Ally Venable Band Starts This Week’s Blues Music Rotation
Yesterday, I had a chance to take a good look at the Roots Music Report Blues Charts. After reviewing the charts I listened to a few minutes of many albums to see if they match my taste. I ended up with thirteen albums to listen to over the rest of the week. The album that intrigued me the most yesterday was Puppet Show from the Abby Venable Band. Currently, the album is number 23 on the Contemporary Blues Album Chart.
Evidently I have been doing a lousy job of keeping up with hot new blues artists from Texas. Because Abby is one of th hottest.t young blues artists (she’s 19 years old) in the Lone Star State.‘Ms Venable was named East Texas Female Guitarist of the Year in both 2014 and 2015. And her band was named East Texas Music Awards Blues Band of the Year in 2015,2016 and 2017.
About the Ally Venable Band
Ally Venable is both the leader, and lead vocalist and of course lead guitarist. Ally started singing in church at your age. In recent years though she picked up the guitar and found her passion.
Ally’s band mates Bobby Wallace and Elijah Owens provide a solid rhythm section. Wallace is the bassist and Owens the drummer. Wallace has tons of experience and is a master at his craft. While Owens is a classically trained musician.
Puppet Show is the band’s third album. Train Wreck Blueswas the band’s debut album and No Glass Shoes was their sophomore release. There are some helping hands on Puppet Show. Guitarist Gary Hoey provides his great guitar work on track one “Devil’s Son”. While Ally’s mentor Lance Lopez adds his guitar to “Bridges to Burn” track two. Steve Krase plays harmonica on the album and Eric Steckel adds some keyboards.
Final Thoughts
Bottom Line : Based on a limited number of listens Puppet Show is a winner and will stay in my rotation for a while, so check it out!
Links for the Further Exploration of the Music of Ally Venable Band
Lurrie Bell: Carrying On the Chicago Blues Tradition of His Father, Carey Bell
I’ve mentioned before that I often use the birthday listings over at AllAboutJazz.com as a springboard to discover new music. That’s how I first really dove into the music of Lurrie Bell, a Chicago bluesman with deep roots and a guitar tone full of grit and soul.
Blues in My Soul – A Breakthrough Album
Back in 2013, Lurrie Bell had a banner year. He released what would become one of his most acclaimed solo albums, Blues in My Soul, on the Delmark label—a return to electric blues after a few more acoustic and spiritual outings. The blues world noticed.
Blues in My Soul earned Lurrie five nominations at the 2014 Blues Music Awards:
Blues Album of the Year (Blues in My Soul)
Blues Song of the Year (“Blues in My Soul”)
Traditional Blues Album of the Year (Blues in My Soul)
Blues Guitarist of the Year
Traditional Male Blues Artist of the Year
He took home the Blues Song of the Year award, and also won the 2013 Living Blues Award for Male Blues Act of the Year.
Lurrie Bell – Born December 13, 1958
Lurrie Bell was born in Chicago, the son of legendary blues harpist Carey Bell. He picked up the guitar at six, and by his teens was already playing with the likes of Eddy Clearwater, Big Walter Horton, and Eddie Taylor. In the mid-1970s, he spent four years touring and recording with Koko Taylor’s Blues Machine. His recording debut came in 1977 on his father’s album Heartaches and Pain, as well as King of the Jungle by Eddie C. Campbell.
Over a career now spanning more than four decades, Bell has released more than a dozen solo albums, collaborated often with his father, and contributed to numerous other blues records. I first heard his scorching guitar work on Live at Chan’s: Combo Platter No. 2 from Nick Moss & The Flip Tops, where he shines on a 13-minute version of Eddie Boyd’s “Five Long Years.”
If you’re a fan of Chicago blues and haven’t checked out Lurrie Bell yet—start now. Here are some great places to explore his music:
And here’s a great live performance of “Everyday I Have the Blues” from Bluesfest Eutin 2014:
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🎶 Update: Set Me Free (2024)
As for me? Lurrie Bell is still going strong. His 2024 collaboration with saxophonist Frank Catalano, Set Me Free, is now spinning as I write—and it’s a bold, soulful mix of blues and jazz that pushes the boundaries without losing the heart.
