Little Feat Go All In On the Blues

When I spotted Little Feat in my “Release Radar” new music playlist curated by Spotify last Friday, I first thought they must have re-issued one of their old albums. A closer look quickly revealed I was wrong and that song in the playlist was taken from a new album titled Sam’s Place, released last Friday (May 17). Not only is it the storied group’s first since 2012, but it’s also their first all-blues album. And while all of the nine tracks except for one are covers, I can highly recommend it to anyone who digs the blues.

Little Feat have been around since 1969 though after their break-up in 1979 had an 8-year interruption until their reformation in 1987. While I had known of them for a long time, my introduction only came in March 2018 after my dear German music buddy Gerd recommended Waiting for Columbus, their excellent first live album from February 1978 I reviewed here. Subsequently, I also more deeply explored Dixie Chicken, the group’s great third studio album released in January 1973. You can read more about it here.

As you might expect for a band with such a long history, Little Feat have seen many line-up changes. Initially, they included singer-songwriter, lead vocalist and guitarist Lowell George, who led them for the first 10 years, Bill Payne (keyboards, piano), Roy Estrada (bass) and Richie Hayward (drums). By 1972, the group had grown into a six-piece who in addition to George, Hayward and Payne featured Paul Barrere (vocals, guitar), Sam Clayton (congas, percussion, vocals) and Kenny Gradney (bass).

Little Feat (from left): Sam Clayton (lead vocals, percussion), Scott Sharrad (guitar, vocals), Bill Payne (keyboards, piano), Tony Leone (drums), Fred Tackett (guitar, mandolin, trumpet) and Kenny Gradney (bass)

Shortly after their break-up, George passed away in June 1979 at age 34 from a heart attack caused by a heroin overdose. In 1987, surviving members Barrere, Clayton, Gradney, Hayward and Payne revived Little Feat, and added songwriter, vocalist and guitarist Craig Fuller and Fred Tackett (guitar, mandolin, trumpet). The band’s line-up continued to change over the years and currently includes Payne as the only remaining co-founder, along with Tackett, Clayton and Gradney, as well as Scott Sharrad (guitar, vocals) and Tony Leone (drums), who joined in 2019 and 2020, respectively.

While Sam’s Place is Little Feat’s first all-blues album, blues has always been an ingredient of the group’s tasty musical gumbo that also has included rock, funk, folk, jazz, country, rockabilly and New Orleans swamp boogie. One thing that’s new is Clayton’s dominant role on lead vocals throughout the album. A review in Blues Rock Review compared his gravelly vocals to Howlin’ Wolf. Sam’s Place was recorded live in studio at Sam Phillips Recording in Memphis, Tenn., except for the closer, which was captured before a live audience. A review in Glide Magazine noted the album was co-produced by Little Feat and engineer Charles Martinez.

Time to take a closer look at some of the goodies. Here’s the opener Milkman, the album’s only original song co-written by Clayton, Tackett and Sharrad. BTW, if you’re into Gregg Allman, the name Scott Sharrad might ring a bell. He joined Allman’s backing band in 2008 and became their musical director until Allman’s death in 2017. The tasty horn action is provided by Marc Franklin (trumpet) and Art Edmiston (saxophone). Great stuff!

As a longtime fan of Bonnie Raitt, of course, I couldn’t skip Long Distance Call, which features her on vocals together with Clayton. Sharrad shines on Dobro resonator guitar, while the neat harmonica action is provided by Michael “The Bull” LoBue. The song was written by Muddy Waters who first released it as a single in 1951. Little Feat and Raitt go back to the early ’70s when she first sang backing vocals on the group’s above mentioned Dixie Chicken, as well as the August 1974 follow-on Feats Don’t Fail Me Now. “I’ve always loved Little Feat and this new incarnation of the band is bringing some serious heat, cred and new blood to their enduring legacy,” Raitt said.

Don’t Go Further is another stands out track. The song was written as “Don’t Go Farther” by Willie Dixon in 1956 and first recorded by Muddy Waters and released under Muddy Waters and His Guitar the same year. I love this great shuffle!

Clearly, Little Feat must have a thing for Muddy Waters, and who can blame them. Can’t Be Satisfied is a rendition of another song by Waters who wrote and released it as I Can’t Be Satisfied in 1948. The official video features neat footage from Sam Phillips Recording studio. “You can’t make a blues album without playing some Muddy Waters and Little Feat has performed this on live shows over the years,” Sharrad told Rock & Blues Muse. “What sets this rendition apart is Tony Leone’s nod to Levon Helm with the drum groove. This arrangement takes you from Mississippi, up to Chicago and lands down in Arkansas, where both Fred Tackett and Levon Helm were born.”

I could easily go on and on since I dig all of the album’s nine tracks. Let’s wrap it up with the aforementioned live version of Got My Mojo Working. Written by Preston “Red” Foster, the blues classic was first recorded and released by R&B singer Ann Cole in 1956. The following year, Muddy Waters released the song with some changed lyrics and an arrangement that altered Cole’s more doo-wop-oriented style to a driving jump blues rhythm. Yes, it’s been done many times, but you can feel the joy Little Feat had performing the song, so it’s certainly a worthy cover.

Little Feat will go on the road starting at the end of this month, sharing bills with Tedeschi Trucks Band, The Wood Brothers and Los Lobos, among others. Seeing them with any of the other aforementioned bands sounds like a fun proposition. The current tour schedule is here. I’m leaving you with a Spotify link to the album:

Sources: Wikipedia; Little Feat website; Blues Rock Review; Glide Magazine; Rock & Blues Muse; YouTube; Spotify

New Music Musings

Another week has flown by, and I’d like to welcome you to my latest look at developments on the new music front. All tracks are on albums that came out yesterday (March 22).

