Paul Haig –Go Out Tonight (Rhythm Of Life).

Go Out Tonight is Paul Haig’s 10th solo album and is a quick follow up to 2007s critically acclaimed Electronic Audience. Opening with Trouble Maker, a funky electro-pop with a crisp bass line he moves on to Stay Mine, which has a very retro 80s feel and harks back to his time in Josef K and, in particular, A Certain Ratio. Shut Down has an industrial feel but this electronica is very, very catchy. Believe is slower, with an exaggerated blue eyed soul vocal and the first single, Hippy Dippy (Pharmaceutically Trippy) is clipped electronica but rhythmic and throbbing at the same time with riffs that Josef K would have been proud of.

Fantasize in an instrumental with Eastern influences whilst Acidic Snowdrops has pounding rhythms and the instrumental Data Retro is full of Jean-Michel Jarre electronics. Scene is slow and atmospheric electronica with a deliberate vocal but the closing track, Gone In A Moment is more upbeat than most on offer and reveals a lighter side to the most serious of Scottish rock stars.

http://www.rolinc.co.uk/

David Blue.

Jeff Healey – Mess Of Blues (Ruf Records).

Jeff Healey was one of the most distinctive guitarists of my generation and I was sad to hear of his recent passing after bravely battling against cancer. It is all the more sad as this album, his first blues/rock album in eight years, was due to be released within three weeks of his all too early death. He is backed on the album by Dave Murphy on keyboards, Alec Fraser on bass, Dan Noordermeer on guitar and Al Webster on drums, a line-up that Healey called “the best damned bar band in Canada”. Mess Of Blues is a compilation of standards, some live, that have been part of his show over the years. I’m Torn Down is live and what he did best – a scorching blues. This is how to remember him and parts of his solo just melt together. You don’t really have to do too much to How Blue Can You Get. However, there are more notes than BB King and keyboards get a big slice. Live again. Sugar Sweet is a funky blues with a fuzzed guitar solo and Jambalaya is upbeat Creole with superb guitar. There is a good version of The Weight but it just lacks the original feel and Levon Helm’s vocal can never be recreated. A classic song nonetheless.

Mess O’ Blues is played in a barrelhouse style. It’s been recorded by many from Elvis to The Quo and this one tends towards Elvis. It’s Only Money is high paced boogie/rock n roll. I would have loved Jools Holland on this although pianist Dave Murphy (who Healey said is “undoubtedly the finest keyboardist I’ve ever worked with) does the job exceptionally well. He also takes on vocal duties here but Healey steals the show yet again with his scorching guitar. Like A Hurricane is one of my all time favourites and this is a very good version but it does lack a bit of the originals impact. He does stamp his own personality on it though and his guitar work goes without saying. Sitting On Top Of The World is the classic blues. This is a driving version with a good piano break and marvellous guitar. A boogie-woogie version of Shake Rattle & Roll finishes things off.

This album is as good an epitaph to a great guitarist as there can be.

http://www.rufrecords.de/

David Blue.

Guy Tortora – Living On Credit (Turtledove Records).

Raised in Pasadena but now living in the UK, Guy Tortora has been a bit of a wanderer. His travels have taken him from the USA to Canada, on to mainland Europe before finally settling in London. He has played at festivals and clubs throughout Europe and shared a stage with Peter Green and John Mayall. The eponymous title track opens things up and the blues based dobro is fine. It is well produced and Giles King’s harmonica wails away in the background. Blind Willie Johnson’s Nobody’s Fault But Mine has been recorded many a time and Tortora gives it a slow, jazzy treatment with prominent piano. It’s a bit too clean if you know what I mean but it is well played on acoustic guitar though. Like It That Way has some gentle sounds to take you away in a dream. Cotton Was King is a bit of a history lesson and the spoken vocal is powerful and thought provoking. Earthy harmonica from Giles King once again. God Don’t Change is a blues based soft rocker with plenty of chanting in the background. The jazzy Super Blue has him going electric for once and this JJ Cale song has a telling guitar break.

