March
2004
Michael Kaeshammer Strut Alma ACD14272/Universal
The big news, in addition to a JUNO Contemporary Jazz Album nomination, is that Mr. Kaeshammer's CD will get national distribution through Universal Music. Now a resident here after a lengthy sojourn on the West Coast,
Strut finds this German-born boogie meister moving further into jazz. Two of these songs, "Now?" with its brilliant percussion work from
Brian Barlow, and "Soundtrack to Something Beautiful" with
Kevin Breit as
'mad man' & guitarist, really stand out from the more
mainstream-sounding piano trio material. He has not left his roots behind, however, and
Albert Ammons' "Bass Gone Crazy",
Professor Longhair's version of "Cry To Me" and
Teddy Wilson & Fats Waller's "Sunny Morning" make for a varied listening
experience. Johnny Vidacovich and Ben
Wolfe are on drums & bass here and Kaeshammer's piano work is most assured on all these styles. I wonder how long he can maintain this kind of stylistic diversity.
The fact that this blues man stays so little known is a mystery to me. This album once again has excellent songs and strong performances of them. Players like
P.J. Perry on alto and Ron Casat on keys might be names known to you but among the
other players they fit like a glove, so ably and anonymously does this large cast of Calgary musicians support Mr. Johnson. If you know him it all, it's as a drummer and he does play drums on about half the songs. He's on keyboards or only on vocals for the
others and there's even an excellent slows blues on that theme: "No Guitar Blues". "Thrilling You Killing Me" is another smoldering original with one
John Mills on lead guitar and Johnny V returns for a worthy new version of "It Ain't Easy Being Blue",
from Johnson's first CD. There are more uptempo songs like "Slow Down Baby" and some contemporary R&B like "Rocking in the Same Old Boat" and "Here To Stay" with his keyboard providing the requisite contemporary sounds. Johnson recently toured
behind Maurice John Vaughan with B.J.
Emery on trombone and Russel Jackson on bass. This band's fine version of
Muddy Waters' "Too Young Too Know" with Johnson on vocals, recorded live at Blues on Whyte in Edmonton, closes out a wonderful
album. Strongly recommended.
David Gogo Live at Deer Lake Cordova Bay CBR-0292
Sub-titled Official Bootleg Series Volume
1, this CD began life as a radio broadcast for
Storman Norman's late, lamented blues show on Vancouver's Rock 101. The first eight songs are from the 2002 Burnaby Blues Festival with
Brendan Hedley on keys, Steve
Knelson on drums and Jay Stevens on bass & vocals behind the Maple Blues award-winning singer/guitarist. The songs are drawn from his earlier CD's but with new arrangements that reflect constant performance and sometimes the
first efforts at incorporating a new studio recording into the live show. In this case they had just recorded the
Skeleton Key CD and "(Just Ask) Jesse James/Skeleton Key" is the new addition to the set. "Sweet Little Angel", from a Dutch show, and a version
of "Sad & Beautiful" from a show in Austin, TX are bonuses to the disc and while not as well recorded as the main show, they are good to have. A good representation then of a David Gogo show for fans of rocking blues.
Solomon is a native of East Africa and as is pointed out in this CD's notes, the guitar playing style there is circular, not linear as in most blues. Solomon's stated purpose here is to overcome that difficulty and "return the blues to Africa". I think that
for the most part that he is succeeding. I have always found it hard to identify with African attempts at playing blues but Solomon's efforts at providing a bridge are a huge step in the right direction. Part of this is due to his effortless movement in and out of
African and western styles and part is due to the fact that it is just him on guitar and vocals. Other musicians may well have difficulty following him. "The farmer's Blues" and "Baby Show Me You Care" are the two best examples here but if you just want to sit
back and listen you will find that effortless too. Perhaps you will know more after the guitar workshop. You'll be able to get the CD there or at Sam the Record Man. You can contact him at
prof_tikisa@hotmail.com.
Various Artists Lift Lock City
Music Riverside RS2003 001
A twenty-song compilation of songs by artists in the Peterborough area once again shows how much talent there is in a given region these days. This collection spans pretty much every genre except classical and the performance standards are
very high throughout. It's a bit jarring to go from the hard core punk of
The Diplomats to the folk sounds of James
McKenty but that's what Paul Northcott wanted to accomplish with this project: spotlight the artists working there. Among the highlights
are: Joe Hall's "Middle Aged Guys with Guitars",
Washboard Hank's "Washboard Boogie" and some jazzy blues from
Uncle Jim, "Don't Tailgate Me".
Kevin Carley & the Handsome Liars turn in a fine blues, "Dog to a Dirty Bone". It would appear
that most if not all of these songs are from existing albums, so this would be a great way to sample twenty of them! Go to
www.liftlockcitymusic.com
for ordering.
Gene Hardy Blow! Blow! Blow!