Between Lurrie’s expressive guitar and vocals, and Catalano’s blazing sax work, the album is a testament to two seasoned musicians still hungry for musical exploration. Set Me Free proves the blues isn’t stuck in the past—it’s still moving, still evolving, still alive.
Check it out—you just might find yourself set free too.
Fifty year plus years ago, I was discovering new artists, who would become lifelong companions. Today, many of them are still making music – and I’m still listening. This playlist The Fifty Years Later Playlist looks back at where they started.. and where they are now.
The seeds of this playlist were sown on Monday of this week (May 26th) when I used my 20% off Holiday discount at Goodwill to buy a JVC Dual Cassette deck for $8.00. As a result, over the next several days I searched for my old cassette tapes.
One of them I found was a Charlie Mussellwhite 1969 release Tennessee W0man. Now I know I didn’t buy the tape in 1969. It’s more likely I bought the tape in the late 1990s when Tunes, store in Marlton NJ, my sons and I used to frequent, was clearing out its tape inventory. As I was listening to the album I reflected on the fact t that a few days previously I had been listening to Charlie’s recent release Look Out Highway.
Anyway that thought started me thinking about all the musicians I started to listen to in the late 60s early 70s that are still out there making great music and albums! Those thoughts lead me to create a playlist!! And here it is!! What I tried to do was start with two songs from each artist from the 60s and then I chose two songs from their most recent albums!
The Fifty Years Later Playlist (Part I)
Charlie Mussellwhite
While I don’t have a lot of Charlie’s music in my library, I have always admired his harp playing. I‘ve enjoyed blues harp since I first heard Sonny Terry way back in the 70s.
Then
From: Tennessee Woman
“Tennessee Woman” – How could I not start the playlist with anything but the very song and album that inspired it.
“Blue Feeling Today“
From Look Out Highway
Now
I am still getting to know these two songs but Charlie’s vocals and harp playing are as great as they ever were!
“Look Out Highway”- the title track of Charlie’s latest
“Hip-Shakin’ Mama” –
Jerry Jeff Walker
I followed Jerry Jeff’s career from the first album Mr. Bojangles to the last album It’s About Time. (1969-2018). Along the way in addition to placing a bunch of songs in the “Jukebox in my head” Jerry Jeff also introduced me to : David Bromberg, Guy Clark, Tom Russell, Chris Wall, Ray Wylie Hubbard and the great Lloyd Maines. And probably many others!
Then
From Mr. Bojangles
“Gypsy Songman” – there’s better to start with when considering whose music I’ve been listening to for fifty years than Jerry Jeff. And “Gypsy Songman” certainly captures the spirit of Jerry Jeff. I have rocked all of my grandchildren to “Mr. Bojangles”. The other day we were visiting my fifth grandchild Luca and my wife handed a crying Lucas to me. I started rocking and singing Mr. Bojangles and he quickly stopped crying. The power of Jerry Jeff.
From Drifting Way of Life
“Ramblin’ Scramblin” – one thing I’ll probably never do is rock a grandchild to Ramblin’ Scramblin”. I first heard this song many years ago – I’d never heard anything like it, and I immediately loved it!
From It’s About Time
Now
“My Favorite Picture of You” – through the year JJW covered several Guy Clark songs and this one found it’s way onto JJW’s last album and he made it his own in 2018, when JJW covered it on It’s About Time, two years before JJW passed in 2020. Here’s a link to Guy’s version.
“ That’s the Way I Play” – just a nice JJW song.
Tom Rush
While I didn’t discover Tom Rush’s music until he was several years into his career, I’ve been a fan since The Circle Game was released in 1968. And while there was a big gap in the release of a studio recording in his career (from 1974‘s Ladies Love Outlawsto 2009’s. What I Know, Tom has never stop performing! His last two albums Voices (2018) and 2024’s Gardens Old , Flowers Neware both terrific albums. He has aged like a fine wine!
Then
From The Circle Game…
“Urge for Going” – – Tom’s album The Circle Game is high on the list of my All-Time favorite Albums and it’s mainly because of his covers of then unknown artists like Joni Mitchell who penned both “Urge for Going” and the title song
“The Circle Game” – a brilliant cover -nuff said
From Gardens Old, Flowers New
Now
I’m still getting to know these two new songs, but they are both vintage Tom Rush…..
