Karen Lovely - Fish Outta Water - New Release Review

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Fish Outta Water by Karen Lovely and it's quite good. Opening with title track, Fish Outta Water, Karen Lovely is joined by Rick Holmstrom on guitar, Taras Prodaniuk on bass and Matt Tecu on drums. On Willie Dixon style, Twist My Fate, Lovely shows substantial vocal girth with Sasha Smith on piano and Eric Corne. Very nice. With a Country Western flair, Waking Up The Dead has a cool retro sound that I really like, with Doug Pettibone on guitar, Alan Mark Lightner on percussion, and David Rahlicke on cornet. Big Black Cadillac is a strong radio contender with a Country rock twist. Lovely's vocals are strong and i particularly like Holmstrom's guitar work. Hades' Bride is another strong track with a great melody and a Western ballad style. Lovely's voice works nicely in this flavor and clean guitar work by Al Bonhomme, warm cello tones from Richard Dodd and really nice violin lines by Eric Gorfain that dress the track beautifully. Wilson Pickett like, Molotov Cocktails has a cool R&B feel with Buddy Guy like guitar riffs from Pettibone. Very cool. Wrapping the release is The River's Wide, a cool ballad with a strong melody. The song has very nice stepping melodic sequences, coaxing the best from Lovely with warm Hammond work Phil Parlapiano and stylistically cool guitar work by Pettibone making this a strong closer for a very cool release.

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Kokako artist: Karen Lovely - Ten Miles of Bad Road - New Release Review

I just received the newest release, Ten Miles of Bad Road, from Karen Lovely and I think it's her best yet! Opening with Low Road, a mix of blues, country,R&B and pop, is a great showcase of Lovely's voice. With Alan Mirikitani throwing down some sweet guitar riffs, Tony Braunagel on drums, James Hutchinson on bass and Jim Pugh on B3 are joined by Julie Delgado and Kenna Ramsey on backing vocals making a solid opener. Company Graveyard has a more driving rock beat along the lines of Radar Love but with a boogie twist and again featuring a hot guitar riffs from Mirikitani. A Better Place is really stripped down like a primitive blues with Johnny Lee Schell on guitar and bass. Very cool! Ignorance (It Ain't Bliss) is a solid pop rocker with a bluesier approach but similar approach to rock as China Girl with smooth organ work and a flashy guitar solo. Cross The Water is a really nice ballad with country influences. This is a track that could easily make cross radio appeal featuring solid keys by Pugh and backing vocals by Delgado and Ramsey. Title track, Ten Miles Of Bad Road, has a bright jazzy style with Joe Sublett on sax, Les Lovitt on trumpet and with Pugh on keys, Hutch on bass and Braunagel on drums, this track has a strong hook. Quiet ballad, I Want To Love You, is another nice showcase for Lovely vocal with only minimal backing from Pugh, Hutch and Braunagel and a melodic guitar solo from Schell. R&B track, You Stole My Heart, is smooth with Lovely in duet and an easy set instrumental backing. Always Love You is a seductively sweet ballad with Lovely's vocals carrying the track with only minimal keys and percussion. Very nice! Blues Valentine has a strong country rock feel with resonator reinforcement from Schell and a cool key solo from Pugh. Save Me blends rock, country, blues and R&B for a strong radio entry. With a cool guitar bridge from Mirikitani, this is another track that could get strong radio play. I'm Over Goodbye has a special feel with duet blending with Melodye Perry. A reinforcing melody line on B3 from Pugh and continued strong vocals from Lovely make this one of the hottest tracks on the release. Wrapping the release is Frank The Spank, a hot boogie rocker. Lovely really gets it hopping on this track and Kim Wilson, featured on harp hits the target. This is a great clean up track for a very solid radio oriented release.

 

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11th Annual Ventura County Blues Festival: New Location, All-Day Headlining Acts, All-Star BB Chung King Tribute Jam

