BlueNotes

Dennis Gruenling plays Little Walter

Jim White — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 05:00:00 GMT

Little Walter is pretty much universally known as having been, during his sadly brief life, an extraordinary purveyor of music through the blues harmonica. In other words, he was damn good. He turned the blues harp into a magical and expressive instrument.

His music has become a blues standard, and his genius on the harp is widely recognized. He was inducted into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame earlier this year.

But this is more than an item about Little Walter. His greatness has inspired imitators, successors and many tributes. But except for George "Harmonica" Smith in 1968, no one has really recorded a Little Walter tribute album. Until now.

Dennis Gruenling, a fine harp player who has mastered Little Walter's style, and not just a few greatest hits, has put together "I Just Keep Lovin' Him" (BackBender Records), his own tribute to the blues of Little Walter. And maybe the most interesting thing about it -- besides all the great harp work -- is that Gruenling doesn't just play lip service, he reaches deep into the Walter songbook for numbers that let him show off his fine chops, rather than just mimicry.

Another good thing is that Gruenling, with one of the players from the album -- harpist Steve Guyger -- plus guitarist Doug Deming is bringing his tribute to the Thunderbird Cafe in Lawrenceville Sunday night (Sept. 7).

He had a little more help on the CD though, including Kim Wilson, Rusty Zinn, Rick Estrin and Gina Fox, who takes vocal turns on three tracks. Estrin, Wilson and Guyger also handle both harps and vocals, as they swap leads, back each other up and just generally treat us to a blues harp buffet.

There are a few surprises along the way. Fox's vocals give Walter's usually tough blues a slightly different taste, even though she's no slouch herself. The interplay between all the harps and the shifting vocals give each song a fresh quality. Some are tough ("Lovin' Man") and some just swing gently ("Hot Shot"). And "Corbella" is almost pure doo-wop/R&B -- a pleasantly inventive take.

If you like blues harp, catch the show, and the album.

James Hunter: Old soul music "The Hard Way"

Jim White — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 05:01:00 GMT

James Hunter is a throwback to some of the best days of sweet American soul music, with some tasty R&B and even a little doo-wop. And he's a Brit. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

He's getting a lot of mileage out of this fine old music, and deservedly so. Along with a handful of other fine musicians, he's re-creating a great sound in his own talented way. It's just that for us old BluesBurghers, all foster children of the Daddio of the Raddio, this music has never really gone anywhere, except to sink a little further into our skin.

But let's not look a gifted soul singer in the mouth, other than to enjoy his chops.

Hunter writes great stuff, and sings it in beautifully, with tasteful arrangements -- subtle horns in the background, some nice piano, all sitting back and letting his gritty vocals work. You can hear all the classic moves in his voice, and the swinging, sometimes lush arrangements -- think Sam Cooke, a little Otis, some hints of the Drifters (I kept hearing them doing almost as well with his title track) -- all good stuff.

The best thing is that in re-living the music, he makes it his own. It's not just an oldies show. Hunter captures the spirit of this music and gives it freshness and energy. It's contemporary and fresh, and you can feel the fun Hunter has with the music. He's not going through the motions.

Some of my favorites here include the title track, in which Hunter makes his voice dance around the melody, in and out of the tight musical backing. "Hand It Over" is full of sweetness and love, just like the best old soul music. "Jacqueline" is a rhythmic ode to his wife, with lots of great horn in the middle. "Believe Me Baby" is a rollicking New Orleans piece, with the magnificent Allen Toussaint on piano, and Hunter bounces back into the Frogman Henry era. The set closes with a softly done "Strange But True," with just Hunter and a guitar. Very nice.

Here's a clip of "Believe Me Baby" for a taste of Hunter: (Please visit the site to view this media)

For the weekend

The Carnegie Arts and Heritage Festival returns this weekend (Thursday through Saturday) with some live music -- it hasn't been the Carnegie Blues Festival for a few years, but there still looks to be some good music on tap, with a few blues bands in the mix. Here's the band list and schedule.

The Sauce Boss -- Bill Wharton -- comes to Moondog's in Blawnox Friday night. Wharton cooks and stews with music and food, usually winding up with something to feed the crowd.

