#660 : Mike Zito - Life is Hard (PhillyCheezeBlues.Blogspot.com)

 

2024 – Gulf Coast Records

By Phillip Smith; Feb. 9, 2024

 

Release Date : February 23, 2024

Original source : phillycheezeblues.blogspot.com

I’ve been writing about the music of Mike Zito since my earliest days of reviewing albums.  His literal finesse and musical mastery propel his songs into a realm of their own.  Zito’s latest album Life is Hard stands apart from the rest.  Drenched with passion, love, and grief, this record is a heart-felt dedication to his wife Laura who succumbed to cancer last summer.  Joe Bonamassa and Josh Smith team up again to produce as well as lend their talents as guitarists, with Reese Wynans on keys, Calvin Turner on bass, and Lemar Carter on drums.

“Lonely Man” hits first with a cooking rhythm, searing guitar, and rolling keys.  It is then topped with a healthy serving of sax from Paulie Cerra.  This Little Milton cover absolutely swings and it sounds great.  The blues gets serious and real as Zito tears it up on title track “Life is Hard”, originally by Fred James.  I’m left speechless as his guitar openly wails from emotion.  I dig how he injects a Chuck Berry vibe into the classic Lefty Frizzell song “No One to Talk to (But the Blues)”.  Wymans gives the song a Little Richard-treatment on keys for an energetic accompaniment.  I love the cover of Tinsley Ellis’ “Dying to do Wrong”.  This cowboy-blues track runs along an ominous set of rails and I am instantly drawn in.  I can’t help but tear up when I hear him take on the Guess Who song “These Eyes”.  The production on this track is superb, featuring Jennifer Kumma and Anna Spina on French horn, and Jade Macrae and Dannielle Deandrea on background vocals.  “Without Loving You”, a Zito-original, has an intriguing, progressive element which captivates me as it pulls me into its crawling hypnotic rhythm.  Life is Hard concludes with a solemn rendition of Gary Davis’ 1960 gospel blues spiritual “Death Don’t Have No Mercy”.  As the song approaches its finish, it wonderfully swells with the sound of spirits and the ethers until total silence suddenly crashes.

Life is Hard is a blues album to be listened to in its entirely.  This is one everyone needs to hear.  

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Track list

1 - Lonely Man

2 - Life Is Hard

3 - Have a Talk with God

4 - Forever My Love

5 - No One to Talk to (But the Blues)

6 - Dying to Do Wrong

7 - These Eyes

8 - Darkness

9 - Without Loving You

10 - Nobody Moves Me Like You Do

11 - Death Don’t Have No Mercy

12 - Forever My Love (radio edit)

 

 For more information about the artist, visit this website : https://www.mikezito.com/

 For past reviews mentioning Mike Zito on PhillyCheezeBlues : 

https://phillycheezeblues.blogspot.com/search?q=mike+zito

 

#476 : Kevin Burt - Stone Crazy

 

2020 – Gulf Coast Records

By Phillip Smith; Dec. 12, 2020

 

It’s hard to believe two years have passed since Kevin Burt released his break-out album, Heartland & Soul.  That was such a splendid recording.  Stone Crazy, his very latest album is plumb phenomenal, built of songs focusing on his own experiences in life, love, and relationships.  Burt proves once again, he is a superfecta of entertainment, with his unique soulful vocals, harmonica mastery, insightful songwriting, and delicate guitar styling.  This time around, Burt is working with Mike Zito and his label Gulf Coast Records.  Zito not only produced the album, but also appears on guitar, along with Doug Byrkit on bass guitar, Matthew Johnson on drums, Lewis Stephens on keys, and Jimmy Carpenter on saxophone.

With an enormous blast of juicy blues harp from Burt, the record opens with the infectious groove of “I Ain’t Got No Problem With It”.  From this moment, I am hooked.  I love the swampy slide guitar and harp combo on “Rain Keeps Coming Down”.  This is pure blues, and it sounds fantastic. 