Velcros/Starting Now

Velcros are a rock band from Leipzig, Germany. Their Bandcamp page describes the trio’s music as “a fusion of Tom Petty’s undeniable charisma and the raw, unfiltered energy reminiscent of the punk bands such as The Hives or The Wipers.” In July 2023, Velcros released their debut EP Spit Takes. Starting Now is the catchy opener of the group’s first full-length album Strange News From the Vault. The music and lyrics are written and performed by Fabian Bremer, Nicolai Hildebrandt and Manuel Markstein.

Barely Civil/Not Fine

Barely Civil are an American indie rock band from Wisconsin. They formed in 2012 and are influenced by Emo groups like Modern Baseball and Sorority Noise. Their AllMusic bio notes the group released their debut EP Year of the Dog in 2016. Barely Civil are Connor Erickson (vocals, guitar), Alex Larsen (guitar), Eric Doucette (bass, vocals) and Isaac Marquardt (drums). Off their third and latest album I’d Say I’m Not Fine, here’s Not Fine. I’d say it’s not bad!

Waxahatchee/Bored

Waxahatchee is a music project of indie folk and indie rock singer-songwriter Katie Crutchfield. Crutchfield formed Waxahatchee in 2012 after the break-up of pop punk band P.S. Eliot she had co-founded in 2007. Starting with 2012’s American Weekend, six albums have appeared to date under the Waxahatchee moniker including the latest, Tigers Blood. Here’s country-flavored Bored, which first appeared as the second upfront single on February 13.

Charlie Parr/Bear Head Lake

Charlie Parr is a rootsy blues and folk singer-songwriter from Minnesota. Since his July 2002 debut Criminals and Sinners, Parr has released more than 15 additional albums. His influences include Charlie Patton, Bukka White, Reverend Gary Davis, Dave Van Ronk, Mississippi John Hurt and “Spider” John Koerner. From his new album Little Sun, here’s Bear Head Lake. And, yes, there are vocals. They start at around 2:23 minutes into the track after a pretty acoustic music intro.

Van Houten/Never Did Come Back

Van Houten are an English psychedelic pop group from Leeds. From their Soundcloud profile: Van Houten’s core is based on life long friendship, an inability to exist without each other, and an obsession with creating a sonic mixing pot of intimate lo-fi rock + cavernous Shoegaze. Their sound envelops the listener, combining upbeat pop melodies and hooks with downbeat lyrics one minute, before full introspection and aural catharsis the next. Off their debut album The Tallest Room, which took seven years to make, here’s Never Did Come Back.

Adrianne Lenker/Free Treasure

Wrapping up this post is new music by indie folk singer-songwriter Adrianne Lenker. Lenker is also the lead vocalist, guitarist and main songwriter of indie folk band Big Thief she co-founded in 2015 with Buck Meek (guitar, backing vocals). Lenker wrote her first song as an eight-year-old and released her solo debut album Stages of the Sun in January 2014 when she was only 14. She attended Berklee College of Music on a scholarship provided by Susan Tedeschi of the Tedeschi Trucks Band. Lenker’s sixth and latest album is titled Bright Future. Here’s Free Treasure, which like all other songs on the album was written by Lenker. She sounds great!

Sources: Wikipedia; AllMusic; Velcros Bandcamp page; Van Houten Soundcloud page; YouTube; Spotify

The Wanderer Continues to March On And Sounds As Great As Ever

Dion DiMucci, better known as Dion, is back with his third new album in less than four years. Girl Friends, which dropped last Friday (March 8), continues the impressive late-career streak of the soon-to-be-85-year-young wanderer. Like its two predecessors Stomping Ground (2021) and Blues With Friends, it features collaborations with high-profile artists with a twist: All are women or as Dion playfully calls them ‘my girl friends.’

While at first sight it may appear Dion follows an old playbook where a mature artist packs their album with popular peers, he always remains a true equal and is never outgunned by his collaborators, both musically and vocally. It’s also noteworthy Dion co-wrote all of the 12 original tracks, as stated in the official press release: 11 with Mike Aquilina with whom also wrote most of the tracks on Stomping Ground, and one with the late Scott Kempner. Girl Friends is Dion’s third consecutive album to appear on Joe Bonamassa’s label Keeping the Blues Alive Records.

Time for some music. Let’s start with the amazing opener Soul Force, featuring Susan Tedeschi who is best known as Derek Trucks’ partner in crime in Tedeschi Trucks Band. They’ve also been married since December 2001. “It’s amazing that someone so unassuming can play with such grit,” opined Dion. Spot on, IMHO – here are the goods to prove it!

Since I just included I Aim to Please (feat. Danielle Nicole) in my most recent new music review, I’m skipping it here and go right to Stop Drop and Roll. For this song Dion teamed up with Valerie Tyson who fronts the Valerie Tyson Band and has been lauded for her “flamethrower vocals.” I love the soul and gospel vibe Tyson brings to the song. “I call her up when I have a tune that’s 100% fun,” Dion recalled. “This kind of groove requires that kind of company and it’s why I got into this business in the first place.” Smart pick!

An American Hero is a beautiful country-flavored ballad featuring Carlene Carter, who first entered my radar screen in 2017 when John Mellencamp collaborated with her on the excellent Sad Clowns & Hillbillies album. “Carlene’s voice can turn your head, and it can break your heart,” stated Dion – yep!

