Something New and The White Roach

I think I've mentioned before that I've stepped away from writing reviews in regards to blues releases. Just couldn't keep up with the number of cds that folks began sending me. I got really behind when my blog went wonky on me and just don't do it any longer. I don't buy recordings like I once did, but I do grab something every once in a blue moon. Since we've had a couple of those during the past year I thought that I share the few new blues that are in my hands now. Not reviews as such, just some passing thoughts.

First off, I have to mention a fantastic little record shop on Magazine Street called The White Roach. My daughter lives a few blocks away and my son-in-law turned me onto the place. The gal who runs the place has a great stock of vinyl, some rare and some new, including blues and lots of stuff from the Fat Possum catalog. I have a great deal of what she has, but always walk out with something. The last trip this last fall, I walked in and she was spinning a Magic Sam record. This woman knows the way to my soul.

Anyway--I spotted a double album entitled 4GDB. Sounded like a rap album or something. Closer inspection told me it featured some of the best danged blues guitarist in the state of Texas. I'm very familiar with Alan Haynes, Bert Wills, and Derek O'Brien. Not so much with John Inmon, until I researched the fact that he was a founding member of Jerry Jeff Walker's Lost Gonzo Band and had played with everybody who's anybody in Texas. Wills is a Gulf Coast treasure from the Galveston area and Haynes has been tearing it up for years for in every blues bar in the state. Of course, any blues fan worth his salt knows about O'Brien's stint as guitarist in Antone's house band from the git go, and they are bound to have blues albums featuring his tasty blues guitar.

I grabbed it, and when I paid The White Roach lady asked me whether I was familiar with Bert Wills. Told her yes indeed, had a few of his recordings. She said that she once did his online promotion for awhile, which I thought was quite cool. Sooo....

4GDB--A wonderful album full of those marvelous guitarist slinging and stinging the blues. Some acoustic, some rarely covered covers and a few originals. All four guitarists bring something to the table and the menu prime blues. Don't know how easy it'll be to get ahold of this, but it'll be worth the search. The White Roach solved that one for me.

Sonny Landreth Recorded Live In Lafayette--While at The White Roach, I spotted Sonny Landreth's new one. I'd seen him play a show a few years ago and the slide guitar wizard blew me away. I picked it up, put it back, picked it up and put it back. Kinda regretted not picking it up. My wife and daughter went shopping later and asked if I needed anything. Jokingly told them that if they passed by The White Roach, picked up Sonny Landreth's album. They did it. And didn't put it back.

It showcases just what a master slide guitarist Sonny Landreth is. The double album features and acoustic set, chock full of blues with some zydeco and Louisiana swamp music thrown down. The second disc features his electric set. Some more blues and some of the other worldly slide that only Landreth can conjure up. Mojo hand gone wild. Fantastic release and it's been nominated for a well deserved Grammy. So, you can find this one.

Johnny Nicholas and Friends Too Many Bad Habits--My wife went over to The Bugle Boy in LaGrange to see Johnny play awhile back. I've mentioned that great listening room here before. I've been a fan of Johnny's since he recorded with Big Walter Horton for Blind Pig way back in the day, and I told him so. He released Too Many Bad Habits at around the same time in the late '70s and it sort of disappeared. He told me that he had gained possession of what Blind Pig had in their vaults and that a slew of unreleased stuff he did with Walter was among the masters and to keep my eyes out for his planned remastered release. My ears perked up at unreleased Big Walter. He was woefully under recorded. So, when Too Many Bad Habits hit the market I had to, you know, get it in my hands. The first disc is a straight up re-issue of the original disc with lots of fine picking by Johnny and friends, including Asleep At The Wheel's front man, Ray Benson and the legendary Johnny Shines. Johnny played a number of years with Benson's band. Big Walter is featured on a number of cuts bouncing his fat harp tone off Shine's lead guitar.

Disc two is where the unreleased stuff appears with Shines and Walter, along with Boogie Woogie Read on piano, laying down the back in the alley blues as only the veterans could do. Walter sings on a few of the tracks, letting his harp do most of the talking. Nicolas' vocals drip blues blood all over this two disc set. Well worth the price of admission. Got this one and the following one through Blue Beat Music. If Charlie ain't got it, it can't be got.

Lester Butler featuring 13 Live @ Tamines 1997--Got this one because my wife kept bugging me about what I wanted for Christmas. Butler's live King King with his band The Red Devils has been one of my favorite live albums ever. His follow up featuring a new band lineup called 13 was a great one also. Then he died. That was it and very few examples of what he left behind surfaced, so when this one did, you know, I had to get it. It not exactly on the level of King King, which was wonderfully produced by Rick Ruben, but it's darned close. The dynamic harp playing rips and roars, along with Butler's tortured vocals and a  step is not lost with Alex Schulz in the guitar chair. There's too little Lester Butler out there, so this one with fill the bill until someone steps forward with something else.

