Last nights STAR BLUES had tracks from the new albums from Guy Davis, James Cotton, Hans Theesink, Beth Hart & Joe Bonamassa, Larry Miller and Steve Hooker. Hans has a gentle understated vocal style and is a strong advocate of all forms of roots music, "Wishing Well" is a fine addition to his canon. Guy Davis reworks the "Statesboro Blues" motif in a new way that is neither Blind Willie McTell nor Duane Allman. Beth Hart as been joined by Joe Bonamassa again to show-off her amazing vocal chops: we chose a Randy Weeks composition first done by Lucinda Williams on here "Car Wheels on a Gravel Road" album. nice accordion playing set it off. Steve Hooker's music can't easily be categorised, the instrumental "Wicked Blues" is probably the closest to blues on his new album "Smokin' Guitar". He's also in Linton, Cambridge on 18th.
As for James Cotton, the blues purists will note the rock arrangements on a couple of tracks on his new album "Cotton Mouth Man" - however James is on good form throughout, he continues to astound with his supple technique and in a few weeks he'll be 78.
Plenty of other instrumental prowess on offer from two sizes of Walter: the smaller one cut loose on the instrumental "Off the Wall" and the big one was part of a stellar lineup backing Floyd Jones in 1966 for a session at Testament. (Otis Spann and Eddie Taylor to name but two of the other players). The earliest work from Little Johnny Christian and Kid Thomas were featured in our Vinyl Hour; as was T-Bone Walker taking a Vacation for the Black & White label in 1946. Electric blues guitar never gets better than T-Bone Walker and his effortless playing meant he never played one note too few, nor ever one too many. Albert Collins was another man whose solos were finely placed and his "Fake Id" was our third instrumental last night. Christian's song first came out on the Leric label, the brainchild of the already much missed Jimmy Dawkins.
We didn't forget the ladies, the "Bad Bad Girl" collection gave us Julia Lee and Ella Mae Morse whose rolling piano backing from Freddie Slack qualified here for the piano spot. Denise LaSalle broke through from the start of the genre we now call "soul-blues", her "man Size Job" has been covered dozens of times though never with the same brio as her original on Westbound - all the sides she did for them are out now on a Kent cd. There's also a double disc survey of Johnny Copeland's "Texas Soul" period - the more I hear the more I realise how much we miss him, both in vocal and guitar departments. Ollie Nightingale was over in the gospel tent and we found a place for Robert Johnson's Vocalion debut from 1936. STAR BLUES also had one of the very first recordings "Down On The Farm" from 1958 by Big Al Downing - no-one told the Billboard judging committee in 1974 when they gave him a best new comer award.
Then in a trice we were done, that vinyl hour goes so quickly I'm planning a whole show in the very near future. Until next Sunday at 10pm (BST) you were magnificent and i was Gary Blue: take care of yourselves and take care of those that take care of you
Track.Title | Track.ArtistSort | Index | Album.Title | Album.ArtistSort | Label |
Lake City, Fla | Jay Owens | 5 | The Blues Soul Of | Jay Owens | INDIGO |
Fake I.D. | Albert Collins | 9 | Cold Snap | Albert Collins | Alligator |
I Pity The Fool | Luther 'Guitar Junior' Johnson | 9 | From Matrimony To Alimony: Blues For Good Love Gone Bad | Various Artists | TELARC |
Wicked Blues (No Filter) | Steve Hooker | 8 | Smokin' Guitar | Steve Hooker | PUmphouse Records |
outlaw blues | larry miller | 2-1 | live and outlawed | larry miller | provogue |
Statesboro Blues | Guy Davis | 13 | Juba Dance | Guy Davis (Featuring Fabrizio Poggi) | Dixiefrog |
Make Me Down A Pallet On Your Floor | Hans Theessink | 6 | Wishing Well | Hans Theessink | BLUE GROOVE |
Every Night In The Week | Mike Sanchez And His BandImelda May | 7 | Almost Grown | Mike Sanchez And His BandImelda May | DOOPIN |
Mad Man | Byther Smith | 4 | I'm A Mad Man | Byther Smith | Rounder Records Manufactured and Distributed By Co |
Hard Sometimes | James Cotton feat. Delbert McClinton | 8 | Cotton Mouth Man | James Cotton | Alligator Records & Artist Management, Inc. |
Can't Let Go | Beth Hart And Joe Bonamassa | 5 | See Saw | Beth Hart And Joe Bonamassa | PROVOGUE |
man size job | denise lasalle | 7 | making a good thing better | denise lasalle | kent |
something up your sleeve | johnny clyde copeland | 1-14 | it's me - classic texas soul | johnny copeland | kent |
Baby Let's Play House | Arthur Gunter | 14 | The Real Excello R'n'b | Various Artists | ACE |
Baby Please Set A Date | Elmore James | 12 | Dust My Broom | Elmore James | ORBIS BLUES COLLECTION |
Baby Lee | John Lee Hooker | 10 | John Lee Hooker | John Lee Hooker | EUK |
smokestack lightnin | Howlin' Wolf | 1 | woke up this mornin | Various Artists | CHESS |
King Size Papa | Julia Lee | 6 | I'm A Bad Bad Girl | Various Artists | INDIGO |
house of blue lights | ella mae morse | 23 | I'm A Bad Bad Girl | Various Artists | INDIGO |
living for my jesus | ollie and the nightingales | 2-3 | gospel celebrities | Various Artists | fantastic voyage |
Vacation Blues | T-Bone Walker | 22 | The Complete Capitol/Black And White Recordings | T-Bone Walker | Capitol |
Kind Hearted Woman Blues | Robert Johnson | 10 | Martin Scorsese Presents The Blues [Robert Johnson] | Robert Johnson | Columbia Legacy |
Off The Wall | Little Walter (Aka Marion Walter Jacobs) | 14 | An Introduction To | Little Walter (Aka Marion Walter Jacobs) | PROPER |
New Life | Little Johnny Christian | 1 | Jimmy Dawkins Presents: The Leric Story | Various Artists | DELMARK |
You're Fine | Kid Thomas | 4 | Chicago Blues From Federal Records | Various Artists | ACE |
Stockyard Blues | Floyd JonesEddie Taylor | 3 | Masters Of Modern Blues | Floyd JonesEddie Taylor | Shout |
Down On The Farm | Big Al Downing | 2 | Honky Tonk Charlie Gillett's Radio Picks | Various Artists | ACE |
suzie q | dale hawkins | 12 | Honky Tonk Charlie Gillett's Radio Picks | Various Artists | ACE |
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