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Weekly Reviews For 26 November, 2006

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I am Managing Editor at Metal4Life

I also contribute reviews to getreadytorock

I am also featured reviewer at spacerock.co.uk

I was Editor & reviewer at MetalUK.

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Lara and Laura - Unplugged

Lara and Laura make up two fifths of the Lara Price Blues Band, a Californian outfit who have already notched up two albums of their own, undertaken a national US tour and shared the bill with Etta James, Little Richard, James Brown, Bobby 'Blue' Bland and others, as well as featuring at the Monterey Blues Festival.

Lara Price (who sings) has an incredible supple voice which can purr and howl, in equal measure, while Laura Chavez (who guitars) has a confident and assured way with her blues guitar which makes you think she's been picking her way round the blues circuit for decades, whereas in reality she is still a youthful twenty-something.

They've taken a sideways step from their day jobs with the full on electric Lara Price Blues Band to put together an acoustic album of sublime blues material which showcases their respective talents to the full. As well as a couple of original tracks they step through some classic material from the likes of Eric Clapton, BB King and Willie Dixon, and it says a lot for "Faces Of The Blues" and "Loves Tragedy" that they sit well with the old masters.

But if you want to hear them to best effect then it's the two staples - "Rock Me Baby" and "I Just Wanna Make Love To You" that will shake your backbone to the ground. A fabulous release from two prodigiously talented women.

Richie Copalello - Rockabilly Richie


Rockabilly was / is one of the earliest forms of rock and roll. A fusion of blues, hillbilly boogie, bluegrass and country music, originating in the American South, it was a unique form of white American working class music. Although Bill Flagg was the first to name the music back in 1956 when his song "Go Cat Go" charted, the first 'true' rockabilly recording was probably "Rock the Joint" by Bill Haley and the Comets, released in 1952. Ever since then there have been sporadic outbursts of rockabilly revivalists who have tried to emulate Elvis Presley's Memphis sessions which included "That's All Right (Mama)" and "Blue Moon of Kentucky". Not for nothing was Elvis billed as "The Hillbilly Cat" on the Louisiana Hayride.

Ex Stray Cat Brian Setzer still does good business in the USA although he has moved on from pure rockabilly to include swing, jump and big band sounds on his recordings, so it makes aa change to hear someone firmly rooted in pure rockabilly. That man is Rockabilly Richie. Although he admits to an earlier bout of recording in the brief liner notes, he seems to be shrouding himself in anonymity on this release, perhaps hoping that a little mystique will go a long way.

This is a true solo album as he wrote all the songs, produced the album, sung the songs, played the Gretsch guitar, did the digital drum work, played the upright bass and the piano! Bar the percussion there are no concessions to the world created since 1958 as he rattles through ten songs of pure rockabilly including susch gems as "Rock It", "All Them Rock and Roll Cats", "Rockabilly Party 2 Nite" and "Shake, Shimmy and Rock and Roll".

Bob Stewart - For Your Ears Only

I suppose we have to thank Rod Stewart for bringing the great American songs of the thirties and forties back into the public spotlight. And hopefully some of the Tesco shoppers will be inspired to look a little bit deeper into the world of the romantic balladeer.

Near namesake Bob Stewart started his singing career at the age of fifteen with the Paul Martell 17-piece dance band at the Roseland Ballroom in New York, later singing with other dance bands including Shep Fields, Art Mooney and Henry Jerome. But when rock and roll arrived, like many others, Bob found his style of singing out of step with the popular music of the day and he moved on to captaining a party boat out of Brooklyn.

A chance invitation to sit in with a local band led to a comeback and he has a number of albums out there including this gem. With sympathetic backing, fabulous songs and a still rich voice Bob Stewart is a name that fans of this music should be checking out. In particular, 'If I Love Again', 'Let's Fall In Love' and 'Someone I Used to Love' are outstanding examples of a master at work

Zieme - Feelin' Fly

Eighteen year old Brooklyn boy Zieme aka Young Zah may be at pains to push his street credibility with his talk of ghetto sexy style and keeping it hood but on the radio edit of this single he's a pure ladies man.

