with the music, and say, "Oh yeah! That's Chicago!" --- Brad Allen
Blues Blues Blues (Atlantic) was going to be the album that would finally introduce Jimmy Rogers, already known to those of us in the blues world, to the rest of the music world. Sadly, Rogers passed away before this album came out, turning it instead into a tribute to one of the greats of Chicago blues. He's joined here by luminaries like Eric Clapton, Mick Jagger, Taj Mahal, Jeff Healey, Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, Keith Richards, and Stephen Stills, as well as blues vets Lowell Fulson, Carey Bell, Johnnie Johnson, and Ted Harvey. Rogers is in good form, and the guest appearances aren't too intrusive. Most of us blues diehards are going to prefer Jimmy's previous releases with his own band, but there's lots of excellent music here. The wonderful playing of harmonica player Bell and pianist Johnson really hold everything together, and help to keep the recordings to a straight blues agenda. The opening "Blow Wind Blow" is exceptional, with strong guitar from Healey and great piano from Johnson. There are also versions of oft-recorded Rogers classics "That's All Right" and "Ludella." The latter contains a nice vocal contribution by Taj Mahal, and is one of the nicer cuts on the disc.
Mali To Memphis is an interesting concept album from Putumayo World Music. The disc alternates African music numbers from Mali with American blues numbers, mostly from artists with roots in the Mississippi Delta region. It's interesting to hear how well the music flows from song to song, proving that blues really did evolve from its African origins. They could have done a little better job in choosing the blues numbers. For example, John Lee Hooker did a lot more rootsier-sounding stuff than his later version of "I'm In The Mood." Other blues artists here include Guy Davis, Eric Bibb, Muddy Waters, Jessie Mae Hemphill, and Taj Mahal. Not an essential purchase, but an interesting listen if you can find it in the bargain bin.
Minneapolis guitarist Jimi "Prime Time" Smith and his regular band were captured live at Blues Alley in the Twin Cities last May, and the result is Give Me Wings (Atomic Theory). This is a nice set of blues, featuring some real strong guitar from Smith. I especially like his work on Luther Allison's "Soul Fixin' Man," although his style here is more reminiscent of that of Guitar Shorty rather than to Allison. Smith also does some exceptional work on his version of "I'll Play The Blues For You." James Peterson, known more often as the father of blues artist Lucky Peterson, has been bouncing around the Deep South blues circuit for a number of years, having released albums on a number of blues labels. Wrong Bed! looks to be an independent release on Hown Dog Records out of Palmetto, FL. It's a decent enough album, with 10 original compositions, but nothing to distinguish it from his earlier stuff. Or from a lot of other contemporary Southern blues albums, for that matter. --- Bill Mitchell |
[Pick Hit][What's New][Surprise][Flashback][Feedback][Back Issues][Home Page]
The Blues Bytes Web Site has been developed by Blue Night Productions. For more info, send an e-mail.
The Blues Bytes URL... http://www.bluenight.com/BluesBytes/
Revised: February 14, 1999 - Version 1.01
All contents Copyright © 1999, Blue Night Productions. All rights reserved.