New Releases -
January 2001
Russell Jackson Band: Becoming Blue StoneBluz Records
Vancouver-based Russell Jackson, isn't well-known in central and eastern Canada - but he should be.
Born in Memphis and raised in Wichita, Jackson played bass with the B.B. King Orchestra from 1979 to 1986, starting when he was just 25. He then joined the acclaimed and under-recorded Silent Partners _ he wrote the title track of the that band's Antone's album If It's All Night, It's All Right. Today he, like his fellow Silent Partners alumnus, Mel Brown, lives in Canada. He is a nominee for Bass Player of the year in the 4th Annual Maple Blues Awards.
Becoming Blue is the second release for the Russell Jackson Band, a trio composed of Jackson on vocals and bass, Ivan Duben Jr. on drums, and James Rogers on guitar. For this recording the group is joined by 10 well-known west coast musicians, including Kenny Wayne on piano.
The CD features 13 songs, including 8 originals. There's no screaming rock guitar here: this is solid, understated blues at its best. Let's hope the CD brings Jackson to the attention of promoters in Ontario, so that we can hear live what the band does so well on CD. (www.angelfire.com/kammusic)
guest review by Ian Angus
Michael Kaeshammer No Strings Attached
Alma ACD 10202
A nicely varied program of jazz and R&B once again from Mr. Kaeshammer and producer Peter Cardinali, with more R&B and less jazz this time out. The successful recipe of cooking with guest stars remains however and this time adds a productive visit to New Orleans. For an album titled No Strings Attached, the opening "Snow At Lake Simcoe" is a little unusual: an entire orchestra worth of strings on an evocative piece based on the movie 32 Short Films About Glenn Gould, augmenting the jazz piano trio that is the centre of the album. "On A Saturday Night" features the sole Kaeshammer vocal on a funky original that fuses the trio with Art Neville on B3 and Kevin Breit on guitar - I think showing we can use more of his vocals next time. "Kaes Closed" is a jazz piece with Guido Basso guesting on flugelhorn and Scott Joplin's "Maple Leaf Rag" adds a fine solo piano workout. After a couple of more trio outings, the rhythm section sits out and we get another gem from the New Orleans trip: Eddie Bo taking a soulful vocal and another piano on "Drown In My Own Tears" with Neville back on the B3. This is the first example of the influence of his four pianists tour of earlier this year and even with three keyboards, it does not sound at all cluttered . A couple more jazz outings and back to New Orleans where Albert Ammons' "Boogie Woogie Stomp" is revisited, aided by the talents of Rockin' Dopsie Jr. on washboard and Anthony "Dopsie" Rubin on accordion. The highlight for me, "Dusty's Blues", was written by and features Cleveland's Big Joe Duskin, one of the pianists on that tour, on vocals along with Kevin Breit on dobro. One more tune to mention of the fourteen on this generous disc and that's "Mose", Kaeshammer's tribute to Mose Allison, again with the trio. As you can tell, a great deal of variety and wonderful keyboard work from Michael Kaeshammer. I felt he was somewhat overshadowed by all the guests last time out but he is much more the centre of attention here. Available at the major stores and visit www.kaeshammer.com.
Dean Cottrill A Moment With You VV Records VVCD7773
A few months ago I wrote about a Montreal band, RJ & The Houndogs, and mentioned the slide guitar man in that band, Dean Cottrill. He has a career of his own as well and this is his second solo album. Outside of the electric Houndogs context, he's sort of a slide playing Ray Bonneville and the album collects live and studio performances in the Montreal area. I say that because a chunk of this Toronto native's earlier history is in Edmonton. The album Handful Of Grooves was recorded there with the late Clarence "Big" Miller guesting on vocals on a big band version of the title song and Amos Garrett later did "Baby Your Feets Is Cold" from it on his Third Man In. Both of these songs get fine new versions here. His songwriting is in Bonneville's league as well with those two songs plus "Two Dollar Ears", "Play `Stairway To Heaven'" and "Wiener Water Soup" that are as good as their titles. I'm sure every musician that's ever played a bar will sympathize with "Heaven". The Houndogs rhythm section, Al Anderson and Al MacNeil supply understated but effective support on drums and bass. Samples, history and ordering info are all at vvrecords.com.
