Blues: The Next Level

Bernard Allison's inaugural effort bristled with the urgency and blues-rock guitar chops that distinguished his late father, Luther Allison. The pair played together for much of the '80s before Bernard recorded this album with his father's musicians - including keyboardist Michel Carras, who pulls down some good barrelhouse piano parts. The mood is feisty and assertive, especially on "B.A.'s Knockin' at Your Door" and "Low Down and Dirty," which poses the gleeful question, "And you think I'd change my style?" Of course not; fans knew exactly what they were getting, such as the Hendrix-flecked string-bending that drives "Help." (Bernard even dabbles on drums and keyboards.)…

Alexander has always been in the game it seems. He’s played with everyone from Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes to Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint. With Knockin’ Glenn and company take their in-your-face, guitar driven, horn-laced music to the next level…

Although Johnny "Guitar" Watson had already recorded some sides for Federal (including the astonishing instrumental "Space Guitar"), the majority of those tunes featured the piano-playing Young John Watson. It was when he began recording for the Bihari Brothers' RPM subsidiary of Modern Records that he "became" Johnny "Guitar" Watson and his amazing legacy really began. The songs are solid West Coast blues, but they're brought to the next level by Watson's impassioned vocals and his incredible biting, staccato guitar solos. Watson's tenure at RPM was short-lived (as were most of his label relationships) and all these tracks were recorded in 1955, but they were wildly influential on a number of great guitarists and still hold their power 50 years down the road…