JJ Grey with a soulful "Orange Blossoms"

Jim White — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 05:00:00 GMT

There's been a soul revival of sorts going on in the land for a few years. You can hear it in the music of artists like John Nemeth and James Hunter. And JJ Grey. It's not your daddy's soul, which was most likely James Brown or Otis Redding or Wilson Pickett. But it has their DNA, and it's takes a rootsier approach, but it's still filled the soul of these new singer/songwriters.

Grey and his band Mofro have a new album, "Orange Blossoms," (Alligator) in which Grey continues the work he's been doing, including his previous, "Country Ghetto."

Grey has gritty Otis pipes, but his songwriter's vision is a different one, and he swaps the soothing old-soul romance for the torments of the new soul, examining his roots, life and world with a baleful eye and a band that plays swampy, dirge-like music. It sounds a little grim, but it's not, really. It's more like ... well ... reality with roots.

In fact, the title track and opener is a lyrically sweet ode to young romance and the musically rich scent of orange blossoms in his native state of Florida. But it's not exactly sunny Miami Beach Florida. It's more like back-country, pungent-flavored rootsy Florida.

Grey's musical visions come through in his expressive songwriting, backed by his tight, spare band. There's "Everything Good is Bad (And Everything Bad is Good)," an ironic look at love -- with another man's wife. There's "The Devil You Know," -- "Hide and seek with yourself, it ain't a game you can win...."

Then just when you think it's bleakest just before dawn and dawn will never come, he lights you up with "WYLF (What You're Lookin' For"), with a brighter musical touch. Then there's the almost-rocker "Ybor City" (part of Tampa, if I remember my Florida) ... "I know a rowdy place where whiskey's warm and women are too...."

But I kind of like the poignant philosophy in the closing "I Believe in Everything" -- "A childhood imagination has been my salvation. one cloud at a time .... she's why I believe in everything ... she's gone before she's gone."

I'm having trouble describing this coherently, I know. But Grey is one of those guys whose life experience is filtered through his own creative process, a journey through a mind that's apparently worth at least a visit, if you don't want to live there. The music is rootsy and contemporary at the same time. It's a timeless use of a traditional format.

And while it might not be your daddy's soul music, it's definitely Grey's. And maybe yours, if you give it a chance.

Lil' Ed a bluesburner with "Full Tilt"

Jim White — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 05:00:00 GMT

Well, summer is unofficially over. BlueNotes is putting away his white outfits, and digging out the sartorial earth tones of fall. The Golden Monkey will play less often, and the rich, dark beers of winter will raise their potent heads. Blithering Idiot, Blasphemy, Raisin d'Etre -- just a few of the fine beers that inspire these works.

Meanwhile, vacations are about over, the summer blues festivals are winding down, and it's time to reacquaint yourself with your favorite local blues club.

And of course there are always new CDs to consider. BlueNotes is way behind on the new release front, no doubt a result of his busy summer personal appearance schedule. We did manage to crank out something on B.B. King's latest last week, and still think it's one of his best ever.

Today, about a week late, it's time to look at a new CD by Lil' Ed Williams and the Blues Imperials -- another Chicago stalwart. It's another of a long series of what Ed has been doing with relentless passion and abandon for 20 years. best: whip the blues, and us, into a frenzy with his ferocious slide guitar attack.

His regular four-piece band (Ed on guitar with Michael Garrett on guitar, James "Pookie" Young on bas and drummer Kelly Littleton) is always than up to Ed's scorched-earth blues policy. But this time he's added some keyboards and a couple of saxmen here and there for solid emphasis. The saxy extra can be heard punching up "Housekeeping Job," adding a ripping raunchy sax break in the middle. Great honk!

On "Don't Call Me," Ed starts out running with a wicked slide intro and never slows down, with hints of Chuck Berry and a pounding piano. The slide and piano pair off midway, and if this isn't enough music to make your feet move, see a podiatrist immediately. This is followed by the slow torchy slide of "Checking My Baby's Oil," in which Ed seems to have created a mini-series worth of double-entendre into one song.

