2023 – Vizztone
By Phillip Smith; Oct. 21, 2023
Release Date : Oct.
27, 2023
Original source : phillycheezeblues.blogspot.com
Armed with the very same ’56 Gibson
ES-150 he used while playing with Muddy Waters and with The Band
in The Last Waltz concert and film, Bob Margolin commemorates fifty
years since joining The Muddy Waters Band with his latest release Thanks. This fabulous album captures the pure essence
of The Blues, as Margolin creates every sound heard on all ten songs of this
recording, with one very special exception.
The vocals of his very special guest and border collie Levon join
along during a guitar solo on “No Consolation”.
The record begins with a
smoking version of “Going Down to Main Street”.. Dedicated to Muddy Waters and Levon
Helm, the song was originally released in 1952 with Muddy’s original
band, and was recorded again in 1975 for Muddy Waters’ Woodstock
Album featuring Margolin, Helm, and Paul Butterfield. I love his cover of The Band’s “The
Shape I’m In”. Played as a blues
shuffle, the song stands out as an absolute favorite. As the first few notes of “Mean Old Chicago”
are played, I ’m enamored to say the least.
Margolin wrote this song on a drink napkin while in flight to Chicago
to pay final respects to friend and Chicago blues legend Jimmy Rogers. Originally on Margolin’s 1993 album Down
in the Alley “Baby Can’t Be Found” is an amazing song and is no wonder why
it was a favorite of Johnny Winter’s.
It sounds wonderful with Margolin performing on that Gibson
archtop electric guitar. Originally
recorded in 1999 for Blind Pig Records using a National Steel guitar
which was a gift from Pinetop Perkins, “No Consolation” is one of my
favorite Margolin-penned tracks.
It is blues to the core and its jagged edges dig deep into the soul.
Selecting ten songs to sum up
fifty years could not have been an easy task, however Margolin takes his
choices very seriously. It is refreshing
to hear these songs stripped down to just a man and his guitar. The background stories behind each of the
tracks on Margolin’s website is refreshing and insightful. They offer a glimpse inside the man who has
truly lived the blues.
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For more information about the artist, visit this website : https://bobmargolin.com/
