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I started a quest to find terrific blues music and incredible musicianship when I was just a little kid. I also have a tremendous appreciation of fine musical instruments and equipment. One of my greatest joys all of my life was sharing my finds with my friends. I'm now publishing my journey. I hope that you come along!
I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Heavenly Cream - An Acoustic Tribute To Cream and it's a solid cover of much of Cream's catalog by top name artists. Opening with I Feel Free, Deborah Bonham, John's sister has the lead vocals, backed by Bernie Marsden on guitar, Malcolm Bruce (Jack's son) on piano, Neil Murray on bass and Frank Tontoh on drums. Solid opener. Theme For An Imaginary Western, written by Jack Bruce and Pete Brown is fronted by Brown on vocal and backed by Clem Clemson (Humble Pie) and Malcolm Bruce on guitars, John Donaldson on piano, Mo Foster on piano, and Cheryl Alleyne on drums. This is a great track and always one of my favorites with Jacks vocals and played by Leslie West of Mountain. Ginger Baker penned, Sweet Wine, is a standout with Baker on drums Nathan James on vocal, Marsden on guitar, Mo Nazam on guitar, Bruce on bass, Pee Wee Ellis on sax, Henry Lowther on trumpet, and Abass Dodoo on percussion. Take It Back, another Bruce/Brown composition is prime with the illustrious Maggie Bell on lead vocal. Her vocals are as sweet as they were in the 60's and a perfect fit for this track with Marsden and Tony Remy on guitars, Bruce on piano, Winston Blissett on bass and Tontoh on drums. One of the classic blues tracks covered by Cream was Howlin Wolf's Sitting On Top Of The World. Here we have a dynamic duo with Bell teamed with Bobby Rush who also plays harmonica, supported by Marsden and Remy on guitars, Bruce on piano, Blissett on bass and Tontoh on drums. Wrapping the release is Born Under A Bad Sign featuring Paul Rogers on vocal. Marsden and Nazam on guitars, Bruce on bass and Moreno Buttinar on drums. This is an interesting release with a solid assemblage of talent.
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I just received a cool 2 cd release, A Double Dose Of Blues from Cleopatra Records and it boasts a who's who of blues and guitar giants. Opening the first disc (From Clarksdale To Heaven - Remembering John lee Hooker) is blues giant John Lee Hookers daughter and blues star, Zakiya Hooker on I Want To Hug You, supported is a stately manner by Johnnie Johnson on piano, Bobby Murray on guitar, Tony Cook on synth guitar, David Daniel on bass, Marlon Gren on drums and Victor Puebla on percussion. This shuffle track is really nicely balanced between the power of Hooker's vocals and Johnnie Johnson's key work. Jack Bruce and Gary Moore team up on I'm In The Mood backed by Gary Husband. Gary Moore really lays out a nice solo on this track with Bruce thumping away behind him. Very nice! Vince Converse leads I'm Bad Like Jesse James on guitar and vocal, backed by Leo Lyons and Ric Lee from Ten Years After. Converse really rips some hot riffs under the track , the band basically keeping the skeletal framework as set up by Hooker. The spectacular, Jeff Beck leads Will The Circle Be Unbroken with singers, Siggi Josiah and Earl Green/Kingdom Choir. Beck's signature guitar work is unmistakable and outstanding. Gary Brooker (keys/vocals) and Andy Fairweather-Low (guitars) team up on Baby Lee with a Latin beat by Henry Spinetti. Very cool! T.S. McPhee (guitar and vocal) and Dick Heckstall-Smith (sax) do a super broke down Ground Hog Blues. Mick Taylor on lead vocal and slide teams up with Max Middleton (Jeff Beck Group) for a swinging version of This Is Hip. Always loved Taylor's slide playing! Super. The Peter Green Splinter Group does an authentic style Crawlin' King Snake. With Green on acoustic guitar, and harp, Nigel Watson on open tuned acoustic, Roger Cotton on rhythm guitar and pete Stroud on bass this is deep! Mr Clem Clemson (Humble Pie) teams up with Tony McPhee and Heckstall Smith for a great boogie, I'm Leaving making Hooker proud. Brooker on vocal and piano and Fairweather-Low are back on Little Wheel and each plays solo's that are nicely suited for modern interpretations of Hooker boogie. Gregg's Egg does a modern/pop funky version of The Business featuring Suzanne Sterling on lead guitar and Futoshi Morroka on lead guitar. Jeff Beck is back on Hobo Blues and again with his signature tone. Earl Green on lead vocal actually captures Hooker pretty well. Excellent! Jack Bruce and Gary Moore are back on Serves You Right To Suffer. Bruce with Gary Husband on drums keeps the bottom anchored and Moore sings up a soulful lead vocal accented by crisp guitar riffs. Booker T on organ and Randy California (Spirit)join up with the Hook hinself on lead guitar and vocal to Red House. Cool!
