Shotgun Rebellion - Shotgun Rebellion

Shotgun Rebellion, 2014

By Phillip Smith; March 29, 2014

This self-produced, self-titled, thirteen track album by Shotgun Rebellion fell into my awareness quite unexpectedly and I have to say, it pretty much bowled me over.  These guys elevate Southern Rock to a whole new level, by introducing fearsome guitar licks, emphatic beats, powerful vocals and wild-west imagery along with an arsenal of all-original songs.  Rooted in Oklahoma, Shotgun Rebellion features vocalist Rick Davis, bassist Jon Parr, drummer Johnni Walker, and to top things off, guitarist extraordinaire Randy “The Arsonist” Cooper formerly of Texas Hippie Coalition. 

“Lost My Way”, gets the album kick-started with a combination of vocals and guitar which reminds me a lot of Black Rain era Ozzy with Zakk Wylde, sans the British accent.  Davis and Cooper knock this one out of the ballpark.  The album only gets better.  I really like the infectious groove on “Squeeze My Shotgun”.  This double entendre titled party anthem takes me back a couple of decades to Guns N’ Roses (original lineup).  The song is pure no-nonsense rock with smile-inducing guitar play and crashing cymbals.  Another track that seems to emit that GNR vibe is “Pain and Misery”.  I can’t help but think of Black Oak Arkansas when I hear Davis’s voice on this song, and its successor “Train of Pain”.  Davis’s singing and style reminds me a lot of Jim “Dandy” Mangrum from BOA.   While on the subject of Jim Dandy,  I want to mention another song I really like,   “Just as Good a Day to Die”, a heady little ballad that falls right into the BOA wheelhouse. It’s as if it was written as a follow-up to the song “Lord Have Mercy on My Soul”.    

I detect a bit of Charlie Daniels inspiration when I listen to “Devils Home Brew” as Davis spins the tale of a moonshining witch.  The cool factor runs high on this eerie tale which tells us ‘there is nothing you can do once you get a taste of the Devil’s home brew’.   

Right up there on top of my list of favorite tracks are “Roll On” and “BadmansGUN”.  “Roll On”, plainly put, is one hell of a good song. Walker and Parr set up a really cool hallway of rhythm for Davis and Cooper to maneuver their way through. Then there is old-West themed ballad, “BadmansGUN”, which is sung from the view point of a man dying from a gunshot wound, and interjected with little bits of dialog and effects.  Sitting in on piano is Michael Miers, a friend of the band. One of the more interesting moments captured in the song is when everything gets quiet, and we hear just the piano, an acoustic guitar, and Johnni Walker softly whistling.     

Shotgun Rebellion not only captures my attention at the beginning, but it holds on to it until the end.  This album is quite impressive, and I hope we will be hearing a lot more from these guys in the future.  I believe we will.     

*  Special note :  Wes Wallace (also formerly of Texas Hippie Coalition) was added to the band full time about a month ago. So although he didn't appear on the album, he will be touring with them.

South Memphis String Band - Home Sweet Home : From The Archives #10

Memphis Int'l,  2010

By Phillip Smith; April 24, 2010

Home Sweet Home, the debut release by The South Memphis String Band pays serious homage to early twentieth century Mississippi delta string and jug bands.   Channeling the likes of Gus Cannon, Missisppi John Hurt, and The Memphis Jug Band , musicians Luther Dickinson (North Mississippi Allstars, Black Crowes), Alvin “Youngblood” Hart and Jimbo Mathus (Squirrel Nut Zippers) share the common experience of  being good friends, and having family connections and/or roots in the Memphis and North Mississippi area.   With an arsenal of instruments which include guitars, banjos, harmonicas, steel guitars, and mandolins, The South Memphis String Band helps the listener transgress to a slower and simpler time.

Sometimes, music can trigger the same feelings and emotions one experiences with ‘comfort foods’.  This album, I have realized,  has become one of my comfort foods.  Home Sweet Home is a melting pot, taking tried and true ingredients such as delta blues, gospel and folk music and slow simmering it into a Sunday family dinner.  I love the fact that The South Memphis String Band is consistent in style with each of its songs, yet allowing each to shine on its own accord. 

