The Fowler Street Stumble is an instrumental tune by the Ruff Kutt Blues Band from the brand new 2011 release entitled Mill Block Blues. The Ruff Kutt Blues Band is really the name of a whole bunch of North Texas based musicians whom the legendary Texas guitar slinger and album producer, Anson Funderburgh pulled together for this one time, very special project. This tune was co-written by Funderburgh and his long time keyboard player John Street. The album is the brainchild of bassist James Goode who wrote all of the album’s tunes save this one. Not only does the album feature Anson’s guitar work but Hash Brown on harmonica, Christian Dozzler on accordion and long time Anson cohorts, drummer Wes Starr as well as the above mentioned Street. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of this album go to the Handy Artist Relief Trust (“HART"). This is a medical relief fund for musicians administered by The Blues Foundation.

The Mighty Mojo Prophets inaugural album is also the first release on the Southern California based label Rip Cat Records. This spring 2011 self titled release is a good one. We have been grooving to the song Friday Night Phone Call which features special guest Junior Watson on guitar.

Mikey Jr.’s brand new release It Ain’t Hard to Tell is the title track to this fine album. The song features gritty vocals and harp over a cool guitar riff and wicked solo by Matt Daniels. These east coasters made the transcontinental journey out to do the Simi Valley Cajun and Blues Festival in Southern California over the recent Memorial Day weekend. They went over big with the crowd that for the most part was not familiar with their music. This performance reinforced a long time maxim that I have held, which is people don’t need to be told what to like. They just know a good thing when they hear it.

Blues for the Gulf is a compilation album put together by Bob Margolin. In 2010, Margolin produced an album of submissions he received of original tunes by artists who wrote songs about the BP oil spill. The song BP Oil Spill Blues by Jeff Dale made the cut and appears on this record. The proceeds from this album go to a special fund administered by the Voice of the Wetlands to assist victims of the 2010 very un-natural disaster which struck at the home of the blues, America’s gulf coast. For more information on this album visit our links page.

Dave Alvin did a duet with Candye Kane as a special super secret “bonus” track to his June 2011 album entitled Eleven Eleven. The album, which was discussed in the June Monthly Artist Spotlight on Dave Alvin, comes with information as to how to download the track from the Yep Roc Records website. The song entitled Never Trust a Woman was previously recorded by Alvin when he appeared as a special guest on Little Milton’s 1999 Malaco Records release Welcome to Little Milton.

George “Harmonica” Smith has a June 2011 release on Electro-Fi Records entitled Tear Drops are Falling. Smith was backed on this 1983 recording by Buddy Reed and the Rocket 88’s. They do the Little Walter tune Going Down Slow. It is great to hear something old that is something new from the late George “Harmonica” Smith.

Another great re-issue is by William Clarke and Junior Watson. This album was previously available only as a download and now is available on CD from Blue Beat Music. We have been grooving to the song All Night Long from the album Double Dealin’. West Coast blues or blues on any coast for that matter doesn’t get any better than the late, great William Clarke and Junior Watson.

The Bull Creek Sessions has the Moeller Brothers reissuing an album this past June that was originally recorded in 1999. The song You know I love You is a great take on an old Excello Records classic and one of my favorite Lonesome Sundown songs. Guitarist Johnny Moeller and his younger brother, drummer Jay Moeller’s record is now available for the first time on CD at Blue Beat Music.

Leslie Johnson AKA Lazy Lester, another former Excello records recording artist, has a recent album entitled Lazy Lester Rides Again. It is the first time this 1987 W.C. Handy Award winning album has been available on CD. We pulled the song Traveling Days from this expanded version of the original vinyl album. This recently released CD comes with nine alternate takes and two previously unreleased songs. This tune was originally produced by Mike Vernon for the Blue Horizon label out of England.

Roomful of Blues’ 2011 Alligator release Hook, Line and Sinker features the ever-changing, long time Rhode Island based musical institution, updating an old Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown instrumental, Gate Walks the Board. Long time Roomful guitarist Chris Vachon is now at the helm of these swinging New Englanders. New Roomful vocalist Phil Templeton stands down on this track.

Speaking of Gate…the late 1950’s era period at Duke/Peacock Records by Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown yielded the song Swingin’ the Gate that has not been available on CD until now. You can find this track on the recently released album Texas Guitar Killers: The Houston Homeboys. It is a great compilation that also has tracks from Clarence Holliman, Joe “Guitar” Hughes, Albert Collins, Texas Johnny Brown and others. It is also available at Blue Beat Music. This 25 track Texas sized helping of vintage blues is a must for any serious blues aficionado or anybody interested in just having a great time.