Hey Suzy is a tasty country-flavored blues. Dion’s great partner in crime here is Canadian blues guitarist and singer-songwriter Sue Foley. “It’s a dream come true to work with her,” Dion said, adding, “I felt like I was one of the Everly Brothers.” That’s a really sharp observation – check it out!

I’d like to close with another highlight on the album: Mama Said, featuring the amazing Shemekia Copeland. “One conversation with Shemekia Copeland you fall in love with her,” Dion gushed. “And this girl can sing! Girl’s got the blues in her blood.” Evidently, the admiration is mutual. “Dion is so special to me; it’s an honor and thrill to have been asked to collaborate with him,” Copeland said. “I mean, what woman wouldn’t want to sing with Dion?” The playful lyrics are fun, but it’s Copeland’s incredible vocals that take the song to a different level – damn!

In case you’re wondering why making an album with female artists, here’s what Dion had to say about it. “I write about my preoccupations, and I know no better preoccupation than the female of the species. A friend of mine is a philosopher, and he talks often about ‘the feminine genius’ — the undeniable difference that’s in women and the difference that they make in the world. I’m grateful to my friend for giving it a name because the fact has always been plain to me, but I could never put it into words.”

“I’ve noticed that men play a different tune when there are women in the room — and it’s a different kind of jam when women are in the mix. I don’t know why this is so, but it is. Maybe we men, at some primitive level, are competing for their attention. As I said, I don’t know why or how. I do know it makes better music and we’re all better for it.”

Sources: Wikipedia; Girl Friends press release; YouTube; Spotify

The Sunday Six

Welcome to the first Sunday of September 2023. I can’t believe it’s Labor Day weekend here in the U.S. Officially, this means the last weekend of summer, though we actually have another three weeks before fall starts on September 23, at least astronomically speaking. But guess what, none of it matters when traveling with the magical music time machine, allowing us to visit any season of any year. Hope you join me on the upcoming trip, which starts right now!

Lee Morgan/I Remember Clifford

For our first stop, let’s set the time controls to 1957. The previous year, jazz trumpeter and composer Lee Morgan started recording as an 18-year-old with his solo debut Lee Morgan Indeed! After playing in Dizzy Gillespie’s Big Band from 1956 until 1958, he joined Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers and was featured on numerous of their albums between 1957 and 1966. Morgan’s prolific recording career came to an abrupt end in February 1972 at the age of 33, when his common-law wife Helen Moore shot him during an altercation at a jazz club in New York City where Morgan was performing with his band. I Remember Clifford, composed by tenor saxophonist Benny Golson, is a track from Lee Morgan Vol. 3, his third album released on the Blue Note label in 1957. Golson was also one of five musicians who backed Morgan on the recording.

The Police/Synchronicity II

After a mellow start, let’s kick up the speed with The Police and Synchronicity II, a great song from their fifth and final studio release Synchronicity that came out in June 1993. It is considered a defining album of The Second British Invasion of synth pop and new wave. By the time the supporting tour had finished in March 1984, frontman Sting already had decided to go it alone. While the band was on an official hiatus he started work on his solo debut The Dream of the Blue Turtles, which appeared in June 1985. An attempt by The Police to record another album in July 1986 quickly came to an end after Stewart Copeland broke his collarbone in a fall from a horse and wasn’t able to play the drums. The Police officially disbanded shortly thereafter.

Nina Simone/Backlash Blues

Our next stop takes us to 1967 and Nina Simone. The music of the singer, songwriter, pianist and civil rights activist featured multiple styles, including classical, folk, gospel, jazz, R&B, pop and blues. The latter brings me to Backlash Blues, off Nina Simone Sings the Blues, the second of three albums Simone released in 1967. She wrote the song together with poet, social activist, novelist, playwright and columnist Langston Hughes, who is one of the earliest innovators of the literary art form jazz poetry. The neat guitar work was provided by jazz and R&B guitarist Eric Gale.

Stevie Wonder/Living For the City

Now, I’m delighted to take you to one of my long-time favorite artists, Stevie Wonder, and Innervisions. Released in August 1973, it was the third of five studio albums that fall into his so-called classic period. This time span from 1972 until 1976 is widely regarded as Wonder’s strongest artistic period. One of the songs that have always stood out to me on Innervisions is Living For the City, a tale of racial discrimination and a young African American man whose dream of the big city ends with a 10-year prison sentence.

Cracker/Nostalgia

The time has come to pay a visit to the ’90s and music from the sophomore album by alternative rock band Cracker – but first shoutout to fellow blogger Dave from A Sound Day who recently featured that album, Kerosene Hat, which appeared in August 1993. I instantly dug it! Cracker were formed three years earlier by lead vocalist David Lowery after the disbanding of his previous group Camper Van Beethoven, along with his childhood friend and guitarist Johnny Hickman. Both still are with the current line-up of Cracker who remain active as a touring act. Off Kerosene Hat, here’s Nostalgia co-written by Lowery, Hickman and Davey Faragher, the group’s bassist at the time.

Magnolia Boulevard/Smooth Sailin’

For our sixth and final stop, let’s return to the present, sort of. In August 2020, Magnolia Boulevard, a five-piece group from Lexington, K.Y. blending blues, funk, jam and rock & roll, released their debut EP New Illusion. They were formed in 2017 and cite The Allman Brothers Band and Tedeschi Trucks Band as inspirations on the Bandcamp page. Here’s the excellent Smooth Sailin‘. Vocalist Maggie Noelle reminds me of Bonnie Raitt, while the song’s groove has a bit of a Santana vibe.