Burt goes into troubadour-mode with title-track love ballad “Stone Crazy”.  The song glistens with heart-felt soul.  With one exception, this album consists of all original songs written by Burt.  That exception is a of the Bill Withers’ flip side to his “Lean on Me” single “Better Off Dead”.  Burt takes this funky-yet-intense, down-hearted song and definitely makes it his own.

The record comes to a deep and heady conclusion with the poignant “Got To Make a Change”.  Burt’s performance is passionate and reflective.  Stone Crazy is definitely an album you’ll want to own.

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For more information about the artist, visit this website:  http://kevinburtmusic.com/

 

 

Take a listen to the album on Apple Music, and if you decide to purchase it, use my special link.  

#460 : Kat Riggins - Cry Out

 

2020 – Gulf Coast Records

By Phillip Smith; Aug. 29, 2020

 

It’s been almost four years since being smitten by the music of Kat Riggins, with her 2016 album Blues Revival.  That album was so incredible.  Her brand-new album, Cry Out is yet another musical masterpiece.  Recorded on Mike Zito’s label Gulf Coast Records, the album has a big Zito presence.  Each of the original thirteen tracks were written by Riggins and composed by Zito, with the only exception being a short thirty-five second interlude of “Hand in the Hand”.  Backing Riggins on the album is drummer Brian Zielie, bassist Doug Byrkit, featuring Zito on guitar.  

“Son of a Gun” kicks the record off with a big meaty bassline, locked and loaded with a driving rhythm.  It’s a southern rocker infused with Seventies-style stanky funk, and packed with soul.  A fitting song for the times, title-track “Cry Out” is steeped in blues, and topped with a big slice of juicy harp.  “Catching Up” captivates me with Riggins’ smooth, powerful vocals which ride atop a tide of infectious riffs and thunderous beats.  Her no-holds-barred delivery on “Can’t You See Me Now” is nicely punched up with blasts of brass and hot guitar licks.  Kat sings the blues with abundant intensity in “Burn it All Down”, as she goes all-in for a final showdown in a shaky relationship. “The Storm” ominously wraps the album up in a harrowing and blues-soaked manner.  Riggins’ gives a dynamic performance as Zito takes his guitar out for a lush and psychedelic walk. 

Kat Riggins is definitely among the top of my list when it comes to favorite blues singers today.  As a songwriter, her mastery of writing blues songs is quite noteworthy.  Cry Out is an excellent album in all regards.                   

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For more information about the artist, visit this website : katriggins.com

 

PhillyCheeze’s Sep.16, 2016 review of Kat Riggins’ Blues Revival

https://phillycheezeblues.blogspot.com/2016/09/kat-riggins-blues-revival.html

 

 

#412 : Odds Lane - Lost & Found

2019 – Gulf Coast Records

By Phillip Smith; Oct. 12, 2019

Odds Lane, the St. Louis blue-rocking duo on Mike Zito’s new label, Gulf Coast Records, has surely caught my attention with their new album Lost & Found.  Formed nearly sixteen years ago by multi-instrumentalist Doug Byrkit and drummer/percussionist Brian Zielie, this song-writing duo has been friends since 8^th grade.  Lost & Found is inspired by their work with Zito on his Blue Room album, which is now celebrating its 20^th anniversary with a remastered release on Ruf Records.

The driving pulse of “Blood on the Van” sinks its claws in fast, and holds steady while greeting the listener with a great big dose of rockin’ blues.  I love the gritty rhythm and the enormous punk beat which frames “Don’t Give it Away”.  “Moth to a Flame” reaches into the territory of Southern Rock, and is quite reminiscent of the Muscle Shoals sound.  The slide guitar on this sounds great, and the song has a playful-energetic groove.  Another favorite, “White Castle Blues”, is a searing tribute to those wonderful, little, square burgers I have been known to trek out of my way score a sackful.  Afterall, “The crave is a powerful thing”, and so is this album.             

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For more information about the artist, visit their website:  oddslane.com