Mama’s Tired is an acoustic blues but the snappy drums from Mike Thorne gives it a contemporary feel. White Boy Blues has prominent Hammond organ from the excellent Janos Bajtala and it shuffles along in a slow groove. Tortora’s voice could do with a little more edge. People Get Ready is the Curtis Mayfield song recorded by many including a duet by Rod Stewart and Jeff Beck. This version compares favourably with the best of them and the slide guitar fits in very well. The Gospel feel to it makes it a highlight. Share Croppers makes it two crackers in a row and Tortola is really getting into it now. This acoustic Americana is very well played and Olly Blanchflower’s double bass is a point in question. The album is finishing strongly and it would seem that his place should be in Americana – he is far better in this field. There are some backing vocals and Richard Studholme’s mandolin on Falling and it certainly makes for a fuller sound. To finish off, there is a bonus track in the form of Don’t Do It. This is a blues on the rock n roll side and is a bit of fun to complete a fine selection.

Guy Tortora has a future for himself in Americana, he just has to realise it.

http://www.guytortora.com/

David Blue.

The Wentus Blues Band – Family Meeting (Ruf Records).

This 2CD pack is a celebration of The Wentus Blues Band’s 20th anniversary and they managed to get some stellar guests to come along and help them celebrate. The album is also the soundtrack to the DVD of the same name, giving it a feeling of The Last Waltz. The Wentus Blues Band is a Finnish outfit with an international outlook. Proceedings begin with a short acoustic introduction, Going To The Show, before they are off into the electric boogie of Moonshine. They are a big family and have many guests but this is one of their own songs played just by themselves with strong guitar from Niko Riippa & Kim Wikman and Juha Kinaret’s vocal hits the mark. Pekka Grohn provides excellent backing on organ. Deadric Malone’s You Gonna Make Me Cry is slow and soulful with a mourning voice. It builds superbly and certifies the bands credentials. There is a snappy BB King style guitar on Since I Been Loving You and this is overlain with a powerful vocal. It also sees the first guest star, Sven Zetterburg, on guitar. Kim Wilson joins Zetterburg and the band for Little Walters I Got To Go. As expected, this is a harmonica blues which is fast paced and well received. Zetterburg leaves but Wilson stays on for Passenger Blues, which is a grinding, churning blues with Wilson’s harp a wailing. Pick Up The Pieces has Eddie Kirkland joining the family and he provides some silky guitar. The vocal interchange between him and Kinaret is top drawer. Zetterburg is almost becoming an extra band member as he joins the band and Kirkland on this Kirkland original. Lonesome Fugitive is an acoustic country blues performed by Lazy Lester and Angel Blues is a slow electric blues with Omar Kent Dykes. He has such a lived in voice and even manages to get his guitar sounding like a helicopter at one point. This is a strong performance overall. Stop Twistin’ My Arm is a big production R&B and the high energy will get to you. Barrence Whitfield screeches it out, especially at the end and Clas Yngstrom adds some telling guitar. The Stones’ Can’t You Hear Me Knocking gives sax player Tore Berglund a chance to excel and he grabs his chance on this soulful instrumental. He is followed by Grohn on keyboards and guitar – all excellent soloists. It’s appropriate that the guitarist is none other than Mick Taylor – who else to get to play a Rolling Stones song!

The second CD opens with I Heard The Angels Singing, which is an acoustic led, gentle paced swinger with spiritual overtones. The guest on this one is Eric Bibb and his soul is all over the track. Down The Line has the band playing on their own again and they deliver a grungy R&B with high energy and impact. Looking For Trouble is a Kim Wilson song and he returns to play harmonica on this standard shuffling blues. Hold That Note has searing guitar from Clas Yngstrom, as you would expect. This is a bouncy blues with a good sentiment to the lyric. It goes to show that you can do as much with one note than 10 times as many. Annie-Lee is a slow Chicago blues with powerful vocal performances from Whitfield and Kinaret. Blind Willie McTell has an explanation of the song before it gets played. It is different from the Dylan original and it is beefed up by Taylor. I like this! Backroom Delta is, as the title suggests, a Delta blues. This is good fun, especially at the end, as Louisiana Red and Niko Riippa try to outdo each other. Louisiana Red stays on for Ride On Red and gets the audience going with its funky style. Jagger & Richards’ Ventilator Blues is a plodding, grinding blues on a topic that can’t be classed as pleasant. Mick Taylor guests again and performs it very well. Raining In My Heart is a strolling Kansas City style harmonica blues with Lazy Lester on harp. The closing song, Biscuit Roller is a bouncy R&B with organist Grohn back on good form again. There’s a smokey lead vocal from Barrence Whitfield with screaming backing vocals and more guitar interceptions from Yngstrom. The last track, Outro – Great Final is one minute of soft acoustic led, Celtic style music – point?