There's even a philosophical "Love Don't Live Here Anymore," if philosophy can be said to have a rock-steady backbeat. Or maybe that's the only kind of philosophy worth having. The piano solo alone may contain the meaning of life.

On "Life Got in the Way," there's some slow-burning fuel for any lost-love blues, as Ed displays some rich shouting backed by an almost-sedate guitar. Almost is the key word there. Even at half-speed, Ed smokes.

This album, and Li' Ed, are a remnant of furious Chicago slide blues style (J.B. Hutto was his uncle) that's getting a little harder to find. Get it while you can.

The blues: Get it while you can

Jim White — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 05:00:00 GMT

I wrote last time about B.B. King's latest, "One Kind Favor," and also a while back about Buddy Guy's new CD, "Skin Deep." Irma Thomas has a beautiful new album, "Simply Grand." I have new CDs on my desk from Taj Mahal and Magic Slim (reviews coming soon). It should be reassuring to blues lovers that these great musicians are still recording, and while they are at it, making equally great music. Both of these CDs rank among the best they've done.

Jim White photo

Muddy Waters at Mancini's, McKees Rocks,
about 1979.

I think it's worth noting that even while we sometimes cry in our bluesy beer (quality beer only, please) that not all the good old blues is gone, it's actually here for the taking. It's true, those blues are not here in the quantity that they once were, but they are still

But we can still go to Moondog's and hear Magic Slim or Hubert Sumlin, or the Pittsburgh Blues Festival for Taj Mahal, or hear Koko Taylor at the Three Rivers Arts Festival. James Cotton and Johnny Winter were paired at the recent Wheeling blues festival. Otis Clay came to town to sing with Billy Price.

If we're lucky, we can still make it to a King or Guy concert. Shoot, Guy performed right Downtown last summer. In the past couple of years, you could take in Honeyboy Edwards, Pinetop Perkins and others in the city or not too far away.

And that doesn't begin to count the blues offered by the ranks of younger musicians, black and white, who are carrying on the traditions. Two fine recent shows by Tab Benoit and Tommy Castro at the Pittsburgh Blues Festival come to mind. not-yet-old masters: Robert Cray, Ronnie Baker Brooks, Bob Margolin, Duke Robillard, Guy Davis ... fill in your own list of names here.

It's true, it's not like the good old days, when BlueNotes' young ancestor would hang at Mancini's and hear Koko, Albert Collins, Muddy, Albert King, Son Seals, John Lee Hooker, Robert Jr. Lockwood, Eddie Shaw, J.B. Hutto, Willie Dixon and many many more. There's a reason they were called the good old days. (Unless you go back too far, to the vapid music that came close to shutting down the BlueNotes blue genes.)

Anyway, I think what I'm trying to say here is that there's much fine new music to listen to, and you can still hear a lot of it from some of the people who created it. So, as Janis Joplin once sang, persuasively, get it while you can.

Laborless days ahead

BlueNotes is planning a long, relaxing weekend off. Maybe with a friendy libation or two. And a few good CDs in the player. You should all do the same, and meet me back here next week.

No comments

That's what y'all do way too much. How about sharing some of your all-time favorite blues CDs. Or your favorite artists. Or your favorite beer.

B.B. King's "One Kind Favor" a big favor for blues lovers

Jim White — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 05:17:00 GMT

Let me say it right up front so there's no mistake: B.B. King's latest CD, "One Kind Favor" (Geffen), released yesterday, is his best album in a long time, and one of his best ever. It's a return to his roots, and the music of the musicians who inspired him to play the blues.

You can almost sense King's sentiments here: A look back at his own legacy as he approaches his 83rd birthday (Sept. 16) and the opening of the B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center in his hometown of Indianola, Miss., on land where king had once planned a home.

He may not be saying goodbye, but it sounds like he's saying that his life was rich with music, and he's thanking these old pioneers who helped make it possible. And making sure that his own legacy in the blues is secure. Even the album cover is designed to set that mood.

The title track is a revelation. His electrified but elegantly spare version of the classic Blind Lemon Jefferson's "See That My Grave is Kept Clean" emphasizes an especially poignant vocal, driven by unique percussion and gentle organ riffs, with a brilliantly simple guitar intro and later solo. It's a minor masterpiece that sets the tone for the rest of the sides.