This is true.  Almost every morning, there is a song stuck in my head upon awakening.  Several times, that song has been “Deep Blue Sea”.  It‘s infectious.  Other cuts deserving mention are “Bootleggers Blues” and “Old Hen”.  Both are a little country-fried and dripping with authenticity.  Listening to the vocals dance around the banjo in “Old Hen”, just puts a big smile on my face.  I relished  “Worry Bout Your Own Backyard” as well, for its bluesy vocals and its wise lyrics, “Stop worrying about the whole world, and start worrying about your own backyard.”. 

 Home Sweet Home is a soulful experience and with each listen of  “Let Your Light Shine On Me”, I want to clap my hands and yell ‘Hallelujah!’

Rating =  4/5

Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings - Give the People What They Want

Daptone Records, 2013

By Phillip Smith; March 15, 2014

Give the People What They Want, by Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings is my favorite album of the year so far.  Produced by Dap-King bassist, Bosco Mann, the album is an outstanding collection of energy-infused rhythm and blues music with soulful vocals backed by a tight rhythm section.  It’s very reminiscent of the music of James Brown, Sly and the Family Stone, and Motown in its heyday.  Music like this seemed to fade away in the late Seventies.  As the times changed, the musical tastes and trends changed as well, leaving a huge gaping hole in the music industry.  Thank goodness we have Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings to fill that void.  

Two of my favorite tracks are written by Mann.  The first being ”Retreat!”, is lush and vibrant, with a cool bass line and a catchy rhythm.  Jones’ vocals here are amazing and full of conviction. Second, there is “Stranger to My Happiness”.  I love the saxophone riffs laid down by Cochemea Gastelum and Neal Sugarman. They make the song what it is.

Another go-to song, “Now I see”, written by Dap-King drummer Homer Steinweiss, is really one of the most interesting songs I’ve heard in a while.  Kicking off with a trumpet intro and a steady tempo, the song periodically switches gears, shifting the mood to a feeling of pending doom, as Jones sings about dealing with a longtime friend turned enemy.  It’s fun the way these little snippets segue from a gloomy and foreboding gear into an up-tempo, ska-like beat.

Back to back songs, “Making Up and Breaking Up” and “Get Up, Get Out” seem to go hand in hand with each other, in theme as well as style.  Both seemingly inspired by Sixties girl groups like Martha and the Vandellas and the Marvelletes, pay a wonderful homage to the sound with harmonizing vocals provided by the Dapettes, Starr Duncan, Saundra Williams, and Sheron Lafaye.  These two songs sound so nice, and love their placement next to each other.

So, if the question still lingers as to whether Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings Give the People What They Want or not, the answer is “Absolutely, mission accomplished!”.    They are a sheer delight to hear.

Kent Burnside - My World is So Cold

Lucky 13 Recordings, 2013

By Phillip Smith; March 8, 2014

After touring and playing with Jimbo Mathus for over a year, Kent Burnside (Grandson of R.L. Burnside) has decided to take the next step, form his own band, and introduce his own brand of Blues music, served up trance-style.  Thank goodness he did.  His debut album, My World is So Cold, is quite good.  Joining front man singer/guitarist Burnside in the studio is guitarist J.J. Holiday, keyboardist Eddie “Cheneddie” Baytos, bassist Justin Valdivia, and David Gray Kimbrough on drums and percussion. 

A funky backing rhythm, along with Burnside’s raw vocals and slide guitar, make “Country Boy” a fun and interesting album opener. One of the more interesting selections is his cover of Willie Dixon’s “Spoonful”, first recorded by Howlin’ Wolf.  Burnside injects a bus load of soul into the song and does a tremendous job of tackling this one.  I love the way he sprinkles these little bluesy licks of psychedelia into the song, which sound like little globs of backwards masking.              

  

Burnside brings it down to a sad slow sway with title track, “My World is So Cold”, about being tossed aside by his woman, and the hurt that goes along with being alone.  When this one plays, I just want to close my eyes, and listen.  I love the way it slowly builds to a climax bringing all the musicians together in a beautifully constructed jam.  Another slow and emotional song is “I Miss You”, written for his grandpa. The first half of the song is performed acoustically with the only sounds coming from Burnside and his guitar. Later,  the rest of the band join in, bringing a touch of electricity with them.  While on the subject of his grandfather, Burnside, again pays homage, playing R.L’s song “Miss Maybelle”.  You can hear the family trademark sound coming through on this one. Burnside tears it up on the guitar, and Baytos hammers the ivories in this powerful cover.

