Albert Castiglia "Keepin On"

Albert Castiglia is a great guitarist and singer, but that's not the best thing about this new cd "Keepin On," out August 10 on Blues Leaf Records. The best thing is that Albert keeps getting better. I listened to Castiglia's work from "Burn" (2002) to "A Stone's Throw" (2006) to "These Are The Days" (2008) and now this new cd "Keepin On" (2010) and the growth is remarkable. Albert's guitar playing is hotter, better, cleaner and his singing stronger, more emotive than ever before. Albert and his band, bassist AJ Kelly and drummer Bob Amsel, kick things off with the Sir Mack Rice-penned "Cadillac Assembly Line." Check out the first time Albert did this song, on "Burn" and compare that take with this one. Albert did a good job of covering Albert King on the 2002 cd, and this time out he completely knocks it out of the park. Next Castiglia does a great job on a Bob Dylan song, this time with "Till I Fell In Love With You," a talent that he has used to good effect previously with "Catfish." Next up are a pair of originals, "Mojo 305," an instrumental which showcases the talents of this three-piece band, and "Keep On Keeping On," which features a great Credence Clearwater Revival-style guitar melody broken up by one of Albert's finest solos yet. That is followed by a cover of T-Bone Walker's "My Baby Is Now On My Mind," which in less than 4 minutes amply illustrates the genius of both T-Bone and Albert's guitar work, which is followed by a cover of Peter Green's "Could Not Ask for More," with guests Bill "Mighty" Quinn on piano and an uncredited Sandy Mack on harmonica.

Then comes a wonderful break--Albert on acoustic guitar with Toby Walker on dobro for "Sweet Southern Angel," a Castiglia original, followed by a standout cover of Robert Nighthawk's classic "Murderin' Blues." This is the direction I'd love to see Albert explore further--I already know he is one of the very top electric guitar players out there, but his guitar touch and his fine sense of dynamics, along with his remarkable voice, have both improved so much since 2002 that I think he could do a GREAT acoustic cd. Maybe someday?

The rest of the disc includes a John Lee Hooker cover "Goin' Upstairs," with Quinn on the Hammond B3, and concludes with two more Castiglia originals, "Gettin By" and "Closing Time," which each turn the heat up again with some great electric guitar work. These two songs are not just coda to all that has gone on before--they illustrate how Albert Castiglia is clearly on top of his game. He closes things down with 12 minutes of great guitar work on these 2 songs, 12 minutes of music that CUT everything that Eric Clapton, for example, has done over the past 4-5 years. It reminds me of the way Stevie Ray Vaughan would just spin out these great melodies and riffs like it was easy for him. Albert is terrific and this is a great cd.

Les Copeland "Don't Let The Devil In"

Les Copeland is a fine guitarist and an underrated vocalist. He hails from Canada, but the blues he bring to life on this disc really are universal. This album is Copeland's first release on Earwig. According to the label, it "showcases Les’ fine finger picking, melodic sensibility and chordal finesse, and his wry and ironic lyrical observations about everyday people." Copeland shows a talent for all kinds of songs here--sometimes he's doing Chicago blues, sometimes jazz, sometimes old-style country, and sometimes folk music, but always the music and vocals are clear and strong and honest. All the songs but one are Copeland originals. On several songs Copeland's slide guitar playing reminds me of Ry Cooder--especially on "Ry Cooder" and "Riding The Sky Train." And on "Ginseng Girl" and "Wet Paper Bag" Copeland shows that he has listened to Barney Kessel, spinning out gorgeous jazz melodies. On "I'm The Little One" he even sings a children's song, and on the next song "Everyday People" Copeland takes a very nice folkish turn. His singing voice reminds me of Jimmie Rodgers, especially on "What's Your Name," "Long Lost Love," and "Distant Train." All these comparisons are high praise.

Helping Copeland here are guest Hall of Fame bluesman David 'Honeyboy' Edwards on second guitar on two songs, "Anna Lee" and "How's That Drummer." And Honeyboy's manager, Michael Frank, contributes harmonica on three songs, "What's Your Name," "Silently," and the title track.

Les Copeland has made an interesting and quite good disc. You can buy it at Earwig Music. Http://www.earwigmusic.com

Grady Champion "Back In Mississippi Live at 930 Blues Cafe"

These men won the International Blues Challenge in Memphis in January 2010 so you know they play with fire and power. This show was recorded on 07-07-07 at the 930 Blues Club in Jackson Mississippi, and it captures a great time. Grady Champion and the Grady Champion Revue featuring Eddie Cotton Jr, as a band, are made of Mr. Champion on vocals and harp and Mr. Cotton on guitar, Calvin Wilson on keyboards, Marquis Champion on bass, and Frank White on drums. They have played together long enough to do things right. Things start off with the doubleheader blast of Willie Dixon and Jimmy Reed, with "I'm Ready" and "Baby What You Want Me To Do/Bright Lights" the way shows probably kicked off in hundreds of blues clubs back in the 50s and 60s. These classics are expertly done, and after that warm up the band brings out three Grady Champion compositions, "You Got Some Explaining To Do" "1-800-Blu-Love" and "Policeman Blues." Grady testifies, he tells the truth in each song; and then, as the audience is catching their breath, the Revue launches into a long and glorious cover of Howlin' Wolf's "Spoonful" and you think the show must be wrapping up. But the best is still yet to come! Led by a slow and terrific organ and guitar intro, the band digs into "Lonesome Bed Blues" where everybody gets a chance to shine, especially Eddie Cotton Jr. His guitar work here alone is worth the price of the cd. The rest of the show is all 100% top notch blues, mixing Grady Champion's original songs with the BB King classic "Why I Sing The Blues," which is where you get to hear Grady's great harp work. During "Wine and Women," co-written by Grady and Eddie Cotton Jr., Calvin Wilson plays a great solo on piano. Every song is fully realized... This cd is a great teaching opportunity too. Anybody who says "I don't like the blues, they're all sad songs" needs to hear this. It will lift your spirits! You can dance to it! And for all you blues DJ's out there, there's a good blues Christmas song here too--"Blues On Christmas."

