Snooky

An outstanding comeback effort by Chicago harp pioneer Snooky Pryor, whose timeless sound meshed well with a Windy City trio led by producer/guitarist Steve Freund for this set. Mostly Pryor's own stuff - "Why You Want to Do Me like That," "That's the Way To Do It," "Cheatin' and Lyin'" - with his fat-toned harp weathering the decades quite nicely.

Live in concert at Blues On The Eastside, L'l Big Horn Saloon in Cambridge, Ontario (Canada), Snooky Pryor gives his audience a taste of the fire that has developed his career along with the Chicago Blues sound. The harmonica master and his band are some 500 miles away from Chicago for this night out. They've brought the right attitude from home, though, as Pryor sings about the kinds of blues that take hold from time to time. He was 80 when this performance was recorded in late 2001. Few can ignite a room the way Pryor does, and it all comes from his experiences as a veteran bluesman. Since 1940, he's turned on Chicago audiences with his special kind of blues magic…

Veteran harp man Pryor (who claims to be the first to amplify his harmonica) was still capable of some potent blues when he released this album in early 1999. Kicking off with a solo version of Faye Adams' "Shake a Hand" (its lyrics reworked heavily into the title track) that owes a huge debt to idol Sonny Boy Williamson II, Pryor settles into a comfortable groove with a tight little trio behind him consisting of Bob Stroger on bass, Billy Flynn on guitar and Jimmy Tilman on drums. His version of Hank Ballard's "Annie Had a Baby" is so radically different that it almost qualifies as an original, while his covers of Al Dexter's "Pistol Packin' Mama" and Sleepy John Estes' "Someday Baby" stay closer to the originals. The rest of the set features Snooky's great originals, with the minor-keyed "Headed South," "In This Mess," "Jump for Joy" and a nice remake of his "Telephone Blues" being particular standouts. Simple, no-frills production makes this a modern-day blues album that delivers the wallop of the old singles.

Homesick James was an American blues musician known for his mastery of the slide guitar. He worked with his cousin, Elmore James, and with Sonny Boy Williamson II. The year of his birth is uncertain. He stated that he was born in 1905, 1910, or 1914, while his union records give 1924. His actual birth name has given as James Williamson or John Henderson. He developed a self-taught style of slide guitar through playing at local dances in his teens. He may have first recorded for RCA Victor in 1937, but this is also unconfirmed, and by 1938 may have begun playing electric guitar. His first known recordings were in 1952 for Chance Records, recording the tracks "Lonesome Ole Train" and "Homesick", which gave him his stage name.

Pryor reaffirms his mastery of postwar blues harp over the course of this sturdy set, again done with the help of some fine Texas and Chicago players. Pryor's downhome vocals shine on the distinctive "Bury You in a Paper Sack" and "Stick Way Out Behind".

Blues harp legend Snooky Pryor and this all-star band gathered together to celebrate Snooky's 80th birthday and record this studio album of deep blues. Features blues blasters Pinetop Perkins, Mel Brown, Jeff Healey and Willie Smith.

Another excellent recent set from the veteran harpist, cut down in Austin with a mixture of Texans and Chicagoans in support: pianist Pinetop Perkins, guitarists Duke Robiilard and Luther Tucker, and drummer Willie "Big Eyes" Smith. Pryor's made quite a substantial to his long-dormant discography in the last few years.

Good chunky barroom blues on this outing from a grand old harmonica player. Pryor saves the serious energy for his harp blowing, but he does just fine as a vocalist too, with a nicely aged and lived-in voice. Everybody on the record has a set place and knows their moves, and that's okay too. This is a good-times kind of album.

""I'm old, but I'm hell," quipped Snooky Pryor as he laid down another white-hot track for Can't Stop Blowin'. While the 77-year-old harmonica maestro is advanced in years, he can still deliver his incendiary interpretations of the devil's music with fervid force. Pryor's extensive experience, his impeccable blues credentials and his pioneering contributions to the harmonica bring a profusion of riches to this recording.
All but one of the musicians backing Pryor on these sessions had had the privilege of playing with him before. The inclusion of Texas-guitar ace Mel Brown was a rare treat as his delectable licks added a smooth but pungent zest to the musical milieu. Snooky and Mel hadn't seen each other in years, yet their music dovetailed seamlessly, their chemistry as potent as if they'd just come off a long stretch on the road together.

1999's Superharps was a great record featuring four top blues harmonica players. Two years later, Superharps II was an attempt to duplicate the success with four other harmonica wizards (in this case Carey Bell, Lazy Lester, Raful Neal, and Snooky Pryor). There are five individual features, eight songs that have two harmonicas, and a remake of the closing "Harp to Harp," which has all four harmonica players.