Plus, its haunting lyrics "...dig my grave with a silver spade and lay me down with a golden chain..." are blues poetry at its best. A great choice for the opener and the theme of the whole set.

The basic band here -- Jim Keltner on drums, Nathan East on upright bass and Dr. John on piano -- are effective but not intrusive, letting King's vocals through with a sensitivity and passion that hasn't happened for while in his recordings. They recorded as a studio unit, with only the horns being dubbed. It's the way any music was meant to be played and recorded. I can almost forgive the horn dubbing. King's guitar playing is tough, sweet and always lyrical, and T Bone Burnett's production keeps it clean and upfront, with the vocals.

Here's a track listing, with the artist who originally recorded the song (text from Starpulse.com):

"See That My Grave Is Kept Clean" (Lemon Jefferson), "I Get So Weary" (T-Bone Walker), "Get These Blues Off Me" (Lee Vida Walker), "How Many More Years" (Chester Burnett), "Waiting For Your Call" (Oscar Lollie), "My Love Is Down" (Lonnie Johnson), "The World Is Gone Wrong" (Walter Vinson, also known as Walter Jacobs, and Lonnie Chatmon, core members of the Mississippi Sheiks), "Blues Before Sunrise" (John Lee Hooker), "Midnight Blues" (John Willie "Shifty" Henry), "Backwater Blues" (Big Bill Broonzy), "Sitting On Top Of The World" (Walter Vinson and Lonnie Chatmon) and "Tomorrow Night" (Lonnie Johnson).

It's the complete CD, with no filler, no low points. If you never hear another King CD, this is the way you'll want to remember the man. After the intimate opener, he and the band dig into Walker's "I Get So Weary" with its swinging opening riffs, and King launches a tough vocal session that romps right to the sweet closing guitar lines.

"Get These Blues Off Me" is a powerfully slow and moving ballad; "How Many More Years" is a melodic romp through the Howlin' Wolf number; "Waiting for Your Call" is another torchy ballad; "My Love is Down" is King's languid take on the intricate Johnson tune, one of his main bluesmen; "The World is Gone Wrong" updates the Sheiks -- "I can't be good no more baby, honey because the world is goin' wrong..." This is a great old song, and King makes its spirit ring true.

Hooker's "Blues Before Sunrise" highlight Dr. John's piano in counterpoint to King's guitar, wrapped lovingly around the vocal. "Midnight Blues" is a smooth, smooth dismissal of his baby ... "I know I'm gonna miss you honey, that's one thing i know..." Broonzy's "Backwater Blues" is another treat featuring piano, guitar and gritty vocals.

Then there's a prime cut of the chestnut "Sittin' On Top of the World, with the closer, another very fine Johnson tune, the very gentle "Tomorrow Night," on which Dr. John and King again open with magical interplay, then a soft sax fill (wish I could stop thinking it was dubbed in), then those fat, liquid BB guitar notes. Dance to this one, then start the CD all over again.

You can tell I like this, right? It's a great outing for King, and assuming he keeps recording, it will be hard to top. He may not be the blues stud he once was, but he is clearly drawing on a reservoir of talent and maturity that great performers have, and he brings it all home here with a package of some of the best songs from the some of the greatest blues players. This is about as good as blues gets.

Couple this effort with Buddy Guy's latest "Skin Deep," and you have a pair of powerful statements from two of the few remaining blues legends that they are not going softly into the dark blue night of their careers.

A little blues news: Chuck Berry and B.B. King

Jim White — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 13:42:00 GMT

A few things you can learn while reading a good blues magazine, in this case Blues Revue, published out of their offices in not-so-far-away Salem, W.Va. Blues Revue doesn't put its content online, but you can see what's in the current issue, and subscribe if you like. You should like. There are only a few blues mags in print these days, and this is one of the best. They even send you sampler blues CDs once in a while.

One of the things you can find out in the current issue is that Chuck Berry is still performing at 81, and there's a photo to prove it. And a review of his show which makes it sound pretty darned good.

