2 comments about Live In Australia [1990].

1. There ain't nothing like Texas blues. The song goes that if you want to play in Texas, you gotta have a fiddle in the band. That's not true. If you want to play in Texas, you have to play music that people can dance to. Cowboys, oil workers, Latinos or black folks, people in Texas like to dance and they expect performers to play good music that they can dance to.
   
   Louisiana born grammy winner Johnny Clyde Copeland learned this while growing up in Houston, and like many other Texas bluesmen (Mr. Collins, T-Bone, SRV) his music has this influence. In the old videos of his performances people in the crowd can be seen tapping their toes, swaying to the music, clapping hands or outright dancing.
   
   And like so many blues guitarists, he got better and better as he grew older and matured. This CD is a pretty good representation of Copeland's later work, when he was at his best. There is a lot of foot tapping music and plenty of good guitar work and solos from the talented guitar player Copeland. "Further on Up the Road" and "Look on Yonder Wall" are excellent cuts.
   
   Good CD



2. With his gravely voice, and hard driving bass, this was a wonderful intro to Copeland's Texas blues. Highlights include Cut Off My Right Arm, with a fluid guitar solo rarely heard these days, the upbeat What Goes Around Comes Around, and some gut wrenching blues singing. I love Albert Collins, and the fact that he had Copeland play with him on an album made me curious. I was not disappointed.

5 comments about Frozen Alive!.

1. I love the telecaster, and AC really rips it up here. You can just feel AC's emotion with each screaming note. It's nice to hear a recording that isn't so polished, but beautifully spontaneous.



2. I've owned this album since it was released in 1981 and it still gets constant rotation on my phono (yes, still have one), and on my CD player. It has stood the test of time. Best cuts are "I've got that feeling" and "Cold Cuts."
   
   Both of these songs are about as good a synthesis of blues and funk as you can put together. Albert Collins and Johnny B Gaynor lay down a groove that you cannot ignore. This album belongs in the collection of every blues/funk/R&B/soul fan.



3. Albert toured extensively during this time and the Union Bar in Mpls. was a usual stop. I was lucky to attend these shows and many others featuring Albert and his band.
   His shows began with the band warming up with Casey Jones (drums) or A.C. Reed (sax) taking vocals. When the crowd was good and ready, Casey would lead into the instrumental "Frosty". After building up fury, he would announce "Ladies and Gentleman, here for you in Mpls, by way of Houston Texas, The man that cuts so deep he gets into your soul, the master of the Telecaster, Albert Collins!Albert Collins!!" With that, you would hear Albert, but not see him. He'd come into the bar playing, wringing vibrato from his Tele. Albert would then launch into any of his trademark tunes. The songs presented here are a showcase of his talent and what he did night after night.
   During "Mind to Travel", Albert would get out the 200 foot guitar cord and wander both rooms of the Union, often stopping to sit at your table, talk, have a drink, and all the while wailing in his unique open-tuned and capoed solo style.
   "Cold Cuts" features A.C. Reed helping on vocals, and Johnny B. Gayden's awesome bass solo. He played what we called his "Popeye" solo many times to adoring crowds.
   This recording takes you back to the nights when the weather was frigid, the beer frosty and the music searing. A nicer more approachable group of musicians you won't find anywhere.
   Please buy this and relive Albert's glory days. You won't be sorry.



4. Phenomenal and Riveting. Dr. Collins proves that he is the master of the Telecaster, and shreds all night with a sound that is completly out-of-site. Do yourself a favor and add this little gem to your music collection.



5. This is another favorite live electric blues recording. Albert absolutely makes that guitar sing. This guy should be at the top or near the top of any list of great eletric guitarists past and present. The only complaint is that there isn't more material here. Just 7 songs and about 36 minutes worth. All of it is good though. From the beginning you know your listening to something special.

   ..............socks

5 comments about The Late Show.

1. The music here is raw and real and the crowd is having a ball. I had the opportunity to see Jimmy Smith at this same venue, Marla's (maid on The Jeffersons) Memory Lane in Watts section of L. A. When I was there it was a unique adventure. My friends were from the Midwest and working in L. A. and never even knew the club existed. I wanted to see Jimmy Smith; so, we went. Some well-dressed young adults parked our car with all the courtesy and care you would expect in Beverley Hills (It turned out they were some of Minister Farakhan's church in the neighborhood.) They were just making sure that we would want to return. The show was nearly as good as the third act of this series. It brings back memories.
   Dot Com Blues



2. This is a great aggregation of talents; I admire these vocalists very much and the musicians are very strong. However, there is not enough interaction between the singers; Vinson sounds somewhat out of shape and song selection is less then perfect (spiritual as a closing number?).
   Four stars is therefore the maximum I can give to this live cd.



