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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 received the newest release, Memphis Blue: Sweet, Strong, & Tight from Barbara Blue and it's got soul. Opening with J McShann's Hands Off, a rumbling R&B style track Barbara Blue gets it rolling taking the lead on vocal, and backed by Bobby Rush on harp, Jason Yasinsky on trombone, Joe Spake on bari sax, Lannie McMillan on sax, Marc Franklin on trumpet, David Smith on bass, Michael Tols on guitar, Rev Charles Hodges on B3, Lester Snell on whirlitzer and Steve Potts on drums. On No Time To Cry, Barbara gets a nice Kid Wilson swampy feel and with Ronnie Earl on guitar and backed by Shontelle Norman and Sharisse Norman on vocals, it's on of my favorites on the release. Two stepper, Rudy's Blues has real nice trumpet work from Dedrick Davis and a snappy beat, courtesy of Potts. Voodoo Woman has a real nice bass groove set in place by Smith and The Royal Horns punch up the track. Cody Dickinson adds washboard and Sonny Barbato spices it up with accordion. Bluesy Me & Jesus is another of my favorite tracks with a gospel feel. Barbato's piano work on this track and Hodges B3 work really set the stage for Barbara's soulful vocals. Rolling Up On Me has a cool Memphis funk feel, low on horns but high on B3. Nice phrasing by Blue and a tight guitar solo from Earl makes this the radio track to follow. Very nice! R&B track, Love Is After Me, has a real drive and The Royal Horns really punch it nicely. Backing vocals from the Norman's give it super warmth. Coat & Hat has a real Tex Mex feel and a sleeper track on the release featuring solid vocals and cool accordion work from Barbato. Title track, Sweet, Strong, & Tight, has a cool sway and tight horns from Royal horns punching the back. Spake's Bari work, Steve Graham on trombone and Bobby Rush back on harp give this track real texture. Another R&B track, I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down, is another solid radio contender. With it's killer melody and smooth horn work, very nice. SuperBlues has a cook funkified rock back beat and a cool harp solo from Rush. Driving bass work from Smith sets the tone. Memphis Stomp has super horn vamp and Barbara kicks the vocals up a notch supported by Hodges on B3. Wrapping the release is 800 Mile Blues, a really stripped down blues number featuring Ronnie Earl on guitar and Blue on vocal. Excellent closer.
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