Of course, this post wouldn’t be complete without a Spotify playlist featuring all of the above tracks. Hope there’s something that tickles your fancy!

Sources: Wikipedia; Magnolia Boulevard Bandcamp page; YouTube; Spotify

Duane Betts Impresses on First Full-Length Album

Last Friday, Duane Betts released the first full-length studio album under his name. For a music artist who has been active for approximately 25 years, it’s been a long time coming, but the wait turned out to be very worthwhile. Wild & Precious Life puts Betts on the map as a solo artist.

When your father is Dickey Betts, guitarist and co-founder of The Allman Brothers Band, I guess the desire for music is in your genes. Duane recently told American Songwriter that after he had started learning the drums as a 5 or 6-year-old before switching to guitar around the age of 13, he never considered doing anything else but music. Evidently, nobody objected, so he stuck with it.

Credit: Dylan Jon Wade Cox

In 1994 as a 16-year-old, Betts joined the Allmans for a couple of gigs onstage. Four years later, he became a member of roots rock group Backbone69 and recorded their eponymous debut album with them the following year. After the band’s breakup in 2001, Betts co-founded rock group Whitestarr, together with his former Backbone59 bandmate Alex Orbison, the son of Roy Orbison.

In 2005, Betts’ father asked him to join Great Southern, the group Dickey had formed after his contentious departure from the Allmans in 2000. In 2015, Duane Betts became a touring member of folk-rock band Dawes. In April 2018, he released his first solo effort, an EP titled Sketches of American Music. Toward the end of the same year, he formed The Allman Betts Band, together with Devon Allman, a son of Gregg Allman. They released two albums in 2019 and 2020, respectively, and currently appear to be on hiatus.

Noting his EP, Betts explained to American Songwriter he wanted to put out a full-length album but the time needed to be right. He began writing songs for what would become Sketches of American Music during the pandemic in the summer of 2020. More songs followed in the beginning of 2022. In March of the same year, the recording sessions began at Swamp Raga Studio in Jacksonville, Fla., owned by Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks.

To make the album, Betts put together what he calls on his website “his dream team of musicians”: Allman Betts Band members Johnny Stachela (guitar), Berry Duane Oakley (bass) and John Ginty (keyboards), as well as Tyler Greenwell, one of the drummers in Tedeschi Trucks Band. There were also a few guests: Marcus King (guitar), singer-songwriter Nicki Bluhm and Derek Trucks (guitar).

Let’s check out some music! Here’s the magnificent opener Evergreen, which was co-written by Betts and Devon Allman. All it took for me to know I would dig this tune were the first few bars and that beautiful harmony guitar action. The jam-like instrumental part starting at around 2 minutes into the song is really sweet. And just after you could really picture the Allmans playing this song, Betts surprises you with some trumpet at around 3:43 minutes, which according to this Glide Magazine review was played by John Reid.

Waiting On a Song is another tune that grabbed my attention right away. Solely written by Betts, it first appeared on April 19 as the lead single, coinciding with the announcement of the album. An article in Garden & Sun, to which Betts’ website links, calls it “a breezy summer jam with an earworm melody and a guitar solo with more sizzle than steaks searing in a cast-iron skillet” – jeez, I never could have come up with that clever second half of the sentence!

Colors Fade features the aforementioned Nicki Bluhm on harmony vocals. The song was co-written by Betts, Johnny Stachela and Stoll Vaughan. And, yes, there’s more of that beautiful guitar harmony playing and some slide guitar action. Gorgeous tune!

Did I mention Derek Trucks? Check out Stare at the Sun, another single that was released ahead of the album on May 23rd. American Blues Scene reported the title of the song, which Betts co-wrote with Vaughan, came from something Trucks told Betts about his father’s guitar-playing: “He’s a player that’s not afraid to stare directly at the sun.” Apart from the great guitar interaction between Betts and Trucks, I love the keyboards in this tune.

Frankly, I could go on and on here. Another excellent track I included in my latest new music post is Cold Dark World, which features guitarist Marcus King. Let’s end it with an instrumental titled Under the Bali Moon. The track is credited to Betts and drummer Tyler Greenwell.

Wild & Precious Life was recorded to two-inch analog tape during a series of live-in-studio sessions at Swamp Raga Studio. Betts served as executive producer. Bobby Tis handled engineering duties, while mixing was done by seven-time Grammy winner Jim Scott who in addition to Tedeschi Trucks Band previously worked with the likes of Tom Petty, Wilco, The Rolling Stones and Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Summing up the album, Betts stated on his website, “This is a record that guitar players will love, but at its core, it’s really a song record. It’s an album about who I am, where I come from, and what I believe in.” Here’s a Spotify link to the entire opus:

Sources: Wikipedia; Duane Betts website; American Songwriter; Glide Magazine; Garden & Sun; American Blues Scene; YouTube; Spotify

The Sunday Six

Happy Sunday! Once again another weekend seems to be flying by but, of course, we cannot let this happen without visiting six tracks from six different decades with the magical music time machine. Hope you’ll join me for the ride!

Elliot Lawrence and his Orchestra/Alto Lament

For the start of today’s journey, let’s set our time machine to 1958. That’s when American jazz pianist and bandleader Elliot Lawrence recorded Alto Lament, a smooth track by Anthony Louis Scarmolin, an Italian-American composer, pianist and conductor. Based on what I could find, it appears the track was first included on an EP titled Definitely Lawrence! and released in 1959. Lawrence’s long career started in the 1940s. After recording and touring with his own band, he gave up jazz in the early 1960s and began composing and arranging for television, film and stage. Among others, he wrote the score for the great 1971 neo-noir action thriller The French Connection starring Gene Hackman, Roy Scheider and Fernando Rey.

