The Blues Enthused Christmas Stocking 2016 - Part 1

'Twas the night before Christmas, and time to concoct a winter warmer of blues, as a thank you to everyone who’s found their way here to Blues Enthused, and to all the bands and artists who made it possible.

Stevie Nimmo gets gallus in Glasgow

So let’s start by giving it up for Stevie Nimmo, who delivered my favourite studio album of the year with Sky Won’t Fall.  It’s got variety, it’s beautifully produced by Wayne Proctor and his House O’Tone chums, but above all it’s emotionally real.  The Stevie Nimmo Trio also delivered the goods on the road, and it was a delight to catch them in Glasgow and later Edinburgh, where they were joined at the end of the night by Stevie’s brother Alan.  Check out this performance of the mesmerising 'Running Back To You' from his run of Spring UK dates.

Another top drawer album this year was Dust And Bones, from Gary Hoey.  To be honest I’m not sure I gave Dust And Bones enough credit when it was released, because in retrospect it stands up damn well alongside the cream of 2016 albums.  Hoey sure as well knows his way around a fretboard, and his album does due diligence on a range of blues styles.  And as luck would have it, he also likes a festive ditty, so here he is a few years back giving big licks to ‘The Twelve Days Of Christmas’.  (We’ll forgive him the haircut.)

There was lots of good stuff going on in the middle of the year, not least the visit of Joe Louis Walker to these shores.  I was lucky enough to be able to do a short interview with JLW, before seeing him deliver a belter of a show at Dingwall’s in London – it was a privilege to see such a premier performer of electric blues, accompanied by his crack band.  From the same set of UK dates, here they are playing ‘Young Girl Blues’ during a soundcheck for their gig at The Convent.

The summer also gave us the first Edinburgh Blues’N’Rock Festival, one of the highlights of

Joe Louis Walker delivers day-glo blues!

which was the set by the Bernie Marsden Band, who rocked the joint good and proper – check out this version of Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Oh Well’, complete with Bernie’s typically humorous introduction.  Not content with that, Bernie formed an alliance with fellow Festival performers Safehouse, and returned to Edinburgh for a unique night of Southern rock meets blues-rock under the banner of 'SnakeHouse' that was a blast for all concerned.  Here they are doing ‘Trouble’, with Safehouse vocalist Chris Peebles demonstrating that he could give a certain Mr C a run for his money.

Let’s hear it for the ladies too, with a nod to American vocalist Sari Schorr.  Having paid her dues over the years, Schorr got together with producer Mike Vernon and guitarist Innes SIbun to deliver her impressive debut album A Force Of Nature.  They’ve followed up with a lengthy stretch of well-received gigs by Sari Schorr & The Engine Room, which will hopefully reach venues near more of us in 2017.  Meantime, here’s a snippet of the album, and some chat from the winning Ms Schorr.

Let’s close for now by taking a look forward to the New Year.  I didn’t get round to reviewing Chicago blues man Toronzo Cannon’s album The Chicago Way, but it’s an up to the minute take on the classic Chicago seam of the genre, ranging from social commentary in ‘The Pain Around Me’ to relationship humour in the likes of ‘Bad Contract’.  Cannon is coming to Britain for the first time in the humour for a short run of dates – catch him if you can.

That’s all for now folks, except just for a festive laugh here's David Coverdale reading 'How The Grinch Stole Christmas' - honest!  Part 2 of the Blues Enthused Christmas Stocking will be with you soon.  Meantime - Merry Christmas!

Toronto Cannon's UK dates are:
19 January - Edinburgh Blues Club
20 January - Goin' Up The Country, Overton, Wrexham
21 January - The Great British Rock & Blues Festival, Skegness

Stevie Nimmo is touring France in February and the UK in March 2017.

Sari Schorr is touring Europe and the UK in early 2017.

'Snakehouse', with Bernie Marsden and Safehouse - Stramash, Edinburgh, 24 November 2016

And now for something unique, folks.  It’s Snakehouse – a notion born of a chance conversation at the Edinburgh Blues’N’Rock Festival back in July, when Bernie Marsden agreed that yeah, he quite fancied the idea of doing a show with local band Safehouse, playing a heap of classics by the Allman Brothers, Whitesnake and others.  And why not?