         

Like Sly Stone with a case of the blues, Burnside delivers a fantastic performance on “Walkin’ Blues”, the final track on My World is So Cold.  I love the funky guitar riffs, and the infectious rhythm. This track may be my favorite, but making that call was tough, as I found all the songs to be outstanding.  I really do look forward to hearing more from Kent Burnside. 

Reverend Horton Heat - REV

Victory Records, 2014

By Phillip Smith; March 2, 2014

Being a long-time fan of Reverend Horton Heat, I am thrilled to death to have a whole new batch of fast paced, fuel guzzling rock and roll songs to embrace, in the form of their new album, REV.  I am also glad to see front man Jim Heath and upright bassist Jimbo Wallace joined once again by Scott Churilla on drums, reuniting this holy trinity of modern rockabilly. 

Kicking the album, REV off is a fiery instrumental called, “Victory Lap”.  Reminiscent of the kick-ass surf guitar tracks Dick Dale is known for, it segues seamlessly into the following song, “Smell of Gasoline”.  “Smell of Gasoline” is a contagious song about a teenage girl with a fondness for the scent of petroleum, and is drawn to one guy in particular over all her other suitors because of her guilty pleasure.  While on the subject of women in song, I really like “Hardscrabble Woman” which tells the story of a pistol packing Calamity Jane type tough gal who packs her own loads, runs around with a tough crew, and is a sure-shot with a hammer.  Hardscrabble Woman could very well be the same gal who loves the smell of gasoline after packing on a few years.  The backing harmonies on this throwback to fifties western music, paint the song representatively in Grand Ole Opry fashion.  Heath breaks out the raunch ‘n’ roll with “Let Me Teach You How to Eat”.  This fun rockabilly romp is spattered with innuendos and double entendres, with a fistful of punk thrown in.

Reverend Horton Heat is a genius, when it comes to setting a daunting tone.  “Spooky Boots”, about an aging lovelorn biker who been pining for the return of a woman who left him nearly forty-five years ago, is so interesting in how it mixes Swing with Western.   In the fashion of the Munsters theme song, the good Rev brings us “Zombie Dumb”.  The song features twangy surf riffs and captivating ‘the natives are getting restless’ style drum beats from Churilla, all on top of lyrics solely composed of the words in the title spoken in a deep haunting voice.  

REV is a true delight and a thrilling listen from beginning to end.  Thanks to Don Jamieson for bringing this album to my attention via his February 8^th pick of the week on VH1 Classic’s That Metal Show.

Kim Simmonds and Savoy Brown - Goin’ to the Delta

Ruf Records, 2014

By Phillip Smith; February 21, 2014

Keeping with tradition, Kim Simmonds and Savoy Brown has returned once again to the studio to record another batch of hot electric Blues for our listening pleasure. The album is called Goin’ to the Delta, and alongside of Simmonds, is bassist Pat DeSalvo and drummer Garnet Grimm. 

What I really like about this disc, besides the music itself, is the cohesiveness of the songs, all penned by Simmonds, by the way.  This is album-oriented music, which is best heard from beginning to end, unlike the music popularized with the MP3 generation, where the song is the final product, and not the album. Simmonds takes us on a journey fit for the Blues, which passes through the realms of infatuation, rejection, loneliness, desperation, and reconciliation.   

Simmonds sets everything up with the first track, “Laura Lee”.  It’s fast-paced with a hint of rockabilly. This is roadhouse Blues at its best.  Following with “Sad News”, he brings it down a couple of notches, both in mood and tempo. If I didn’t know better, I’d say this one, about lost love, was written in the Thirties.  It sounds so timeless and genuine.  Then, there is “Nuthin’ Like the Blues”, a fun and cleverly written homage to the Blues itself, with references to howlin’ wolves, rollin’ and tumblin’, as well as dusting brooms.  Although the song doesn’t sound like the legendary classic, “Crossroads”, it certainly makes me think of it when I hear it. 

I love the way the instrumental track, “Cobra” gets my adrenalin flowing.  I call this ear candy because of its fast moving catchy riffs and hit bluesy licks.  Then, I like the fun little romp Simmonds takes us on, as he heads out for a little free-trade non-committal loving, in the song “Turn Your Lamp On “.   He then breaks out some killer slide on “I Miss Your Love”, as he pines for the woman who left him for another man.  Closing on a positive note, Simmonds plays his heart out and raises the mood and energy with “Going Back”, about going back to his baby because he’s been away too long. 