Oasis/All Around the World

After this relaxed start of our trip, let’s kick it up a notch with a song that couldn’t be more appropriate when traveling across different countries: All Around the World, a catchy tune by UK pop rockers Oasis. By the time they released their third album Be Here Now in August 1997, they already had established themselves as one of Britain’s most popular ’90s bands, only three years after emerging from obscurity with their debut Definitely Maybe. Like all other songs on Be Here Now, All Around the World was penned by the band’s lead guitarist and principal songwriter Noel Gallagher.

Tedeschi Trucks Band/Somehow

For this next pick, we shall travel back to the present. When listening to Somehow by Tedeschi Trucks Band, somehow, I keep thinking of Bonnie Raitt, one of my all-time favorite artists. Both Susan Tedeschi’s vocals and the music would make this track a perfect fit for Raitt. Written by the group’s member Gabe Dixon (keyboards, guitar, vocals) and songwriter Tia Sellers, Somehow is from their most recent studio album I’m the Moon, which came out in September 2022. Rightfully, Tedeschi Trucks Band called their fifth album the “most ambitious studio project” of their career to date. It was released in several installments, which I covered here and here at the time – terrific album!

The Kinks/Waterloo Sunset

Time to pay a visit to the ’60s. Let’s hop across the pond to London. The year is 1967 and it’s the month of September. That’s when British rock band The Kinks came out with their fifth UK studio album, Something Else by the Kinks. And indeed, that release was something else! In no small part, that’s because of the incredible lead single Waterloo Sunset, which appeared in May of the same year. Written by Ray Davies, the tale about a solitary narrator reflecting on two lovers, the river Thames and Waterloo Station is an absolute gem in the band’s catalog, at least in my book!

Roxy Music/Jealous Guy

When I first heard Jealous Guy by Roxy Music on the radio in Germany in 1981, I immediately loved it. In my youthful innocence, initially, I thought the song was the English art rock band’s own tune, not realizing they had recorded it as a beautiful tribute single to John Lennon in the wake of his senseless murder in December 1980. At the time, I already owned Lennon’s great 1975 compilation Shaved Fish, but it didn’t include Jealous Guy – definitely a miss! Originally, Lennon had recorded the ballad for his September 1971 sophomore solo album Imagine. Eventually, I borrowed a copy of that album and taped it on music cassette. Nowadays, I dig both versions equally.

James Gang/Walk Away

When you hang out with good friends, time flies – I can’t believe we’re reaching the final stop of another music time travel trip! Let’s end it with a kickass rocker by American rock band James Gang: Walk Away. Written by the great Joe Walsh, who had joined the group in early 1968, Walk Away was the opener of James Gang’s third studio album Thirds, released in April 1971. It would be Walsh’s final studio project with the band. After his departure in December 1971, he formed Barnstorm. Eventually, he was invited to join the Eagles in 1975 and continues to perform with them to this day.

As usual, the final thing I leave you with is a Spotify playlist featuring all of the above tracks. Hope there’s something you dig and you’ll be back for more!

Sources: Wikipedia; YouTube; Spotify

Yearend Musings Part 2

For the last time this year, I’d like to wish everybody a happy Saturday. I’m back from my short Christmas hiatus with the second installment of my two-part year-end review of new music released in 2022. Part 1 focused on new songs. In this post, I’m taking a look back at my six favorite albums of the year.

Altogether, I reviewed approximately 20 albums that were released over the course of the past 12 months. This count doesn’t include reissues like Neil Young’s nice Harvest 50th Anniversary Edition or other new releases of old music, such as Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers’ Live at the Fillmore (1997), an excellent box set I can highly recommend checking out. Mirroring the approach I took for 2022 new songs, I’m doing this in chronological order.

Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio/Cold As Weiss

Kicking off this year-end revue with an all-instrumental album may seem to come a bit out of left field, given I’m a huge fan of vocals, but Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio and their groovy Hammond-driven jazz was love at first sight. Plus, if you’re a more frequent visitor of my blog, you’ve undoubtedly noticed that instrumental music no longer is a rarity on these pages. Cold As Weiss, released on February 11, is the third studio album by this great trio, who apart from Delvon Lamarr (Hammond organ) features Jimmy Jones (guitar) and Dan Weiss (drums). Aka. DLO3, the trio has been around since May 2015 and describes their music as a “soul-jazz concoction”, blending 1960s organ jazz stylings of Jimmy Smith and Baby Face Willette; a pinch of the snappy soul strut of Booker T. & The M.G.’s and The Meters; and sprinkling Motown, Stax Records, blues, and cosmic Jimi Hendrix-style guitar. Let’s listen to Get Da Steppin’. My full review of this fun album is here.

Here’s a Spotify link to the entire album:

Goodbye June/See Where the Night Goes

Classic rock may no longer be in the mainstream, but it sure ain’t dead. Just ask Goodbye June from Memphis, Tenn., who have been helping carry the torch since 2005. The band is a family affair, comprised of cousins Landon Milbourn (lead vocals), Brandon Qualkenbush (rhythm guitar, bass, backing vocals) and Tyler Baker (lead guitar). On February 18, their fourth studio album See Where the Night Goes came out. The group’s sound, which is reminiscent of AC/DC, is a great listening experience. Check out the neat opener Step Aside below and my full review of the album here. Goodbye June truly rock!

