Please to Meet me

At its best, Meet Me in the City seems like a postmortem rarities tribute to a blues great who never got his proper due. At its worst, the record is cashing in on a Kimbrough recording that just happens to be lying around. The first four songs, home recordings from 1992, are so horribly noisy and hazy sounding that it's difficult to hear Kimbrough's down-home modern offbeat Delta blues and his rough, weathered vocals. Still, the tracks present an intimate and relaxed look at the elder bluesman — they are chilling, ghost-like, and off-the-cuff. The last four songs, from 1996 and 1993, respectively, are of better sonic quality, without distracting echo and distorted microphones…….

Dedicated to the late Charles Brown, Maria Muldaur's Meet Me Where They Play the Blues smokes and sizzles. A tightly packed collection of 12 songs on slow burn, the CD begins with the sensual "Soothe Me," highlighting the smooth-as-silk quality of Muldaur's voice. Other highlights include a duet with Brown on the classic "Gee Baby, Ain't I Good to You," a naturally sassy take on "It Ain't the Meat, It's the Motion," an affectionate tribute to both Brown and the late Johnny Adams with "He Don't Have the Blues Anymore," and a rousing conclusion (complete with gospel-style backup singers) with "The Promised Land." ~ Amazon