Emma Wilson and Terry Hanck: The Simplicity of The Blues

Paradoxical as it may sound, the simplicity of the blues may be the key to its malleability. On A Spoonful of Willie Dixon, British chanteuse Emma Wilson reaches for and grasps the fundamentals of the music in homage to Willie Dixon- -one of the genre's greatest composers. Meanwhile, the title of Terry Hanck's Grease To Gravy alludes to the alchemical nature of the essential components of the style when properly ignited. Each artist intuitively comprehends the coexistence of agony and ecstasy at the heart of the blues and thus stylishly utilizes the humor underlying that duality. Wilson, Hanck and their empathetic accompanists do justice to the artform, no small accomplishment these days with the preponderance of poseurs around.

Emma Wilson
A Spoonful of Willie Dixon
Proper Music
2025

Co-produced and arranged by lead vocalist Emma Wilson and drummer Mark Barrett, the six selections running slightly more than thirty minutes of A Spoonful Of Willie Dixon belies its resonance. Likewise, even as the album's title suggests the record merely scratches the surface of the body of work by Chess Records' in-house bassist and composer, the fact is only three of the half-dozen numbers are widely-known; this interpretation of "Spoonful" sets the earthy overall tone for the album, "I Can't Quit You Baby" is deceptively understated and this rendition of "Wang Dang Doodle" sums up the good- natured, earthy essence of the recordings engineered and mixed by Tom Henthorn (then mastered by Dan Worrall to preserve that atmosphere). Intermixed with those chestnuts, "Good to The Last Drop" introduces the pithy soloing that adorns the LP— by keyboardist Bennett Holland and guitarist Nick Svarc respectively—and, in keeping with the no-nonsense rhythm section of bassist Ian Leese and the aforementioned Barrett, "It Don't Make Sense (You Can't Make Peace)" finds Wilson refusing to do anything fancy with her singing. In a similar fashion, she eschews any vocal phrasing that would detract from the yearning inherent in "I Want To Be Loved."

Terry Hanck
Grease To Gravy
The Little Village Foundation
2025

A near hour-long combination of Terry Hanck originals and covers like Albert King's "Overall Junction" and Ray Charles' "Come Back Baby," the range of material helps flesh out the concept in this album's title. Initiated by the seemingly effortless groove resplendent in the opening track featuring the leader's vocals and saxophone, "Don't Let The Green Grass Fool You" rises above cliché like the even more artful play on words that is "If A Politician Was A Doctor." Meantime, the gleeful unity of the band here—including Little Village perennials guitarist Chris 'Kid' Anderson and keyboardist Jim Pugh—is the chemical reaction of Grease To Gravy in action. Hanck's self-composed shuffle "When I Get My Shit Together" suggests he is all too aware of his foibles as a musician and songwriter, so that self- awareness lends credence to performances that generally transcend the novelty of some songs ("Pins And Needles"). Add to that the customary punch of the audio arising from the aforementioned Anderson's mixing and mastering and the absence of profundity and innovation here is moot: this is an ideal soundtrack for a get-together of inveterate partiers who want to dance and sing along with what they are hearing.

Tracks and Personnel

A Spoonful Of Willie Dixon

Tracks: Spoonful; Good To The Last Drop; I Can't Quit You Baby; Wang Dang Doodle; I Want To Be Love; It Don't Make Sense (You Can't Make Peace).

Personnel: Emma Wilson: lead vocal; Nick Svarc: guitar: Bennett Holland: Hammond organ, piano, backing vocals; Ian Leese: bass; Mark Barrett: drums.

Grease To Gravy

Tracks: Don't Let The Green Grass Fool You; If A Politician Was A Doctor; Best Years Of My Life; Come Back Baby; Goin' Way Back Home Tonight; Overall Junction; Run Run Baby; Sick And Tired; Going Down Slow; When I Get My Shit Together; Pins And Needles; Midnight On The Reef.

Personnel: Terry Hanck: vocals, saxophone; Chris Kid Anderson: guitar, slide guitar, bass, upright bass, B3 organ; Johnny Cat Soubrand: guitar; J.P. Soars: guitar; Jim Pugh: B3 organ, ARP string ensemble; Wurlitzer, piano, organ; Mitch Woods: piano; Chris Burns: piano; Mark Doyle: piano; Endre Tarczy: bass; Tim Wagar: bass; Chris Peet: bass, drums; Butch Cousins: drums; D'Mar: drums; Jon Otis: drums; June Core: drums; Lisa Leuschner: background vocals.

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