George Leach Just Where I'm At Indie
More Real Rez Blues! This is the first of I hope many albums by this talented young First Nations performer. Over a standard blues and blues-rock backing of acoustic and electric guitars, Leach provides set of fourteen strong original songs that clearly derive their strength from combining the two traditions. This is most obvious on "Indian Blues" with its very effective chant over a slide riff. While his version of "Crossroads" is a fine re-working of standard blues fare, the title song and "Young Enough" and "Sand In The Wind" all bring a fresh perspective. All the guitars are played by Leach while engineer Kat Hendrix contributed drums and percussion.
The Johnny Max Band Long Gone Train
Indie
The Johnny Max Band are Max on vocals, Kevin Higgins, guitars; Bill Keeley, bass and Eddie Dailide, drums. Kevin Higgins' name should be familiar to fans the Kendall-Wall Band, among others, and Keeley is a veteran of the David Wilcox and Morgan Davis bands. Their profile should rise quickly beyond the westend of Toronto because Max has one of the best blues voices I've heard in a long time. Paired with Higgins' highly-regarded and blessedly effects-free wizardry with the strings plus a fine rhythm section, this is a group to check out as soon as you can. The program is a mix of blues and soul songs with the highlights a rocking "Do The Do", "Jelly Roll/John The Revelator", an interesting version of "Looking Back" and the slow "Third Degree". They are hard at work on some songs of their own for the followup CD and can be reached at jmcaneney@idirect.com and check the listings for a show near you.
Michael Bloomfield If You Love These
Blues -An Oral History, by Jan Mark
Wolkin and Bill Keenom Miller Freeman Books
A book review for a change of pace. Mike
Bloomfield was an extremely influential figure in the mid to late sixties and beyond. His guitar playing was recognized even by the bluesmen he learned
from as being a huge step forward and not simply in terms of being louder. He was a huge influence on
Carlos Santana and on Robben Ford, among others. When the
Butterfield Blues Band in effect re-located to San Francisco, it was the first "professional" band many of the folkies then playing the Fillmore had ever seen and immediately raised the performing stakes for all of them. As well,
Bloomfield's connection with Bill Graham led directly to the hiring of
B.B. King, Albert King and many other then totally unknown blues performers to play the Fillmore where they found new audiences and, for
the first time, a serious payday. Bloomfield's story is told by those who were there and knew him, carefully compiled and edited from original interviews and from archival material. The project was
instigated by long-time friend, Butterfield band mate and keeper of the flame
Mark Naftalin and enthusiastically supported by members of Bloomfield's family. It is, then, an "official" biography and many of
the interviewees go to great lengths to point out that his legendary substance abuse was an on-going attempt to deal with his inner
demons (described in gruesome detail) and not simply the downfall of
a dilettante rock star. Some eighty people are heard from and most speak with total, un-edited honesty - it's hard to think of anyone of importance to the story missing here, with the exceptions of
Paul Butterfield and manager Albert
Grossman, who had both passed on before this project. It all makes for harrowing reading, especially towards the end, but the early days in Chicago,
Highway 61 and electric Dylan at Newport, Butterfield,
Electric Flag, Super Session(s) with
Al Kooper, Muddy Waters' Fathers And
Sons album, are here to live or re-live in the words of the participants and send
you running back to your record library. One new bit of information is that Bloomfield was, in effect, in charge of assembling
Janis Joplin's Kozmic Blues Band and album and is the uncredited lead
guitarist on two of the songs, says Sam
Andrews, who did get the credit. There is a CD included with the book of previously unreleased
Norman Dayron recordings of Bloomfield solo and with his first blues
band, which included Charlie Musselwhite, live at
Big John's on Chicago's North Side in 1964. Congratulations to
Jan Mark Wolkin and Bill Keenom for a job well done. Maybe now we can get
some analysis of the material from them - I'm sure they have some thoughts about Bloomfield and his life that the oral history approach prevented them from including.
- John Valenteyn, jayvee@ican.net
Toronto Blues Society Copyright _ 2001