A multiple Maple Blues Awards nominee as horn player of the year and a first call tenor man for many of the CD's reviewed here, Gene Hardy has a disc of his own that he wants you to know about. He does play regularly in two bands,
The Big Band Trio and Sparkjiver, with three songs here overlapping the Sparkjiver CD,
Funky Bluesy Jazzy Churchy. As a celebration of the tenor sax this is an excellent place to start.
Bill Doggett's "Honky Tonk Pt. 2" makes for a roaring opener and it's
followed by Lester Young's "Lester Leaps In" for quite the one-two punch. His chops on the smokey ballad are on display next behind a
Laura Hubert vocal on "Sweet Lotus Blossom". Ms. Hubert also does the honours on the
Patsy Cline song, "Down In
Dallas" and Buddy Johnson's "Since I Fell For You". The golden age of R&B is also represented by "Harlem Nocturne" but the rockers aren't left behind either with a knockout version of
Lonnie Mack's "Wham!" with Danny
Marks & Jono Grant on guitars. The Hardy originals here are the Sparkjiver instrumentals, with
Rod Philips on organ and Jim Casson on drums. "Quay Waltz", "Geep's Blues" and the Big Band Trio song "Cleanin' Out the Attic" all feature some fine blowing. Get it at one of his
gigs or check it out at www.genehardy.com. You can also get his CD entitled
Musical Saw Encounters there.
Mike Clark Saxman MCSax 2002
Back to Calgary for a saxman who has not yet made the Maple Blues Awards nominations list but who on the strength of this outing certainly belongs there. Many of the same players for Donald Ray Johnson are present with
Amos Garrett joining Johnny V among the guitarists. There are the nods to the golden age of tenor playing with
Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson's "Kidney Stew" and
Ivory Joe Hunter's "Since I Met You Baby" but his own songwriting deserves special mention. "Saxman" is a
clever pastiche of sax quotes built on Johnny
Otis' "Willie and the Hand Jive" riff but even better is the rockabilly "Huggy Drunk", a song about a fellow many a regular nightclubber will recognize immediately. "Old Black Dog" is a low down slide guitar
blues (with Steve Pineo doing the honours, I think) that almost cries out for a section of baritone saxes but gets no horns at all. "God Blind Me" would not be out of place on a
Downchild album. Contact Mike at
mikesax@telusplanet.net.
Jesse Mae Hemphill Get Right
Blues Inside Sounds ISC-0519
Dr. David Evans, at Memphis State U., established High Water Records to record living blues performers. One of the most important of his discoveries was Ms. Hemphill, whose grandfather,
Sid, was recorded by the Lomaxes in the `40's. Her
aunt, Rosa Lee, was recorded by them in the fifties. Jesse Mae mostly played privately until the late `70's when she met Dr. Evans. There was a famous High Water LP,
Feelin' Good, and a couple of 45's. The CD reissue of that LP had only one the 45's added,
leaving one to wonder what else there was. Well, wonder no more. The fifteen songs here are all from that period and none have been previously available. Her traditional Mississippi Hill Country guitar playing is based in the local fife and drum style with a
tambourine on her foot for rhythm and that style is featured on several tracks. On some songs, more instruments are on hand, Dr. Evans on guitar on two. On one song, "Take Me Home With You, Baby" there are less: she accompanies herself on a diddley bow or
homemade one string guitar. Some are field recordings with other musicians whose styles had not changed for decades. There are also songs from a few years later that she composed herself, in a conscious attempt to modernize her sound and two of them are
with members of the Fieldstones, the closest she came to performing with a band. Hemphill has not played for more than ten years after a severe stroke. Let's hope some benefits of this issue come to her. If you can't find this, go to
www.insidesounds.com.
Lockwood is the only known student of Robert
Johnson, getting lessons when Johnson dropped by to visit his mother. Lockwood's claim to the word `legend' rests on far more than that, though. He was
Rice Miller's accompanist for King Biscuit
Time and later the session guitarist on many of the Chess records you and I love so much. With the demise of Chess and the recording work that went with it, Lockwood largely fell from sight. There were occasional albums, some with his fine band in
Cleveland, but fans were far more interested in asking about Johnson than about his interest in jazz. Gradually, though, he has come to terms with this issue, even re-recording Johnson songs. This set finds him even more comfortably secure as a performing Delta
bluesman. With just his electric twelve-string he re-works a dozen blues standards as only a veteran of 88 years of living can. His playing and singing are in no way impaired and don't be put off by the familiarity of the titles- they come to life again here. Get this album.
- John Valenteyn,
jvalenteyn8724@rogers.com
Donald Ray Johnson Pure Pleasure MarVista MV5
Adam Solomon African Renaissance
Blues Indie
Robert Lockwood Jr. The Legend
Live M.C. MC-0061
Toronto Blues Society Copyright _ 2004