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July
2007
Dawn Tyler Watson & Paul Des Lauriers
en duo Justin Time/Fusion
It seems odd to me that this is just Dawn Tyler Watson's second full length CD so far. But I guess that's the blues. Her singing here, with just DesLauriers' guitars and occasional duet vocal, clearly shows a talent that should be far more recognized. Her touring schedule certainly reflects it: opening for Koko Taylor with DesLauriers and as part of the Maple Blues Revue with John Mays & Chuck Jackson at the Festival International de Blues de Tremblant. There is also a stop at the Cisco Systems Ottawa Bluesfest and the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal. With songs here by Bruce Cockburn ("Mama Just Wants to Barrelhouse"), The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Smokey Robinson, Paul Simon & Steve Earle, you couldn't want a more comprehensive survey of her range. Her blues are the best, though, with her own saga of alcohol abuse, "Boozin'" leading the way, including her solo on mouth trombone. Her take on Stevie Ray Vaughan's hit, "Cold Shot" is close behind. The standard "Trouble in Mind", done as a country blues duet, is another delight. Patti Griffin's "Wiggley Fingers" is a revelation, she's a New England singer/songwriter who would surely approve of this bluesy, ballsy version. The a capella "Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child" provides a fitting conclusion.
Johnny Max Band A Lesson I've
Learned Pour Soul
With his various projects and his radio show (on commercial radio!), Johnny Max has become a mainstay of the west end blues scene. This CD shows why. This is the quintet band, with Max on vocals, Martin Alex Aucoin on keys, Teddy Leonard on guitars, Garth Vogan on bass and Duncan McBain on drums. The material is a delightful mix of blues and R&B, just like his show. We get a couple of blues before we get to the R&B and the title song. The original songs are by Martin Alex Aucoin and Johnny Max and I hope they keep the partnership going. Aucoin's own CD is reviewed further down but his contribution here shows a thorough knowledge of blues and R&B forms. Max's lyrics, especially about is own part of town are unmatched anywhere. "Banks of the Credit (The Mississauga Delta)" is all the evidence I need. His singing now shows a remarkable resemblance to that of Watermelon Slim and on some songs may well be better! "(You're) A Lesson I've Learned" deserves to be the title of this one. It's classic R&B, the kind you would've cranked up the car radio each time it came on (and I hope you do that still). You may have thought that songs like this weren't written anymore. The new arrangement of Don Covay's "Have Mercy" will make you sit up and take notice too. "Going Down Standing Up", credited to Aucoin, is another stunner, with some amazing guitar work from Teddy Leonard. Get this one soon. www.johnnymaxband.com gives you several options and it'll fill you in on some of his other projects too.
Russell Jackson Have Mercy
Vancouver's Jackson, a B.B. King
Orchestra alumnus and one of our finest bass players, is coming our way this month with
an ambitious new album to show off. The Toronto stops so far include Healey's Roadhouse on
the 19th and The Brickyard on the
21st. Most of the
songs he'll debut are original and they are excellent. A large
group participated in the sessions led by Kenny "Blues Boss"
Wayne (his current employer) is on piano and
two friends from The Twisters who play large roles:
Dave Hoerl on harp and Brandon
Isaacs on guitar. Theo Brown is on drums and
Johnny Ferriera leads the horn section.
"Have Mercy (For The Blues)" opens the program and it's an uptempo
comment on the state of the blues. It may not become quite the anthem that
"The Blues is Alright" became but it's a
close call. The party continues with "Dancin' Shoes" which you had
better have on. Oran "Hot Lips"
Page's "Show Me The Door" is one of
the not-so-well-known non-originals and it too keeps the party going. Another
one of the covers is Arthur Gunter's "Workin' With My Baby", a slow
blues highlight. "Howlin' At The Moon" is
a stunning original, not the Ellen
McIlwaine song, in Albert King's "I'll Play The Blues For You"
mode that should become an instant classic. "Becoming The Blues" is
another strong original, built on a Robert
Stephan slide guitar solo. Freddie King's "Hideaway" is the title of
the long, improvised piece that concludes the CD but it opens and closes with
a muscular multi-tracked bass solo that incorporates "America the
Beautiful" and "O Canada". I wonder if
they'll play it in the show _ but you'll know that because that's probably the
best place to get the CD anyway.