This is a celebration of a band that has stayed together for twenty years and on this evidence, there’s another twenty yet to come.

http://www.rufrecords.de/
http://www.wentusbluesband.com/

David Blue.

The Dirty Aces – One Good Reason (Blue Filth Records).

Jersey based Dirty Aces have been building a following of their tough style of blues over the last year or so. Renowned harmonica player Sugar Blue has said “You cats play like you mean it” and that sums up this 5 track mini album. The opener, Dollar & A Quarter, which is a reworking of an Otis Spann song, has a strong harmonica presence and the overall delivery is much akin to Rory Gallagher. One Good Reason is a funky blues and harmonica player, Giles Robson, is very much the frontman but he might have to do something with that name – not very blues, is it? Been Mistreated is another Rory Gallagher style blues and Sonny Boy Williamson II’s (Rice Miller) You Might Do Without Me is a slowish blues where the guitarist, Filip Kozlowski, gets to strut his stuff also. They close off with One Day Soon, which is another powerful electric blues – good British pub blues.

http://www.thedirtyaces.com/

David Blue.

Dani Wilde – Heal My Blues (Ruf Records).

21 year old Dani Wilde hails from Brighton and this is her debut for Ruf. Don’t let her lack of years lull you into thinking that she can’t sing the blues. She has a voice that suits a gritty blues and a crystal clear delivery that can deal with the most intense ballad. Bring Your Loving Home is a driving blues rock with a jazzy chorus and label mate Ian Parker on guitar. Will Wilde also chips in on harp. Heal My Blues has a strong vocal and she certainly knows her way around a fretboard too. It’s just what British blues needs -- a young female who can play as well. Come Undone is a swinging blues with mucho power from such a small frame and Parker weighs in with some telling guitar. I Love You More Than I Hate Myself is an expansive slow blues that draws out all the emotions. Could it become a classic? I Want Your Loving, another pulsating boogie, is a vehicle for the voice this time although Parker is there to help out again.

Testify is punchy with a gritty vocal. In The Mood is the old John Lee Hooker song and she gives it a slightly different treatment to those that I’m familiar with but well played. Norman Whitfield’s I’m Going Down is piano led and a powerful ballad with her strong voice betraying some emotion in parts. Slow Coach is a jaunty country blues and she swings up the classic Junior Wells song, Little By Little. She gets a big help from harmonica player Will Wilde on the latter. People Like You is an acoustic finish. Low key but a very good song indeed.

http://www.rufrecords.de/

David Blue.

Eric Bibb – Get Onboard (Telarc).

Recorded in Nashville, Get Onboard has been on the production line since May 2007 and Bibb says that it has been one of the most exciting projects of his career. He hits the nail on the head when he says “It’s a further exploration into the place where blues meets gospel and soul”. He uses the best session musicians around as well as special guests Bonnie Raitt and Ruthie Foster. The soulful and spiritual Spirit I Am is a great opener and Bibb’s sweet voice will smother you in honey. The Promised Land is bluesy and bouncy and New Beale Street Blues is a jazzy, New Orleans blues. The latter is another tribute to the great city that is still recovering from Katrina. The eponymous title track has a vocal that is so sweet and so clear. It also has great harmonies and he has more soul than heaven itself. If Our Hearts Ain’t In It has Bonnie Raitt on slide guitar and a big production to match. All I can say about Pockets is that it is an Eric Bibb song if there could ever be one. The voice, the gentle approach and the understated instrumentation are his hallmarks.

The gentle acoustic vibes continue with River Blues, which is not, as the title suggests, a blues in the truest meaning of the word. This is followed by Deep In My Soul and that’s where he has rested. Folk, country, gospel it covers so much. Conversation is a slow, precise and heartfelt blues duet with Ruthie Foster and the understated brilliance of God’s Kingdom has, as the title suggests, Gospel overtones Step By Step stays much in the same vein and the final track, Stayed On Freedom, lifts the pace a little with a country blues. This arrangement of the Civil Rights anthem, which in turn was adapted from a traditional spiritual, hits the spot

Eric, and his producer Glen Scott, may just have unleashed a future classic.

http://www.ericbibb.com/

David Blue.