Big James And The Chicago Playboys Right Here Right Now (2009){bpcd 5131}

Big James Montgomery is a young man with a solid pedigree in the world of rhythm and blues. He played with Little Milton, Albert King and Buddy Guy before becoming trombonist and lead vocalist with the Chicago Playboys, the Windy City's premier R&B ensemble. Some years after the passing of former bandleader Johnny Christian, James and saxophonist Charles Kimball reformed and revitalized the band, turning it into a dynamic, soulful sextet that's turning heads and making new fans in Chicago and out on the road. RIGHT HERE RIGHT NOW is a great introduction to the Playboys' unique blend of straight ahead blues and gospel-tinged, horn-driven soul.

This exhilarating blues recording was captured at the historic Lionel Hampton Jazz Club in Paris. James and the band perform with an infectious enthusiasm and verve, and the crowd responds in kind. In addition to three of James's blues-tinged original tunes, the program ranges from the killer James Brown groove of the title cut to the soul classic "Trying To Live My Life Without You," a couple of Magic Sam gems, George Clinton's "I'll Stay," to the funky, set closing instrumental version of Deep Purple's "Smoke On The Water." "The Big Payback" is an unalloyed pleasure, a joyous celebration of the great tradition of horn-based blues ensembles that leaves the listener - much like the Parisian audience - wanting more.

Asleep At The Wheel - Tribute To The Music of Bob Wills and The Texas Playboys (1993) {Liberty CDP-0777-7-81470-2-2}
XLD rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 354 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 134 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (png) -> 72 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1993 Liberty Records / Pearl Records | CDP-0777-7-81470-2-2
Swing / Country / Contemporary Country / Western Swing

Ray Benson's Asleep At The Wheel deserve admiration for keeping alive the sounds of western swing, but with a rhythm section that's usually straight-up-and-down stiff, The Wheel's recordings mainly just leave you craving their inspirations. The 18-song Tribute overcomes this problem by loading up on singers who do their best to swing even when the band doesn't. George Strait, doing "Big Balls In Cowtown," is a natural, of course, as are the offerings from Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Lyle Lovett and Dolly Parton. Even Garth Brooks' go at "Deep Water," who mimics Strait to perfection here, is a pleasant surprise.

"Big Brother & the Holding Company," is an early recording by Big Brother and the Holding Company, a psychedelic blues rock San Francisco-based band during the late 1960's. The record survives largely because of their great, great chick singer, Janis Joplin, of course, who joined them on a Chicago gig. Although Joplin fans will know that she did not, unfortunately, survive the 1970's, as she passed on October 4, 1970 (aged 27), in Los Angeles, California. But in her brief career, despite her troubled life, she left behind a stunning, gutsy repertory of work that has long since floated free of, and outlived, Big Brother. This record, however, was laid down about six months before she (and they) achieved lasting blazing stardom at the 1967 Monterrey Pop Festival.

Which once-famous cellist toured with his own version of Jimi Hendrix's notorious "Star-Spangled Banner" and booked to play the Bach Cello Suites in nightclubs? Matt Haimovitz, herd here when he was not yet twenty, was heading off to Harvard (in the footsteps of Yo-Yo- Ma), and boasted a contract with DG. Despite brilliant reviews, the contract was canceled, and a disenchanted Haimovitz went his own way, achieving an offbeat career. He now teaches at Mcgill Univ. in canada, having spent a long time in Boston and Amherst. No doubt he's satisfied, yet one can't help but remember F. Scott Fitzgerald's remark about no second acts in American literature. Now it's also music.