Savoy Brown has been a mainstay in the Rock and Blues community for the better portion of fifty years, and I’m so glad to see their legacy continue on with the album, Goin’ to the Delta.   

Teeny Tucker - Voodoo To Do You!

TeBo Records, 2013

By Phillip Smith; February 15, 2014

Upon checking out the title, along with the track list, which includes song titles such as  “Voodoo Woman”, “Voodoo Voodoo”, “It’s Your Voodoo Working” , and “Love Spell”, one might be able to identify the recurring theme of Teeny Tucker's latest album, if hard-pressed.  That being said, Teeny Tucker doesn’t need voodoo to get anyone to love this recording, Voodoo To Do You!  She’s got it covered with powerful vocals, down-home blues,  choice song selections and a great band which includes guitarist Robert Hughes, bassist Robert Blackburn, drummer Darrell Jumper, David Gastel on harmonica and keyboards.  

Tucker kicks this thirteen track album off with a fantastic cover of Koko Taylor’s “Voodoo Woman”.  It’s fast paced Blues, buttered on one side with her cool raspy vocals, and on the other side, with Hughes’ killer electric riffs. Linda Dachtyl, sitting in on this one with her B3, adds a cohesive bonding that nicely pulls the song together.  Then without skipping a beat, the intro to Howlin’ Wolf’s “Commit a Crime” gently rolls in.  Hughes scores big points on this one as he nicely sets the song in motion.  Introducing new lyrics, Tucker tackles this one from a woman’s point of view.  “Tough Lover” is another cover, with a little modification. This one isn’t your Etta James’ version. Tucker takes the original and slows it down a bit, which I think is a great decision.  Interestingly, as the tempo increases, Hughes briefly steers the song from Blues to Rockabilly before bringing it back home again. 

One of my favorite tracks on the album is Tucker’s rendition of “Death Don’t Have No Mercy”, originally by Gary Davis, and covered later by the Grateful Dead.  I love the guitar licks Hughes lays down on this dark and sullen song.  I can feel the emotion pouring off his guitar strings as he plays. This is probably the coolest song on the album.   

Tucker must have had her mojo working double time when she got the idea for the closer song, “Sun Room”.  This upbeat original, about the history and spirit of the legendary Sun Studios in Memphis, Tennessee, coincidentally was recorded at the Sun Studios.  When this song plays,  I feel momentarily transported to the studio itself.  Tucker makes it easy to envision the iconic building at 706 Union Avenue, with her crafted lyrics.

As I find myself listening to this album over and over again, it’s no surprise to find out Teeny Tucker is nominated for the 2014 Blues Foundation’s Koko Taylor Award this year.  I think she deserves it. 

From the Archive : The Linn County Band : Original member, Larry Easter Recounts

By Phillip Smith

Interview date : May 27, 2010

(originally published in the Linn County Blues Society BluesPaper,  July 2010)

---------------------------------------------------

Larry Easter, the original sax player for Linn County was in town recently, and was gracious enough to sit down and share some moments and a brief history of the band, Linn County with me.  Larry now resides in Pasadena, CA, and still plays on a regular basis. 

Linn County, a band originating in Linn County, IA,  migrated to Chicago, and then later transplanted themselves in San Francisco.  They recorded three albums in a three year period for Mercury Records (1968 - 1970).  Original members were Stephen Miller (organ, vocals),   Larry Easter (saxophone, flue), Dino Long (bass guitar), Fred Walk (guitar, sitar), and Jerry ‘Snake’ McAndrew (drums) who left the band and  was replaced by Clark Pierson.  

Phillip: What brought you into the band?

Larry:  I went and sat in with them at a club called the Cougar Lounge.  So I got hired on the spot.  And then they said well we were going to be going to Chicago, and I said, “That’s fine“, because I had nothing better to do, and so I just went up there with them.  And what that band did was become the house band of the most prominent blues venue in Chicago at the time, it was called Mother Blues.   We played five or six nights a week from like 9:30pm to 3:30 in the morning. 

This guy Jerry Rubin, does that name ring a bell with you?  He was the guy that was with the Chicago Seven.  The political thing.  He comes into the club, and says, “We’re going to make a riot here… in Chicago  Do you want to be a part of it?’ And we didn’t want to.  We were just a bunch of guys that played.  We weren‘t into that whole political thing. 

Phillip: Were you still the Prophets when you were in Chicago?

