2015 – Blind Pig Records
By Phillip Smith;
Feb 21, 2015
Dynamic Blues duo Smokin’ Joe Kubek and Bnois King have teamed up again, to
record and produce an album of the best down-home blues one can hear. The title itself, Fat Man’s Shine Parlor, conjures up visions of seasoned bluesmen
congregating in the neighborhood barbershop on a Saturday afternoon, exchanging
stories of days gone by.
“Got My Heart Broken” is an
excellent track to start off with its high energy and driving rhythm. Eerie growls resembling the snores of a
sleeping dragon emit from Kubek’s
guitar and make this one even more fascinating. Keeping that initial energy flowing, they dive
into another favorite, “Cornbread”, a heavy blues ode to country cooking and soul
food. I love the groove on “Diamond Eyes”.
Heavily steeped in Seventies blues/rock,
my mind wanders to artists like Robin
Trower and Pat Travers when immersed
in this song.
As soon as I hear the beginning
Zeppelin’esque riff from “Brown Bomba Mojo”, I get excited. This is phenomenally played and hits on all
cylinders. It really doesn’t get much better than this. Kubek and King certainly deliver the
goods once again, proving tasty guitar blues is their specialty.
