http://www.robertrandolph.net

http://www.myspace.com/robertrandolph

 

Origine du Groupe : North America
Style : Blues Soul , Alternative Rock , Funk
Sortie : 2010

Hot, young guitarists spring have sprung forth every few years for more decades than I can be bothered to count. Each generation spawns a new crop and while many are momentarily interesting, “guitar god” is a cannibalistic business and very few have much shelf life. There are exceptions and Robert Randolph has taken a bold step forward, daring to join the few and the proud.

Randolph is a unique talent as anyone who has listened to the work of his first three albums with his Family Band or his collaboration with John Medeski and the Dickinson boys of North Mississippi Allstar fame can attest. There is more to Randolph than a dazzling command of the steel guitar, or Sacred Steel as it is referred to in the Church Of God where he first learned the instrument.

There are a host of things that set Randolph apart and one of them becomes obvious in the liner notes he wrote for We Walk This Road. After completing the tour for the Colorblind album, he went in search of a producer with special ears and knowledge; someone who understood the connections of his rock and gospel roots and who would, as Randolph puts it, “help us put those things in their most compelling context.” He found that producer in T Bone Burnett.

I’ve heard people described as having “old souls.” It’s an expression I’ve never much liked but it is an effective bit of shorthand for Randolph. He is still a very young man but his musical upbringing is quite old, having learned his instrument through the traditions of his church. The crafty, versatile Burnett was able to speak Randolph’s language, having studied an impossibly vast scope of American and world musics. When artist and producer got on the same page, they brewed something special blending blues, roots, gospel, soul, and spirit into a potent, magical cocktail.

“If I Had My Way” incorporates a portion of Blind Willie Johnson’s “If I Had My Way” into an original composition Randolph co-wrote with Burnett and an assist from, Ben Harper and it is a magnificent, soaring piece of music fusing gospel and blues with folk. Randolph uses Johnson’s original as a jumping off point and actually “samples” a piece of that original and uses it to segue in and out of his own composition. The segue concept is one used throughout the record with the idea being to tie the music Randolph is making in the present with its roots. There are times these segues are effective bridges between songs but there are times when they do more to distract than connect.

Randolph’s re-imagining of Bob Dylan’s "Shot of Love" hits with the weight and force of a heavyweight’s fist. Dylan is so easy and obvious to cover that nearly everyone does it but so few capture the essence and power of his songs, settling to merely sing them "better” or “prettier.” This version takes the power of the Dylan original and amplifies and magnifies.

The beautiful “I Still Belong To Jesus” opens with more than a passing feeling of Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams.” The airy, ethereal intro gives way to a more substantive, anthemic song that not only proclaims Randolph’s devotion but also delivers a unifying message of social justice. This is another of Randolph’s achievements in the material on this record, both the songs he wrote and those he’s chosen to interpret on the record. There is a theme and a message on this record but it’s one that uplifts rather than preaches. Even John Lennon’s “I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier,” which can be delivered as scathing, anti-war screed, is a plea for peace and understanding rather than heated rhetoric in Randolph’s hands.

We Walk This Road is soul music in nearly every connotation of the word and its title is instructive. This is the kind of deep, rich, authentic music the world needs and the music contained therein should be experienced as a journey from beginning to end; he wanted his music to have context and We Walk This Road exquisitely provides that. With this album Randolph has made a record worthy of his immense gift and that is cause for celebration and repeated listens.

by Josh Hathaway
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Tracklist :
01.Segue 1 (0:25)
02.Traveling Shoes (3:48)
03.Segue 2 (0:10)
04.Back To The Wall (3:31)
05. Shot Of Love (5:36)
06.I Still Belong To Jesus (6:02)
07.Segue 3 (0:27)
08.If I Had My Way (5:35)
09.Segue 4 (0:22)
10.Don't Change (4:47)
11.I Don't Wanna Be A Soldier Mama (5:50)
12.Walk Don't Walk (4:06)
13.Segue 5 (0:20)
14.Dry Bones (3:42)
15.Segue 6 (0:17)
16.I'm Not Listening (5:03)
17.Salvation (5:59)

 

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http://www.little-axe.com

http://www.myspace.com/littleaxesound

Origine du Groupe : North America

Style : Blues , Alternative , Soul

Sortie : 2010

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http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Belafonte
Origine du Groupe : North America
Style : Jazz , Soul , Blues
Sortie : 1958

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Note :

http://www.themannishboys.com

Origine du Groupe : North America
Style : Blues Soul , Blues Rock , Delta Blues
Sortie : 2010

The fifth album from the all-star blues collective, The Mannish Boys, once again reaches the high standards we have come to expect from Randy Chortkoff’s California-based Delta Groove and Eclecto Groove labels, indeed he formed Delta Groove as a vehicle to put out music by The Mannish Boys – whilst keeping to the pure roots values of the music, performed by a group of musicians in the top division of the blues.