“The Harbor”
“Sailing”
Eric Andersen
Like Tom Rush I didn’t discover Eric Andersen’s music until he released Blue River in 1972. At that point Eric was an established fixture in the Greenwich Village Music scene and had released six or seven albums. Eric says this about that period of his life:
I was documenting a whole other emotional and interior world moving through the ’60s and beyond,” he says. “My songs dealt more with inner perceptions, views, and feelings — songs that were perhaps the precursors to those of Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen. [Greenwich Village] felt exciting because you knew it was a historical, breakthrough time, and it was amazing to belong to such a vibrant era.”
At one point, Cohen even told him that one of his songs inspired him to start writing and performing. Read More
Again my musical journey with Eric started with Blue River (1972) and has continued to today. Like Tom Rush, Eric had a gap in his musical career when he was in Europe. There was a fourteen year gap between Be True To Youand Ghosts on the Road (1974-1989). And while his latest album Dance of Love and Deathis a far cry from his Greenwich Village Days it is an outstanding album, in my humble opinion,
Then
From Blue River
“Is it Really Love at All” – this is one of my favorite songs of all-time. It’s just a great song.
“Wind and Sand” – another favorite – especially the last line…..
From Dance of Love and Death
Now
“Dance of Life and Death”
“After This Life”
So check these artists and songs out!
Got a similar story or favorite artist who’s still going strong? I’d love to hear it.
As for me, I’m already at work on Part II of this playlist, which will feature some of the rock and blues artists who’ve grown older, wiser — and are still absolutely worth listening to!
Links for the Further Explorations of These Artists
So, I had a 35 minute drive Monday morning to get to a dental appointment, to have a wisdom tooth extracted. It was a good time to listen to one of the three blues albums that have been in my music rotation. I chose I Hear Thunder from Tab Benoit. And I’m glad I did! The more I listen to the album the more I like it
About Tab Benoit
If you are unfamiliar with Tab Benoit he is a Louisiana-based singer, guitarist, and environmental preservationist. His music has a Cajun-inflected blues-rock sound. While he first burst onto the blues music scene with his 1992 release Nice & Warm on the Vanguard label. I think I first found Tab Benoit’s music around 2010, when I started blogging.
The first album I picked up was Night Train to Nashville. I can remember listening to that album on my way to many a job site for my job. Since part of my job was delineating wetlands his music and actions to protect wetlands struck a chord with me.
Anyway, since then many of Tab’s album have found their way into my music library. The last one was Medicine released 13 years ago! Today, as I was researching for this post, I discovered the reason for the gap was tha Tab had to free himself from a horrible record deal with Justice Records.
Justice Records issued his first five albums. However, the label folded in the late ’90s. Tab’s contract and catalog transferred first to Vanguard, then Telarc, and finally Concord. All without his consent. Finally after releasing Medicine in 2011, he simply refused to issue another album without adequate compensation.
During the time span between Medicine and I Hear Thunderhe founded Voice of the Wetlands, an organization promoting awareness of the receding coastal region of Louisiana. In addition, created Tab Benoit’s Lagniappe Music Cafe, situated in downtown Houma.
For the duration of this period, Benoit still performed at local and regional gigs. The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival issued two of his live recordings from the event in 2016 and 20.
In 2017 he founded Whiskey Bayou Records. The label currently is home to a variety of artist including: Jeff McCarty, Alastair Greene, Eric Johanson, Dash Rip Rock, Eric McFadden, Damon Fowler, and JP Soars.
About I Hear Thunder
Now let’s get back to the aforementioned,I Hear Thunder. Currently the album is number 8? On the roots music Report’s Blues Chart. I don’t think it will be long before it will be number 1! It’s a winner all round great songs, great vocals and great guitars. All ten of the tracks are Tab Benoit originals. Four songs were written by Tab alone and the remainder were cowritten with either Anders Osborne or George Porter Jr or both.
While I’m starting to like all of the tracks on the album. After the first couple of listens my favorites were “ I Hear Thunder”, “Still Gray” and “Watching the Gators Roll In”
The bottom line is check it out now! As for me I’m going back and listen to some of the earlier albums I have from Tab Benoit!