Lightnin’ Malcolm featuring Cameron Kimbrough (Cambro) has a song on his new Ruf Records release, Renegade, that has a reggae beat and feel to it. OK, it is a straight up reggae tune. It is nice to have a sorbet in the mix when leaning over a jukebox. The song Precious Jewel also features vocalist Nadirah Shakoor.

Jimmie Vaughan Plays More Blues Ballads and Favorites street release date is July 26, 2011. The album’s title pretty much sums up what you are going to get here. It is a wonderful companion piece to Jimmie’s 2010 release. We have been grooving to the swinging instrumental tune Greenbacks. Yes…that Greenbacks, the Ray Charles tune. Yes… Vaughan turns it into an instrumental. Yes…it sounds weird but yes…this song works in a big way.

Greg Allman’s 2011 release, Low Country Blues on Rounder Records has been out for a few months now. I thought it might be a good time to check out a song from this album. Allman takes a stab at some of his favorites. He covers tunes by Sleepy John Estes, Skip James, Junior Wells, Muddy Waters and others. My favorite from this fine album is the Amos Milburn tune Tears, Tears, Tears. This is a strong album of covers which also features one original tune entitled Just Another Rider. This tune co-written by Allman and long time Allman Brothers band guitarist, Warren Haynes updates Allman’s famous tune Midnight Rider which was originally heard on the Brothers’ second studio album Idyllwild South.

Steve Cropper has a new album that will be out on August 9^th entitled Dedicated: A Salute to the 5 Royales. The album is full of special guests including B.B. King who sings and swaps licks with Cropper on the tune Don’t Do It. I however chose one of my favorite 5 Royales tunes Say It which features Bettye LaVette on vocals. It is great to see Steve Cropper’s name on the front of an album again and even more fun to re-visit some of these great tunes by Lowman Pauling and the 5 Royales.

Magic Touch, John Nemeth’s 2007 Blind Pig Records debut is the album that put this rising star on the map. The record was produced by Anson Funderburgh and features a stellar band which includes guitarist Junior Watson, bassist Ronnie James Webber, and the Texas Horns led by Mark Kazanoff. The album is solid from top to bottom and Nemeth’s live shows are full of songs from this record. I went with the Nemeth soulful original Blue Broadway.

Black Top records put out a series of six albums entitled Black Top Blues A Rama. Blues A Rama Volumes One through Six are live recordings that took place each year in New Orleans during Jazz Fest. Anson and the Rockets featuring Sam Myers play and back up a huge group of musicians that were on the Black Top Roster. James “Thunderbird” Davis’ take on Blue Monday is a favorite of Anson’s from these recordings and is featured on Volume 2 . It is an old tune Davis originally did for the Duke/Peacock label years earlier. This take features some tasty guitar work by Anson that he is particularly fond of. Volume 2 also includes Nappy Brown, Ronnie Earl and Earl King all captured live in various combinations.

The 1985 album My Love is Here to Stay is the first collaboration between Sam Myers and Anson Funderburgh. The two kindred spirits would record and tour together for the next twenty years creating one of the most exhilarating partnerships in blues history. Anson told me recently it is his favorite album the two did together. When I asked him why, he said he thought Sam’s vocals were unsurpassed on this record. We agreed that the Chuck Berry song Wee Wee Hours might just represent the zenith of Sam’s strength as a singer. It is almost impossible to imagine a vocalist doing a better job with this classic blues lament.

Perhaps the most celebrated Anson Funderburgh and the Rockets featuring Sam Myers album is Sins. This 1987 album cleaned up at that year’s Handy Awards. From this record I chose the Anson and Sam original, Changing Neighborhoods. This slow blues won a Handy for song of the year. This song again showcases the strength of both Sam’s singing and Anson’s guitar work which delicately skirts around Sam’s strong voice until he lets loose a solo that builds in intensity and creates a tension that underscores the message of the song.

The tune Down at J.J.’s is an instrumental gem that can be found on the Black Top album Tell Me What you Want to Hear. This 1991 release by Anson Funderburgh and the Rockets featuring Sam Meyers just might be my favorite Rockets album. The song was co-written by Anson and long time collaborator, tenor saxophone Mark Kazanoff. It is an ode to the Fort Worth, Texas blues club. J.J.’s. This juke joint was the prototype for a bar used in an Ed Harris movie called China Moon. This 1994 detective noir has a couple of scenes where Harris’s character visits “J.J's”. If the band in the film looks like an authentic blues band, it is because it is Anson and the Rockets featuring the one and only Sam Meyers.

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