The Blues Blog (11) A regular round-up of new releases During the twelve months in which the Blog has been making its regular appearance it has been particularly appreciative of that small group of independent labels throughout Europe and the US which do such sterling work in nurturing and promoting the best of what the current blues world has to offer. We have, for example, singled out the estimable Delta Groove for its funky catalogue of high quality releases by otherwise overlooked artists including The Mannish Boys and Los Fabulocos, and the pioneering Ruf Records for their championing of fine young talent such as Oli Brown and Joanne Shaw Taylor. Whilst to date our praise for the Dutch based Blues Boulevard imprint has been largely due to its welcome re-issues of recent classic albums by Double Trouble, the North Mississippi Allstars and others, this month we are pleased to bring to your attention its current catalogue of brand new recordings by some seasoned old troopers. Alvin Jett may be an unknown quantity to UK listeners, but he has performed as a singer/guitarist in his native St Louis for twenty five years. The four piece Phat Noize Band pool their individual influences and backgrounds (bass player Matt Davis for example toured with jazz vocalist Erin Bode, drummer Corey Woodruff has a background in funk, and sax man Frank Banner has distinct Maceo Parker leanings) to provide R & B, soul, and rock backdrops behind Jett’s seasoned vocals. Key tracks on new album Honey Bowl include “Lay My Burden Do”, “Graveyard Shift” and “Runnin’ Like a Dig”, but look out for the three plucky but highly effective instrumentals “Lucky Charm”, “Dem Haters” and “You Me and Cydnee” which, spaced throughout the running order give the real picture of what the quartet is capable of. Lay My Demons Down, the first pairing of guitarist/vocalist Tommy McCoy and Hammond B3 player Lucky Peterson is a democratic affair which allows both principals space to make their respective marks. McCoy is a veteran of the Southern Blues Rock scene with connections to the Allmans, The Band, Johnny Winter and others, and whose debut release “Triple Trouble” (recently re-issued on Blues Boulevard) featured an illustrious cast including Chris Leyton and Tommy Shannon; Peterson is a keyboard wizard of some renown. While the mostly original songs address largely traditional themes (murder, magic, misery and music) it’s a near flawless compendium which showcases their respective talents in a display of energy and passion combined with relaxed maturity. The disc hits its stride immediately with the jaunty homage “Blues Thing” segueing into the 7 minute 29 seconds of smoulder which is “Bitter Soul to Heal” and on to the acoustic menace of “They Killed That Man”, and rarely draws breath from there. The duo are a first rate match and this deserves to be the first collection of many. Also hitting the ground running is Unbroken from the excellent Sweet Suzi and the Blues Experience. They don’t come with the snappiest of names and Suzi doesn’t look like the sort of woman you’d want issue with, so its something of a relief to find that they’re a tight, disciplined outfit, packed full of sound (including highly effective sax and keyboards), topped off by a voice so massive that even justified comparisons with say, Koko Taylor or Etta James can’t substitute for actually hearing it. The couple of numbers written by the band themselves are nothing to be ashamed of, but their real forte is in interpretation of songs by Son Seals (“Bad Axe”), Billy Holliday (“God Bless The Child”) and Robbie Robertson (“The Weight”), where they select with care and deliver with conviction. All the ingredients are here – pulsing rhythm section, honking and wailing horns, soaring guitar lines, and a singer who can seriously weep and roar. They hail from Long Island where Howie Haber, the VP of the Downstate NY Blues Association has hailed them as a “blues hurricane”; but one that you’ll probably want to be blown away by. Born Robert Sullivan in 1963, Texas Slim has been a feature of the Dallas-Fort Worth circuit for over thirty years. Having played among the likes of Kim Simmonds, Coco Montoya and Sonny Rhodes and opened for Johnny Winter and Bobby “Blue” Bland it’s not surprising to find him playing in a predominant Texan style, best exemplified by the hard-rocking title track “Driving Blues”, “De Ville” and “Country Home”. It’s a competent performance, and although his home-penned lyrics are predictable even by modern blues standards the overall should be enough to stir up interest in his solo tour of Europe later this year. Hailing from Atlanta, Georgia and taking their cue from Ry Cooder, the Allman Brothers and Little Feat, Delta Moon draw on the talents of their twin slide guitarists Tom Gray (lap steel) and Mark Johnson (bottleneck) to produce a swaying, swirling and swampy sound that will appeal to those admirers of Lynyrd Skynyrd and the Rolling Stones whose tastes sometimes stray into a purer blues direction. There’s a contemporary feel in there too with dense, relentless rhythms and thoughtful intelligent words which, alongside the inclusion of “Shake ‘em on Down” and “Goin Down South”, invoke Mississippi influences such as Fred McDowell and RL Burnside, not to mention a touch of the Black Keys. Highlights abound, but “Life’s a Song”, “I’m a Witness” and “Midnight Train” might be worth checking out if you’re considering a purchase. Staying in rock country but cranking up a gear or two, it’s something of a welcome surprise to find Rufus Huff being given a home on a label such as this. The blues always claims to be a broad church, but the open contempt some purists have for its wayward metal cousin is somewhat disappointing. Whilst taking their name from two obscure bluesmen (Whistlin’ Rufus and Luthor Huff), this eponymous debut is a seriously heavy departure in a very seventies way; nonetheless, recorded live in the studio it arrives with a defiant and immediate edge. The South Central Kentucky band pay considered respect to Cream, Mountain and The Jeff Beck Group in particular with driving, relentless, psychedelic renditions of “Good Mornin’ Little Schoolgirl”, “I Ain’t Superstitious” and equally thunderous material of their own. Emerging four years ago from a series of impromptu jam sessions they choose to end this first outing the way they came in with the aptly entitled “Funky Junk”, a full-on wig out with distortion, feedback and a commendable avalanche of sonic mayhem, perhaps bringing a touch of tinnitus to the party but shaking away the cobwebs at the same time. Neil B. www.music-avenue.net Next