3. with two blues powerhouses like Etta James and Cleanhead Vinson, there's no way you won't like this CD. This was recorded live in 1986 in blues club in L.A. featuring Red Holloway, Shuggie Otis, and Jack McDuff, and you feel like you're right there for the performance. Ettas James sounds great, and I am not really too impressed with a lot of her later stuff after the 60's and early 70's.



4. the blues is beatiful...

   etta and eddie got that smokey, silky, low-lush soul flowin with this...
   i've been lissenin to vol. one forever!!! and i could never find this one, but i lucked up into it one day a couple months ago and found it in the basement of some back-alley, burnt-down record shop and ever since then, i keep it with me wherever i go...
   this is "instant blues" - jus add bourbon and heartache and you got yourself an event!




5. It's never better than live and this 1986 recording and its companion finds blues legends Etta James and Eddy "Cleanhead" Vinson at the top of their game at an L.A. blues club. Etta sounds great but don't loose sight of the band, Shugie Otis and Red Holloway, et al. create a groove and Vinson's alto brings it all home. A performance for all time. Not to be missed. Sound quality is excellent.

5 comments about Live: Swampland Jam.

1. Let me first say that I do NOT generally like "live" albums. But, this is fantastic. I am a huge Tab Benoit fan and this CD is one of his best. According to Tab, he does not try to blow you away; he creates a "feeling" and lets the music flow from that feeling. Thats exactly what happens here. Tab's brand of blues is peppered with cajun hot sauce without sounding campy or silly. The highs are high and the lows are oh so low. All of his CDs have a "live" feel to them; this one also has an audience. Its just great music .



2. I haven't lived in New Orleans in a while, but I did live there long enough to recognize real Tiptinas style cuts, when I hear them. This guy delivers that sound, in grand style. If you are a fan of N'Awlins style soul/blues, as I am, this CD will give you your fix. Blues fans of Keb Mo will hear some similarities. Tab's guitar playing has that similar "fuzzy" quality to it. But Tab is definitely on a tighter track when he kicks out the Albert Collins riffs on "Too Many Dishes." It's almost as if I were put into a Sherman and Peabody wayback machine to a live Tips/Collins gig, via 1983.

   Fans of Collins, Professor Longhair, Stevie Ray, The Dirty Dozen, and other performers of the era will be happy to see that Todd Benoit and similar groups are maintaining that kind of quality!

   BEK




3. Although a fan of Tab's, this CD leaves me wanting. Don't get me wrong its a good listen a well worth purchasing for fans, but it doesn't grab me the way Nice and Warm and Standing on Banks do. If you are a fan and looking at buying it, you won't be disappointed, but if you're new to Tab you'd do better to get one of other CDs first.



4. This CD is so good you can taste it. If you like the blues and like gumbo, red beans and rice, and jambalaya, you will love this CD. Laissez le bon temps roule!



5. After seeing Tab Benoit in concert twice and reading some of the other reviews here, I was expecting a really hot disc. Boy was I disappointed. The performances are sedate, the crowd seems bored and after a few tracks, so was I. Even "Hot Tamale Baby" seems to have been performed in slo-mo. It just isn't anything like what his shows give you in person. I'm still a huge fan, but I'll be sure to go for a studio release next time. I'd recommend others do the same.

5 comments about Live! Highwayman.

1. Apparently Tinsley Ellis has been around for a long time. So have I, but I had never heard of him until my internet radio station began playing his music. I love the blues, especially with a lot of guitar. I had intended to order 2 other CD's, but purchased 2 Tinsley Ellis instead. They're great!



2. This CD seems to be left in my CD player and played over and over. It is just a fantabulous disc. I've been to Chord on Blues in St. Charles, IL where this was recorded but have yet to catch Tinsley there. For a guy from Atlanta he gets there often and I intend to see him there on one of his next visits. It is one solid CD, get one for the house and one for the car.



3. We've been hoping for a Tinsley live album for a long time now. His only other is the wonderful mid-80's Live At The Moonshadow, as leader of his ass kicking quartet, The Heartfixers. But Live! Highwayman is surely definitive and well worth the wait. The band is in top form, and Tinsley's energy, creativity and musical prowess are at an all time high!



4. i was once a big tinsley ellis fan enjoying such albums as fanning the flames and trouble in mind. but what was once a fresh sound and fresh guitar has become increasingly stale. having seen tinsley live three times he sure left all his good stuff at home on this album, he even manages to screw up highway man which is one of my favorites. i know tinsley has felt he hasnt gotten his just due as a performer but efforts like this won't help his cause.



5. I have all of Tinsley Ellis's CD's but this will now rank as my favorite. Can't stop playing it. I was completely blown away by the live version of Pawnbroker. I replayed it three times in a row. My only wish is that the concert had been recorded on DVD as well so that I could enjoy seeing it as well as listening to it.