Disc 2 (Knights of The Blues Table) opens with Send For Me with Jack Bruce on lead vocal, bass and harp with Clemson on guitar and Heckstall Smith on sax. This is a rocker and a great opener. Georgie Fame lays down a cool jazz If You Live. Very nice! Duffy Power on acoustic guitar and coval, backed by Heckstall - Smith on sax and Alex Keen on bass lays down the most basic of modern acoustic blues. Very nice. Chris Jagger takes lead vocal and guitar on Racketeer's Blues, backed by Charlie Hart on bass, Ed Beane on guitar, Malcolm Mortimore on drums and Mick Jagger on harp. Interesting! Peter Brown steps up on lead vocal on Rocks In My Bed. Heckstall-Smith (of Coliseum) sets down some real nice sax lines on this and throughout the release. Miller Anderson, known for vocals on many bands including Savoy Brown, Keef Hartley and Chicken Shack does and excellent job on Don't Let Me be Misunderstood. Maggie Bell (Stone The Crows) teams up with Big Jim Sullivan for Blind Man. Sullivan shows his excellent guitar strength throughout this track and Bells vocals are solid as ever! On Robert Johnson's Travelling Riverside BluesPeter Green and Nigel Watson harmonize and play traditional acoustic guitar riffs. Very nice! Tony McPhee is on acoustic guitar and vocal on Drop Down Mama. This is a real nice modern interpretation of Sleepy John's original. I've always loved this track, I've Got News For You. This arrangement is slow and really bluesy featuring Clemson on vocal and guitar. Didn't know Clem could sing but he sure can. With Mark Feltham on harp and Ronnie Leahy on piano this track is really hot. Sonny Boy Williamson's Nine Below Zero features Dennis Greaves on vocal and guitar and Billy on harp. Nice blues rocker. The Pretty Things lay down Judgement Day with Phil May on Vocal, Dick Taylor on guitar, John Povey on harp, Skip Alan on drums and Wally Allen on Bass. Very Yardbirds like! Paul Jones and Otis Grand do Play On Little Girl/TBone Shuffle. Jones on lead vocal and harp, Grand on guitar, Mike Hobart on sax, Steve Wren on piano, Chico Lopez on bass and Junior Delmas on drums make this a super modern blues rocker! Mick Clarke (vocal and guitar) and Lou Martin (piano) do a very simple but effective cover of James Cotton's One More Mile To Go, one of my favorite tracks on the release... clean and tight! Mick Taylor and Max Middleton team up on Willie Dixon's You Shook Me. Both Middleton and Taylor shine on this number with sweet extended solos. Tom Killner delivers Midnight Call, a solid rocker featuring his own lead vocal and guitar backed by Nigel Killner and Jake Ashton. Wrapping the release is Eli Cook's Sweet Thangfeaturing Tinsley Ellis. A lumbering bluesy number, this is a real nice track to conclude a super batch of blues and blues rock.
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”
For added exposure - Blues World Wide Group "LIKE"
Cleopatra Blues Imprint To Release “A
Double Dose Of The Blues” A Star-Studded Collection Of Blues Legends From Both
The US & The UK
Los Angeles -
Cleopatra Blues Imprint is releasing a deluxe 2-for-1 package
featuring a star-studded tribute to the music of John Lee Hooker (From
Clarksdale To Heaven - Remembering John Lee Hooker) and a superb gathering of
UK bluesmen (Knights Of The Blues Table)!
“A Double Dose Of
The Blues” features Jeff Beck, John Lee Hooker, Gary Moore, Mick Taylor, Jack
Bruce, Gary Brooker, Peter Green, Clem Clempson, Johnnie Johnson, Georgie Fame,
and lots more plus a special appearance on harmonica by Mick Jagger!