Just yesterday (July 12) Grady Champion won the Jackson Music Award as "Local Blues Artist of the Year." Lucky people of Jackson.

You can buy this disc at http://www.gradychampion.com

Cee Cee James "Seriously Raw" (Live at Sunbanks)

This is a terrific disc! It's an old-style live disc that needs to be played loud. Cee Cee burns the place down with her singing, and the band is great too. Cee Cee is backed by Chris Leighton on drums with Dan Mohler on bass and Rob "SlideBoy" Andrews on slide and rhythm guitar and Jason Childs on lead guitar. There's not a weak second anywhere. It feels almost as through you're hanging out at your favorite blues club on a hot hot Saturday night, and Cee Cee is singing to expel the demons and save her life. There's a lot of Janis Joplin in her soulful growl, but I think on this set Cee Cee does Janis maybe even better than Janis did. Especially recommended is "I've Got A Right To Sing The Blues."

My favorite live disc, not only of 2010 but maybe of the century so far.

You can buy this disc at http://www.ceeceejames.com/music.html

Marshall Lawrence "Blues Intervention" & Andy Cohen "Built Right On The Ground"

Two acoustic guitarists, each with new cds, each one really good at what they do. Marshall Lawrence is from Canada and Andy Cohen is from Memphis. I have been listening to both discs a lot, going back and forth, and I decided to just present them both at once.

Marshall Lawrence writes 10 of the 13 tracks on "Blues Intervention." The writing on the originals is quite good. The playing by Lawrence on vocals, guitar, mandolin, banjo, jug and thigh slaps, with the terrific Sherman "Tank" Doucette on harp, and the equally terrific Russell Jackson on stand up bass, is very top notch. And Lawrence has gotten great support for this cd--"Blues Intervention" ranked #3 on The Blues List - May 2010 for Blues Underground Network's Top Picks for May 2010 and "Blues Intervention" has charted in the Top 10 on Canada's Roots Music Report for radio play. Lawrence deserves every bit of that. This is a good cd. My favorite tracks here are "Going Down to Louisiana," a Lawrence original, and the cover of Tommie Johnson & Mattie Delaney's song "Traveling Blues."

And if you are a fan of good acoustic guitar music, this new disc by Andy Cohen is very good. Cohen only writes one original song here--his style is, like Steve Howell, to find and play good songs that deserve resurrecting. Many of these songs are from the 1920s and 1930s. "Built Right On The Ground" is almost completely a solo effort--Cohen plays guitar on all tracks, and piano on two songs, and dolceola on one track. He is joined by his wife Larkin Bryant on vocal and mandolin on 2 songs, and Kurt Anderson on vocals and guitar on 2 more. The playing and singing here is absolutely stellar--it reminds me of Doc Watson in that from song to song it's either blues or country or ragtime or blues again. Every note here is good music, that's for sure. My favorite tracks here are "Mopper's Blues," a Big Bill Broonzy cover, and the Bobby Charles song "Tennessee Blues."

The Marshall Lawrence disc is an indy relese--you can buy it at http://www.cdbaby.com/Artist/MarshallLawrence
The Andy Cohen disc is on Earwig Records--you can buy it at http://www.earwigmusic.com

Cathy Lemons and Johnny Ace "Lemonace"

This is a perfect cd for a late night road trip. At least that's the way I first heard it, and the other night when I was making another late-night trip down the country two lane roads of South Georgia this cd was the first thing I packed for the trip. Johnny Ace plays the bass like it amplifies his heartbeat, and his heart has a lot to say. Cathy Lemons is one of those women singers who can sing anything and make it compelling. Pierre Le Corre plays great guitar all over this disc, with a little help here and there from Kid Andersen and Tommy Castro. The drum chair is ably filled by Artie "Stix" Chavez. Guests include David Maxwell, who contributes terrific piano work on "When Bad Luck Looks Good" and "Gimme A Penny", Paul Oscher, who contributes a great harp turn on "Gimme A Penny," and Ron Thompson, who contributes a typically understated sweet slide guitar solo on "Shoot To Kill."

When I first fell for the blues back thirty-five-plus years ago, this was the kind of music that hooked the teenage me--great vocals over a rich deep bed of bass and drums, with slinky great guitar and harp work weaving through everything and tying everything together. I remember the first time I heard the Butterfield Blues band as if it was just yesterday. Those guys knew the formula--they had listened to and played with everybody who was anybody in Chicago--and they brought the music to rich throbbing LIFE. It was new and yet it wasn't, and they didn't give a damn if you liked it or if you didn't. Well, this cd captures a bunch of that same feel. It's hard and deep and rich.

Tommy Castro writes the liner notes, and he calls this "a strong and soulful effort." He's right.

This cd is on Vizztone Records.

Annie Piper "Chasin Tail"

From the first cluster of guitar notes this cd grabbed my attention, and then a wonderful thing happened--Annie Piper began to sing. She has the kind of voice and delivery that goes straight to your heart. The music is passionate in-your-face blues and blues rock, played well and best heard LOUD. The songs are originals, along with ripping good covers of Freddie King's "Hideaway" and Jimi Hendrix's "Voodoo Child Slight Return." If you are a fan of Janiva Magness just go buy this cd immediately--Annie Piper will, as my friend Don says, melt your face right off. The band is Sam Buckley on guitar, Annie Piper on vocals and bass, and Reuben Alexander on drums. Good stuff.

This cd is on Blues Leaf Records.