So more and more I am going to make this more a true Weblog! And by that I mean I’m going to make it more about what’s happening in my life, I will still be writing about books, music and turning back my biological clock. However, I usually struggle with analyzing why I like a book or even an album, so I have a hard time writing a review type post. I don’t like to write a complete analysis of each song on an album or a deep analysis of each book i read. I like to write a little about what the book is about, along with a little about the author. Hopefully, the posts I write may lead the reader to a new author or musician! With all that being said let’s see what happened today!
A Morning Walk/Run
My last full run was about two weeks ago. When I started the run the plan was to run the 2,5 mile course I ran on that last run. However, soon after I started even though I was doing okt mi, I just didn’t have it. So I chose to walk about mid-way through the first half mile. From that point on I ran a little then walked a little. I ran/walked the first mile in 14:24 and the second in 14:59, Then I walked most of the last .55 mile in 16:19. The overall pace for the run was 15:02. If I had been paying attention I would have picked up the pace a little to get under 15 min/mile pace.
The Soundtrack – Floreada’s Boy By Zac Harmon
Floreada’s Boy has been in my music rotation for a few weeks now and I like it more each time I listen to the album. Currently, the album made a big jump on the Roots Music Report this week. It rose from number 44 to No 3!Ir wouldn’t surprise me if it was No 1 next week. Zac sums up Floreada’s Boy as follows…
Floreada’s Boy is a reflection of my 50 years of musical performance. From the juke joints of Mississippi to stages all over the world. Not bad for an old countryests on Floreada;s Bo boy.
The Zac Harmon Band includes: Nate Robinson guitar, Gino Inglehart drums, and Corey Lacey on keyboards. Guests on Floreada’s Boy include: Texas Horns, Caleb Quaye, Sue Ann Carwell and Munyungo Jackson.
From Frank Matheis’s Review at Living Blues
Every song on Floreada’s Boyis a keeper. On the blues side, Harman kicks it into overdrive with slashing guitar and the horns to bring you firecrackers like Big Dog Blues, a deep blues that could take its place right next to the best classics of the genre. There is plenty of funk, as in Let It Slide and Stress.
On the soul side there are five beautiful songs, most notably the languid and slow That’s the Way I Feel about Cha, with a distinct 1970s vibe featuring the great SueAnn Carwell. Never Forget is a gut-wrenching, broken-heart love song that could have fit perfectly on a Marvin Gaye or Ray Charles record. The blues has always had something important to say, and Zac Harmon is saying it as clearly as ever. He closes the album with the stunningly heavy, powerful, socio-critical, anti-gun violence song Stop the Killing. If he had recorded nothing but that poignant and impactful song, so imperative in our time, that alone would stand as a masterpiece, his magnum opus. If only people took it to heart. Stop the Killing should win every songwriting award on the planet if there is any justice. Sing it from the rooftops. Read More at Living Be albumlues
The Bottom Line
Floreada’s Boy is a triple treat for me. First great songs,, Second great vocals and finally great guitar work! So check it out!
Links for the Further Exploration of the Blues of Zac Harmon
So, as I’ve written previously over the last year, particularly from September to June I only ran sporadically. And I’ll tell you that the summer is not an easy time for this 73 year old to start over! Anyway the way that I am trying to restart my running is by both running and walking, Basically, I’ll run about a half mile and then walk a quarter mile and keep that switching going for about 30 minutes or more. It also turns out to be running until my heart rate gets up to about 140 bpm and then walking until it drops back to 110 bpm or lower. Anyway, here are the runs and the soundtrack Shut Up &Playfrom Toronzo Cannon
The Runs
Anyway I ran last Friday 7/26 I covered 2.09 miles in 32:27 for a 15:30 /mi pace. Overall, I ran for 14:45 and walked for 17:41. On Sunday I did a little better. I covered 2.68 miles in 39:36 for an average pace of 14:46/mi. The good thing was that my time running was 21:29 and walking time only 18:04. In addition on Friday my average heart rate was 117 BPM and my max heart rate was 1369 bpm, While on Sunday my average heart rate was 125 bpm with a maximum of 151 (‘ during my old man sprint at the end – lol. So I know it will take some time to get back running fairly well, but at least if I improve on each run I’ll be happy!