4 comments about Anything Can Happen.

1. In the tradition of great bluesmen such as Freddy King and Albert Collins, Morris "Magic Slim" Holt plays a music that ties together two worlds, with a physical style of playing that technically resembles acoustic soloists, but an electric sound that rocks as hard as anyone ever has. Don't let a chance go by to see Magic Slim.



2. I was just listening to Buddy Guy's new Cd but halfway through I had to switch over and put this one on again. Magic Slim seems to keep getting better. This is easily one of the most energized live CD's I've heard in recent memory. The band is clearly up to the task supporting the superb guitar and trademark powerhouse vocals of Magic Slim. You positively won't be able to sit still listening to this. I had to immediately order up the DVD of this performance. I've been to one of Magic Slim's shows at B.L.U.E.S. in Chicago and his perfroming is just totally captivating. With this recording he's never sounded so good and inspired vocally and playing the Jazzmaster. This, folks, is Chicago Blues at it's absolute best.



3. If Magic Slim & The Teardrops AREN'T the best pure Chicago Blues band around somebody's going to have to prove it to me. Though a live album will never match what Slim & his band can do on stage, this album proves to be a great way to get pumped for one of his shows or a way to cure your jonesing between shows. Played loud enough, you can nearly feel the presence of the man coming through the speakers along with his guitar. After listening to this album a couple hundred times, I highly recommend taking it to your local blues club and forcing the owner to book Slim to come to your town. Get some copies of Black Tornado, Grand Slam & Snakebite if the owner needs some extra convincing. I've seen Slim and various versions of the Teardrops going back to 1991 in Chicago and most recently in 2004 in Tennessee and have always been absolutely blown away by what this band can do on stage. If you've never seen Slim & The Teardrops live, you can start buy picking up a copy of this album to prepare you for the experience of seeing them either in your town, on the road, or maybe it's time to start considering a trip to Chicago.



4. I've been waiting 3 years for a new release from Magic Slim and the Teardrops and was delighted when I saw this one newly listed on Amazon.com. It is a live concert performance of Slim and the Teardrops earlier this year and Slim's still got it! I personally have always loved the way he plays his Fender Jazz Master Guitar! Slim and his band have been awesome for many years even with the line-up changes over the years!

4 comments about Live From Chicago : An Audience With The Queen.

1. I'd have liked this live album to be louder and rowdier, but there is plenty of great music here nonetheless, and a lot to be said for the lean, mean sound.
   Koko Taylor is backed by a solid combo which would have been even better if it had included a pianist and perhaps a harmonica player, but guitarists Michael Robinson and Eddie King are terrific, and Taylor herself just can't be beat.
   
   Opening with a really good "Let The Good Times Roll" and winding down with the obligatory "Wang Dang Doodle", "Live From Chicago" also includes a couple of lesser-known songs, like the slow burner "The Devil's Gonna Have A Field Day", and the wonderful "Going Back To Iuka", an irresistable mid-tempo blue shuffle with a thundering syncopated drum beat a la Howlin' Wolf.
   Slightly rewritten versions of Bo Diddley's "I'm A Man" and Willie Dixon's "Let Me Love You" are a little bit clichéd, but nowhere near awful, and Taylor's vocals falter the tiniest bit during an otherwise very good "Find A Fool, Bump Her Head", but she gets her own back with a tremendous growling performance of "Come To Mama" and a thoroughly stylish "I'd Rather Go Blind".
   
   A must-have for fans, and casual listeners should find an awful lot to like as well. It could have been just that little bit better (and rowdier), but "B+" Koko Taylor is still head and shoulders above most everybody else.



2. You wonder what kind of music gets you singing in the shower or in the car. WEll let me tell you something this is the album right here. This Woman never gets tired she is full of energy. I will tell you that that Koko did one of the best versions of WANG DANG DOODLE on here.She always stays upbeat and won't leave you dissapointed.Koko keep on with it because you make your listeners very pleased with what you do. Her growls will make you start growling sooner or later.You better buy this Album because it is a classic.



3. Such a powerful performer! I want a granny like her...
   the excelent song selection and the great sound makes this cd my favourite koko taylor's.
   Long live the queen!



4. This album proves why Koko Taylor is truly the queen of the blues. With a voice that sounds like broken glass, she can bring you waaaaaayyyyy up (Find a Fool, Goin' Back to Iuka) or way down (I'd Rather Go Blind). Her band is tight, and she drives them just right. It seems like her voice just gets better and better the older she gets. If you haven't had the opportunity to see Koko yet, this CD will inspire you to start checking the paper. Buy this album and let her show you how the blues is meant to be sung.

1 comments about Live in Chicago.

