Ernie Hawkins is a great finger-style acoustic guitarist. His new cd "Whinin' Boy" should establish him at the very top rank in the genre. Hawkins took lessons with Rev Gary Davis back in the 60s, and this time around he plays with a band. And what a great band it is! The band includes Dwayne Dolphin, the jazz bassist; Joe Dallas on trombone; Paul Cosentino on clarinet; Roger Day on tuba; James Moore on trumpet; Marc Reisman, on harmonica; and percussionist George Heid, who also produces "Whinin' Boy." They offer up a smorgasbord of great songs, starting out with the Jelly Roll Morton penned title track, the Naset-Kahn "Susie (of the Islands), the Donaldson-Kahn "Makin' Whoopie" in a Dixieland arrangement, a couple of originals, the Little Brother Montgomery "Vicksburg Blues," Louis Armstrong's "Weather Bird," Irving Berlin's "Blue Skies," Big Bill Broonzy's "Shuffle Rag," and the Rev Gary Davis' "There Is a Table in Heaven." The songs vary from fingerpicking blues to dixieland and back--and everything here is beautifully done. Check it out!
Ernie Hawkins has been featured in SingOUT!, Fingerstyle Guitar, Dirty Linen, Acoustic Guitar, Blues Revue and Vintage Guitar magazines. He has appeared on "A Prairie Home Companion", "Mountain Stage" , "Woodsongs Old-Time Radio Hour" and XM radio. Ernie appears on Maria Muldaur's Grammy and Handy nominated and Indie Award winning album "Richland Woman Blues."
This cd is on Corona Records, and you can buy it online at www.erniehawkins.com
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