The Soundtracks – Shut Up & Play – Toronzo Cannon
The soundtrack for Friday’s run was Shut Up & Play the latest release from Chicago blues artist Toronzo Cannon. From his website……
“I want my songs to be heard and experienced, not just listened to,” says cliché-defying, internationally beloved Chicago bluesman Toronzo Cannon. With his richly detailed, truth-telling original songs, blistering, inventive guitar work and impassioned vocals, Cannon is on the cutting edge of today’s contemporary blues scene and is known as one of the genre’s most creative artists. His sound is inspired by his heroes, including Hound Dog Taylor, Muddy Waters, Elmore James, Albert King, Son Seals and Jimi Hendrix. On his third Alligator Records album, Shut Up And Play!, Cannon blazes his own path with 11 emotionally-charged originals. From serious to humorous, his imaginative songs are fueled by his powerful, cathartic guitar solos and his soulfully authoritative voice.
Toronzo wrote all of the twelve tracks on the album and he says this about his songs……
“I write what I know, what I feel,” Cannon says, “I like to put myself in the shoes of the subjects of my songs. This record is about the things going on in my life since 2019–it’s a document of what I’ve seen and been through, but the stories are universal. And it’s my way to get past negative things and keep my own sanity. Listen to the lyrics. I am a Black man in America. These are NOT protest songs. I try to create honest, common sense understanding with my songs.”
The Bottom Line
The bottom line is that Shut Up & Playis a terrific album and one that should be in every blues lovers collection, My favorite tracks on the album include: “Had to Go Through it to Get to It”, “Can’t Fix the World”, “Got Me by the Short Hairs” and the title track. So check it Out!
Links for the Further Exploration of the Music of Toronzo Cannon
So the other day I wrote a out one of the two songs that have been in my music rotation this month, Albert Cummings‘ latest album Strong. The other album is Mike Zito‘s new album Life is Hard. Like Cummings Zito has been a favorite of mine for many years a now. I started listening to his music back around 2010 in when I heard his album Pearl. I think that his last two albums, 2021 Blues for the Southside Live and Life is Hard have been the best of his career.
About Life is Hard
Life is Hard was recorded in September 0f 2023 at Sunset Sound Studios in Hollywood, California. Joe Bonamassa and Josh Smith produced the album, Both Bonamassa and Smith worked on the production of Blood Brothers, the critically-acclaimed album Zito recorded with fellow label guitarist Albert Castiglia,. (another favorite) Blood Brothers topped both the Billboard and iTunes blues charts after its release in March, 2023.
Life Is Hard is composed of several Mike Zito originals. In addition Mike makes a variety of blues songs written by more of my favorite artists including: Tinsley Ellis, Walter Trout, Tab Benoit and Fred James.
But that’s not all a diverse assortment of blues/roots music icons music is covered including Little Milton (“Lonely Man”), Stevie Wonder (“Have a Talk with God”) and Reverend Gary Davis (“Death Don’t Have No Mercy”), plus a terrific cover of the Guess Who classic, “These Eyes.”
Mike has this to say about the album…..
“Life Is Hard is a complete work of art for me,” says Mike Zito about the new disc. “I believe this is the best album I’ve ever made in my life. My wife Laura and I planned this idea of pouring my heart out in music after her death from cancer. Joe, Josh and the incredible musicians were fully aware of the task at hand. They brought a lot of emotion to the music. I am so proud of this album and I know Laura would be proud as well.”
From Mike Zito’s website.
The Bottom Line
The Bottom line is Life is Hard, like Strong is a fantastic album. In my opinion it is the best album Zito has recorded and it will be quickly climbing the blues charts. Currently it is number 11 on the Roots Music Report Blues Chart.
Mike’s guitar work and vocals are both great throughout Life is Hard. On several of the tracks on the album the keyboard work also shines. When I went to Mike’s website I discovered Reese Wynans was the keyboardist! Here’s the complete musician line-up on the album…..
