Jill West's new CD: "Headline Blues"

Jill West and Blues Attack, with a tough, swinging brand of blues, has been one of the Burgh's favorite blues bands for years. West's distinctive and hard-driving voice gives the band its focus, and the Attack provides plenty of sting behind her.

It all comes together on their new CD, "Headline Blues," which they will celebrate with a release party at Cefalo's in Carnegie on Saturday night.

It's their first CD in something like seven years, and you've probably heard most of the music here at one of her shows. But it's still a keeper. A good CD always brings the band and the vocals into sharper focus, even though they lack the excitement of a live show. That's what they do here, with one of the sharpest bands around, getting a little hgelp from some horns and harp along the way.

The CD kicks off with some nice upbeat tracks, including one of her live favorites, "Don't Burn the Barbeque," plus a cover of the fine old Lazy Lester tune, "Sugar Coated Love." The band's originals have just as much sass and flavor as the covers. "Needful Things" is a good example of that. And "Love Song in C" is fine and sexy ballad that I've heard her do live, and it still rocks fresh and hard here.

There are also excellent covers of the rocking "How You Carry On" by Dr. John, "Boomerang" by Roomful of Blues' Chris Vachon, and one of my all-time favorite songs, "Unchain My Heart."

Here's a sample of "Needful Things," on of my favorite cuts:

This is a tough little blues album, full of fine music, played by a finely tuned band backing a singer who knows how to bend a lyric to suit her, and her audiences. It's great to hear this kind of music come out of the Burgh and hometown musicians. It's even greater just to hear the music.

And West and her band are hometown musicians. The nucleus of the band goes back to a group called the Hell Hounds that West joined in 1991.Members have come and gone, but the constant has been West's tough and tender vocals. The current lineup is among the area's finest: Gregg Krupa, guitar; Nick Crano, drums;  Hank Raffetto, bass, and very welcome new addition, Sudden Steve Binsberger, keyboards.

Jill West and Blues Attack is a fixture in local clubs and at regional festivals -- it will be one of the local bands featured at the Pittsburgh Blues Festival July 24-26.In 2006. Catch them when you can. It's blues that fits BlueNotes possible new motto: "The blues, making you happy, one song at a time."