Record Reviews

JOHN MAYALL ~ PADLOCK ON THE BLUES EAR MUSIC 4029759138174 (Barcode: 4029759138174) ~ UK ~ Blues-Rock Recorded: 1998 Released: 1999 This is an album by the Godfather of British Blues vocalist / guitarist / pianist / songwriter / bandleader John MayallFind albums by this artist. He is supported by a basic trio of guitarist Buddy WhittingtonFind albums by this artist, bassist John PaulusFind albums by this artist and drummer Joe YueleFind albums by this artist, all seasoned American Blues veterans who played with Mayall for many years. Additionally many guests appear on the album on selected tracks: Blues Legend John Lee HookerFind albums by this artist, guitarists Coco MontoyaFind albums by this artist, saxophonist Ernie WattsFind albums by this artist, organist Tommy EyreFind albums by this artist, trumpeter Darrell LeonardFind albums by this artist, saxophonist Joe SublettFind albums by this artist, percussionist Steve LeshnerFind albums by this artist and banjo / dobro player Mike MartsolfFind albums by this artist. The album presents thirteen original songs, eleven of which were written by Mayall, one was co-written by him and Maggie MayallFind albums by this artist and one was co-written by Whittington and Yuele. There is no doubt that Mayall´s music was a major influence on my personal musical identity and the bands he led over the years and the musicians that played in his bands were the branches of an enormous "family tree" that created over the years some of the best music on this planet. His figure of a musical "guru" influenced so many great musicians, that to understand his impact on music since 1960s on, one has to be familiar with thousands of albums representing all Rock sub-genres, but also Jazz-Rock Fusion and other, seemingly unrelated areas. One of the amazing qualities of Mayall is his remarkable consistency and level of artistry, which he managed to preserve throughout his career, in spite of his constant metamorphosis and migration into diverse stylistic niches. His recording legacy presents an impressive collection of over fifty albums, without not even one of them being an artistic compromise. Same goes for his songwriting, which against all odds, manages to ignore the limitations of the Blues idiom and create wonderful new material without being derivative. This album, recorder towards the end of the 20th Century, sounds absolutely as fresh and inspired as his classics recorded in the mid to late 1960s, i.e. thirty years earlier. Not surprisingly the same applies to his albums recorded in the 2010s, another twenty years in the future, maintaining a career lasing over six decades. Overall this is a wonderful album, absolutely perfect as far as Blues is concerned, with great instrumental performances by all the musicians and superb vocals by Mayall, who refuses to stay behind and let his imitators to take over. This is an absolute must have in any serious Blues collection!

Updated: 07/07/2020Posted: 07/07/2020

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VARIOUS ARTISTS ~ THE ROYAL DAN MASCOT 7189 (Barcode: 8712725718925) ~ USA ~ Jazz-Rock Fusion Recorded: 2006 Released: 2006 This is the 4th project in the series of Fusion tributes, conceived, produced and arranged by Jeff RichmanFind albums by this artist. Dedicated this time to the fabulous music of Steely DanFind albums by this artist – the band that gave us all some of the best crafted and most sophisticated tunes ever. The format is again a fixed band (Vinnie ColaiutaFind albums by this artist – drums, Jimmy HaslipFind albums by this artist – bass, Peter WolfFind albums by this artist – keyboards and Ernie WattsFind albums by this artist – sax) with a long gallery of Fusion guitarists (Robben FordFind albums by this artist, Steve MorseFind albums by this artist, Al Di MeolaFind albums by this artist, Mike SternFind albums by this artist, Frank GambaleFind albums by this artist and others). The electrifying performances seem to go on forever and as the music is obviously excellent, the entire project is just one great heap of fun. For Fusion heads and guitar lovers this is obviously a must have, but most music loving folks should have a feast with this stuff.

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