The core of the band on “Shake For Me” comprises Finis Tasby, Bobby Jones, Kirk Fletcher, Frank Goldwasser and  Chortkoff himself, with a new rhythm section in the shape of Willie J. Campbell (bass) and Jimi Bott (drums). The guest list here is truly mouthwatering, most from the Delta Groove roster, and, deep breath required, are . . . Rod Piazza, Johnny Dyer, Mitch Kashmar, Lynwood Slim, Arthur Adams, Kid Ramos, Nick Curran, Mike Zito, Fred Kaplan, Rob Rio, Andy Kaulkin, and European representation in the shape of The Backbones frontman, singer and harmonica player, Pieter ‘Big Pete’ van der Pluijm . . . phew!

The music itself, over a generous 16 tracks, is a joy from the opening guitar salvo from Nick Curran on “Too Tired” to the closing “Way Down South”, a song from the late Lester Butler of The Red Devils, admirably covered by Big Pete. Most of the vocals are taken by the ‘elder statesmen’ Finis Tasby and Bobby Jones, with Johnny Dyer pitching in as well.

As mentioned, the album gets off to a rollicking start with a rousing “Too Tired”, highlighting Finis Tasby’s great voice and the sparkling guitar work of Nick Curran. Fast-rising Mike Zito shares the vocals and guitar duties on a medley of “Mona” and “Willie And The Hand Jive” leading into a sublime take on Lowell Fulson’s classic “Reconsider Baby” – with just a great feel and groove, and another Tasby vocal and Fred Kaplan’s tinkling ivories.

Two personal favourites feature just duos – the Jimmy Oden / Otis Spann tune “Half Ain’t Been Told”, with just Bobby Jones impassioned vocal and the piano of Rob Rio, emulating the Otis Spann lines; and the kick-ass “Number 9 Train”, with some plain dirty downhome guitar tones from Frank Goldwasser, who takes the vocal, and Jimi Bott’s driving drums – superb stuff indeed. West Coast harmonica legend Rod Piazza is on top form on a classy “Last Night”, one of the best known Little Walter songs.

The horns of David ‘Woody’ Woodford and Lee Thornburg swing on Ray Charles “Hey Now”, another sterling Bobby Jones vocal here and more piano magic from Fred Kaplan and killer guitar solo from Kirk Fletcher. Nick Curran and Fletcher tear it up on the swinging instrumental “The Bullet”, with the two guitarists sharing the solos with Kaplan, and it’s driven along by the top notch rhythm section of Willie J. Campbell and Jimi Bott.

The pace is taken down on the long, rambling slow blues, penned by Randy Chortkoff, and featuring his own harmonica and some dynamite chromatic work from Lynwood Slim; Arthur Adams dominates his own “Raunchy”, taking the lead vocal and two guitar solos on this funky blues, leading into the Muddy Waters classic “Champagne & Reefer” – another harmonica ace, Mitch Kashmar, impressing here, with Johnny Dyer sound authentically Muddy-like on the vocal.

This cracking release ends in fine style with Holland’s own Pieter ‘Big Pete’ van der Pluijm doffing his cap to his hero Lester Butler on “Way Down South” – his big voice and harmonica ably assisted by Kid Ramos’s customary brilliant guitar and Andy Kaulkin’s piano. Hopefully we’ll hear more of him on the next album!

As ever with Delta Groove / Eclecto Groove releases, this fairly burst out of the speakers – a beautiful sounding album as ever, with Jeff Scott Fleenor handling production duties on his own for the first time, well done to him! I would love to see this project hit our shores, come on festival promoters, get to it for next year!

by GRAHAME RHODES
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Tracklist :
01. Too Tired
02. Mona/Willie and the Hand Jive
03. Reconsider Baby
04. Educated Ways
05. Half Ain't Been Told
06. Number 9 Train
07. Last Night
08. Hey Now
09. You Can't Be Beat
10. Black Nights
11. The Bullet
12. Those Worries
13. Raunchy
14. Champagne & Reefer
15. You've Got Bad Intentions
16. Way Down South

Note : ++

http://andreadbluesband.com

http://www.myspace.com/andreadbluesband

This album is a collaboration between Tom the songwriter and Andrea the singer. Tom had written some songs he wanted recorded and Andrea was ready to put out her first CD. We used some of the best musicians and studio for this recording. Andrea's slogan is from "Downhome Blues to Uptown Jazz". To please the most of her fans we recorded this "Uptown Blues" CD. This CD has a wide variety of types of Blues. The CD contains shuffle, soul, jazz, swing among other in fluences. It even has a "New Orleans Funeral March" Blues

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Origine du Groupe : North America
Style : Soul Blues , Jazz
Sortie : 2010

Tracklist :
01. Watch Me Burn
02. Fool For You
03. Dead Love
04. Laugh At the Blues
05. Dark Days
06. Another You
07. Less Left of Me
08. Wish You Were Here
09. Not Much
10. Memory To Me