Spotify album link:

Bonnie Raitt/Just Like That…

Frequent visitors of the blog and folks who know my music taste otherwise probably won’t be surprised to see Bonnie Raitt in this year-end post. I think her 21st studio album Just Like That…, which appeared on April 21, may well be her best to date in a now 51-year-and-counting recording career. If I would have to name my 2022 album of the year, Raitt’s first new release in more than six years would be it! Since this amazing lady first entered my radar screen with the outstanding Nick of Time in 1989, I’ve really come to dig her smooth slide-guitar playing, her voice and, of course, the songs most of which are renditions of tunes written by other artists. Here’s the Stonesy Livin’ For the Ones, a tune for which Raitt wrote the lyrics to music from longtime guitarist George Marinelli. Here is my full review of the album, a true gem that is a must-listen-to for Bonnie Raitt fans.

Spotify album link:

Jane Lee Hooker/Rollin’

Shortly on the heels of Bonnie Raitt, Jane Lee Hooker released their third studio album Rollin’ on April 29. I first experienced the great New York-based blues rock-oriented band during a free summer-in-the-park concert on the Jersey shore in August 2017 when they still were an all-female group and was immediately impressed by their infectious energy. All members remain, except for original drummer Melissa “Cool Whip” Houston who departed in 2020 and has been replaced by ‘Lightnin’ Ron Salvo. Earlier this year, I saw Jane Lee Hooker during a release party in New York City for the new album and can confirm the band’s only gent is a great fit. Rollin’ offers their familiar hard-charging electric guitar-driven blues rock, as well as some new elements, including acoustic blues and vibes of soul. A great illustration of the band’s more refined sound is the beautiful soul-oriented rock ballad Drive. My review of the full album is here.

Spotify album link:

Tedeschi Trucks Band/I’m the Moon

I’m the Moon, a four-album series, is the most ambitious studio project to date by Tedeschi Trucks Band and probably of 2022 overall. Each of the four installments, released individually between June and August, had a 30-minute-plus companion film. The entire project, which features 24 songs, became available as one collection on September 9. I’m the Moon was inspired by a 12th-century Persian poem – intriguingly the very same poem that also inspired one of the greatest blues rock albums of all time: Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, by Derek and the Dominos. You can read my two-part review of this impressive project here and here. Following I’d like to highlight Hear My Dear, the lead track of the first album. This gem was written by the group’s co-leaders and wife and husband Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks, along with the band’s keyboarder Gabe Dixon who is also one of their vocalists.

Spotify album link:

Buddy Guy/The Blues Don’t Lie

I’d like to wrap up this post with one of my absolute blues guitar heroes, Buddy Guy, who at 86 years young can still rock with the ferocity of Jimi Hendrix. On September 30, Guy released his 19th studio album The Blues Don’t Lie. The date coincided with the 65th anniversary of the legendary guitarist’s arrival in Chicago from Louisiana. Once again produced by longtime collaborator Tom Hambridge who also plays drums, the album features guest appearances by Mavis Staples, James Taylor, Elvis Costello, Jason Isbell and Bobby Rush. Most importantly, The Blues Don’t Lie truly fires on all cylinders. You can find my full review here. Perhaps the song that best sums up Buddy Guy is the opener I Let My Guitar Do the Talking, a cowrite by Guy and Hambridge. Damn, check this out!

Spotify album link:

Last but not least, I’d like to thank my fellow bloggers and other visitors for reading my blog and taking the time to comment, and would like to wish all of you a Happy, Safe and Healthy New Year! And let’s keep on bloggin’ in the free world in 2023!

Sources: Wikipedia; YouTube; Spotify

Tedeschi Trucks Band’s I Am The Moon Called Their Most Ambitious Studio Project to Date

Last Friday (Aug 26), Tedeschi Trucks Band released I Am The Moon: IV. Farewell, the fourth and final installment of their I Am the Moon four-album series. This is the second part of my review of what has been called the band’s most ambitious studio effort to date. You can read the first part here.

Borrowing from my previous post, I Am the Moon is a series of four albums, each accompanied by a film, with a total of 24 songs. The extraordinary project was inspired by a 12th-century Persian poem. Intriguingly, the very same poem also inspired one of the greatest blues rock albums of all time: Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, by Derek and the Dominos.

Tedeschi Trucks Band: Led by Susan Tedeschi (guitar, vocals) and Derek Trucks (guitar), the group also includes original members Tyler Greenwell (drums, percussion), Mike Mattison (harmony vocals), Mark Rivers (harmony vocals) and Kebbi Williams (saxophone). Isaac Eady (drums & percussion), Alecia Chakour (harmony vocals), Elizabeth Lea (trombone), Ephraim Owens (trumpet), Brandon Boone (bass) and Gabe Dixon (keyboards & vocals) complete the current 12-piece lineup

I Am The Moon is the fifth studio effort by Tedeschi Trucks Band, who were founded in 2010 and are led by married couple Susan Tedeschi (guitar, vocals) and Derek Trucks (guitar). After touring together in 2007 as the Derek Trucks & Susan Tedeschi’s Soul Stew Revival, Trucks and Tedeschi merged their respective groups to create a mighty 11-piece band. In 2015, they added another member and have since been a 12-piece – what an army of musicians!

The project was inspired by Layla and Majnun, a poem written by Persian poet Nizami Ganjavi. The romantic narrative poem has been called the “Romeo and Juliet of the East” by English poet Lord Byron, who according to Wikipedia is considered one of the greatest English poets and a leading figure of the Romantic movement.