1. This is a great live blues album. Dave Specter is one of the better current modern day artist keeping the Chicago Blues sound alive and well. Dave has a sound that is blues at its core, but a touch jazzy (check out the openning instrumental). While Dave doesn't sing he brings in lots of help with the likes of Tab Robinson, Jimmy Johnson and Sharon Lewis all providing vocal tracks. The mix of guest makes this a bit like The Last Waltz in terms of listening experience, which is a real treat. This album is great and I would highly recommend it to anyone looking to update their blues collection.

1 comments about Live: A Night at Tipitina's.

1. Mem Shannon
   Live: A Night at Tipitina's
   NBM
   
   By Tony Sclafani
   
   When taxi driver-turned-bluesman Mem Shannon released "A Cab Driver's Blues" in 1995, he earned a reputation as a songwriter who told stories by carefully observing the lives of others. On "Live: A Night at Tipitina's," the New Orleans-based singer-songwriter turns the spotlight on himself with a powerful new song called, "All I Have," a first-person account of dealing with the aftermath of the Hurricane Katrina disaster.
   
   According to record company information, Shannon left town before the hurricane for a pragmatic reason: he can't swim. His return to the decimated city apparently inspired "All I Have," which has him sifting through the rubble of his old home and telling an unnamed female companion about the significance of each item. The matter-of-fact realism of the piece is underscored by his band, The Membership, which back him with a melancholy, minor key groove.
   
   There are other highlights on this CD, which was recorded live during Mardi Gras 2007 at the legendary Crescent City club. On "Payin' My Dues," Shannon gets to show off his spindly guitar style; "Forget About Me" shows his jazzy side. And the 13-minute reworking of the title track of Shannon's "I'm From Phunkville" CD really brings the funk.
   
   The problem with having a song as intense as "All I Have" on a CD is that it can't help but overshadow the other songs. Listeners won't be able to easily shake off their first listen of "All I Have," but with repeated listenings, all of "Live: A Night at Tipitina's" will start to shine.
   
   Originally published in the issue 54 of Hittin' the Note.

4 comments about Last Time Around-Live At Legends.

1. The sound is excellent on this 1998 live album, and Buddy Guy and the late, great Junior Wells both lay down some of their best vocal performances on record.
   
   Committed to tape in March, 1993, "Last Time Around - Live At Legends" documents the very last time Guy and Wells took the stage together. The arrangements are completely bare-bones, just Buddy Guy's Gibson guitar and Junior Wells' chromatic harp, but the performances are full of power and authority, and Guy's expressive tenor voice and Junior Wells' rougher baritone blend smoothly on songs like "Hoochie Coochie Man" and "What I'd Say".
   Virtually every song is a highlight, actually...Junior Wells plays muscular, amplified harp behind Guy's lead vocal on "Key To The Highway" and "Oh Baby", and takes the lead on "Hoodoo Man Blues", and the duo share lead vocal duties on a great medley of songs from Jimmy Reed's good-natured repertoire of blues n' boogie, as well as a cover of Jimmy Rogers' "That's All Right".
   
   This is one great slice of classic, acoustic blues which would look at home on any real blues fan's shelf.
   I mean, why do we need synthesizers and computer sampling when two middle-aged men can sit down with just a harmonica and an acoustic guitar and make it sound this good?



2. If you want to sit back and put on some easy listening music then this is the CD for you. I like nothing better than putting this CD on loud after some lung exercises and relaxing! Just great!



3. When I want to turn a new friend onto the blues, it's best to reach for the cream like B.B. King, Bobby Bland, Junior Parker, Muddy Waters - and, maybe best of all: Junior Wells and Buddy Guy. Perhaps it'll be "Hoodoo Man Blues" on Delmark, or any of their fine live releases, but these two summed up the majestic grit and soul of human expression in song. But we've finally lost Junior Wells, a gentlemen and inspiration who always took the time to talk to fans, DJ's, and reviewers like myself. This posthumous release, while not superior to their previous acoustic-flavored albums (like "Alone and Acoustic," or especially "Buddy and the Juniors")captures Junior and Buddy's chemistry one last time. Some of this record is as stunning anything they ever waxed. Most of it is good, down-home, back-porch blues. Admittedly, Junior may been erratic in later years ( with often over-produced albums and sometimes painful-to-watch stage behavior) all due to health problems and the neglect of a music world that salivates over guitarists instead of singing harpists. By the time of this recording, Buddy had only recently been even admitted to the mainstream (and even then, he has trouble getting radio airplay) while Junior and most true bluesmen languished on the margins. Wells was largely under-recorded for most of the '80's until he signed with Telarc, where he in fact made some notable music even in an obviously weaker condition . Silvertone deserves credit for seeing fit to release what has come be a fitting farewell to blues' favorite one-two punch.



4. Buddy&Junior set out some old school blues