Perpetrators Towtruck Perps/Festival
More mayhem from Winnipeg! They're on their way to the Silver Dollar on August 4th with a new CD and if you liked the previous ones, you're in for a treat. J. Nowicki, Chris Bauer and Ryan Menard usually play guitar, drums and bass respectively, but trade instruments when the spirit moves them. The best songs have a Hound Dog Taylor roughness and energy that I hope they never lose. "Call Me" is the most obvious example here with Nowicki's slide channeling the Dog. "Movin' Right Along" is pretty close too. "Josco" is a very good country drinking song with the best rhyme of the column: `I ain't perpetratin' so I'll go celebratin''. Grant Siemens from the Corb Lund Band guests on lap steel. "You're Gonna Kill Me" has a Sex Pistols sound to it but there are some acoustic songs here as well. "Tow Truck" and a couple of short snippets show they're learning lots about recording studio technology, I hope they remember that Hound Dog had no use for any of that stuff. See you at the Dollar!
Martin Alex Aucoin So Far
A sideman steps out. Or at least a sideman in blues circles. Aucoin
has played keyboards on numerous releases, most recently with
Johnny Max and Jack de Keyzer but he gigs
regularly as a solo act and it's this jazzier side
that's featured here, starting off the set with some lovely
Mose Allison-style vocals. The songs are all
original and they show a serious talent at work. His vocals work best on
the jazz numbers but he has clearly absorbed other influences.
"Running For Cover" and "4 Letter Word"
are solid R&B efforts that seem to cry out for a stronger vocal than he
can deliver. I hope someone obliges because they're definitely worth
it (Mr. Max, perhaps?). A quartet backs him here, trumpet, sax/flute, bass
& drums and if your tastes run to the jazz side, you'll enjoy this one.
The self-named web site listed does not work, at least not for me, but
you should check out the listings page and get one directly from him.
The Undesirables Doghouse Dreams
Last year's Talent Search winners have a new one as well. Corin Raymond and Sean Cotton tell stories in song, describing their act as folk-theatre. They draw on various types of music to back these tales, with Raymond writing & singing and Cotton adding guitar & harmony vocals. They describe Doghouse Dreams as songs about people on the outside looking in. It can be a blues concept for sure and several songs very nicely. Perhaps the title comes from the song in which the rejected suitor sings `Its midnight and I'm the dog you forgot to let in'. It's followed by "The Bus Stop Walk" _ a dance song about missing the bus while walking to the next stop. "Look Out Jack" is warning for someone trying to move in on his girl. Drums are added occasionally although they are uncredited on my advance copy. www.undesirables.com has their performance schedule and they're well worth checking out.
Grand River Blues Got Mojo Grand River Blues Society
There are sixteen topflight acts represented here from the area served by this hard working Blues Society based in Kitchener-Waterloo. You can guess some of them already, I'm sure, and they are represented by excellent choices from their CDs. Shawn Kellerman, Miss Angel, Mel Brown, Pappy Johns Band and Cheryl Lescom have all been reviewed here so I'll concentrate on a few that are new to me. Charity Brown does a nice soul blues, "No Talk Talkin'" and The Doug Watson R&B Revue "Trouble All Around Me". Mike MacDonald moved to the area some years ago but continued to run a jam at Grossman's. His "Don't Want to Catch You" is another highlight. Max Bent and Mo' Kauffey contribute some sterling original acoustic blues. Go to www.grandriverblues.org and help another Blues Society.
Muddy Waters, Johnny Winter & James
Cotton Breakin'
It Up, Breakin' It Down Sony/Legacy
This release seems to be getting no publicity and that's a shame. Muddy's Hard Again album was universally acclaimed as a magnificent comeback. Winter made him sound young again and he attracted a whole new audience. They went on tour to support it and three shows were recorded. The tour, it seems, was chaotic and the tapes were too. Only four songs were released, three on Muddy Mississippi Waters Live, and one on Winter's Nothing But The Blues. Muddy's Live album was fleshed out with a Chicago area club date that was later included in its entirety on the Deluxe Edition. Bob Margolin persevered however and finally convinced Sony to put a good engineer to work. Al Quaglieri deserves his own Grammy because the music sounds fantastic. Eleven more songs are presented here, with perhaps Muddy's best recording of his classic "Can't Be Satisfied" leading the way (Winter is on slide). This CD is presented not as a Muddy Waters album but as a revue: Winter takes the vocal on "Black Cat Bone/Dust My Broom" and several others. Cotton steps up for "Rocket 88" and "How Long Can A Fool Go Wrong". It's good to hear Cotton sing! He also duets with Winter on "Dealin' With The Devil". Muddy & Pinetop Perkins reprise "Caledonia" from The Woodstock Album. It ends with the inevitable "Mojo Workin'" but it is joyous from beginning to end. Winter's Nothing But The Blues would be recorded in the studio shortly after with the same band and there was also a quick trip to Los Angeles to take part in The Band's Last Waltz. You should have all these albums because they provide a most fitting representation of the twilight to Muddy's illustrious career.
- John Valenteyn, jvalenteyn8724@rogers.com
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