New Releases -
March 2002
Jack de Keyzer 6 String Lover Blue Star 2503
A pumped up session here from a local hero who assembled a stellar crew to play his new batch of songs: Michael Fonfara on keyboards; Tony Ajo, drums; Alec Fraser, bass (and studio expertise) and Perry White, saxes. As our cover story says, the songs here are simpler in structure so that they can be learned by others more easily. In this situation, the performance is everything and here de Keyzer and Fraser, the co-producers, have been very successful indeed. Most everything is live off the floor and has that all-important feeling of immediacy. "Soul Lover", a Stax/Hi groove, would have been a better opener for me than "Deal Me In", a B.B. King-style gambling blues, but that's a minor quibble. "Your Pleasure Is My Business" is a very strong, `50's style rocker with some incredible piano from Fonfara. A somewhat more major quibble is the attempt to cover too many stylistic bases - "The Answer", laudable lyrics notwithstanding, seems to interrupt the flow, it's Marvin Gaye-style groove is too different. "If You were My Woman (and I Was Your Man)" has my vote as the best song, a solid acoustic blues with David Rotundo guesting on harp. More good lyrics abound on "King Of The Blues", a tough blues in a Son Seals vein. A Stones-ish "Rock `Til We Drop" does exactly that, I hope they didn't have to do too many takes! It has more great piano from Fonfara. "Making Love To You" is a very nice change of pace, a soul ballad with effective backup vocals. A mid-tempo blues, "It's In the Way You Love", is up next and serves as a reminder that this CD has some of Jack's best guitar playing on CD. I would have liked to hear the "Rock This" take of "Funk This" as I'm not much of a James Brown fan. "Jump Right To It" has some nice solo-ing (from Rotundo again) but this adds to the too-many-styles problem. "Engine Trouble" is much better with some interesting variations on a well-used theme. I like "Drivin' Home" better than the song that served that purpose on the last CD. The title song is last and is just Jack on vocals and guitar, billed as a tribute to Robert Johnson. It is full of Johnson-isms and is a wonderful performance _ I hope the nice touch of using worn record noises survives repeated listening. 6 String Lover & the three previous ones can be ordered from www.jackdekeyzer.com but I'm sure he'll have lots on hand at the Dollar on March 8.
Jay Douglas and the ALL-Star Band Live In Toronto Deep Jamm
A couple of years ago, the Chuck Jackson & The All Stars CD was to be the first of Significant Sunday Series of live Toronto club recordings. Jay Douglas was on that first CD but his own never appeared as the project fell apart. The tapes were thought to be lost but a good copy is now available. Recorded in October '99 at the Phoenix and Firkin, where Douglas has a regular gig, we now have sixty-six minutes of prime R&B filtered through Douglas' Caribbean background. The players in the All-Star band are very much all aboard for this trip as well: Jason Wilson and Ronnie Wiseman on keyboards; Pete Martin, guitar; Martin Lesmond, bass; Richard I-Sax Howse, alto sax; Joshua Brown, trombone; Nick "The Brownman" Ali, trumpet and Kevin Dean, drums (these are all new names to this column). The new version of "Doo Wop Blues", "Losing Hand" and Louis Prima's "Five Months, Two Weeks, Two Days" are all the proof you'll need of their blues chops but you'll be dancing to the Island/Drifters medley of "Under The Boardwalk/Save The Last Dance For Me". More of the same follows Bob Marley's "Turn Your Lights Down Low" with a Sam Cooke medley. And then you get to the extended, spirited version of Etta James "Something's Got A Hold On Me". A couple of reggae tunes to go out and then you'll hit the repeat button! Deep Jamm Music can be reached at 3-1750 The Queensway, Unit 237, TO, M9C 5H5.
