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Ain't nothin' but a summer blues bash
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Here are a few new blues discs to put some juke in your summer barbecue or pool party. Kick it off with It Ain't Over, a live, multi-artist blowout in honor of Delmark Records' 55th anniversary. Held at Buddy Guy's Legends, just about a mile or so down Wabash Avenue from Delmark headquarters (the must-visit Jazz Record Mart), the party features contributions from Chicago blues royalty. Zora Young, Jimmy Johnson, Aaron Moore, Little Arthur Duncan, Lurrie Bell, Shirley Johnson, Eddie Shaw and Tail Dragger perform straight-up blues with personality and verve, just the way you'll hear them night after night, year after year, in clubs all over the Windy City. Jimmy Johnson, an overlooked marvel, never fails to impress with his soulful vocals and emotive guitar, and Lurrie Bell's guitar licks burn with concision and passion on the blues chestnut "Don't You Lie to Me," as well as on Shirley Johnson's devastating read of "As the Years Go Passing By." Saxman Eddie Shaw, who blows gritty and strong on a couple of tracks, offers a shoutout to Delmark founder Bob Koester, still going strong as label chief, at the age of 76. Follow that with Eddie C. Campbell's Tear This World Up, also on Delmark. Campbell's insistent funk grooves have "party" stamped all over them, from the opening "Makin' Popcorn" to a string-blurring read of boyhood pal Magic Sam Maghett's raver "Love Me With a Feeling." Normally, I'm suspicious of new reads of the Gershwins' "Summertime," but Eddie C. offers an uptempo jaunt that starts off with a Spanish-sounding guitar intro before settling into a loping midtempo groove that's truly infectious. (It's one of my favorite versions of the song since Billy Stewart's 1966 rip.) Rick Estrin blows some real heat on Twisted, the harmonicist and vocalist's first outing with the Nightcats since founding guitarist Little Charlie Baty left the band. Dripping with honeyed menace, Estrin's sly vocals are heard to good effect throughout. Although all the songs aren't necessarily classics (this was often true of earlier Nightcats records, as well), there's enough great musicianship to get you past the occasional misstep (like giving drummer J. Hansen a vocal number). Kid Andersen more than capably handles lead guitar duties, and doesn't even attempt to sound like the one-of-a-kind Little Charlie; he's edgier and more more modern than his predecessor, with a bit of surf in his kick, but the Kid can swing. Still, Estrin's mastery of the mouth harp is the real reason to spin this disc, brilliantly showcased on vocal and instrumental tracks alike. Party music, to be sure. Keep the party jumping with Jenni Muldaur's engagingly retro rockin' Dearest Darlin', as the blues legacy — she's Maria and Geoff's daughter — works out on a set of classic, horn-fueled '60s soul. Yes, she bears more than a hint of her mother's girlish vocal timbre, but Jenni throws herself into the big emotions of some great tunes and comes up with a sound of her own. Backed by a superb band, including saxophonist Steve Elson and trumpeter Earl Gardner and the late Sean Costello on lead guitar (dig his steely work on "I'd Rather Live Like a Hermit"), Muldaur shouts up a storm on tracks like the opening "I've Got a Feeling" and "Just Ain't No Love." Blues fans will certainly dig Muldaur and company's a cappella, handclapping read of the children's traditional song "Hopali" — likely her dad's influence — first captured on Alan Lomax's plantation recordings. (You can hear just how good Muldaur is on this one, and on first listen, you might think you've stumbled on one of her mom's early tracks.) The one original tune, the concluding "Comatose Town," closes out the album on a lovely, jazzy note. When the party gets into the wee hours — or perhaps during the next day when you're hungover and surveying the damage — you might slip James Luther Dickinson's Dinosaurs Run in Circles into the mix. The legendary producer and father of two-thirds of the North Mississippi Allstars (Luther and Cody), takes a decidedly lo-fi, intimate stroll through classic blues, R&B and pop standards, sounding very much like a cat who just sat down at the piano and started playing all the songs that made him smile. Simply accompanied by bassist Sam Shoup and drummer Tom Lonardo (a.k.a. The Taint County Singers for their vocal backing), Dickinson gamely dives into charming fare such as "Save the Bones for Henry Jones" and "Easy Street," sounding much like the late Doc Pomus. He also offers wonderfully homespun versions of the pop chestnut "The Gypsy" and Ray Charles' "Hard Times (No One Knows Better Than I)." His gravel-and-sourmash vocals won't be to everyone's liking, nor will the informal-to-the-point-of-sloppy quality of the session, but it will help clear the room of all those but the truly hip, saving you the trouble of chucking them out.
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