I’d say it’s time to get to some music. Let’s start with two tracks off I Am The Moon: III. The Fall, which was released on July 29. Here’s the opener Somehow, penned by the band’s keyboarder and vocalist Gabe Dixon, together with external songwriter Tia Sillers. The album’s accompanying essay by renowned American music journalist David Fricke describes the tune as “an easy-rolling groove that soon turns into full-blown soul power.” I could totally picture Bonnie Raitt singing it – love this!

Yes We Will is more bluesy. Penned by Susan Tedeschi, the tune is much closer to what I had associated with Tedeschi Trucks Band before listening to I Am The Moon. From Fricke’s essay: “Derek and I have so many blues roots,” she says, “and I really wanted to show those roots, where this band is at.” The result is early-Seventies B.B. King arm in arm with the Staple Singers, while the guitar breaks affirm the rise-and-shine in the lyrics and Tedeschi’s vocal. Come on, wake up people, can’t you see it now? Time is right now, she declares as Mattison, Mark Rivers and Alecia Chakour bring the train-to-glory in the chorus. You can’t help but believe it. Great song!

Here’s a Spotify link to I Am The Moon: III. The Fall:

Here’s the companion film for the third album:

On to I Am The Moon: IV. Farewell. My first pick here is Soul Sweet Song, co-written by Derek Trucks, Gabe Dixon and the band’s harmony vocalist Mike Mattison. From Fricke’s album essay: “That was Gabe,” Trucks says of Dixon, who co-wrote this song with the guitarist and Mattison. “He had the idea of writing it about Kofi” – original TTB keyboard player Kofi Burbridge, who was ill when Dixon joined in late 2018, at first on a temporary basis. (Burbridge died in February 2019, on the day his last album with the group, Signs, was released.) “Gabe writing lyrics about Kofi (I feel your rhythm moving me/’Cause your soul’s sweet song’s still singing) – that one hit me between the eyes.” A special guest on congas, Marc Quiñones – a longtime bandmate with Trucks in the Allman Brothers Band – adds a decisive and familiar, rhythmic element to the celebration.

The last track I’d like to call out is I Can Feel You Smiling, which perfectly sums up my sentiment about this album series. One last time quoting from Fricke’s album essay: This sparsely arranged ballad “was fun to write,” says Trucks, who “woke up in the morning, had the tune and put it on my phone. It reminded me of something Oliver Wood” – singer-guitarist in the Wood Brothers and a longtime friend of TTB – “would have written, so I sent it to him. He wrote back, ‘Man, I woke up the last few days with that melody in my head. Do you mind if I write something to it?’ I’m like, ‘Have at it, man.'” Wood sent back “this beautiful recording with one verse and a chorus, and I was like ‘Okay, that song’s done!'” Dixon contributed as well, underscoring the group work ethic – in composing, arranging and performance – that produced every song on I Am The Moon.

Here’s a Spotify link to the fourth album:

And here’s the companion film to I Am The Moon: IV. Farewell.

I Am The Moon is a massive project, so there’s a lot to take in here. While I knew Tedeschi Trucks Band were top-notch musicians, I really didn’t expect them to be as soulful as they are on these four albums. Admittedly, at least part of it could be plain ignorance. In any case, I really dig what this group has done here. Now I feel like seeing them. After four big-ticket shows back in June, it is going to have to wait!

Sources: Tedeschi Trucks Band website; YouTube; Spotify

Best of What’s New

After a two-week hiatus due to a vacation in Germany, I’m happy to be back. The first two songs highlighted in this post are from albums that were released yesterday (August 12). The two remaining picks reflect music that appeared while I was out. Let’s get to it!

Tony Molina/The Last Time

Kicking things off today is Tony Molina. From his Apple Music profile: California native Tony Molina spent years working in the punk and hardcore scenes before venturing out into his much poppier solo work. Living in the Bay Area, Molina played in various D.I.Y. hardcore acts starting in his teenage years. In 2013, while still fronting the much more aggressive Caged Animal, Molina released his solo debut, Dissed and Dismissed, a collection of 12 short and fuzzy tunes that took notes from ’90s indie and power pop acts like Weezer, Dinosaur Jr., and Teenage Fanclub. The incredibly brief album (the 12 tunes rush by in as many minutes) caught the ears of various labels and booking agents, and within the year, Molina was scheduled to release singles with indie luminaries like Matador and Slumberland. Fast forward nine years to Molina’s third solo album In the Fade. Here’s The Last Time, a nice fuzzy rocker!

Collective Soul/Reason

The first time I heard of Collective Soul was in March 1993 when they seemingly emerged out of nowhere with their debut single Shine. I immediately dug what became their biggest hit to date. Then the alternative rock band completely fell off my radar screen. Frankly, I had no idea they are still around and have since released 10 additional studio albums, including their latest titled Vibrating. Three of the group’s founding members are still part of the current line-up: Ed Roland (lead vocals, guitars, keyboards), his brother Dean Roland (rhythm guitar) and Will Turpin (bass, percussion backing vocals). Jesse Triplett (lead guitar, backing vocals) and Johnny Rabb (drums, percussion) have been with the band since 2014 and 2012, respectively. Reason, penned by Ed Roland, is a nice melodic rock tune.

