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Doyle Bramhall: Fitchburg Street

By Mike Perciaccante
March 22, 2003
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You may not realize it, but not only do you probably know Doyle Bramhall — you love him! Drummer, singer, songwriter and impresario Doyle Bramhall was/is the writer or co-writer of most of the great Stevie Ray Vaughan's hits from the 1980s. Bramhall had his hand in "Dirty Pool,& quot; "House Is Rockin'," "Life By The Drop," "Hard To Be," "Long Way From Home" and "Change It." Bramhall has also played drums on and produced Marcia Ball's Presumed Innocent and appeared on Lou Ann Barton's Dreams Come True CDs. He also has contributed songs to Brian Setzer, Roomful of Blues, Melvin Taylor and Storyville. Bramhall, along with Vaughan grew up in the tough, lower middle-class neighborhoods of West Dallas. He lived on the street that serves as the inspiration for the album's title.

Fitchburg Street leads off with the classic John Lee Hooker song "Dimples." Bramhall also delivers scorching versions of Howlin' Wolf's "Forty Four," Jimmy Reed's & quot;Baby What You Want Me To Do," and O.V. Wright's "Blind, Crippled and Crazy." The ten songs on the disc seem to represent the music of his youth, the music that has shaped his style. Bramhall has applied some of his own touches to the album. His version of "Life By The Drop" is a barn-burner (while Vaughan's version was acoustic). The rest of this amazing CD consists of well known blues songs given the Bramhall signature production technique. The Band Of Gypsys' "Changes," as well as & quot;That's How Strong My Love Is" and "Maudie," another Hooker oldie, sound as fresh and vital as they did when they were first recorded 30 to 50 years ago.

Helped by numerous guest guitarists including his son Doyle Bramhall II, Fitchburg Street is this year's sleeper blues CD. Much like the early reception of Jimmie Vaughan's 2001 Grammy-winner Do You Get The Blues? , this release seems to be flying below the radar. Let's hope that, like Jimmie's album, Fitchburg Street gets the attention and accolades it deserves.

Track Listing

1. Dimples (Bracken/Hooker) - 4:06 2. I'd Rather Be (Blind, Crippled & Crazy) (Carter/Hodges/Wright) - 3:54 3. Changes performed by Guitar (Rhythm) - 5:57 4. Life by the Drop (Bramhall/Logan) - 3:05 5. That's How Strong My Love Is (Jamieson) - 4:16 6. Baby What You Want Me to Do (Reed) - 4:11 7. It Ain't No Use (Bonds/Hollinger/Williams) - 4:28 8. Maudie (Hooker) - 3:30 9. Fourty Four (Burnet) - 5:50 10. Sugar (Where'd You Get Your Sugar From) (Burnet) - 4:00

Personnel

Doyle Bramhall - Percussion, Drums, Vocals, Producer, Liner Notes Chris Hunter - Drums Mike Judge - Bass Roscoe Beck - Bass, Mixing Wayne Jackson - Trumpet, Horn Arrangements Jill Johnson - Photography Paul Klemperer - Sax (Tenor) Bob Ludwig - Mastering Jim Milan - Bass Riley Osbourne - Piano, Organ (Hammond) Gary Primich - Harmonica Jared Tuten - Engineer Jon Peebles - Guitar Casper Rawls - Guitar (Acoustic) Lewis Stephens - Piano, Organ (Hammond) Tom Reynolds - Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric) Doyle Bramhall II - Guitar Robin Syler - Bass, Guitar Dave Ferman - Bodhran Dave Sebree - Guitar (Rhythm), Mixing Barbara Logan - Producer Susan Abbott - Vocals (bckgr)

Album information

Title: Fitchburg Street | Year Released: 2003 | Record Label: Yep Rock

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