11TH ANNUAL VENTURA COUNTY BLUES FESTIVAL FEATURES NEW LOCATION; ALL-DAY HEADLINING ACTS; FESTIVAL-ENDING ALL-STAR "JAM SESSION" DEDICATED TO MEMORY OF THE LATE BB CHUNG KING                                Saturday, April 30, 2016     (Camarillo, CA)  - An exciting, new location; all-day headlining acts; festival-closing All-Star Jam dedicated to the late BB Chung King; enlarged Food and Craft Vendor area; a powerful, diverse lineup - all these factors promise to make the 11th Annual Ventura County Blues Festival the best festival ever produced by its presenters, the Ventura County Blues Society. Save the date: Saturday, April 30, at Studio Channel Islands, 2222 E. Ventura Blvd., in Camarillo. Gates open 10:00 am, music begins at 11:00 am. Tickets $30. (Pre-Sale), $40. (Day of Show). Kids 12 and under, free with paid Adult General Admission. V.I.P. Tickets $125. (online only). Festival proceeds benefits Food Share and other Ventura County area charities (please bring a food item to donate). Info: (805) 501-7122.   "We're really excited about the Festival's new location this year, and being able to have The Delgado Brothers perform, fresh from their recent IBC victory", says Michael John, Ventura County Blues Society President. "The jam (for the late) BB Chung King at the end of the Festival will also be amazing. Looks like all of BB's former band-mates and some very special guests will be there to honor BB's memory". The Delgado Brothers (pictured recently in Memphis, TN after winning the 2016 IBC award for "Best Band"), perform as part of the 11th Annual Ventura County Blues Festival on Saturday, April 30 in Camarillo.     HEADLINERS AT 11TH ANNUAL VENTURA COUNTY BLUES FESTIVAL     All-Star Jam Session: A star-studded lineup of musicians will take the stage to close out this year's Festival, all to honor the memory of the late guitarist, BB Chung King. This is sure to bring down the house!        Delgado Brothers: No longer just "L.A.'s Best-Kept Secret" after winning the coveted 2016 IBC "Best Band" award, The Delgado Brothers are driven by fierce independence, unified by family, and fortified by the brotherhood of music. Their topical anthem-worthy songs are  complemented by call-to-action lyrics, and East L.A. Soul. For over thirty years the Delgado Brothers have been music makers, collaborators and ordinary citizens; raising children, grieving the loss of parents, marrying & divorcing.  All of this life experience may explain their flare for illuminating every-man's joys, sorrows, triumphs and losses. The Brothers' music has long been embraced both locally and globally by a wide spectrum of people undivided by culture, age or socio/economic status. delgadobrothers.com/.    Karen Lovely: Powerhouse vocalist and 2016 BMA (Blues Music Awards) "Best Blues Female Artist" nominee makes her Ventura County Blues Festival debut. Known for her passionate, driven performances, Karen delivers a blistering mix of contemporary & old school blues. Lovely's standout performances have garnered awards and critical acclaim at festivals and venues throughout the US, Canada and Europe. With the release of her latest album TEN MILES OF BAD ROAD,  Karen Lovely has established herself as a singer/songwriter with a style uniquely her own. karenlovely.com/.   Dallas Hodge Band: This Veteran Detroit, MI musician is perhaps best known for fronting the legendary band, Canned Heat, Hodge first rose to fame in the mid-70's when teaming with guitarist Steve Marriott of Humble Pie renown. In 2009 Hodge began a working affiliation with Bob Seger's sax-man, Alto Reed, and Reed's West Coast Blues Entourage. Hodge's sound is best described as "Motor City-style rockin' rhythm & blues", and never fails to fire up a crowd! dallashodge.com/.    Pete Anderson: Multi-platinum, Grammy Award-winning producer and ground-breaking guitarist who melds blues and country to forge a style all his own. Long considered one of the world’s best-of-the-best Tele-twangers, Anderson has never been satisfied with maintaining the status quo. The last ten years have found Anderson focusing on his solo career – perfecting his craft and honing his musical vision. On BIRDS ABOVE GUITARLAND the Detroit native delivers a set of rich roots music gumbo, blues/funk/swing/country twang with a splash of surf music and a dash of jazz. While Anderson’s work as a producer/arranger/guitarist has resulted in acclaimed records in the Country, Folk, Singer-Songwriter, Rock, Pop, R&B, and Red Dirt genres of music, his focus as a solo artist has always been his first musical love – The Blues. peteanderson.com/.   Deb Ryder: Widely regarded as one of the best up-and-coming singer/songwriters in the blues world today. Born outside Chicago, Ryder was influenced at an early age by the music of the city, and by her father, a Chicago club sensation. She began appearing onstage as a young teen at her stepfather's famous Southern California-based nightclub The Topanga Corral, where she opened for blues legends like Etta James, Big Joe Turner and Taj Mahal, to name a few. Ryder's latest album Let It Rain, produced by Grammy award-winning producer Tony Braunagel, features eleven Ryder originals and an A-List of renowned players in the genre who bring a fresh energy and a powerful sound. debryder.com/.    Rae Gordon: The Rae Gordon Band brings together award-winning and nominated musicians and is fronted by Rae Gordon, the 2014 Muddy Award Winner for Best Female Vocalist (Cascade Blues Association). Gordon and company have played the big and little stages of the Northwest’s favorite clubs, dance floors and festivals, helping to mold their signature sound that spans from a danceable get-up-and-groove to a haunting slide tone - the latter a sound that will make you want to find a back porch and sit a spell. Rae Gordon Band performances are not only a show, but a celebration, as Gordon follows the policy that a stranger is just a friend you haven’t met…yet. “Add equal parts of Janis Joplin’s pain, Aretha Franklin’s soul and Grace Slick’s power; mix them thoroughly, and add a big gob of gooey molasses and you have Rae Gordon’s voice”– Positively Entertainment and Dining. raegordon.com/.

Never Felt No Blues - Karen Lovely

In just a year, Karen Lovely has shot onto the blues scene like Stack O' Lee's .44, capturing the 2nd Place Band Prize at the 2010 International Blues Challenge followed by 2011 BMA Nominations for BEST CONTEMPORARY BLUES ALBUM and BEST CONTEMPORARY BLUES FEMALE ARTIST. The title track of her sophomore release "Still The Rain" also received a 2011 BMA Nomination for BEST SONG. She won 3 Muddy Awards in 2010 including BEST FEMALE VOCALIST and BEST PERFORMANCE for the 2nd year in a row. Backed by her stellar band, this singer delivers a blistering mix of contemporary & old school blues.

Sorry no mention of the band members... not listed in my sight. In my mind a lot of times the band makes the whole deal.