Bluesapolooza – Live at Bogart’s2001 Grunt Dog Productions
SQ Issue: Summer 2001, Volume 11, Issue 3
Bluesapolooza – Live at Bogart’s
2001 Grunt Dog Productions
SQ Issue: Summer
2001, Volume 11, Issue 3
The Bands are:
Joe
Juliano; Big Walter Smith and the Groove Merchants; The Keller Brothers; The Hillbilly
Voodoo Dolls; Lamont Cranston; Soulmates
Typically I will shy away from reviewing a
CD with the likes of the names of the bands listed here.
Why, you may ask? Well, they’re
typically blues bands and wouldn’t necessarily jump out to dancers, my main focus.
So, when Steve Clarke dropped this in my
lap to take a listen, I decided that I would review it as well. There was enough swingin’ happening that I
felt it would fit in pretty good for Strutters Quarterly.
These bands got together to do a benefit
for Mark DeForrest, a local blues fan stricken with colon cancer, to help with the
financial burden related to treating his illness after it came to the point where
DeForrest was unable to work to support his two daughters. You can read more about this
with the interview of Clarke in the next issue of this fine rag.
Now, on to the music. As I said, I was skeptical that there would be
much swing with such straight blues oriented bands but was pleasantly surprised by several
of the selections. It should satisfy swing
dancers, especially the West Coast Swing crowd.
Cadillac Blues by Joe Juliano
starts the CD off swingin’ with a jump blues number laced with fantastic guitar licks
and a great moderate dance tempo (155 bpm). The
vocals are average but I’ll cut some slack knowing Juliano has had recent throat
surgery.
The next couple tunes, She’s Into
Something and It Takes Time are
West Coast Swing oriented which Lindy Hoppers will probably pass on.
Beldonia, an offering from the
Hillbilly Voodoo Dolls, will not be confused with the swing tune, Caldonia. Very unswingable but thanks to Tim Belden tickling
the ivories, worthy of a listen. The Dolls
follow this one up with the country swing tune, Don’t You Just Know It, which
much to my surprise, I liked very much. Steve
Clarke sits in and delivers masterful sax licks sure to please all. However, the song gets a little long and
repetitious towards the end.
Big Walter Smith contributes what I
consider the best song on the CD, She’s Mine.
This is a quick tempoed (184 bpm) jump blues tune with great energy and a fabulous
horn section that takes turns soloing.
Other entries by the Soulmates and Lamont
Cranston are good but tend to get a little more into rhythm & blues than swing. However, Cranston ends the CD with a swingin’
tune called Ridin’ with Daddy. Another
pleasant surprise.
Clarke added some hidden tracks by Joe
Juliano; Rock Me All Night Long and Pencils in My Heart. Rock Me All Night is another favorite for
me. Clarke joins Juliano and again makes me
sad that he isn’t playing regularly for local swing dancers. His sax licks are by far the best in the Twin
Cities and would measure up to the best in the country.
Overall, I think that you will be
pleasantly surprised by this lineup of Twin Cities bluesmen who got together to swing the
blues; helping out a big fan in need.
Bottom Line: To buy or not to buy…..BUY