You can find out a lot about B.B. King and his new CD, "One Kind Favor" (a line from the Blind Lemon Jefferson song, "Please See That My Grave is Kept Clean") and how it came to be, along with an elaborate interview with King, and a story about the B.B. King Museum that's about to open in his hometown of Indianola, Miss.

It sounds almost like King, who'll be 83 on Sept. 16, with this album and this museum, is starting to say farewell for a life of blues well-lived. I've been listening to the new CD, and it's one of his best in a long, long time. More on that in the next few days.

And you can look at the fine photos of King, from Joe Rosen, who I mention here occasionally, including one shot here in Pittsburgh at a 1979 concert.

A few new photos

And I've added some of the photos that I've been taking to the BlueNotes Photo Gallery, which you can admire here at your leisure.

A passing I missed

Don Campbell sends along this note about the death of bluesman Alex "Lil’ Bill" Wallace that I missed the other day. Thanks, Don.

"Besides having a great voice a lot like Champion Jack Dupree, this is the guy that gave BB King his first Lucille and told him to get the Hell out of Greenville and head to Memphis. Great guy had hoped to see him in september:("

Unearthly excitement on the violin with "Sugarcane" Harris

Jim White — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 05:00:00 GMT

Think of Jimi Hendrix playing violin in a band with Jerry Garcia, Frank Zappa and maybe Little Richard. Think jams that last 10 minutes. Maybe 15 minutes. Then ask yourself if the name Don "Sugarcane" Harris means anything to you.

To be honest, it didn't mean much to me when I got a news release about the recent re-release (excellently re-mastered) of a live concert album from the 1971 Berlin Jazz Festival. If I had heard his name back in the late '60s and early '70s, I had forgotten it. That would be another gap never filled in my musical education -- at least until now.

Harris played the violin -- a rare rock-blues-jazz violin -- and worked with musicians like Zappa, Johnny Otis, John Mayall, John Lee Hooker, and yes, Little Richard (check this Wikipedia entry for his long list of collaborations). In '71, with all that as his musical backdrop, he appeared at the Berlin Jazz Festival with an international band that may be best described as international, musically eclectic and surely an outgrowth of the experimental urges of '60s musicians.

The album -- "Sugarcane's Got the Blues" -- was the result of that festival, and was released about a year later. It's made up of four tracks, the shortest coming in at just over 10 minutes, the longest at more than 15 minutes. It's not exactly your father's blues album, but it's experimental qualities, the freshness of the musicians' interactions and the heat of a blues-rock violin make it a fascinating listen.

The first cut, "Liz Pineapple Wonderful," is a wild melange with one-time Soft Machine drummer Robert Wyatt flying behind a ferociously swinging violin and a few scattered vocal lines. That's not meant to ignore the others, each building an essential piece of the presentation: Volker Kriegel and Terje Rypdal on guitar, Wolfgang Dauner on keyboards and other electronic things and Neville Whitehead on bass. These extended tracks are full of wild but controlled solos that seem to fly off the stage, and still manage to remain a cohesive ensemble.

The second, "Sugar Cane's Got the Blues," is psychedelic blues violin with hauntingly ethereal solos. The third, "Song for My Father," is an elegant, flowing piece of almost surreal jazz inventions. The final, "Where's My Sunshine," opens with a dreamy electronic quality that wraps itself around another set of simple, repeated lyrics. The result is a soulful, hypnotic swinging dirge.

Harris died at 62 in 1999, after his performances grew increasingly erratic, in that no one was ever quite sure if he would actually show up to perform.

This all makes me want to go back and see what the very gifted Harris might've sounded like alone, or with Zappa, Hooker, or in the Otis band. Or maybe this music is like the '60s itself -- if you remember it, you weren't there.

Irma Thomas is "Simply Grand"

Jim White — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 05:01:00 GMT

Irma Thomas has been recording great, soulful music for a half-century. Judging from her latest CD, "Simply Grand" (Rounder Records), she's aging like fine wine -- just getting better. She's always been one of my favorite singers, and this album shows why she should be a national treasure, if she hasn't alreadymade the list.