And so here we are in Stramash, with Safehouse opening proceedings with Moby Grape’s ‘Hey Grandma’.  Now, who the hell remembers Moby Grape?  I certainly don’t, though the name seems vaguely familiar.  But I gotta say, you’ll remember this full throated stomper the way that Safehouse deliver it, especially for Chris Peebles’ raunchy vocal.  Peebles comes across as a throwback to somewhere in 70s America, all flailing hair as he gets his rocks

Liz Jones gives an extra dimension to Snakehouse

off to the music, underlining the vibe of Southern rock that’s the Safehouse speciality.

They keep up the good work via a great guitar solo by John Bruce on Big George Watt’s ‘Take A Walk In The Wilderness’, and driving boogie with swirling keys on ‘Can’t You See’, until eventually it’s time for Bernie Marsden to enter the fray.  He demonstrates his subtlety right away with the responsiveness to the vocals of his little fills on ‘Double Trouble’, underlined by the lovely Peter Green feel of his interplay with Bruce after his solo.

There are highlights aplenty as Gary Davidson joins them to provide a twin attack with Sean Scott on drums for the Allman Brothers stuff.  This is serious guitar territory of course, and Bruce and Marsden duet to great effect on an instrumental, before Marsden produces a rollicking solo on ‘Black Hearted Woman’.  Not to be outdone, as they all get tied tight to the ‘Whipping Post’, Bruce lets go with a rip-roaring solo that demonstrates the sheer physicality of his playing.  They close this

Bernie gets down to business

portion of the show with ‘One Way Out’, on which they’re joined by Edinburgh harp supremo Gary Martin, and which frankly achieves an insane intensity from Marsden’s solo onwards.

They come back onstage with a smokin’ version of ‘Hush’, on which Bruce shows his mettle once again on his closing solo, before getting funky with Little Feat’s ‘Spanish Moon’.  Tackling ‘Trouble’ with Chris Peebles on vocals prompts the thought, “David Coverdale, oo’s ‘e then?” before Marsden takes centre stage for a rendition of Robert Johnson’s ‘Ramblin’ On My Mind’, which features some nice interplay with Ali Petrie on keyboards, before Bernie gets down to some serious business in the guitar stakes.  And just to underline his Premier League status, he then demonstrates some exquisite tone on Skynyrd’s ‘Simple Man’.

There’s then another shift in tone as guest vocalist Liz Jones joins the band to deliver top drawer lead vocals on The Animals’ ‘Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood’ and Bobby ‘Blue’ Bland’s ‘Ain’t No Love (In The Heart Of The City)’, reinstating some verses that Whitesnake forgot (ie, Bernie forgot when he taught it to them).

They wind up proceedings with ‘La Grange’, with two drummers on the go again alongside bassist Andy Stirling, and serving up as meaty a delivery of the riff as Billy Gibbons could hope for.  Encoring with Whitesnake’s ‘Here I Go Again’ naturally leads to some mass choir practice for the crowd – though personally I’ll always prefer ‘Walking In The Shadow Of The Blues’.

It’s the end of a wild night of music, a celebration of its simple pleasures, and a night to remember for the Safehouse guys and their compadres.  Call it blues, call it rock, call it what you like – this is what it’s all about.

The Afternoon Sessions - Edinburgh Blues'N'Rock Festival, 30 July 2016

A confession.  Although Safehouse have been mainstays of the Edinburgh music scene for a loooong time, I have never actually seen them before.  Well, my loss evidently, judging by the way they stormed the citadel with this performance.

Actually, I say they’re from Edinburgh, but from their opening number ‘Hey Grandma’ it sounds like Edinburgh by way of Macon, Georgia.  Amid blasting guitar from John Bruce and a sandpaper vocal from the hyperactive Chris Peebles, the immediate impression is of Southern rock á la the Allman Brothers or maybe the Black Crowes.

Chris Peebles stands still for a mo

They keep up the good work with the Big George Watt classic ‘Take A Walk In The Wilderness’, this time featuring on-the-money piano from Ali Petrie in addition to a gritty, rolling guitar solo from Bruce as they give the tune a Strolling Bones feel.

