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BLUES
CD REVIEWS
Alvin Lee
- Alvin
Lee In Tennessee - Rainman
Alvin Lee
In Tennessee-
Back in the late 60’s I remember
listening to Alvin Lee’s flashy guitar licks with his
rock/blues band Ten Years After. Now many years after
he got a chance to record with some of his heroes that
inspired him from a decade before he arrived on the British
scene. He traveled to Nashville Tennessee and laid down the
tracks for this CD with guitarist Scotty Moore and
drummer D.J. Fontana, band members of the late Elvis
Presley. Those legends plus the remaining musicians in the
studio, Pete Pritchard on double bass and Willie
Rainsford on piano make this record an exciting play.
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Early in my
musical life and even today I use the term “Bluesabilly”
to describe the style of sounds I’m now listening to. It’s
mix of Blues, Rockabilly and Rock & Roll. I like it that
Alvin, who also wrote all of the songs, has toned down his
speed and plays straight ahead. With the steady rhythm of D.J
and the rest of the band, there’s nothin’ fancy here, just all
of them havin’ a good time and puttin’ out some rockin’ tunes.
“Let’s Boogie” does just that. With tempo up a notch
Alvin tells us about those “Rock & Roll Girls”. Tasty
licks from both Alvin and Scotty are heard on “Take My Time”.
Then “I’m Gonna Make It” rocks you away. The pace slows
down on “Something’s Gonna Get You”, with special guest
Tim Hinkley on the Hammond organ and some hot runs by
Alvin. The vocal chorus on “Why Did You Do It” gets you
involved. “Getting Nowhere Fast” has Alvin playin’ both
electric and acoustic guitar. The pulse really rolls on “How
Do you Do It”. A nice easy groove by Scotty and Alvin on
guitars is felt on “Let’s Get It On”. Listening to “Tell
Me Why” will make your feet start movin’ again and they
won’t stop when Alvin gets into “I’m Going Home”. I
think I’m worn out! “Alvin Lee In Tennessee” is ‘Bluesabilly’
at it’s finest. Eddy B |
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BLUES
CD REVIEWS
Eric Clapton -
ME and MR JOHNSON
- Reprise
“ME and MR
JOHNSON” -Ya, I know we‘ve all heard Robert Johnson
playin’ his well known and unforgettable 29 compositions and
their alternative takes, plus the numerous artists that have
covered these historical tunes over the years, and let’s be
honest, nothin’ can beat Robert’s original recordings. Eric
has rerecorded 14 of the most popular Johnson’s tunes with a
great backing band including, Billy Preston on Hammond
organ and piano, Jerry Portnoy on harmonica, Andy
Fairweather Low and Doyle Bramhall II on guitars, playin’
bass Nathan East and Pino Palladino and on the drum kit
Steve Gadd and Jim Keltner. |
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With Eric on guitar
they all do an admiral job cloaking the impressive sounds that
Robert laid down in the mid 1930’s on “They’re Red Hot”, “Stop
Breakin’ Down Blues”, “Love In Vain” and “Hell Hound
On My Trail”, to name a few. But let’s get to the point here, I
was hoping that Eric would do a few of the songs strictly solo, him
and his guitar, it just didn’t happen, it was always with the band.
Hopefully the fans of Eric Clapton that know nothing about
the Blues will get turned on to the Blues and Robert Johnson’s
material. I really hope that Eric will not pressure a second volume
of “ME and MR JOHNSON” and do the remaining 15 tracks of
Robert Johnson’s legacy. This is a very good CD, but just go out
and buy the Robert Johnson double CD set, “Robert Johnson,
The Complete Recordings” on Columbia/ Legacy and the Blues world
will be set straight. Sorry Mr. Clapton.
Eddy B |
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