Sheryl Crow/Circles

I trust Sheryl Crow, one of my favorite pop rock artists, needs no further introduction. When Crow released Threads in August 2019, she said her 11th studio album would be her last full-length effort, citing changed listening habits in the era of music streaming. I reviewed it here at the time. But the singer-songwriter also noted this didn’t mean retirement or no more new music. While Crow hasn’t been exactly prolific since Threads, she has followed through on her announcement. The latest example is her rendition of Circles, a tune written by Post Malone who first released the song as a single in August 2019, off his third studio album Hollywood’s Bleeding that appeared in September of the same year. Crow put out her cover of the tune as a single on August 2.

Tedeschi Trucks Band/Emmaline

My last pick for this Best of What’s New installment is Emmaline, a song off Tedeschi Trucks Band’s I Am the Moon: III. The Fall, the third of their ambitious four-album I Am the Moon studio project, released July 29. I covered the first two installments here. The fourth and final album I Am The Moon: IV. Farewell is scheduled for August 23. I Am The Moon is the fifth studio effort by Tedeschi Trucks Band, a group founded in 2010 by married couple Susan Tedeschi  (guitar, vocals) and slide guitar virtuoso Derek Trucks, who among others was a member of The Allman Brothers Band from 1999 until they disbanded in 2014. Emmaline was written by Mike Mattison, one of the Tedeschi Trucks Band’s harmony vocalists – great tune!

This post wouldn’t be complete without a Spotify playlist of the above and a few additional tunes.

Sources: Wikipedia; Apple Music; YouTube; Spotify

If I Could Only Take One

Happy Wednesday! It’s time to prepare for another imaginary desert island trip. As usual, this means I need to figure which one song to take with me.

In case you’re new to this weekly recurring feature, there’re a few other rules. My pick needs to be by an artist or band I’ve only rarely written about or not covered at all to date. I’m also doing this exercise in alphabetical order, and I’m up to “t”.

There are plenty of artists (last names) and bands whose name starts with the letter “t”. Some include Taj Mahal, Tears For Fears, Tedeschi Trucks Band, The Temptations, Thin Lizzy, Pete Townshend, Tina Turner, Toto, Traffic, T. Rex and The Turtles. And then there’s the group I decided to pick: Talking Heads. My song choice: Burning Down the House.

Burning Down the House, credited to all four members of the band, David Byrne (lead vocals, guitar), Jerry Harrison (keyboards, guitar, backing vocals), Tina Weymouth (bass, backing vocals) and Chris Frantz (drums, backing vocals), first appeared on their fifth studio album Speaking in Tongues released in June 1983. It also became the record’s first single and the group’s highest-charting song in North America, climbing to no. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 and no. 8 in Canada. It did best in New Zealand where it peaked at no. 5. In Australia, on the other hand, it stalled at no. 94.

The origins of Talking Heads go back to 1973 when Rhode Island School of Design students David Byrne and Chris Frantz started a band called the Artistics. The following year, fellow student and Frantz’s girlfriend Tina Weymouth joined on bass after Byrne and Frantz had been unable to find a bassist. At that point, all three had relocated to New York.

In early June 1975, the group played their first gig as Talking Heads, opening for the Ramones at renowned New York City music club CBGB. After signing to Sire Records in November 1976, Talking Heads released their first single Love → Building on Fire in February 1977. The following month, Jerry Harrison joined, completing the group’s lineup ahead of recording their debut album Talking Heads: 77.

While Talking Heads: 77 enjoyed moderate chart success, it was voted the year’s seventh-best album in The Village Voice’s Pazz & Jop critics’ poll. Subsequently, it was ranked at no. 291 in Rolling Stone’s 2012 list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. It didn’t make the most recent revision published in 2020. Until their break-up in December 1991, Talking Heads released seven additional albums. Also noteworthy is the acclaimed concert film Stop Making Sense shot over three nights in December 1983 during the tour that supported the Speaking in Tongues album.

After their disbanding, David Byrne launched a solo career, while the three remaining members toured in the early ’90s, billed as Shrunken Heads. In October 1996, they released an album, No Talking, Just Head as The Heads. Byrne wasn’t amused and took legal action to prevent the band from using the name The Heads. Talking Heads reunited one more time in March 2002 for their induction into the Rock and Roll Hame of Fame. During an induction performance, they were joined on stage by former touring members Bernie Worrell and Steve Scales.

Following are a few additional tidbits on Burning Down the House from Songfacts:

Talking Heads drummer Chris Frantz and bass player Tina Weymouth, married since 1977, are big fans of funk. When they went to a P-Funk show at Madison Square Garden in New York City, the crowd started chanting, “Burn down the house, burn down the house” (this is before “The Roof Is on Fire”), which gave Frantz the idea for the title...

…With a lot of help from MTV, who gave the video a lot of play, this song became Talking Heads’ biggest hit. It didn’t get a great deal of radio play at the time, but has endured as an ’80s classic and is often used in movies and TV shows, including Gilmore Girls, 13 Going on 30, Six Feet Under, Revenge of the Nerds and Someone Like You…

…The music video was directed by David Byrne and was the first Talking Heads video to show the full band – their famous “Once In A Lifetime” video is just Byrne. The house seen in the video was located in Union, New Jersey, but it was shot at a New York City club called The World…

…The Talking Heads original recording failed to reach the UK charts. The song only became a British hit in 1999 when Tom Jones teamed up with The Cardigans for an entirely different version. Released as a single from his album of collaborations titled Reload, it peaked at #7.

There is also a cool cover of Burning Down the House by Bonnie Raitt, which she included on her live album Road Tested that came out in November 1995. Here’s a great clip of her rendition from December 2010. In my completely unbiased opinion, I think Bonnie is stealing the show, truly burning down the house! 🙂

Sources: Wikipedia; Songfacts; YouTube; Spotify