Ivor S.K. - Delta Pines

2016 – Ivor Simpson-Kennedy

By Phillip Smith; May 7, 2016

Delta Pines, the first release from Australian bluesman Ivor Simpson-Kennedy aka Ivor S.K. is a tantalizing taste of down-home acoustic guitar blues.  This album features five fresh and original tracks that absolutely shine. 

Engrossing lyrics and Ivor’s subtle guitar prowess on “Help Poor Me” pull me right into the album, and then the melodious and melancholy “Missus Green” carries me away.  Ivor’s raspy vocals are perfectly fitted for “I Like the Way”, a song that sounds at home in the Mississippi Delta.  Hearing the call-outs to Willie Dixon, Helena, King Biscuit, and Clarksdale on title track “Delta Pines” puts a big warm smile on my face. When it comes time to zone out and tune in, the go-to song is “Pelican”. This lush instrumental is absolutely beautiful.       

Although Delta Pines is a fairly short album, don’t let the size fool you.  It is indeed a very sweet one.   

Tweed Funk - Come Together

2016 – Tweed Tone Records

By Phillip Smith; May 3, 2016

Give me some great tunes with a lot of soul and a fistful of funk, and I’ll be perched up in my cat-bird seat.  Spring will be ending soon, and I’ll be spending more time out on the deck jamming to a super-sized playlist built around the summer season.  Tweed Funk’s latest album, Come Together is surely on my list.  It has everything I like, including a smooth horn section and a retro-Sixties Memphis soul vibe.  This Milwaukee six-piece band is composed of lead singer Joseph “Smokey” Holman, guitarist JD Optekar, Eric Madunic on keys and bass, drummer Dave Schoepke, saxophonist Andrew Spadafora, and trumpeter Doug Woolverton.    

“Light Up the Night” is an excellent high-energy number to kick the album off with.  It really gets the blood pumping, with its ear-catching bassline, and infectious groove.  By the time the fun and funky instrumental “Who is This” rolls through, I’m looking all around for my dancing shoes.  The same goes with the sensational “Love Ain’t Easy”.  This one tears the roof off in style and puts an enormous smile on my face with its bodacious bassline, and dazzling horns.  

I just let the music soak in when I hear “Muse” and “Sweet Music” back to back.  Both are bathed in a delicious old-skool Stax soul sound, reminiscent of the Mar-Keys.  Optekar pours it on Steve Cropper-style, and of course, I can’t help but think of the Memphis Horns when Woolverton and Spadafora do their thing.  Holman’s silky and tender vocals bring great depth to the somber and beautifully written “Bullet”. It almost brings tears to my eyes.

Come Together has everything going for it.  Tweed Funk scores huge on this fantastic album.

            

Tasha Taylor - Honey For the Biscuit

2016 – Ruf Records

By Phillip Smith; Apr 24, 2016

Tasha Taylor, daughter of Stax legend, Johnnie Taylor has found her sweet spot for making music.  Her latest and third album, Honey For the Biscuit, is a wondrous cache of rhythm and blues with a whole lot of soul.  The core band she has put together is quite the ensemble.  It includes bassist Nathan Watts (Stevie Wonder), guitarists John Notto and Jon Taylor, pianist/keyboardist Don Wyatt, percussionist Mujungo Jackson, and Gerry Brown, Ronald Bruner and Stanley Randolph on drums.  In addition, Taylor utilizes a full brass section. 

The retro Motown vibe and lush sound of the horns in “Wedding Bells” quickly grab my attention.  Taylor’s voice gets sultry while Wyatt and Watts keep the rhythm in a borderline trans-inducing state, keeping me hypnotized for the duration of the song.  Taylor draws me in deeper with “Places I Miss”, a song about yearning to break free from a harmful relationship. 

A song that puts a smile on my face is the light and bluesy “Family Tree”, with special guest Keb Mo appearing, guitar and microphone in hand.  This eloquent ditty gets stuck in my head every time I hear it.  Keb is not the only special guest who appears on this album.  Robert Randolph sits in on the spirited “Little Miss Suzie” livening things up with his unique style on lap steel guitar.  In “Leave That Dog Alone”, Taylor tackles the Blues with full force, enlisting the fiery Samantha Fish, who gives a ripping performance on guitar.  Then, Taylor also shakes it on down with Tommy Castro, who lends vocals to the funky “Same Old Thing”.

According to Taylor, Honey For the Biscuit was three years in the making, and I believe it.  The writing and composition of each of the thirteen tracks are reflective of a whole lot of heart and soul. Taylor shines as songwriter and singer both.   

