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Harrison Kennedy:
Voice + Story (Black & Tan)
Billy Jones: tha'
Bluez (Black & Tan)
The
Black & Tan label is a small blues label based
out of the Netherlands, of all places, who have
issued some terrific blues records over the past
seven years. Fine American artists such as Byther
Smith, Boo Boo Davis, Big George Jackson, Doug MacLeod
have all issued top drawer records for the label.
While most of Black & Tan's releases fall into
a traditional blues vein, new records by Harrison
Kennedy and Billy Jones find them pushing the boundaries
in new and interesting ways. Kennedy's mesmerizing
"Voice + Story" is a soulful stew that
blends blues, R&B and roots music into a potent
mix while Billy Jones' "tha' Bluez" blends
funk, R&B and soul into a decidedly contemporary
style.
Harrison Kennedy was a member and sometime
lead singer of the 70's-era R&B aggregation
Chairmen of the Board, one of the smoothest and
most popular soul acts to emerge from Detroit in
the early '70s. After a string of million selling
singles in the early 70's, Harrison has reinvented
himself as a blues troubadour. "Voice + Story"
is not an easy record to categorize as Kennedy deftly
mixes blues, R&B, soul and roots on this mostly
acoustic outing. The title is an apt one as Kennedy's
soulful, supple voice is the real drawing card wedded
to some lyrical imaginative songs streaked with
a strong social consciousness. Kennedy can seemingly
do anything with that remarkable voice as he sings,
scats, hums, shouts and dips into a falsetto backed
by propulsive percussion whether beating or strumming
his guitar or backed by imaginative percussion by
Nico Heilijgers who also plays bass. The blues provides
a strong foundation on cuts like the chugging "Bad
Luck And Trouble", the rollicking "Bad
Attitude" with accordion and kazoo and some
tough slide on the traditional "Hummin’ Blues."
The haunting "40 Acres And A Mule" is
"about the broken Promise to the freed slaves,
and trust in God", while "Bob Lo Island"
is a gorgeously sung tour-de-force with just percussive
backing as Kennedy sings about escaping the pressures
and misery of the big city. The record closes with
the stunning "Make A Difference", a soaring
gospel number backed by just organ that has a strong
similarity to the soul classic "You Can Make
It If You Try." From start to finish "Voice
+ Story" is mesmerizing, deeply affecting experience
delivered by a true original.
Billy
Jones draws deeply from both blues and soul, throws
a little funk and R&B into the mix for a engaging
brand of contemporary blues, or "tha' bluez"
as Jones calls it. Jones grew up in North Little
Rock, Arkansas where his family owned a blues café
that was often host to blues legends such as Howlin'
Wolf, Sonny Boy Williamson, Bobby 'Blue' Bland and
many other greats. Jones formed his own group in
his early twenties and toured professionally since
his teen years and has worked with Vernon Garrett,
Willie Clayton, J Blackfoot, Chick Willis, Willie
Cobb, Denise LaSalle, Marvin Sease, Mel Waiters
and many others. Jones has created unique style
that incorporates Chitlin circuit soul and a contemporary,
funky brand of blues that sounds like a cross between
Lucky Peterson and Johnny "Guitar" Watson.
"Come Back Tonight" and "Breakin'
Away" are slinky, sultry slabs of R&B as
Jones croons seductively while "Make Love Tonight"
is another aching soul number with just Jones on
guitar. Jones is no slouch with the blues as he
proves on the tough as nails "Deal Wit' Da'
Devil" ("I made a deal with the devil/And
his name is crack cocaine"), the steamy funk
of "Da' Crossroads" with an ominous hoodoo
vibe and the straight ahead blues of "Barnyard
Bluez" featuring some awesome ringing guitar
work. "tha' Bluez is a passionate and soulful
outing that has a vibrant contemporary feel but
yet still grounded in tradition.
-Check
out these related links:
Black
& Tan Website
Harrison
Kennedy Website
(Jeff
Harris)
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Barbara Morrison:
Live At The Dakota (DL)
There's
certain singers that have the whole package; a great
voice, impeccable phrasing and an innate ability to
put across a song and really make it your own. Barbara
Morrison has all that in spades as she prove on "Live
At The Dakota" a spellbinding live date that
demands repeated listening.
Barbara Morrison has long been a familiar figure
in the Los Angeles area, singing blues, standards
and jazz material. Morrison
has been in the business for some thirty years working
with a "who's who" of the jazz and blues
greats like Dizzy Gillespie, Ray Charles, Johnny Otis,
Dr. John, Kenny Burrell as well as guest starring
with the Count Basie Orchestra, the Clayton-Hamilton
Orchestra and Doc Severinsen's Big Band. It's only
since the 1990's that's she's been cutting her own
records. "Live At The Dakota" is a masterful
performance as Morrison delivers a dazzling blend
of blues and jazz classics all with her own unique
stamp.
Morrison
is equally at home singing jazz or blues standards
and in this respect reminds me of the great Dinah
Washington. Like Washington, everything Morrison sings
has plenty of grit and a strong blues undercurrent.
Her jazz singing is in the great tradition of Ella,
particularly when she scats, Sarah Vaughn and Carmen
McCrae and her sassy style also brings to mind the
tough swagger of Esther Phillips and Etta james. Morrison
receives tremendous support from pianist Junior Mance
who at 76 sounds better than ever, big toned bluesy
blowing from tenor ace Houston person and the veteran
rhythm section of bassist Earl May and drummer Jackie
Williams. Mance and Person share that same strong
blues feel that Morrison has and make a potent team
on soulful, seductive numbers like "Please Send
Me Someone To Love" and "At Last."