Kim Wilson Blues and Boogie Vol. 1--Hell, it's Kim Wilson blowing and singing the blues. 'Nuff said. Another one of those 'what do you want for Christmas' thangs. This is Wilson getting back to his roots covering blues tunes he's been wanting to release for quite some time. He throws downs a few originals with a hand picked group of the best blues musicians on the West Coast. Might be the last recordings that we'll here from the stupendous keyboard man, Barrelhouse Chuck. This is my Kim Wilson. I've always loved The Fabulous Thunderbirds, but as of late, Wilson has been into his R&B and Soul bag, and, well, that just ain't my bag, but bring on the fat back blues harp sucking that Wilson mastered a long, long time ago and I'm in heaven. 'Nuff for now.

Too Much Is Not Enough

Let me begin by saying that I lied in my last post. Not about finally getting around to reviewing something to do with the blues, but about the ones that I said were up next for me to waxed poetically about. I put a Christmas Amazon gift card to good use and received this release yesterday and just had to put my spin on it.

This represents Omar Kent Dykes second release paying homage to Jimmy Reed's music. I have the first one, with Jimmy Vaughn on board, called The Jimmy Reed Highway. It's a good 'un, but I bought this one here because of the Disclaimer that Dykes wrote explaining why he would do another batch of Jimmy Reed stuff. The title, Too Much Is Not Enough, explains some of his reasoning, but what sold me was this: "The most important reason to release these songs: they are the last recordings I did with my good friend, Gary Primich. I believe these songs deserve to be shared and appreciated. I am dedicating this CD to the memory and unstoppable talent of Gary Primich." 'Nuff said!

Once I decided that I'd learn the ins and outs of playing the blues harp, Gary Primich was the first professional that I met and witnessed in action way back in the day. I've documented that show somewhere here on the blog, but the bottom line is that he blew me away and I became a fervent fan of his. He passed away way too soon, but left a legacy of the high caliber harmonica recordings behind. I'm beholding to Omar Dykes for sharing these cuts with me.

Primich kicks off the proceedings on the opening cut with his fabulous deep, fat backed amplified tone and weaves all his tricks of the trade into the fills and solo. Too Much is not a Jimmy Reed staple, but takes the same shuffle path as the master. Same thing with the Dykes penned, I Gotta Let You Go, which is stamped with the signature groove. On this one though, Primich lays down his mic and shows off his unbeatable acoustic chops and enviable talent at bending the reeds to produce impeccable tone. Gary Clark Jr., the fast rising star from the Austin music scene, adds some nice slide guitar into the mix. He pops in and out of the core group of veteran blues cats Derek O'Brien (guitar), Ronnie James (upright bass), and Jay Moeller (drums). Barry Bihm throws down on electric bass when they want to get particularly nasty and Jon Hahn takes the drum sticks on a few.

Matter of fact, the only two cuts without Primich's harp (I Ain't Got You/I'm Gonna Ruin You) are from a stripped down trio with Clark doubling on harp and Moeller's drum kicking. His harp playing is effective, but rudimentary, and I suspect may have been included to contrast just how much more powerful Primich is on the instrument.

That Primich power is on full display on Shame, Shame, Shame on which Dykes turns him loose to do his thang. It is high octane stuff with Primich pulling out all the stops with his signature amped up runs, bends, and octave blasts. Same for You Don't Have To Go which Dykes transforms into a driving, whomping Chi-Town shuffle with Clark doing a bit of Elmore James style of slipping and sliding on the guitar frets. High and Lonesome also represents Primich's knack for getting the the deep, gutbucket grooves slamming with exquisite long drawn lonesome tones being pulled from the reeds and demonstrating his mastery of working the mic cupped and uncupped to add tonal variety.

Primich absolute owns Take Out Some Insurance, not exactly with any solos thrown down, but just proving how he can power a rhythmic groove. He helps it shuffle into the ozone, and on the instrumental Roll In Rhumba, he shifts gears to keep the rhumbaling rhumbaling.

Of course, Jimmy Reed's harp work is synonymous with what can be done in first position and the high end of the harmonica. No one, and I mean no one, nails that style better than Gary Primich. The bends, trills, warbles that he produces on those tiny reeds are nothing short of remarkable, and then he'll majectically swoop down for some low end acoustic thump on such tunes as Going To New York and I'm Going To Move To The Outskirts Of Town (again, not a tune associated with Reed).

Keep in mind that Primich is working as a sideman here and nothing is intended as a showcase for his talents. The songs are all less than four minutes long, some less than three, as should be, so he's just adding his licks to provide the songs with what is needed. Someone who is not a blues harp nut might not even notice, but we know what he's putting down.

I'm not meaning to give short shrift to Dykes. I saw beau coup Omar and the Howlers gigs back in the day and always loved his roadhouse rowdiness and his rough and ready vocals, and the man plays a helluva guitar. He knows exactly what he wants and how to get that across in any songs that he tackles, and here, he's tackled the Jimmy Reed grooves and wrestled them to the ground with a cracker jack group of musicians for an outstanding release. Damn right, Omar, Too Much Is Not Enough. And as he says in his liner notes, "If you think I've gone overboard with Jimmy Reed, just wait until I release my Howlin' Wolf and Bo Diddley material". Bring it on Omar Dykes. 'Nuff for now!