The Blues Blog A regular round-up of new releases This week’s deliveries from the Postman explode the popular myth that the blues has somehow outrun its sell-by date with a surprisingly varied and engaging bag of new releases from emerging and established artists alike. Most exciting of these is the eponymous debut from Memphis-based Ron Franklin on the Alive label. Styling himself more generally as a singer-songwriter Franklin doesn’t slip easily into any of the established blues sub-genres. His pedigree includes excursions into garage rock as well as a brief stint with Arthur Lee, but this uncommonly successful mesh of roots styles from folk and rockabilly to swamp-rock simply screams out to be heard. Primal, edgy and entrancing, if you buy a CD this week then do yourself a favour and make it this one. That said, “Lowdown Feeling” from The Mannish Boys (Delta Groove) whilst a quite different animal runs it a close second. This is the fourth offering from the established heavyweight 10 piece revue, and following the style of the Johnny Otis Show and the Kings of Rhythm presents a panoramic spectrum of sounds from Clarksdale to Chicago, Memphis to Detroit. These are stellar players all and it shows. With the core of the band fronted by their versatile new vocalist Bobby Jones and backed by the finest of special guests they offer a breathless run-through no fewer than 17 songs, mixing brand new tunes with lesser-known standards. While consistently authentic, powerful and pleasing, there’s probably no finer moment than former Thunderbird Kid Ramos’ guitar solo on “Lowdown Feeling”. Check it. How you respond to “Iron Man”, Michael Burk’s third collection on Alligator, may depend on whether you have room in your life for another soulful blues guitar man from Arkansas complimenting his committed and emotive vocals with driving axe licks flashed from a Flying V. There’s nothing radical at work here, but it’s still a set of largely original material well executed, crisply produced and worth listening to. Against the odds he turns in an impressively fresh “Fire and Water” to top off a tidy all round effort. If David “Honeyboy” Edwards can’t claim to be the greatest of Delta Bluesmen, he’s certainly likely to be the last standing. Still performing and recording in this his 93rd year he must get full credit for keeping the flame burning longer than anyone else is ever likely to. “Roamin and Ramblin” has been lovingly and skillfully assembled by Earwig records boss and long-time collaborator Michael Frank to illustrate Honeyboy’s association with the harmonica, with enough recently-recorded self-penned numbers to fill an album on their own interspersed with earlier songs and spoken word tracks from as far back as the early forties. The man’s advancing years raise inevitable contradictions in some minds, with supporters perhaps unduly reverential and sceptics dismissing him as a museum piece. In truth there’s no need to agonise. Both new and old material reveals more than enough genuine blues character such as poetic world weariness, good heart and love of performing to ensure that the set stands on its own merits. Paul Waring (vocals/guitar) and Al Strong (lead guitar) are the nucleus of the Bad Daddys, whose self-titled release on Reversing Recording features seasoned vocals and funky guitar lines topped off by occasional sax and keyboard supplements. It’s proficient and pleasant in a BB King/Robert Cray sort of way, but feels restrained by its production budget and sometimes lacks bite. Highlights are the sultrier “Change of Heart” and “Slow Blues”, the latter in particular recalling the mellower moods of Stevie Ray Vaughan. It’s always difficult to assess the worth of tribute albums, especially when trying to weigh them against the impact of the original artist they’re meant to celebrate. A timely reissue of Bo Diddley covers on Blues Boulevard (which came too early to be posthumous exploitation) calls forward some of the cream of modern blues artists to pay homage to one of the most original and influential of them all. From the Pretty Things to Bruce Springsteen and Quicksilver Messenger Service to The Jesus and Mary Chain, Diddley’s sounds and songs have had an incalculable and formidably direct influence running right through the whole rock route-map. To the blues purists and the die-hard Bo fans the contrast between these often slick and overly guitar driven updates and the tribal rhythms of the original works will be stark and most likely unsatisfactory. However, to a younger generation of blues followers who have first learnt to love the music of Joe Louis Walker, Corey Harris, Tommy Castro, Coco Montoya et al this should be a perfectly acceptable introduction. Judged on its own merits this is an eminently likeable collection of contemporary blues sides in which some fine and familiar songs are given a fresh reading in a pleasingly different context. Neil B. www.ronfranklinmusic.com http://deltagrooveproductions.com www.alligatorrecords.com www.earwigmusic.com www.baddaddysband.com www.music-avenue.net Next