It's a smooth riding r'n'b gem straight out of the big book of R Kelly licks. Some of the other mixes up the urban edge but it's at its best playing straight.

The bonus track, 'In Public', shows he's no one trick pony and that he has a classic soul voice. There are some rough, percussive edges which could do with a polish, but the boy sure can sing.

Sunny Jain Collective - Avaaz

Sunny Jain is a leading exponent of what is, with a shocking lack of originality, know as Indo Jazz. Although, to be fair, it is direct and to the point. Contemporary, original jazz with South Asian influences.

Which you're going to love or hate, depending on how flexible your ears are. Me, I have no trouble bending them to the flexible, adventurous percussion sounds, but they just zip up when the vocals arrive.

So you won't be surprised at my preference for the instrumental half of the album best represented by the dextrous saxophones of Steve Welsh on 'Pink City' and the spacey instrumentation of 'Johnnie Black'.

Jimmy Roberts - For We Are Never Alone


Jimmy Roberts has been around a while. Inspired by the likes of John Coltrane, Michael Brecker and King Curtis, he has taken his sax abd blown his way around the world. He's played on sessions with the likes of Harry Nilsson and Van Dyke Parks, he's worked with Etta James and toured with Greg Allman and Cher, something that must have provided a few cautionary tales. After working with Jackie Lomax he ended up auditioning for Rod Stewart and in 1986 he began recording and touring with Rod for the next 14 years.

And here he is with another solo album to his name, a set of mainly self composed devotional jazz instrumentals, which highlight what an incredible saxophonist he is. Regardless of your spiritual leanings, if you have a yearning for passionate playing you'll find something to enjoy here. It's mainly smooth jazz but when he heights the peaks of playing on the title track, 'Yes I Know Your Name' and 'Step Back Satan', there's a depth to his playing that many miss. Heartily recommended.

Steve 'Poppa' Mutimer - Smokin'


Now I'm not sure I should be giving house room to a CD which wholly concerns itself with songs about smoking. But when the tunes are as downright funky as these, it almost makes the stench, staining and life threatening diseases seem worthwhile.

Remarkably, this is album number seven from a man who looks too much like my long lost, real dad for comfort! This album also gives a well deserved cover credit to Kenny Craddock whose mastery of the Hammond B3 is a joy to behear.
This is the kind of funked up r'n'b that always seems to soundtrack late night screenings of seventies cop movies you've never heard of. A splash of acid jazz, some Booker T, a touch of the Memphis Horns here, some chicken scratch guitar.

It's a groove virtually impossible to tire of for those of us with a pulse but someone please shoot the piper!.

Vixen - Live & Learn


First things first - anyone coming here looking for big hair and big choruses in the manner of that glorious Vixen debut album should move away now. For the 2006 Vixen is a very different one to the one I saw at Coasters all those years ago. Supported by Little Angels if memory serves. Which it usually doesn't. Anyway only guitarist Jan Kuehnemund survives from those days despite the best efforts of the VH1 show, Bands Reunited. Rather this is a belated follow up to the 1998 release 'Tangerine', a much darker album than the original lineups 'Vixen' and 'Rev It Up'.

So the old fans aren't going to go for it and I'm not sure who they're aiming this at. There are a few really good songs here with the title track, 'Don't Want It Anymore', 'Love Song' and 'You Wish' the best of the bunch. 'Love Song' is the best of them all, and the one song where vocalist Jenna Sanz-Agero manages to demonstrate some range. Elsewhere she goes for a one dimensional bellow which really doesn't work. And let's not talk about the David Bowie cover. Ever. Or the bagpipes. Ever.

If this was an album by an up and coming band I'd probably be praising it for the promise and potential of the songs listed above but this is a band trading on a name held in high regard by many, so they've got to expect judgement accordingly. If you're a downloader go for those ones with 'Love Song' and 'Don't Want It Anymore' top of your list. Others may want to tread carefully.