Mike Zito – Guitar and Vocals Joe Bonamassa – Additional Guitar Josh Smith – Additional Guitar Reese Wynans – Keyboards Calvin Turner – Bass Lemar Carter – Drums Paulie Cerra – Saxophone on “Lonely Man” Jennifer Kumma and Anna Spina – French Horn on “Forever My Love” and “These Eyes” Jade Macrae – Background Vocals Dannielle Deandrea – Background Vocals Steve Ray Ladson – Background Vocals on “Death Don’t Have No Mercy” French Horn Arrangements by Calvin Turner
When I was gathering info to write this post I discovered Mike’s wife Laura pasted away in August of 2023. She died after a long battle against cancer.Here’s what Mike writes about the song “Forever My Love”
About the Song “Forever My Love”
“In January of last year, I was considering the idea of making an album about the tragedy of my wife Laura having cancer. I wasn’t quite sure how to go about it, but she was very encouraging of the process. I knew I could not write an entire album about this experience and my feelings, but I wanted to write at least one meaningful song that encapsulated my emotions.
One morning I was sitting with guitar in hand at the dining room table with a coffee by my side. I played a chord and sang “Forever My Love” at the top of my lungs. Laura came into the room and said “What was that? Is that a song you’re going to write?” I said, “I think so, do you like it?”
She had an excited look on her face as she said “Yes, I like it a lot.” It just came to me so I went with it and the rest came so fast and easy. The best songs usually come out of nowhere and are very easy to write, like I am not really writing the song I am just the interpreter. The song was written, but I played it and sang it over and over throughout the year. Every morning I would sit at the table and sing it loud and she would listen.
She would tell me how much she loved the song, she was really proud. We had hoped she would live long enough to hear the finished version, but that didn’t happen. But, she heard me sing this song 100 times to her at our house last year, and she knew you were going to love it.” — Mike Zito
Here’s the video for “Forever My Love”
I also discovered there is a Go-Fund Me site Laura Zito Cancer Support. if you would like to help Mike and his family.
Ok so since September of last year my wife and I have spent most of our days babysitting our 4th grandchild, Emma. We’re at my daughter’s house from 7 am until roughly 5 pm. The result is I don;t have a lot of time to blog and/or listen to music. But I’ve been trying to listen when I am out and about on the weekends and at night. Lately, the two blues albums that have been in my music rotation are the latest releases from two of my favorites. First came Albert Cummings latest releases Strong. Then came Mike Zito’s Life is Hard .
Both Albert Cummings and Mike Zito’s 2023 releases were among my favorites for the year. Albert’s album Ten was just flat out great. Well,in all fairness, Mike’sBlues for the Southside (Live) was also great! In this post I’ll cover Strong and post about Life is Hard later.
Strong – Albert Cummings
Strong is Cumming’s eleventh release and was produced by Grammy-winning virtuoso Tom Hambridge The album was recorded at Ocean Way Recording Studio in Nashville, Tennessee.
Cumming’s got his first big break In his musical journey, when after hearing hearinglay live, Tommy Shannon and Chris Layton (Vaughan’s Double Trouble) produced and played on 2001’s From the Heart. Since then many of his releases have made their way into the top ten of the blues charts. Several have been produced by the legendary blues guru Jim Gaines. Currently, Strong is number 11 on the Roots Music Report Blues Chart, number 2 on the Billboard Blues Chart and number 9 on the Living Blues Chart
Steve Leggett wrote this about Albert Cummings in his biography at AllMusic…
His playing style weds the chunky, rave-up R&B stylings of Albert King and Stevie Ray Vaughan to the boundary-less blues-rock improvisation of Jimi Hendrix and Freddie King’s resonant phrasing. Further, he is a powerful vocalist possessed of a rich, expressive baritone
Every time I Iisten to Strong I like each song just a little better. I’m consistently impressed by Cumming’s guitar work and vocals throughout the album. Rock & Blues Muse says this about the album..
Strong is a sonic exploration of life’s highs and lows, love and heartbreak, delivered with a raw and unapologetic intensity that defines Albert Cummings’ signature style. From scorching guitar solos to soulful vocals, every note on the album is a testament to the passion and dedication Cummings and his band poured into the recording process.
The Bottom Line is Strong will be in my music rotation for a good long while in 2024. I’m sorry about this but Strong is a very strong album from a great bluesman, Albert Cummings. So check it out!
Links for the Further Exploration of the Music of Albert Cummings
It always amazes me that at one point in John Mayall’s storied career, both Walter Trout and Coco Montoya were Bluesbreakers ! (Watch Them Here) Throughout the years, I listened to more music from Walter than Coco. However, Coco is closing the gap based on his last three albums. And while I admit to not having heard all of Coco’s albums, his recent release Writing on the Wall may be my favorite.
