Loving Taylor

Join #1 Billboard Blues Artist, Joanne Shaw Taylor, for a historic concert at the Franklin Theatre. This amazing performance features songs from her highly acclaimed release, The Blues Album, in addition to fan favorites and never-before-heard tracks. Guest appearances include GRAMMY-nominated recording artist Joe Bonamassa (who produced The Blues Album), Kenny Wayne Shepherd, and Mike Farris, giving attendees a once-in-a-lifetime concert experience.

The U.S. release of Melvin Taylor's two early-'80s LPs by Evidence a decade later was a shock introduction to a blues guitarist who seemingly blazed out of nowhere – outside of Rosa's Lounge in Chicago, that is. "Blazed" is the right word, too, because Taylor is a total maximalist who unleashes torrents of notes to fill up every space. But he's so convincing a player that the concept of "blues guitar hero" might get a good name again, even with fans dead-tired of excess who never thought they'd think things like, "Man, can Melvin Taylor play the ever-loving (add the expletive superlative of your choice) out of the guitar" again. Taylor's first real-time release, Melvin Taylor & the Slack Band, is a pretty straightforward affair – basic trio with minimal overdubs, servicable vocals in an Albert King mode, and a mix of originals and very classic covers. The opening "Texas Flood" lets him rip on a slow blues, constantly changing up his playing with wah-wah blitzes as the real ace in his sonic hole.

On this trio album, Samantha Fish, Cassie Taylor, and Dani Wilde begin with the Rolling Stones' "Bitch" and end with the Steve Miller Band's "Jet Airliner," each taking a verse. The rest of the album is devoted to original compositions written by one or the other of the performers in a variety of blues styles, and the instrumentation also varies, though Taylor (daughter of Otis Taylor, with whom she played extensively), as the bassist, appears on almost every track. The exception is also the only solo track, Wilde's folk-blues number "Reason to Stay," on which she plays Dobro. Wilde also takes much of the lead guitar work, with Fish getting lead work on her own "Come on Home" and "Wait a Minute," as well as Taylor's "Move On." The switch-offs make for a good balance, and it's not surprising that this triumvirate has toured together in Europe. The album should help make their names better known, but that also might reduce their impetus to stay together.

Allan Taylor is one of England's most-respected singer/songwriters. His songs have been covered by artists on both sides of the Atlantic, including Don Williams, Frankie Miller, Fairport Convention, Dick Gaughan, the McCalmans, the Fureys, the Clancy Brothers, and De Dannan. Folk Roots praised him for his "ability to crystallize a mood and evoke an era with the ease of a computer memory access, crafting perfect songs with dramatic changes in the spirit of Brecht, Bikel, and Brel." The Oxford Book of Traditional Verse felt as strongly, writing that Taylor was "one of the most literate and sensitive of contemporary songwriters in terms of words and music and one who is capable of exploring more complex subjects than most of his contemporaries."

James Taylor stopped pushing himself into new musical and lyrical territories in the late '70s, so it doesn't come as a great surprise that Hourglass, his first studio album in six years, doesn't offer anything new – it's a collection of pleasant, melodic, simple songs about love, family, and social activism. That's not necessarily a bad thing, since Taylor has a gift for such material, and on Hourglass, he sounds as good as ever. The music, in many ways, has greater depth than previous records, since it features cameos from such heavy hitters as Stevie Wonder, Yo-Yo Ma, Shawn Colvin, Michael Brecker, Mark O'Connor, and Branford Marsalis. There are a few songs that fall a little flat, failing to make much of an impression one way or the other, but on the whole, Hourglass is a nice addition to his catalog.

Join #1 Billboard Blues Artist, Joanne Shaw Taylor, for a historic concert at the Franklin Theatre. This amazing performance features songs from her highly acclaimed release, The Blues Album, in addition to fan favorites and never-before-heard tracks. Guest appearances include GRAMMY-nominated recording artist Joe Bonamassa (who produced The Blues Album), Kenny Wayne Shepherd, and Mike Farris, giving attendees a once-in-a-lifetime concert experience.

A solid contemporary blues album that ranges from Koko Taylor's own "Spellbound" and "Put the Pot On," a rendition of Toussaint McCall's tender soul lament "Nothing Takes the Place of You," and a saucy revival of the old Ike & Tina Turner R&B gem "If I Can't Be First." Gene Barge once again penned the horn charts, Carey Bell contributes his usual harp mastery to Taylor's remake of Little Milton's "Mother Nature," and only Buddy Guy's over-the-top guitar histrionics on "Born Under a Bad Sign" grate. Long may the queen reign!