Jeff Jensen

Jeff Jensen CD coverRoad Worn And Ragged
Swing Suit Records

Jeff Jensen has gone through a lot of trials and tribulations since his last release, the outstanding I’m Coming Home in 2009. His life has gone through major changes and not always the most pleasant. And that is all reflected in his newest CD Road Worn And Ragged; a very personal and revealing disc that takes him through heartbreak and frustration to new found happiness.

Jeff was quite successful in California, playing over 200 shows a year, competing three times in the International Blues Challenge, opening shows for BB King and co-founding the Santa Clarita Blues Society. But he moved to Portland, Oregon for love. And unfortunately things do not always turn out. Nearly broke and emotionally spent, Jeff moved to Memphis, Tennessee seeking new beginnings. Meeting up with harmonica ace Read more

The Strange Tones

At Home With The Strange Tones
Meteor Sonic Records

Strange Tones CD cover colorLook out! There has been a serious security breach at The Strange Tones secret headquarters. Perhaps somebody left the garage door open or the back gate ajar. But whatever happened somehow I came into possession of a master copy of their yet to be released CD, titled At Home With The Strange Tones. And I have to tell you, this is going to be a favorite recording by the band for many years to come. Filled with the delicious guitar licks and vocals that are the band’s trademarks, the album hits right on target from the first notes heard and  it doesn’t let up.

The Strange Tones have their own unique flavor in their music. Perhaps you can call it Blues Noir, as it seems the perfect backdrop music for that new Dashiell Hammett private Read more

Long Tall Deb

Raise Your Hands
VizzTone Records

Long Tall Deb CD coverOriginally from El Paso, Texas, vocalist Long Tall Deb Landolt moved to Columbus, Ohio a few years back where she instantly became a part of the city’s wealth of blues talent.  Her debut recording for the VizzTone label features many of that city’s most renowned artists as well as a bevy of others from across the country. The album, Raise Your Hands, is a sensational collection showcasing the collaboration between herself, keyboardist John Popovich and bass player Melvin Powe that had built through a standing Wednesday night idea gathering meet.

Raise Your Hands offers ten original tracks, most of which were penned by the main trio with a hand from people such as Sean Carney, Dave Clo and Philip Pemberton. The other two numbers on the disc are cover tunes by Tom Waits (“New Coat Of Paint”) and Ian Read more

Mighty Mike Schermer

Be Somebody
Finedog Records

Mike Schermer CD cover           Mighty Mike Schermer has been a mainstay amongst the elite musicians of the Bay Area for the past two decades, building a name for himself as one of the top guitarists around if you require somebody with the right knack to fill all your needs. He’s been doing so for some of the best over that time, including Elvin Bishop, Bonnie Raitt, Howard Tate and Charlie Musselwhite to drop just a few names. He has also put out five recordings under his own name, with his latest, Be Somebody, standing high above them all and perhaps may be amongst the very best of the year overall. It has that catch to it that is hard to step away from. It keeps drawing you back for replays over and over again, without getting tired at all.

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David Gogo

Come On Down
Cordova Bay Records

David Gogo CD coverCanadian blues rocker David Gogo has released his thirteenth album with Come On Down, continuing on his path of creating exceptional music that features his sizzling guitar work and smooth soulful vocals. The new disc was inspired greatly by a pilgrimage that Gogo took to the Mississippi Delta where he soaked in the history of the blues as well as the landscape and its people. It is not all seen as positive revelations, but takes a realistic view on the worn down buildings, the poverty and otherwise not so glamorous, while still maintaining that the future can resolve these blights.

Come On Down is equally mixed with Gogo originals and some nice covers that offer a range of perhaps unexpected tracks such as The Atlanta Rhythm Section’s “So Into You” or Robert Palmer’s  “Looking For Clues.” He opens the disc with a perfectly executed take on The Faces’ “Bad ‘n’ Ruin,” setting the feel for what is to follow and a couple of Fleetwood Read more

Clay Swafford

Clay Swafford CD coverRooster
Lost Cause Records

Clay Swafford is like a throw-back to days of yore. This 30-year-old red-headed youngster can lay down piano playing as if he were a direct descendant of Otis Spann, Jimmy Yancey, Roosevelt Sykes, Pinetop Perkins and Memphis Slim all rolled into one. And in many ways, he just may be. Swafford has the knowledge of the blues and it comes rolling across the keys every time he steps to a piano. For somebody who has been gaining notoriety for a number of years, working on stage alongside artists like Bob Margolin, Hubert Sumlin, Paul Oscher and Willie “Big Eyes” Smith, it is hard to believe that he is just now releasing his first recording. And this presentation is the full package real deal you’d expect.

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The C.D. Woodbury Band

CD Woodbury Band CD coverMonday Night!
Wide Willie Productions

The C.D. Woodbury Band is back following up their fantastic debut disc, Sunbanks Live!, with an ear-catching album of original music titled Monday Night! This Washington-based band works together like a finely-tuned engine, with all of the musicians handing out exceptional craftsmanship. Woodbury can play dynamic guitar, has rich vocals and is a superb songwriter. He is complimented highly by a crack-unit ensemble featuring Chris Kliemann on keys, Mike Marinig on sax, Mike Fish on bass and Don Montana on drums. Marinig and Montana both offer their vocals as well.

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Kara Grainger

Kara Grainger CD coverShiver & Sigh
Eclecto Groove

Kara Grainger, an Australian artist who now resides in Los Angeles, has released an outstanding new CD titled Shiver & Sigh, that showcases her talents as a singer, songwriter and guitarist in the utmost way. It also lets listeners know that she can cover a wide range of stylings and emotions, too. The disc is an eclectic mixture of blues with roots and pop sounds, plus a little bit of country flavoring tossed in just for good measure. It is such a clean sounding recording, very well produced by Read more

Hard Garden

Hard Garden CD coverExtended Play #1
Hard Garden Music

This is definitely something new for Son Jack Jr. and Michael Wilde, the duo who have represented the Northwest at the International Blues Challenge and twice made the semi-finals. From their past you’d expect them to be releasing more of that traditional Delta style music that has been their mainstay for so many years. But they’re taking a challenging new direction with a new trio format that includes Seattle’s jazz, blues and funk man Garrett Williams. The grouping is called Hard Read more

Dan Treanor’s Afrosippi Band with Erica Brown

Tangled Road Again
P&C Plan-It Records

Dan Treanor CD coverI first saw Erica Brown a few years back when she competed in the venue I run at the International Blues Challenge. An exciting performer who had talent in bunches. I also saw Dan Treanor’s Afrosippi Band perform in Memphis during the event a couple years later and was flat out floored by their presentation. So imagine my thoughts when this past year I discovered both Dan and Erica teamed up. This has got to be a killer pairing for sure. And it was. The band took third place overall in the band competition, putting on one of my most favorite sets in the finals in recent memory.

Now Dan Treanor’s Afrosippi Band featuring Erica Brown have released an album together titled Tangled Road Again and it is sensational. Dan is Read more