Month: June 2013

In addition to his sterling reputation as a singer/songwriter, both alone and with wife, Julie, Buddy Miller’s guitar bonafides speak for themselves, including his work with Emmylou Harris and Robert Plant’s Band of Joy. Lauderdale, whose first album appeared back in 1991, has earned repeated acclaim for his solo efforts and individual collaborations with both Ralph Stanley and Robert Hunter. Together, the two longtime friends roll through a freewheeling, eclectic series of duets.

No one genre dominates the album, which beings with the rocking Lauderdale-Miller original “I Lost My Job Of Loving You,” filled with no-frills harmonies and Miller’s sharp, smoking guitar. The same applies to Lauderdale’s edgy tune “Vampire Girl,” featuring more raw Miller picking in a ’60s garage band context, complimented by Russ Pahl’s pedal steel playing. The pair surrounded themselves with a versatile band including Nashville fiddler-mandolinist Stuart Duncan, Dennis Crouch on bass, keyboard player Patterson Burnett, drummer Marco Giovino with Pahl doubling on banjo.

The country material shows similar ingenuity. “The Train That Carried My Girl From Town,” popularized by Doc Watson, dates back (at least) to Frank Hutchison’s 1926 recording. The arrangement, however, is pure, pulsating rockabilly. They do ample justice to “South In New Orleans,” a 1958 convergence of Louisiana rhythms and rumba beats recorded by Opry stars Johnnie and Jack. As Miller’s “It Hurts Me” draws from the Everly Brothers, Lauderdale’s ballad “Forever And A Day” reflects the Louvin Brothers’ keen harmonies and plaintive lyrics.

Other reference points include a thoroughly engaging acoustic run at “Lonely One In This Town,” an affectionate nod to the 1930 Mississippi Sheiks original. On the good-humored, easygoing “Looking For A Heartache Like You,” their countrified harmonies contrast with Miller’s guitar, which references Billy\ Butler’s bass string licks from Bill Doggett’s classic 1956 instrumental “Honky Tonk.” Two other superbly performed numbers are R&B covers. “The Wobble” was a 1959 Jimmy McCracklin single; “I Want To Do Everything For You” revives a 1965 Joe Tex recording. Given their individual track records and loose eclecticism, it’s no surprise Buddy & Jim is such an expansive, enjoyable effort.

This article originally appeared in VG‘s Feb. ’13 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.

Bands that sound like they just walked out of a recording studio 40 years ago are practically a genre nowadays. While it can be argued that the Black Crowes have been doing this since the early 1990s, bands like Black Country Communion are going strong with vintage production values and riffs to match. Rival Sons’ second album, Pressure & Time, got a lot of attention because of the title track’s similarity to Led Zeppelin’s “Out On The Tiles.” The album’s ample use of Zeppelin, Stones, and Free influences was obviously a winning recipe that sent the band around the world.

Head Down appropriates those elements once again but has more to offer – a Yardbirds and Doors influence. Talented vocalist Ray Buchanan shows there’s more to him than a Robert Plant wannabe on the smooth-voiced “Wild Animal,” while reminding us that he can still scream on the rockers “You Want To” and “Keep On Swinging.”

The rhythm section grooves impressively, while the production really accentuates the sound of guys playing in a room together with long hair, muttonchops, and corduroy vests.

Guitarist Scott Holiday is a classic rock riff machine, churning out 1960s Brit rock goodies and awesome psychedelic blues slide on “Run From Revelation.” He generally steers away from epic long-term guitar wankage in favor of sizzling vintage accompaniment. The exception is on “Manifest Destiny Pt.1” where he brings back the acid-rock guitar solo.

There’s sweet mellowness like “Jordan” and “True,” with their “Going To California” acoustic vibe. It’s also a soulful record, where Buchanan really shines. There’s some great use of dimed fuzz tones, dreamy tremolo, and tasteful wah work, but you can’t help but feel like a marketing team is stalking you just because you own Led Zeppelin “IV.”

This article originally appeared in VG‘s Feb. ’13 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.

Drug addiction has a new soundtrack, thanks to this brutal and excellent reunion album by Doom rock pioneers St. Vitus. Lillie: F-65 (named after a barbiturate the band once struggled with) is a seven-track spiral through an addict’s world, a sonic retelling of mental and physical pitfalls and the frustrations of dealing with a less-then-sympathetic healthcare system and its politically charged bureaucracy. It’s not only a welcome return by an influential band that still has something to say, it’s a prescient document of the times.

Reunited with its mid-1980s singer Scott “Wino” Weinrich, this is the first St. Vitus release in 18 years. But there’s zero hint of nostalgia. This is the same lumbering, bell-bottomed beast that created its seminal Born Too Late album, just a little bloodier, wiser, and righteously benefiting from modern recording technology. No, St. Vitus hasn’t changed and that’s a good thing.

The CD opens with the one-two punch of “Let Them Fall” and “The Bleeding Ground” (“Echoes of screaming/They fell on deaf ears” Wino intones), two signature tracks propelled by guitarist Dave Chandler’s singular guitar tone, truly one of the originals of underground hard rock/metal. The band ups the tempo on “Dependence,” which is jettisoned into another world via Chandler’s fuzzed-out bullet-spray wah. Instrumentals serve as a welcome rest stops for the senses – the Floydian vibe of “Vertigo” in particular provides a trippy little respite.