Shaun Hague : Journeyman A Tribute to Eric Clapton - Live @ Campbell Steele Gallery : 4/22/16

Live @ Campbell Steele Gallery

April 22, 2016 – Marion, Iowa

By Phillip Smith; April 23, 2016

Friday, April 22, Chicago guitarist/vocalist Shaun Hague brought his captivating show, Journeyman - A Tribute to Eric Clapton, to Campbell Steele Gallery in Marion, Iowa.  Joining Hague onstage for this delightful retrospective is keyboardist Robert Monroe, bassist Brian Burke and drummer Andy Taylor.  In this sold-out show, Journeyman treated the audience to three sets of hits and deep cuts, making sure to cover every era of Clapton’s career.

Beginning with the Sixties, Journeyman hit the ground running with a killer cover of “White Room” which almost immediately gave me goosebumps. This was followed up with a riveting “Badge”.  Burke's sweet bassline cemented the intoxicating groove on “Sunshine of Your Love”, in which Hague and Monroe alternated vocals.  The band was in total synchronicity for this one.  Taylor’s drum solo was spectacular and was a definitely ‘Hell Yeah’ moment.  Hague doles out more smokin’ guitar grooves on Robert Johnson’s iconic classic “Crossroads” to end the first set.

Set two, featured songs from the Eighties and Nineties, where Journeyman hit on deep cuts, “Holy Mother”, and honky-tonk friendly “Alberta”.  After a jamming performance of “Pretending”, they brought onstage with them, guest guitarist Billy Satterfield. Watching Hague and Satterfield go toe-to-toe on Muddy Water’s “Hoochi Coochi Man” was phenomenal.  The dual guitar sounded terrific.  Monroe downright tore it up on keys, reminding me of a mad scientist at work.  His talent definitely runs deep.    

The third and final set covered the classic Clapton songs of the Seventies.  Taylor grabs another captivating drum solo on “Let it Rain”.  I love this song.  I haven’t heard it in a while, but it transports me instantly to the days of my youth.  Satterfield is invited onstage again to join the band for “Cocaine”, where they tendered another absolutely grand performance.  Electric and spacy, their rendition of Jimi Hendrix’s “Little Wing” was an example of rock and roll at its best.  No Clapton tribute would be complete without “Layla”. This beautifully played song was the cherry on top, and ended the last set of the evening, bringing the walk down memory lane to a close.  It was a terrific night for music.    

All Photos by Phillip Smith

Shaun Hague

Robert Monroe

Shaun Hague

Brian Burke

Andy Taylor

Andy Taylor

Shaun Hague &  Brian Burke

Brian Burke

Brian Burke

Shaun Hague, Brian Burke, and Billy Satterfield

Shaun Hague & Billy Satterfield

Billy Satterfield

Robert Monroe

Robert Monroe

Shaun Hague

Shaun Hague

Shaun Hague & Billy Satterfield

Shaun Hague, Brian Burke, and Billy Satterfield

Trysette - Feel So Pretty

2015 – Little Hartley Music

By Phillip Smith; Apr 13, 2016

Feel So Pretty, the fifth studio album by Australian singer/songwriter/pianist Trysette is quite a lovely album indeed.  It is melodically rich and beautifully performed.  A seasoned and most talented group of musicians was enlisted for this studio recording in Los Angeles.  Guitarist Randy Ray Mitchell (Donna Summer, Warren Zevon, Billy Bob Thornton), organist Bob Malone (John Fogerty), and drummer Mike Baird (Eddie Money, Rick Springfield, Joe Cocker, Journey) gel together so good as the backing band, as they mix elements of pop and country and rock creating a laid-back and feel-good sound.

Trysette sings about an unhealthy infatuation in “Under My Skin”, a song that is smooth as glass with catchy hooks.  This song appears again at the end of the album in a more intimate and stripped down presentation, with Trysette at the piano, Marty Rifkin on pedal steel and backing vocalist Karen Nash.   I really like title track “Feel So Pretty”. It has this really cool Julianna Hatfield vibe and is such a delight to hear. Of the dozen tracks on Feel So Pretty, all are original with the exception of one song; Snow Patrol’s 2006 hit single “Chasing Cars”. The string accompaniment from Sophie Delerue and Candy Girard are the perfect touch to this mesmerizing cover which showcases Trysette’s beautiful vocals.

Feel So Pretty is music for the soul on a rainy day.  Heartfelt from beginning to end, this enchanting album is a true gem.  

for more info on Trysette, visit her website @ http://www.trysette.com/