Jazz Articles

John Nemeth: Magic Touch

by David King
September 27, 2007

John Nemeth's debut CD for the Blind Pig label, Magic Touch, reinforces what the people of the Pacific Northwest have known for years: as an emerging young artist, he is someone to watch. On twelve stellar tracks, only three of which are covers, the singer/harmonicist demonstrates beyond doubt that he has the chops to command attention and deserves the accolades he has received.

He was Anson Funderburgh and the Rockets' featured artist for 2005 and 2006, no small feat since ...

Jimmy Thackery and the Drivers: Sinner Street

by Ed Kopp
December 1, 2000

Ask any blues guitarist to identify his or her favorite peers, and Jimmy Thackery's name will likely come up. The former Nighthawk is one of the most versatile and expressive electric axemen on the contemporary blues scene, and few players are more exciting in a live setting. Sinner Street is the slickest, most conventional blues-rock album I've heard yet from Mr. Thackery. It can be debated whether Jim Gaines' rock-style production enhances or taints the music here, but ...

Deborah Coleman: Soft Place To Fall

by Ed Kopp
May 1, 2000

With its classic-rock sound, Deborah Coleman’s Soft Place to Fall seems inspired by Chrissie Hynde and Jimi Hendrix more than Bessie Smith or B.B. King.That's not to disparage the album. On the contrary, Soft Place to Fall is a fine blues-rock release, and Deborah Coleman is a polished guitarist, a passionate singer and a very attractive woman. If the best tunes here find their way to commercial radio or VH1, Coleman may land on the pop charts. It ...

Deborah Coleman: Soft Place To Fall

by C. Michael Bailey
May 1, 2000

You Took Advantage of Me. The title of Deborah Coleman's latest Blind Pig release, Soft Place To Fall is a bit misleading because this disc is anything but soft. As a guitarist, vocalist, and composer, Coleman is firmly in the vein of Robert Cray and Kenny Neal. But any comparison ends there. Robert Cray (and to a lesser extent Neal) could only hope to have the balls Deborah Coleman displays on this disc. The Virginia native grew up in a ...

Magic Slim & The Teardrops: Snakebite

by Ed Kopp
May 1, 2000

One look at Magic Slim’s glowering face on the cover of this CD and it’s clear the big man means business. At age 62, the Magic one shows no signs of mellowing. Snakebite rocks ferociously, thanks in large part to the leader's raw guitar playing.This is the Teardrops' most diverse effort to date, and all the tracks are passionate. In addition to edgy numbers like the Slim original “Please Don’t Dog Me" and Muddy Waters’ “Country Boy," the ...

Tommy Castro: Live at the Fillmore

by Ed Kopp
April 1, 2000

With his swarthy good looks and ever-smiling visage, Tommy Castro is perhaps the most telegenic blues dude going. NBC realized as much when the network appointed Castro music director of its program Comedy Showcase. Blind Pig realized it when the label released a concert video to accompany Castro's new CD, recorded live at the Fillmore Auditorium in his native San Francisco.

Castro is more than a pretty-boy charmer, though. He's also a soulful singer, a fleet-fingered Strato-blaster, and a talented ...

Lloyd Jones: Love Gotcha

by Ed Kopp
December 1, 1999

Lloyd Jones packs quite a one-two punch with his Delbert McClintonesque vocals and his gritty guitar work. On Love Gotcha, the Oregon native serves up a danceable horn-propelled stew of blue-eyed soul, funk and blues.Jones' music is bouncy and upbeat -- excellent party fare. His band The Struggle boasts one of the best horn sections in contemporary blues. Factor in the punctual grooves and the leader's smoky vocals, and Love Gotcha is sure to lift your spirits. Half ...

Tommy Castro: Right as Rain

by Ed Kopp
September 1, 1999

Originally pegged as the Bay area's answer to Stevie Ray Vaughn, Tommy Castro is an ace guitarist and supremely soulful singer. However, his music is more evocative of Memphis-style soul and roots-rock than Vaughn's Texas blues. Right As Rain features flaming guitar solos, slick backup vocal choruses, jumping Memphis horns and famous guest stars (McClinton and Dr. John). It's a crossover album sure to garner the artist widespread attention beyond the blues world. Still, this one seems overly ...

Magic Slim and the Teardrops: Black Tornado

by Ed Kopp
August 1, 1999

Critics tend to overemphasize regional differences in blues styles, but I'll concede that Chicago blues can be particularly loose and low-down. Chicago blues is really Delta blues electrified, and Mississippi-born Magic Slim may be the genre's finest living purveyor.

You won't find a more authentic blues man than 61-year-old Magic Slim, whose given name is Morris Holt. A high-voltage guitarist and soulful singer, Slim honed his skills in his native Mississippi and then became a fixture in the Chicago blues ...