Track List:
DISC 1
1. Zakiya Hooker,
Johnnie Johnson & Bobby Murray - I Want To Hug You
2. Jack Bruce
& Gary Moore - I’m In The Mood
3. LLC (Leo
Lyons, Ric Lee & Vince Converse) - I’m Bad Like Jesse James
4. Jeff Beck -
Will The Circle Be Unbroken
5. Gary Brooker
& Andy Fairweather-Low - Baby Lee
6. T.S. McPhee
& Dick Heckstall-Smith - Ground Hog Blues
7. Mick Taylor
& Max Middleton - This Is Hip
8. Peter Green
Splinter Group - Crawlin’ King Snake
9. Clem Clempson,
Dick Heckstall-Smith & T.S. McPhee - I’m Leaving
10. Gary Brooker
& Andy Fairweather-Low - Little Wheel
11. Gregg’s Eggs
- The Business
12. Jeff Beck -
Hobo Blues
13. Gary Moore
& Jack Bruce - It Serves You Right To Suffer
14. John Lee
Hooker, Booker T. Jones & Randy California - Red House
DISC 2
1. Jack Bruce
& Clem Clempson - Send For Me
2. Georgie Fame -
If You Live (Your Time Will Come)
3. Duffy Power -
Go Down, Sunshine
4. Chris Jagger
feat. Mick Jagger - Racketeer’s Blues
5. Pete Brown,
Phil Ryan & Dick Heckstall-Smith - Rocks In My Bed
6. Miller
Anderson - Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood
7. Maggie Bell
& Big Jim Sullivan - Blind Man
8. Peter Green
& Nigel Watson - Traveling Riverside Blues
9. T.S. McPhee -
Drop Down Mama
10. Jack Bruce
& Clem Clempson - I've Got News For You
11. Nine Below
Zero - Nine Below Zero
12. The Pretty
Things - Judgment Day
13. Paul Jones
& Otis Grand - Play On Little Girl / T-Bone Shuffle
14. Mick Clarke
& Lou Martin - One More Mile To Go
Sorry... don't know of a worthwhile version of this with real video but you can see what a change has been made in the interpretation of this song... terrific!
Humble Pie!! This band was so under rated!! The little guy has the big voice and plays both rhythm guitar and harmonica. If you don't have this album "Smokin" you owe it to yourself! The studio track of this song is extended and very clean!
Humble Pie with the core unit intact playing Honky Tonk Women. Too bad there isn't more good footage of this great band! This studio album is a must have!
This was Humble Pie's first album after the departure of Peter Frampton, which put singer and co-founder Steve Marriott at its artistic centre. Smokin' is the band's best-selling album.
It includes dramatically slowed down versions of Eddie Cochran's "C'mon Everybody", Junior Walker's "Road Runner", and the wah-wah laden slow blues "The Fixer". "You're So Good for Me", which begins as a delicate acoustic number, ultimately mutates into a full-bore gospel music rave-up, an element that would later influence bands like The Black Crowes.
Alexis Korner guests on the track "Old Time Feelin'", Marriott's vocals take a back seat as the main vocals are provided by Greg Ridley and Korner who also plays a Martin Tipple, mandolin-type guitar. Its sound is reminiscent of the song "Alabama '69" on their first album.
Stephen Stills of Crosby, Stills & Nash guests on "Road Runner 'G' Jam" (the title is a nod to the band's habit of developing songs out of jam sessions), playing Hammond organ, and his backing vocals were over-dubbed on "Hot 'n' Nasty" a slow-burning and then dynamic R&B song, after he strolled in after recording his own sessions next door.
Marriott insisted on producing the album himself for the challenge of creating a compact R&B sound with a high-tech 24-track mixing board. Marriott collapsed with exhaustion in February. New Musical Express (NME) reported at the time: "Following intense recording sessions with Humble Pie, Steve Marriott collapsed with nervous exhaustion and doctors told him to rest".
With this album the group were seen as leaders of the boogie movement in the early 1970s.
It's funny how life comes around. One of the best all around blues rock albums I have ever hear is Humble Pie "Smokin". If you havent had the chance, you gotta listen. Humble Pie was originally Peter Framptons band but he had a dispute with his friend Steve Marriott and decided to go his own way and go solo. He was replaced by Clem Clemson and they cut the hottest crossover album made in it's time. If you don't know Steve Marriott watch for another post. He was one terrific singer. If you don't know Clem Clemson, watch this... and Check out Colosseum early stuff. Write on our Facebook Wall or post your Photos of great blues events!- Here
