Even though BlueNotes is still wandering the hills of West Virginia, I need to get to work on the four CDs I received recently from Stony Plain Records - all released about mid-year - especially since they are all very good and worthwhile albums. Since these have all been around for a while, you might already have some in your collection, but I'll run through them briefly in the next few days.
They are: Duke Robillard's Jumpin' Blues Revue with "Stomp! The Blues Tonight;" Joe Louis Walker's "Between a Rock and the Blues;" Ronnie Earl's "Living in the Light;" and "Maria Muldaur & Her Garden of Joy."
Today we'll tackle Robillard's latest, and he picks up with the kind of jump blues and big-band sound that he made famous as the one-time leader of Roomful of Blues, modern masters of the jump blues genre.
As usual, Robillard brings his fine guitar work, full of big fat notes and liquid runs. He's a master of many styles, but mostly a master of his own guitar.
But here, he also brings a host of guests, flipping his sound back a few decades by adding a horn section that really spanks the blues along, with Doug Jones and Rich Lataille on sax, Al Basile on cornet and Carl Querfurth on trombone. Bruce Bears adds some rollicking piano.
Maybe most important, Sunny Crownover join Duke on vocals, adding a touch of the great female vocalists with tunes like Helen Humes' "Million Dollar Secret" and originals like Robillard's "Look But Don't Touch."
The band draws on a variety of good old music like Lowell Fulson's "Do Me Right," Roy Milton's "Baby, You Don't Know," Wynonie Harris' "Playful Baby," and the classic "Money's Getting' Cheaper."
Robillard is always on top of his game, whether he's playing a straight blues, some fine old R&B, or jazzy licks. It's no different here, as he works in what could be considered his first language. This is a good look at some vintage Robillard.
Posted
Nov 16 2009, 01:00 AM
by
Jim White