The concept here is simple: Thomas and a handful of great piano players, an occasional small combo, with her rich, expressive vocals in the spotlight. And since BlueNotes is a well-known sucker for soulful piano and soulful singers, this is an unbeatable combination.

Thomas is one of those singers who doesn't overpower you with her pipes, but lets them coax you into a mood that she sets, elegantly simple and richly soulful.

The piano players represent a spectrum of the well know, and the should-be-well-known. There's Marcia Ball helping to turn "Same Old Blues" into a softly torchy ode to the pain of love ( "... the sun has turned to rain, all my love has turned to pain..."). A beautifully done bluesy ballad with understated piano that lets expressive vocals work their magic.

It's the same all the way through. Piano from Dr. John, Henry Butler, David Egan, Norah Jones, Ellis Marsalis, and more, all give Thomas room to just plain sing. It's a pleasure to hear deeply personal music like this for a change, where the emphasis is on the singer and the songs. Each one is like a personal gift from Irma to you.

She's not one to ignore her New Orleans heritage, and "Too Much Thinking" with Jon Cleary on piano is a gently rolling sample of her roots.

"Be You" is another minor stride-like gem, with Dr. John, a song he co-wrote with the late and great Doc Pomus.The song was originally recorded for Etta James, but never recorded till now. It was worth the wait.

And "Cold Rain," with a combo and David Torkanowsky on piano, is simply a little musical masterpiece. If its gentle passion doesn't move you, get a heart transplant.

If you want sweetly soulful music to help enjoy a soft summer night or a fireplace-warmed winter evening, give this one a spin. And did I mention the slow-dancing option? Libation is recommended for maximum warmth. Sip something soft and rich. Maybe even a Honeyboy Dog (scroll to the bottom of that link).

Summer weekend

It looks like a fine summer weekend ahead, maybe even one of the last, and I know you'll all be out driving around with the top down, or tooling around on your hogs, but take the time to stop into one of your favorite blues clubs and hear a local band. They'll appreciate it. So will you.

Chicago blues veterans Phil Guy, Arthur Duncan die

Jim White — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 19:14:00 GMT

Some days even the blues gets the blues.

I just got an e-mail from Kevin Johnson at Chicago's Delmark Records, noting the deaths of two long-time and very excellent Chicago bluesmen, Phil Guy (Buddy Guy's younger brother), and Little Arthur Duncan (whose DVD I reviewed earlier this year). It just keep getting truer all the time: too many of the original voices have disappeared.

Here's Kevin's e-mail:

Very, very sad Chicago blues news to report. Two of the nicest Chicago bluesmen passed away yesterday, our dear friend Little Arthur Duncan (from complications from brain surgery) and Phil Guy. Arthur and Phil were not only both underappreciated outstanding blues musicians, but truly great fans of the blues. While many musicians do not go out to the clubs unless they are playing, both Arthur and Phil were seen out all the time with big infectious smiles listening to their favorite blues artists. The Chicago Blues scene will not be the same... Little Arthur Duncan was absolutely the sweetest guy I personally knew on the Chicago blues scene. He was a great friend, a proud and very well respected man, a wonderful story teller with a great sense of humor, and one of the last of the down home Chicago blues singers and harp players- Blues with a FEELING. Mr. Duncan also held the best blues parties, with his great southern soul food cooking. We'll miss you, Mr Back Scratcher! -- Kevin Johnson, Delmark.com

Keb' Mo' and Robert Cray deliver the music in Greensburg

Jim White — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 12:51:00 GMT

Keb' Mo' and Robert Cray brought their traveling blues caravan to the Palace Theater in Greensburg last night, and played some fine music, both blues and bluesy, to a packed and very appreciative house.

Mo' opened this one with his band (he and Cray trade off opening and closing these shows, so you can never be sure exactly who you'll see first. But each brings the other out for one song early in the set.

So last night, the show started with what might easily be called Keb' Mo's "mo' gentle blues." He's evolved over the years from someone who could uncannily channel great old acoustic blues, into a polished singer/songwriter with a bent for tunes that express an optimism for life. "Let Your Light Shine" would be a perfect example. It's not hard to hear the bluesy, sometimes gospel roots underneath this.

