Jeff Fetterman Bottle Full Of Blues

Born in the Bluestown of Chicago in 1951, Tino Gonzales, grew up with the soul sounds of Black music. Blues, R & B, Jazz, and Soul have all contributed to his musical foundations. Having served his apprenticeship with a wide range of blues and jazz greats, he eventually set off on his solo Blues career in 1985. Tino Gonzales is to the blues what Carlos Santana is to Rock music ! Coming from "southside" of Chicago, this one of a kind Chicano cooked his special blues in New York with a touch of funk, a spicy latin groove and a jazzy beat. As a Mexican dude, a spanish blood runs in his veins. Tinos’ blues is hot and so different, a real blast in the today blues landscape. Fluid, cool and sexy that’s Gonzales touch.

The former Muddy Waters drummer Willie "Big Eyes" Smith turns in an enjoyable, but unremarkable, set of Chicago blues with Bag Full of Blues. Supported by Pinetop Perkins and Fabulous Thunderbirds harpist Kim Wilson, Smith runs through a set of mid-tempo blues, combining some competent originals with covers like "Baby Please Don't Go." There's not many solos - Wilson mainly shines, while guitarists James Wheeler, Nick Moss, and Gareth Best all contribute small, pithy leads - but the grooves are nice and relaxed. Bag Full of Blues may not be a jaw-dropper, but it does have some fine moments.

When Dion DiMucci was nominated for a Grammy in the Best Traditional Blues category for 2006's Bronx in Blue, an excellent collection of blues standards, it was an official affirmation that he was "back." In truth, he'd never left, and had been recording all along. He issued a stellar follow-up in 2007's Son of Skip James, a collection of revelatory blues covers and fine new material. The third album in this blues trilogy is Tank Full of Blues. Recorded in a trio setting, Dion produced the album, wrote all but two selections, and played the hell out of all the guitars on it. Tank Full of Blues is a slippery, street-smart, utterly inspired album of blues and roots rock tunes that are free of nostalgia and drenched in history…

For their sixth Concord recording, there was a major change in the personnel of the Cheathams' Sweet Baby Blues Band. Jimmie Noone, Jr. had passed away, and his replacement was the popular tenor Rickey Woodard, who on this set also plays some effective alto and clarinet (the latter on "Buddy Bolden's Blues"). But Woodard is only one of a bunch of colorful soloists, which include pianist/singer Jeannie Cheatham, Jimmy Cheatham on bass trombone, altoist Curtis Peagler, Snooky Young and Nolan Smith on trumpets, baritonist Dinky Morris and guest Frank Wess on tenor and flute. With bassist Red Callender and drummer John "Ironman" Harris keeping the ensembles swinging and driving, this is a particularly memorable set..

Harp master Billy Branch has been a figure of the note on the Chicago blues scene since he was discovered by Willie Dixon in 1969, and after more than four decades, he's grown from a young buck bringing new blood to the blues scene to an elder statesman who stands tall for the music's traditions. Blues Shock arrives ten years after Billy Branch last released an album, but it sounds like he and his latest edition of the Sons of Blues are still in fighting shape, playing tight, straight-ahead blues with force, imagination and wit. Blues Shock shows there's plenty of fun and fresh ideas to be found in a form as time-tested as Chicago blues. It's a great set.

Roomful of Blues is an American blues and swing revival big band based in Rhode Island. With a recording career that spans over 50 years, they have toured worldwide and recorded many albums. Roomful of Blues, according to the Chicago Sun-Times, "Swagger, sway and swing with energy and precision". Since 1967, the group’s blend of swing, rock and roll, jump blues, boogie-woogie and soul has earned it five Grammy Award nominations and many other accolades, including seven Blues Music Awards (with a victory as Blues Band Of The Year in 2005). Billboard called the band "a tour de force of horn-fried blues…Roomful is so tight and so right." The Down Beat International Critics Poll has twice selected Roomful of Blues as Best Blues Band.

The hard-edged, horn-fueled R&B band Roomful of Blues has been going strong since the 1960s, building its reputation with electrifying live shows and an irresistible blend of blues, swing, rock, and soul. RAISIN' A RUCKUS shows the group has lost none of its punch. New lead singer Dave Howard brings his gruff, growling pipes to the Roomful's brass-tacks charge, and the rhythm section, horns, and lead instruments have never sounded better. With a sound that nods to the jump blues of yesteryear, but with steely contemporary edge, RAISIN' A RUCKUS does precisely what its title suggests. Get your dancing shoes and head for the floor.

This incarnation of Roomful of Blues includes vocalist and harmonica player Sugar Ray Norcia taking the singing spotlight, Matt McCabe now their pianist and Chris Vachon principal guitarist. This CD blends blues and R&B classics with a couple of originals; highlights include a fine reading of Smiley Lewis' "Lillie Mae," a remake of "Hey Now" originally done by Ray Charles and Norcia's fiery vocal and torrid harmonica solo on Little Walter Jacobs' "Up The Line." This is faithful to the classic tradition, but contains enough contemporary qualities to have a fresh and inviting sound.