About Writing on the Wall
Throughout Writing on the Wall Montoya’s vocals are as strong as his impeccable guitar playing. Additionally, the album is the first to feature Coco’s touring band.
Writing on the Wallis the second Coco Montoya album Grammy Award-winner Tony Braunagel (Bonnie Raitt, Taj Mahal) has.produced. In addition, Tony provides drums on four tracks. The band’s keyboardist Jeff Paris (Keb’ Mo’, Bill Withers).co-produced and recorded at Jeff’s Garage. Other members of the band include bassist Nathan Brown and drummer Rena Beavers.
Musicians joining Coco and the band on the album include: guitarists Ronnie Baker Brooks, country star Lee Roy Parnell, and Dave Steen.
Of the 13 tunes that comprise the album five were composed or co-written by Montoya. Steen wrote four and Paris one. All three together they co-wrote the title track .
The Bottom Line
The following quote found at the top of Coco’s biography on his website pretty much sums up Coco’s music:
While the following advice from Albert Collins seems to be taken to heart on Writing on the Wall...
’Just play what you feel, be real about it, and enjoy yourself.’ That’s what Albert Collins taught me,”
It seems that bringing in his touring band to create this album has been a real success and produced one of Coco’s best if not the best albums. From the start of his solo career Montoya has incorporated the lessons he learned from his mentors, both the iconic Collins (for whom he originally drummed), and UK legend John Mayall,
His first solo album in 1995 won him the Blues Music Award for Best New Artist. And from that point forward Montoya has been one of the top blues artists in the world. But he hasn’t rested on his laurals, but continues to find new ways to improve his music! And sharing the songwriting with his band along with the top-notch producing of Tony Braunage in the creation of Writing On The Wall have done just that!
The bottom line is Writing on the Wallis an A+, so Check It Out! AllMusic writes the following about Coco and I totally agree!
“One of the most prodigious and gifted electric bluesmen on the planet…a deeply soulful singer and incendiary guitarist [with] a seemingly endless penchant for invention.” –AllMusic
Links for the Further Exploration of the Music of Coco Montoya
Ok so I have been moving forward in many ways and also feeling my age (71) in others. I have been moving forward in my battle with my ADHD, as I try to do more thing that I’ve thought about doing. While doing others when I think about them, rather than putting them off ! And so far it’s working! One of those things I didn’t put off was this morning’s run!
The Run
I’ve been running on a regular basis over the last few months. Today I was torn between a 3.1 and a 4 mile run. I chose the 3.1 mile option. In addition I told myself I needed to take it easy.
Even though I thought I was taking it easy, my time for the first mile was 11:30. Ok so I thought I’ll take it easy through the rest of the run.
However, my pace hovered around 11:30 and I was running fairly comfortably over mile two. subsequently, I ran that mile in 11:26. I thought can I finish with an average pace less than 11:25 which would be my fastest time for the year!
I ran the last mile in 11:21! And with an old man sprint of 9:52 pace over the last .12 miles of the run, I finished with an average pace of (drumroll please!) 11:22 min/mile! Yeah me!
The Nerdy Details
TotalDist: 3.12 miles Time 35:28. Pace: 11:22 min/mile
The Soundtrack – What Key is Trouble In? -Nick Schnebelen
What Key is Trouble in? has been in my music rotation for a while now and it may be my favorite blues album for 2023.
Nick Schnebelen is a multiple Blues Music Award Winner. Nick joined the elite of the blues community in 2008 as a founding member of the Kansas City band Trampled Under Foot.
Nick and His siblings Danielle and Kris, overwhelmed the competition to win that year’s
International Blues Challenge. Nick won the Albert King Award for “Best Guitarist”. While the band later won the “Contemporary Blues Album” Blues MusicAward.
In 2014 Nick left the band. What Key is Trouble In? is his fourth solo album. The album is comprised of 13 original blues rock tracks that showcase Nick’s great guitar work.
His band mates include Adam Hagerman (drums), Cliff Moore (bass), Red Young (keyboards), Buddy Leach (saxophone), Aaron Mayfield (organ).
The album was co-produced by Chris Hardwick.
Links for the Further Exploration of the Music of Nick Schnebelen