Although only about 30 minutes long, Lillie: F-65 can feel like an eternity… if you’re in the right (wrong?) frame of mind. Ultimately, it’s just the optimum amount of St. Vitus’s glorious cathartic howls. Any longer and you might start assaulting inanimate objects.

This article originally appeared in VG‘s Feb. ’13 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.

There’s a good chance the opening licks of “Lone Wolf Blues” will knock you off your chair – or at least give you whiplash as you seek the source of such a wondrous sound. Tom Feldmann is a master acoustic blues guitarist, specializing in the country blues and gospel sounds of the 1920s through ’40s, and he displays his expert craft throughout this fine CD.

Before getting to the music, it should be noted that the audio fidelity is nothing short of stunning. Feldmann might as well be sitting in your living room or car – there’s an immediacy to the sound that is startling. Kudos to producer Mark Thomas Stockert of Underwood Studios in Minneapolis for capturing Feldmann’s music with such stark honesty.

The tracks jump off this CD like you’re in a juke joint in the Mississippi Delta: “We Have Overcome,” “Special Streamline,” and “Oh Glory, How Happy I Am” are supreme celebrations of acoustic blues. As well as an expert fingerstylist and ragtime picker, Feldmann is also a strong singer, his gravely voice lending authentic credence to his classic blues renditions.

The traditional ballad “Delia” is simply beautiful, not just for the words and melody, but also Tom’s perfectly paced fingerpicking. Blind Boy Fuller’s “Homesick And Lonesome Blues” is a great display of his bottleneck playing – it’s sharp, hot, and full of rural soul. “Guitar Rag” is an uptempo vamp of fingerstyle slide virtuosity that speaks to music from another era of guitar history. Even in this age of iPads, GPS, and cloud computing, it’s hard not to be moved by such a warm, human performance.

In the liner notes, the guitarist credits Son House, Fred McDowell, Mississippi John Hurt, Bukka White, Charlie Patton, and others for his inspiration. Feldmann does them sweet justice.

This just might be the blues album of the year.

This article originally appeared in VG‘s Feb. ’13 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.

Guitarist and singer Viva DeConcini’s last record, Rock and Roll Lover, was a stunning collection of eclectic songs that fit together perfectly even though stylistically they ran the gamut from loud rock and roll to jazz to avant garde. On her latest, she pares things down a bit with a trio record that focuses on rock, pop, and country. While the focus is different, the result is the same: a record that sounds as fresh as daylight.

DeConcini’s guitar is front and center on plenty of cuts here. Her melodic lead highlights the power pop of the verses of the title track before her power chords come on strong enough to stick in your mind for days. “Rock Star (On The Stage Of Your Heart)” has a gorgeous soul feel and her loud solo features a unique sense of phrasing that never allows for a dull moment.

A completely new element from the last record is the appearance of country music. “Obvious Blues” is a stomper with finger-picked chords and a double-stop feel that gives way to a rockabilly vibe. The rhythm section of Mary Feaster on bass and Sean Dixon on drums drive a rollicking version of “Cocaine Blues” that’s pretty standard, except for some gender changes in the lyric. And just for good measure things get a little dissonant on the guitar solo and she even manages to throw “Purple Haze” into the mix. Ironically enough, country music legend Dolly Parton’s song “Gonna Hurry” gets a’50s R&B feel and a solo that shows she’s unafraid to step out on a limb.

It’s nice to see an artist like DeConcini stay adventurous and sets the listener up for some anticipation as to what she might do next.

This article originally appeared in VG‘s Feb. ’13 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.

There’s something special about a songwriter who can break your heart and make you come back for more. Phil Lee does it in style with “Cold Ground,” a song about unimaginable grief. Lines like “I’m not a tough guy but I can fake it for a while” pierce like darts with the song’s witty lyrics and uptempo beat working as a version of laughing to keep from crying. As a lyricist Lee’s two steps above most.

Musically he draws from a crazy quilt of sources: beach and jug band music, Dylan, the Beatles, and more. In “Chloe,” the Monkees meet swamp rock and he delivers “I Hated to See You Go” with a ragged soul that rivals Van Morrison.

Producer Richard Bennett not only plays matchless guitar but knows just what gracing touch makes a song work and spotting it, he puts ego aside. If Lee’s G&L Broadcaster solo works best for the rockabilly of “I Like Everything” or Tom Mason’s slide guitar makes “Hobo Girl,” so be it. When Bennett does step out front – as when he adds Spanishflavored touches to “She Don’t Let Love Get In The Way” – no one can touch him anyway.

Besides Mason’s slide and Lee’s own forays, George Bradfute adds vibrato guitar on “The Blues In Reverse,” Bennett dropping in the right touch when and wherever it’s needed.

Stripped-down instrumentation puts a highlight on each element, including some of Lee’s best harmonica playing ever. It’s all in service to a collection of mighty fine songs from a mighty fine American songwriter. Starting with his 2000 debut, this makes Phil Lee four for four.

This article originally appeared in VG‘s Feb. ’13 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.