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WORCESTER NEWS

23.03.09

BLUES in BRITAIN

April ‘09

Album Review

BLUES in BRITAIN

April ‘09
Text Box: Warning! May Contain Blues - The Big Blues Tribe (‘Ere Am I Records) By John Phillpott » LARGE ensembles seem to be the trend in the blues world these days. The conspicuous success of Midlands outfits Mike Sanchez and King Pleasure has obviously been a major influence on Worcestershire musicians and this no doubt goes some way to explain the thinking behind The Big Blues Tribe. This migration from Chicago to Kansas City has come not before time. All too often, a guitar band is formed in less time than it takes to screech out a solo on that poor old worn-out 14th fret. Let’s face it. Every kid who’s ever had a Strat copy and amp set for Christmas ends up thinking he’s Eric Clapton, but endless note bending on the minor pentatonic doesn’t mean it’s blues. However, this album – while occasionally straying from the 12-bar format – most certainly puts some integrity back into the form. There are eight tracks here and so out comes my scalpel for a spot of dissection… Opener Playing With My Friends introduces itself with a cool bit of understated BB King guitar, sliding effortlessly into some brilliantly disciplined horn section work that makes you think of Memphis. The thought is preserved when the girls smooch into a really tight vocal and I would imagine that author Robert Cray would give an approving nod. Then it’s hardy perennial St James Infirmary, credited to a Joe Primrose for some strange reason. All right, maybe it’s his arrangement, but in case he doesn’t know already, the song is actually based on an 18th Century English ballad titled The Unfortunate Rake. Nevertheless, it’s still interesting, showcasing a convincing lead vocal by Oliver Carpenter. Third number is Randy Newman’s Guilty, once a 70s rock band staple, and given a sophisticated treatment here. This is followed in the true “we’ve done a slow one, so let’s speed it up now” tradition with another classic, Let The Good Times Roll. This is given a full Cab Calloway makeover and Jon Pegg’s neat, uncluttered guitar lines are also much in evidence. More than half way through the set, and we move abruptly from the American South to South America. Congo Square provides an opportunity for the horn section to break away from the blues riffing for a moment, and features a well-executed bit of Latino chromatic scale skittering from either saxophonist Carolyn Evans or Abby Brant. Beth Naylor and Steve Raybould, on trumpet and baritone sax respectively, provide firm foundations for some relaxed, yet showy work. However, I’m not so sure about Tony ‘Binks’ Bayliss’s choice of keyboard effect, a little bit too much ‘Telstar’ for my taste. The guitar on Tommy McCoy’s Blues Thing then turns from BB to Albert King, and then slithers straight back into the Mississippi mud with a decidedly Hooker-esque intro to Muddy Water Blues, the girls now sounding like a riverside revivalist meeting on corn liquor. Finally, if Charles Calhoun’s Smack Dab In The Middle was good enough for Ry Cooder, then it must be fine for these guys. Underpinned once again by the fabulous rhythm section of Tony Cole (bass) and Steve ‘Stretch’ Hastilow (drums), this provides a fitting finale for a band that will undoubtedly be in great demand at this summer’s festivals.