Category Archives: Electric Blues
NEW YORK CITY BLUES.
New York City Blues. Label: Ace Records. Format: CD. The golden age of blues in New York was between the forties and sixties. By then, many people had moved from the southeastern states and brought with them southern rural music. Soon, blues music was being heard in ballrooms, clubs, theatres and on the streets of …
FOR THE GOOD TIMES-THE SONGS OF KRIS KRISTOFFERSON.
For The Good Times-The Songs Of Kris Kristofferson. Label: Ace Records. Nowadays, the name Kris Kristofferson means different things to different people. For film fans he’s the star of eighty-five films, while record buyers remember the singer-songwriter who has released eighteen studio albums and three live albums between 1970 and 2014. He’s also collaborated on …
CLASSIC ALBUM: THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND AT FILLMORE EAST.
Classic Album: The Allman Brothers Band At Fillmore East. Nowadays, there aren’t many bands who make a commercial breakthrough with a live album. That, however, is what happened to The Allman Brothers Band in 1971 when they released their third album At Fillmore East. It was a gamechanger reaching number thirteen in the US Billboard 200 …
IF I HAVE TO WRECK L.A.-KENT AND MODERN RECORDS BLUES INTO THE 60S VOL 2.
If I Have To Wreck L.A.-Kent and Modern Records Blues Into The 60s Vol 2. Label: Ace Records. Format: CD. As the sixties dawned, musical tastes were changing and soul music’s popularity had started to grow. By then, new independent labels were being founded all across America and labels like Stax, Atlantic and Motown became …
DIRTY WORK GOING ON-KENT AND MODERN RECORDS BLUES INTO THE 60s VOL 1.
Dirty Work Going On-Kent and Modern Records Blues Into The 60s Vol 1. Label: Ace. Format: CD. As the fifties gave way to the sixties, musical tastes were changing and soul music’s popularity started to grow. By then, new labels were being launched across America and labels like Stax, Atlantic and Motown were among the …
JOHN LEE HOOKER-DOCUMENTING THE SENSATION RECORDINGS 1948-52.
John Lee Hooker-Documenting The Sensation Recordings 1948-52. Label: Ace Records. In 1946, Detroit-based Bernard Besman joined forces with accountant John Kaplan and bought Pan American Record Distributing. Later that year, they also founded Sensation Records which they named after a local nightclub, the Sensation Lounge. The next step was to sign some of the best …
HORN ROCK AND FUNKY GUITAR GROOVES 1968-1974.
Horn Rock and Funky Guitar Grooves 1968-1974. Label: BGP. Nowadays, music historians regard 1968 as the year that American rock returned to its soulful roots. The man responsible, was one of the true legends of music, Bob Dylan, who joined forces with The Band, and they went in search of a chimerical America, and what …
NEW BREED R&B (VINYL)
New Breed R&B (Vinyl). Label: Kent Dance. The phrase New Breed R&B was coined way back in 2001, when Adrian Croasdell was compiling a new compilation for Kent Dance. This was New Breed R&B: Soulful 60’s Blues For Today’s Dancers, which featured a selection of songs from the original Kent and Modern labels. It was …
FRODE HALTLI-AVANT FOLK.
Frode Haltli-Avant Folk. Label: Hubro Music. Release Date: ‘15th’ June 2018. Album Of The Week. Frode Haltli was born in Levanger, in the municipality of Trøndelag, on the ’15th’ of May 1975, and by the time he was seven, had already started to play the accordion. The young Frode Haltli proved to be a prodigious …
Z.Z. HILL-THAT’S IT! THE COMPLETE KENT RECORDINGS 1964-1968.
Z.Z, Hill-That’s It! The Complete Kent Recordings 1964-1968. Label: Kent Soul. Sadly, the Z.Z. Hill story is a familiar one, with Texan born soul and blues man never really enjoying the commercial success his considerable talent deserved. Z.Z. Hill moved to Los Angeles in 1963, and in 1964 had a minor hit with You Were Wrong, …
BLUESIN’ BY THE BAYOU.
BLUESIN’ BY THE BAYOU. Bluesin’ By The Bayou, which was released by Ace Records in 27th May 2013, is described as: “low down, dirty and greasy blues from Louisiana.” As if that wasn’t enough reason to discover the delights of Bluesin’ By The Bayou, compiler Ian Saddler had added some zydeco for good measure. I …
B.B. KING-TO KNOW YOU IS TO LOVE YOU.
B.B. KING-TO KNOW YOU IS TO LOVE YOU. In 1973, B.B. King decided to head to Philadelphia, to work with some of the city’s greatest musicians on his album To Know You Is To Love You. Many of these musicians were members of M.F.S.B, Philadelphia International Records’ legendary house-band. Among the members of M.F.S.B. which …
SHUGGIE OTIS-HERE COMES SHUGGIE OTIS.
SHUGGIE OTIS-HERE COMES SHUGGIE OTIS. Shuggie Otis’ debut album Here Comes Shuggie Otis, really is a remarkable album. Why I hear you ask? Well, it’s a highly accomplished album from an artist who was just sixteen years old when he recorded Here Comes Shuggie Otis. By then, Shuggie was almost a seasoned musician, having performed professionally …
MUDDY WATERS-ELECTRIC MUD.
MUDDY WATERS-ELECTRIC MUD. The album I am about to review is one that, upon its release, had the effect of dividing the opinion the artist’s fans and also, opening up the artists music to a new, wider audience. That album is Muddy Water’s 1968 release Electric Mud. Electric Mud had the effect of reviving Water’s …