Combine that philosophy with his own guitar skills and an excellent backing band, and the result is an almost-sweet lyrical and musical effort. "A Better Man" is another example.

But that doesn't mean that he can't tear it up when needed. "Standin' at the Station" is a torchy blues, and when he came out a few songs into Cray's set, the two cranked out some intense guitar and vocals that was one of the night's highlights.

Cray's set was designed more to please blues lovers, and he didn't disappoint. He's got the grit for pure blues and the soul for a smoother touch. The nice fat, liquid guitar notes don't hurt, either.

From "Bad Influence" through his final encore, "Sittin' On Top of the World," Cray tackled soulful blues ("The Things You Do to Me," with a steamy guitar solo), funky blues ("Johnny's Gone") and generally tough blues like "The One in the Middle."

There were plenty of blistering solos, and on "One in the Middle," Jim Pugh's soaring. funky organ solo midway turned into a raging duel with Cray's searing guitar. Hair-curling, spine-chilling stuff.

Cray shut things down with a ballad and then a driving, electric take on the traditional "Sittin' On Top of the World," a song with an intricate and interesting history.

There were some interesting musical touches during the night, including Mo's use of a keyboard player who doubled on harp, and at one point ran out from behind the keyboards for a tough solo, then ran back to pick up the thread on the keys. Cray used an upright bass in his band, and as mentioned Pugh was very special throughout with organ fills. And with his final bow, Cray applauded the crowd -- another nice touch.

Unfortunately, it always seems like music is just hitting its best groove when it's time to end. That was the case last night. Oh, well. Them's the blues, baby.

Eugene Morgan CD: "Enough is Enough"

Jim White — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 05:00:00 GMT

There's a lot of good local blues talent, which most Burgh blues fans already know. That notion is reinforced by a new CD from Eugene Morgan, "the Georgia nightcrawler," who also has his own band, the Nightcrawlers.

This CD, "Enough is Enough" from Bonedog Records, puts the focus on Morgan, a Georgia-born bluesman, with a stable of players from the Bonedog lineup. Morgan is a fine singer and guitar player, with gritty, soulful vocals, and turns in some bluesy songwriting here along Pittsburgh prolific writer, Mike Sweeney. Between them, they wrote all but one of the songs.

Two of Sweeney's songs "Stoopin' and Pickin'" and "Root Man" have an old down-home feel, with acoustic guitar. "Root Man," the tale of a traveling salesman with tonics to peddle, is a starkly drawn acoustic portrait. Morgan's vocals work nicely with the spare guitar and harp. backing.

Morgan works through some of his own material that shows his range from the fine and torchy "Don't Be Afraid to Step Up" to the soulful, horn-driven "Action/Reaction" to my own favorite, the title track, with its lazy loping beat, swampy harp and driving vocals. And everything here benefits from the crackling musicians thrown at the session by McKeesport's Bonedog Records.

The music here ranges from soulful traditional blues to country-style, to some straight-out soul. This is a fine album by a regional player who could use more exposure. Morgan seems to perform mostly in the north country -- it would be nice if he could down into the city a little more. He's worth hearing.

Keb Mo and Robert Cray tonight

Don't forget Keb Mo and Robert Cray tonight at the Palace Theater in Greensburg.

Noted R&B producer Jerry Wexler dies

Jim White — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 17:39:00 GMT

Jery Wexler, the one-time Atlantic Records co-owner and producer responsible for much of the R&B and soul music we grew up with, has died at age 91. He's credited with coining the phrase "rhythm and blues," way back in 1947.

Here's how the Associated Press began its obituary today:

"Legendary record producer Jerry Wexler, who helped shape R&B music with influential recordings of Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles and other greats, and later made key recordings with the likes of Bob Dylan and Willie Nelson, has died, says his co-author, David Ritz. He was 91." [Read more ...]

He co-wrote his autobiogrpahy, "Rhythm and the Blues: A Life in American Music," and I'd recommend it to anyone who's a fan of the music Wexler produced, especially during his early years. A huge amount of our pop music owes a debt to Wexler for the way he coaxed the music out of so many great performers, and made it part of the musical language we speak.