Drew Nelson Band Just Because Capon DNCD04
Ottawa's slide guitar ace Nelson returns after a seven-year break. About half this CD is very solid blues and the rest blues-based. It opens with a killer version of Jimmy Rogers' "Ludella", and later a fine original in "Razor Blade". "Hawk My Ring" sounded familiar and, sure enough, it was used on Dutch Mason's You Can't Have Everything CD, for which Dutch used the Drew Nelson Band, but this version smokes! Guy Del Villano is on keyboards, Mike Ktenas, bass and Eduardo Flores, drums and on the blues tracks, "Southside" Steve Marriner guests with his heavily-amplified harp. The final song is a very good gospel rave up, "Comin' On Home" featuring Kathy Kennedy on vocals with Nelson. You can get in touch with them at drewnelsonband@hotmail.com.
Tri Continental Live Tradition & Moderne T&M 020/Festival
Tradition & Moderne is German label that releases CD's of live performances, radio broadcasts, often from a club called Moments in Bremen. Madagascar Slim, Lester Quitzau and Bill Bourne had taken their Tri Continental tour there and we are fortunate indeed to have a double disc momento of these three in action a little over a year ago. As on the studio CD, they all play on every song with one taking the lead vocal. Their unique advantage is the rather different backgrounds they bring to the stage with Bourne's folk/blues, Quitzau's eclectic/electric blues and Slim's Malagasy blues. On the studio CD, I felt they each submerged their respective strengths to the chosen style of the leader but here they seem to have worked long enough together to make the jump to creating a more integrated blend. Bourne especially seems to have picked up a lot from Slim and his Malagasy vocal and instrumental licks. "Dance & Celebrate" and "Precious Love" are the best examples here. Not too surprisingly, most of that album is here but this is where the new contributions are most noticed. On "Honey Bee", for example, Slim gets some very nice Malagasy touches behind Quitzau's electric slide. There is much straight-ahead blues, though, for what is nominally a world music album: "Rollin' and Tumblin'" shows what this trio of guitars can do and "Worried Man", with Bourne on neck-mounted harmonica, is a treat. Quitzau's contributions, "Waiting" from the CD and new song "Heart and Soul" have plenty of room for twin electric guitars from him and Slim. "The House/Long Gone Blues" is the fourteen-minute finale goes effortlessly from Bourne's hymn to a world without borders to a blues jam with a stunning vocal. Marvelous stuff.
Storman Norman's Sunday Blues Live At the
Yale NRM003
Storman Norman (Casler) has a radio show on Rock 101 in Vancouver and before that on CFOX but he has also hosted (and blows harp at) a Sunday night jam at the Yale Hotel, the city's famed house of blues. In fact, the jam is now ten years old and has released this CD to celebrate. Incognito, Tony Robertson's Vaqueros, and Brickhouse are the bands on hand this night last June and they all back some guests as well: Gary Comeau supplies some fine Zydeco in "Home Of The Mardi Gras" with Incognito who also back rocker Jerry Doucette with an overdriven "Help Me". Ellie Johnson brings up the Vaqueros for Slim Harpo's "Tee-Ni-Nee-Ni-Nu" and then actor/bluesman Jim Byrnes serves up the slow blues "Hot As A Pistol" & ""What'd I Say". This was my first opportunity to hear Robbie King who is a Vaquero and is always mentioned as one of Vancouver's finest keyboard players - he does not disappoint. Brickhouse is last up and brings up veteran harpman Hans Stamer to sing Lead Belly's "Good Morning Blues"; they also bring up sometime Blues Brother James Belushi for "Party, Party". Powder Blues' Dave Woodward and Will MacCalder guest. This was clearly an eventful night for the Vancouver blues scene with a capacity crowd yelling for more and I'm glad it was preserved. Live At the Yale is available at www.sundayblues.com and all proceeds go to Rock 101 Cares, which supports the Broadway Youth Resource Center. Just as I sent my column in, Gary Comeau's Letters From Eve CD and Incognito Four arrived, I'll tell you about them next time.