Larry:  No, they had already changed the name.  It was originally called the Linn County Blues Band, then it became Linn County, because we went past blues, strictly speaking.  None of this was my call.  I just played ball, I played saxophone.   They ended up signing with Mercury Records, made three records with Mercury.  After we moved from Cedar Rapids to Chicago, we went on the road a lot.  We went to Detroit, Cleveland,  and Montreal,  which was really the best one of them.  People loved that band in Montreal. 

Martin Luther King got assassinated.  We left Chicago three days before that happened, I think, or maybe two.   And so, Chicago burned after that.  That whole club got burned.     We got out of that by the skin of our teeth.

Phillip:  So when you got out of Chicago, were you on your way to San Francisco?

Larry:  That’s right.  It was coincidental, but this did happen.   So we got out and just kept going to San Francisco.

Phillip: That was 1967?

Larry :  1968.  We were signed to a record contract by Mercury Records at the time.  We got a big advance at that time, a lot of money.    What happened after that was basically downhill.  It was a hell of a good band.  When we were in Chicago, everybody loved us, but you go to San Francisco where the Grateful Dead was, there was a lot going on, very provincial.  They were really taken with people from San Francisco, and anyone from outside of San Francisco had a really rough uphill battle.   We played the Fillmore, but it just wasn’t the same.  Because prior to that, even going outside of Chicago in places like Cleveland, Detroit and Montreal, everybody loved that band.  In Montreal, for instance, they’d  rate the top ten bands.  We’re talking about the Beatles, Rolling Stones, all of that.  We were listed among the top ten.  It had that kind of impact.  But when we went to San Francisco,  it wasn’t the same thing.  It was just like we were a year or two too late.  We just couldn’t crack.  I’d say we played on  the same bill with the Grateful Dead four times.  But for whatever reason, we couldn’t bridge the gap.

Phillip:  Which album was your favorite to record?  Did any one of them stick out as being a lot of fun to record?

Larry:  I’m actually a little frustrated by all of them.  Because I was so young at the time, I was like nineteen or twenty when this was all going on.  So as I look back at my own playing, in terms of what I do now, I am kind of embarrassed by it a little bit.  Most people will tell you Fever Shot was the best.  They might be right.  The first one was called Proud Flesh Soothseer.  That was really psychedelic. 

Phillip: Of all the bands you shared a stage with,  does any one strike you as one you really liked to work with?

Larry:  That’s a tough call. We did the Grateful Dead a bunch of times.  Quicksilver Messenger Service, I liked those guys.  And they liked us too.  Steve Miller was a guy in our band, but there was another Steve Miller too.  And he would sit in with us.  A lot of people would sit in with us, James Cotton, Paul Butterfield. 

Phillip:  Is there any particular live performance that stands out the most?

Larry:   The thing is that the best ones are not the ones that would jump out at you.  There was a place in Montreal Canada called the Penelope, it was just a coffee shop, but Frank Zappa played there.  The Mothers of Invention… Paul Butterfield... there was a whole circle that played at that particular club.  Anyway, we were really popular at that particular venue.  That’s what sticks out in my mind.  We played the Fillmore East with Eric Burdon and the Animals and Sly and the Family Stone.

Phillip:  You played both Fillmores.  Which one, if you had to pick,  one was your favorite?

Larry:  Well, we only did the Fillmore East one time.  That was in New York City, and that made it special in and of itself. 

We played in Detroit with Led Zeppelin.  A funny thing happened at that show.  Our bass player, Dino was playing this Hofner Bass like Paul McCartney played., and the neck breaks off, so he had to borrow the bass from Led Zeppelin.  Our band manager who is still alive and a dear close friend, got it into his head to get us all these psychedelic clothing items to play this thing.  And so we are playing on stage, and they’re shrinking.

Phillip: Reminds me of George Costanza’s cotton baseball uniforms.

Larry:  You got this guy, Steve Miller, who is six foot four, and all the buttons had popped off everybody, and he was so mad.  You can’t believe this, but it did go down.   We played, and our clothes shrunk on us during that performance, and none of us wanted to wear that crap in the first place because we just wanted to wear jeans, and shirts. 

Phillip:  Is there possibility in the future of any of your albums being re-released on CD

Larry:  It’s obscure. But believe it or not, there are CDs of us out there, but not a lot. 

Phillip:  Larry, I want to thank you for taking the time to talk with me.  I really appreciate it.  Your stories have been very informative and enlightening.   It’s been a real pleasure talking to you.  Thank you.