Morrison picks up the pace on a rocking, gritty version
of "I'd Rather Drink Muddy Water" as Mance
lays down some stomping piano and gives a knockout
reading of "Chains Of Love" as she stops
to reminisce about Big Joe Turner and Eddie "Cleanhead"
Vinson while giving spot on impersonations of both.
The highlight is the ribald, sultry "They Call
Me Sundown" ("I do my best work after dark")
a wailing show stopper that gets roaring approval
from the audience.
Barbara
Morrison and her all-star cast simply cook, clearly
inspiring one another on this tour-de-force recording
thankfully captured here for posterity. Hands down
an early pick for one of the year's best records.
-Check
out these related links:
Barbara
Morrison Website
(Jeff Harris)
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Root Doctor:
Been A Long Time Coming (Big O)
It's
easy to get jaded as we regularly get inundated
with dozens of blues records a month, most
decidedly unmemorable. Root Doctor is a band
that made us take notice, blending a powerful
mix of R&B, soul, funk and hard blues
delivered by terrific vocalist Freddie Cunningham.
Root Doctor hails from Lansing, Michigan
where they've been voted Best Blues Band four
years in a row. "Been A Long Time Coming"
is their first album in seven years and their
first full-studio date. Hopefully this new
record will spread the word about this fine
soulful outfit who certainly deserve wider
recognition.
Root
Doctor's sound harks back to the 60's and
70's era that melded soul, blues and funk
similar to band like Tower of Power, Blood,
Sweat and Tears as well as drawing from soul
factories like Muscle Shoals, Stax and Hi
Studios. Interestingly the record was recorded
through a mixing console purchased from the
legendary Muscle Shoals Recording Studio.
Custom-built and delivered to Muscle Shoals
in 1978, the board was used on sessions by
Aretha Franklin, Johnnie Taylor, Bobby Blue
Bland, James Brown, and many many others.
Underpinning Root Doctor's sound is a strong
classic soul undercurrent delivered magnificently
by front man Freddie Cunningham in a warm,
rich baritone. The band has great chemistry,
laying down a deep groove on soul drenched
numbers like a steamy version of Johnnie Taylor's
classic "Last Two Dollars", the
irresistibly funky, catchy "Love Bones"
and a great R&B hook on "Been A Long
Time Coming" featuring vocals by keyboardist
Jim Alfredson. Root Doctor handles the blues
with equal authority on numbers like the down
home acoustic blues of "Mississippi Blues",
the tough "Too Late To Try To Do Right"
or the chugging good time feel of "Me
And My Wife." Throughout the band is
rock solid featuring stellar guitar from Greg
Nagy, fabulous Hammond organ from Jim Alfredson
who gets plenty of room to cook and batch
of soulful horn players that give the whole
project that classic soul/R&B feel.
"Been
A Long Time Coming" is knockout disc
from start to finish and fans of classic soul,
R&B and blues should enjoy this one immensely.
-Check
out these related links:
Root
Doctor Website
Root
Doctor On CD Baby
(Jeff
Harris)
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Eccentric Soul:
The Deep City Label (Numero)
If
you're an obsessive music freak then the Numero
label might be for you. As they state: "The
mission was simple: to dig deep into the recesses
of our record collections with the goal of finding
the dustiest gems begging to be released from
their exile on geek street." "Eccentric
Soul: The Deep City Label" dusts
off 17 rare soul gems from a host of impressive
little knowns and those who would achieve greater
fame later on. No mere historical artifact,
this is a thoroughly riveting collection containing
some phenomenal performances.
The third installment in the Numero Group’s
Eccentric Soul series brings together a a batch
of 45's released by Deep City and a couple of
other related labels based in Miami, Florida,
spanning from 1964 to 1968. While Deep City's
records didn't make much noise outside of Miami
the label played a more distinguished role than
many such tiny outfits. Deep
City essentially laid the groundwork for Henry
Stone's T.K. imprint of the 70's, honed Willie
Clarke's production skills, and kick started
the careers of Betty Wright, Paul Kelly, and
Clarence "Blowfly" Reid. The label's
Criteria Studio also played host to giants like
Wilson Pickett, James Brown, and Aretha Franklin.
Deep
City had a number of things going for it, most
notably a tremendous house band many of whom
got their training playing in Florida A&M
University's famed "Incomparable Marching
100" band. You can hear the discipline
in the tight arrangements, filled with arresting
horn charts and complex drumming. There's a
batch of strong songs, eleven of the seventeen
songs co-written by Reid. These are classic
sounding soul numbers with nothing remotely
similar to Blowfly's more notorious material
like "What a Difference a Lay Makes"
or "Shitting on the Dock of the Bay."
The label had two sure fire soul divas in Helen
Smith and a young Betty Wright. Smith has a
sweet, aching voice heard to good effect on
the haunting " I Am Controlled By Your
Love", the Motown sounding "Thrills
and Chills" and a gritty, passionate reading
of Otis Redding's "Pain in My Heart."
Wright would score Top 10 R&B hits in the
70s and shines here on the heart rending "Paralyzed."
Among the deepest soul numbers are Them Two's
steamy "Am I A Good Man" and the Movers,
who provide background on a number of cuts,
and absolutely kill on the stunning "I
Love You Baby." Other highlights include
Paul Kelly's "The Upset," based on
Cassius Clay's stunning upset of Sonny Liston
and Johnny K Killen & The Dynamics funky,
storming soul scorcher "I Don't Need Help."
Whether
you're a soul aficionado or a novice this is
a thoroughly entertaining collection and we
should thank the folks at Numero for digging
deep for these forgotten gems. This is a class
job all the way with excellent remastering and
a beautiful fifteen page booklet featuring incisive
notes, vintage photos and label shots.
-Check
out these related links:
Numero
Website
(Jeff
Harris)
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