Cali Bee Music artist: Brad Wilson - Power Blues Guitar Live - New Release Review

I just received the newest release, Power Blues Guitar Live, from Brad Wilson and it's captures him at his best. Opening with Muddy Waters' Got My Mojo Working, Wilson springs to life with a high energy cover of this classic track with a more modern, blues rock take. Aggressive guitar riffs and backing by Oscar Huguet on bass and Thaxter Drums gives this track an almost Cream like feel. Super opener. On Freddie King's I'm Tore Down, Wilson keeps the energy high and Kirk Nelson adds a nice slice of keyboard. Giving the track legitimate swing on a Pat Travers like guitar attack, this track moves. Willie Dixon/Otis Rush track, I Can't Quit You Baby, develops a really nice blues groove with warm jazz chords under the melody. One of the nicest tracks on the release, Wilson stretches it out for 8+ minutes. Driving jazz track, All Kinds Of A Fool, is up next and Wilson's vocals and Nelson's key lines give it nice burn. Kofi Baker (Ginger Baker's son) winds it up and Wilson's guitar lines are clean and deliberate. Albert King's Born Under A Bad Sign gets a funky rework and it's got Wilson's fingerprint on it. It still sounds like King's track but it is all Wilson styling. His guitar breaks are hot and gripping. Robert Johnson's Sweet Home Chicago is a driving shuffle with modified Elmore James riffs and plenty of spunk. Very nice! Slide On Over has a contemporary blues rock sound with Robin Trower like riffs. Willie Dixon's, I Just Want To Make Love To You, has a heavy, lumbering, blues rock sound with solid bass thump. Pulling out a bit of pyrotechnics on this one, Wilson blends contemporary riffs from a broad background and fuses them into a solid blues boogie. She Moves Me is up next keeping a low key on the track but with explosive blues rock riffs taking up a good part of the nearly 6 minute track. Another Muddy Waters track, Standin' Around Cryin', opens with a real nice blues guitar intro over a solid bass line. Wilson really has the guitar opened up on this 8 plus minute track, one of my favorite tracks on the release. Country swing flavored rocker, Black Coffee At Sunrise, has a great bass line and Wilson sets up some of the coolest vocals on the release. His snappy guitar riffs bounce nicely on the knee of this peppy track. T Bone Walker's Stormy Monday sets Wilson up for a real screamer with Nelson keeping the basic melody on keys. Nellson takes a real nice organ solo on this one balancing out what is really a guitar heavy release. Very cool. Wrapping the release is I'm Still Breathing, a more contemporary blues based ballad with nice keyboard work and some sweet sax work by Joe Robb. A cool closer to a cool live release.



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Cali Bee Music Inc. artist: Brad Wilson - Blues Thunder - New Release Review

I just received the newest release, Blues Thunder, from Brad Wilson and it's a mix of pop and guitar stylist. Opening with Is It Any Wonder, Wilson, who takes lead vocal and guitar, sings smoothly in quiet pop form but with tasty guitar riffs throughout. Backed by Brian Beal on bass, Amrik Sandhu on drums and Kirk Nelson on keys, this is a perfect radio track. Up tempo, Change It Up has an almost Latin rhythm and Wilson's riff, although not really Spanish in origin, have a kind of Santana feel. Moody blues ballad, Blue Shadow, features Wilson on vocal with really clean piano work by Nelson. This is a pretty classic 50's style jazz track executed in cool form. Taking a page from Robben Ford's book, Wilson rips some pretty nice riffs in contrast to this otherwise subdued track. Very nice! Blues rocker, Step By Step has a nice rhythm to it and Tumbleweed Mooney adds some real nice harp work as well. Title track Blues Thunder is a definite fist pumper throw back to arena rock. Wilson steps out of the box on this one throwing out every riff a good shredder holds. Let's Go Barefootin' It in sharp contrast has a Bo Diddley rhythm and is almost devoid of guitar. Mooney helps to emphasize the already prominent rhythm on harp. My Faith Has Been Broken has a classic rock styling with dominant vocals and a solid melody. Cool Runnin' has an understated feel and a straightforward melody. This track could easily get cross radio play with is easy rhythm and nice melody. Home has a rambling rhythm with rolling tom tom and acoustic guitar. With an almost Bruce Springsteen feel, this track has a nice feel. Rocker, Black Coffee At Sunrise, gets the band hopping with a jump kind of feel. Possibly my favorite track on the release, Wilson spits out some nice fluid hot riffs. Sugar Sweet is a cool jazzy track with an easy rhythm. A real likable track it shows the strongest construction on the release with a tapestry of instruments tightly woven together and a hot guitar solo to boot. Wrapping the release is another straight up rocker, Never Again, with a concrete bottom and solid vocals. Wilson lets out the dog on his fretboard showing that he's not just another guitar player for a nice conclusion to an evenly paced release.

  If you support live Blues acts, up and coming Blues talents and want to learn more about Blues news and Fathers of the Blues, Like ---Bman’s Blues Report--- Facebook Page! I’m looking for great talent and trying to grow the audience for your favorites band! -  ”LIKE”