I used to rave about his work here and there in some old blog posts, and one of the articles I found once was an excellent read on Wexler's life and career. It's from Salon, and it's broken into two long parts, but slap on a Ray Charles CD and read them both.

Seth Walker, Keb Mo, Robert Cray and blues events

Jim White — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 05:00:00 GMT

Tonight: Bluesy, rootsy, sometimes New-Orleans type music is what to expect from Seth Walker tonight at Moondog's. He's an up-and-coming singer/songwriter and an original talent who was a pal of Sean Costello -- the music should be worth the effort.

Blues picnic

The Blues Society of Western Pa. is having a blues picnic Sunday from 2-9 p.m. at the Boston Waterfront. You don't have to be a society member to go, but if you are, you'll enjoy yourself just that much more!

A picnic isn't a real picnic without live music, and the blues will be provided, with relish, by: Pamela Bick, Shot O' Soul with Bubs McKeg, the Ian Arthur Band, and the Mystic Knights with Chizmo Charles & Frank Giovi.

Blue Monday

If you're a fan of Keb Mo and/or Robert Cray, you can catch both at The Palace Theater in Greensburg Monday night. Keb Mo can do everything from channel Robert Johnson to writing his own poignant contemporary music. And Cray has been a steady force with his band for years.

So, along with the local blues band calendar, you don't have any reason not to hear some fine music this weekend.

Blues highway

The Blues Society of Western Pa. (see above) is sponsoring trip to Memphis in February to take blues fans to the International Blues Challenge and the events surrounding it. Check the details and see if you can make it. By all accounts it's a great blues-filled trip.

Henry Butler's magnificent piano on "Pianola Live"

Jim White — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 05:00:00 GMT

The CDs I want to write about have been stacking up on my desk lately, threatening to undo the delicately balanced feng shui of the BlueNotes World Headquarters. So I need to get to work on the pile.

The very talented Henry Butler's "Pianola Live" (Basin Street Records) is an easy place to begin, since piano blues is one of my favorites, and Butler's New Orleans-oriented approach is tasty, listenable and inventive, as he approaches a lot of his music from unique directions.

This is an album culled from his live performances, going back into the 1980s, respresenting sides of his music that Butler wanted to display. It's an extremely enjoyable romp through a set of mostly older standards that cut across genres, from "Basin St. Blues" to "Mother-In-Law." In doing that, he works them carefully into something different than they were, and something uniquely Butlerian.

I don't know a whole lot about the mechanics of what he does, but it still sounds impressive. His left hand sounds like it's doing percussive things that it shouldn't be, And his right hand is all over the melodies, or his versions of the melodies. Listen to what he does with "Basin St. Blues," a standard so standard that you'd think nothing more could be done with it. You'd be wrong.

There's a delicious, hard-boogying version of "Let 'Em Roll," by Butler and Corey Harris for their duet album, "Vu-Du-Menz." There's another pounding turn on "Something You Got," by Chris Kenner, father "Land of 1000 Dances."

I don't want to ignore Butler's vocals. Just like he makes the keyboard do what he wants, he uses his powerful, flexible voice much the same -- whether he's romping through "Mother-In-Law" or balladeering around "You are My Sunshine."

Being a New Orleans pianoman, he also offers up his version of the classic Professor Longhair tune, "Tipitina," with his somber, concerto-like opening morphing slowly, joyfully into a magnificent 9 1/2-minute tribute explored from every piano angle. It's creative, improvisational, emotional music -- which is music at its absolute best. Listen to the cheering at the end of the track.

There's a lot more good stuff. Check it out.

Elvis fans still celebrating

This year is the 40th anniversary of Elvis Presley's "Comeback Special." If you don't know what that was, it was a big deal then for Elvis - and his fans. They are still celebrating, presumably without him.

Another blues prodigy - he's 8

Tallan "T-Man" Latz has been playing guitar since he was 5, and by all acounts, is now an accomplished blueskid. Here's a fun story about Wisconsin's tiny T-Man. (Please visit the site to view this media)