Robin Banks Honestly LW0401
The Robin Banks Blues Band were the very proud winners of our Talent Search a few years back. Not long afterwards, Robin left for Texas and she has now sent along this CD, recorded there last year. She has made a few famous friends who were on hand to help out: Sam Myers, harp from Anson Funderburgh's band, Hash Brown, guitar & harp; Holland K. Smith, guitar; Pat Boyack, guitar; Tim Alexander, keyboards; Drew Allain, bass and Marc Wilson, drums. More importantly, this college of musical knowledge has done wonders with an already good voice. She has power to spare but now uses it sparingly, singing with much more subtlety and assurance. The fourteen songs are all originals and show remarkable progress as well. Some highlights: "The Whiskey Song", an Excello-styled grinder; the rocking, stop-time "Work It Out"; the excellent soul ballad "I'm In Love With Another Man"; "Honestly', a `50's style almost doo wop ballad; "None `A Nothin'", a slow Hopkins-styled blues (with just Sam Myers' acoustic harp and Hash Brown's electric guitar) and the Little Walter-like "Thunder and Lightnin'". But there aren't any really weak tracks. Get yours at www.robin-banks.net , which says she's nominated for best band of the year at the Dallas Music Awards. Robin, who was from the Chatham/London area, has also, along with Shawn Kellerman, dedicated her CD to Alfred Harrell, aka "Chicago Pete", whose influence was obviously far greater than those of us in Toronto realized.
Omar & The Howlers Big Delta Blind Pig BPCD 5072/Stony Plain/Warner Music
It seems difficult to believe that this is Kent "Omar" Dykes' fifteenth album - the huge-selling Hard Times In The Land Of Plenty (his second - 500, 000 copies!) doesn't seem quite that long ago. A "Greatest Hits" CD in this case is usually a good idea but one drawn from ten different labels would probably have been a licensing nightmare so what we have here is new studio recordings of the best songs. Even if Big Delta was only that it would be valuable, but with these Howlers behind him this is essentially a new album of great songs. And besides, very few readers here will have access to all fourteen albums so there will be little overlap. These Howlers are Roscoe Beck, bass; Malcolm "Papa Mali" Welbourne, guitars and either B.E. "Frosty" Smith or Terry Bozzio on drums. Omar's voice is a cross between Howling Wolf, Wolfman Jack and Captain Beefheart and when he lets loose with this bunch on good material, watch out! Listing highlights seems a bit redundant but "Monkey Land", "Low Down Dirty Blues" and "Caveman Rock" received repeated plays here. Playing the latter, though, for any radio hosts reading this, will ensure a meeting with your Program Director in the morning. Check out this band at The Dollar on March 9th and dance the night away. Go to www.omarandthehowlers.com.
Various Artists Preaching The Blues-The Music Of Mississippi Fred McDowell Telarc 83536
McDowell's 1960 Library Of Congress recordings were used in Ken Burns' Jazz to illustrate the blues at the turn of that century - so timeless and elemental was his style, a style that did indeed go back to the very roots of the blues. This tribute, part of an ongoing series it seems, has the songs but falls well short in terms of capturing his unique importance. There is, fortunately, only one attempt here to copy his style, by one Brian Stoltz, and one attempt, by Tab Benoit, that ends up copying R.L. Burnside, McDowell's best known follower. A decision not to copy the style leaves only the traditional songs McDowell used and built on and should you acquire this CD, you would have some fine performances: Paul Geremia ("Get Right Church"), Charlie Musselwhite on guitar ("61 Highway"), Sue Foley ("Frisco Line") and Steve James ("I Rolled and Tumbled") but you would still feel like burning your own CD of Fred's versions of the songs. I don't think that's the correct response to a tribute project. Special mention, though, goes to David Maxwell, whose solo piano version of "I Heard Somebody Call" beautifully evokes the gospel fervor of McDowell's work and then gradually speeds up to a boogie finale.
Also on deck for the next column:
Steven C Barr Black Cat Bone Indie
Terry B. The Blues Daddy Indie
Jody Williams Return of A Legend/Evidence
- John Valenteyn, jvalenteyn8724@rogers.com
Toronto Blues Society Copyright _ 2002