There’s even more grit in Bruce’s rhythm guitar as they belt through some rousing Southern fried boogie, executing some welcome shifts in tempo along the way to vary the pace.

There’s a Jim Morrison feel to Peebles' vocals on what I’m guessing is ‘Travellin’ Light’, a strutting, funky effort with an insistent bass pattern, with Petrie and Bruce doubling up again to deliver boogie woogie piano and howling guitar.

They close by rocking the joint with ‘One Way Out’, joined by Gary Martin to lend some harp authenticity to Sonny Boy Williamson’s song even as they serve it up in Allmans fashion.  All in all a banging set, bringing a bit of rock to the roll for the first time in the afternoon.

They’re followed on to the stage by The Rising Souls, who since the launch of their Yardbird album early in the year have metamorphosed from a semi-acoustic three-piece playing bass, guitar and cajón to a full-on four-piece, with Joe Catterson on electric guitar and Reece Braid on drums.

Right from the off Catterson’s influence is apparent, as he brings fuzzy guitar tones to ‘I’m

Joe Catterson and Dave Archibald feel so alive

Feeling So Down’, which features satisfying use of dynamics.  Another new song finds singer Dave Archibald strapping on his acoustic once again to augment the shimmering electric sound Catterson produces, big on whammy bar.  It also has a sweet melody of the kind Rod Stewart might well appreciate.

‘I Feel So Alive’ has a pulsing start and a heavy chorus, with Archibald getting into his best Paul Rodgers vocal mode, before indulging in a burst of scat singing as a bridge to a scuzzy solo from Catterson.  After another haunting new song, ‘Feeling Like I’m Falling Down’, they wheel out ‘Don’t Say You Love Me’, from their self-titled mini-album, its field holler opening over bass drum now supplemented by jangling guitar chords, while Archibald gets into some serious testifyin’ at the conclusion.

Hearing ‘I Need You’ for the first time, with its echoes of ‘Roadhouse Blues’, restrained verses and big chorus, it seems that Catterson’s electric guitar has given the Souls a whole new weapon.  What’s more, he himself has come out of his shell big time since first appearing with them for a couple of songs at the Yardbird launch.

Neil Warden bends some Weissenborn notes

The Souls have a new EP scheduled to come out in November, and it’ll be interesting to see if they’ve managed to bottle their bigger sound in the studio.  Hopefully though, they can also manage to adapt some of the gripping songs from their early repertoire to the four-piece format – it’d be a shame to lose them.

The afternoon opened with the subtler strains of Gary Martin/Neil Warden – Blues and Beyond.  And I’ll say it again guys, get a snappier monicker, will ya?  Joking apart though, they bring a slinky, jazzy vibe to the post-lunch kick-off.  The Peggy Lee feel of ‘You Don’t Have To Hang Round Here No More’, with some great harp from Martin, is underlined by their smoky, offbeat take on Ray Charles’ ‘Ain’t That Fine’.

Sandwiched between these two songs is Tam White’s ‘Stonemason’s Blues’, delivered with conviction by two former Tam White alumni.  And they close with a spare version of Curtis Mayfield’s ‘People Get Ready' – an unfamiliar arrangement for sure, but one that is soulful and full of feeling, with Warden putting his Weissenborn guitar to terrific use with both a bending slide intro, and later a beautiful, chiming solo.

The Al Brown Band follow, opening with an instrumental that shows off Brown’s warm and bright guitar tones.  They swing nicely, and there’s good interplay between organ and

Al Brown has a natural ball

Brown’s rhythm guitar.  There are shades of both BB and Freddie King, and Brown makes good use of tension and release.

It may be indoors on a warm summer’s afternoon, but they do a good job with ‘Early In The Morning’, with a relaxed, Latin feel and some funky bass, while the following James Harmon song ‘Lock Doctor’ evokes the third blues King, Albert.

Things can get too smooth at times though, even if Brown is always capable of producing some fiery, angular licks.  A slow blues finds Gary Martin jamming on some squawking, moaning harp – the man gets everywhere – while Brown digs into a biting solo.

Brown encourages the audience to make more use of the dance floor, which to these ears and feet would feel more natural if he introduced a bit more oomph into the equation.  But to be fair a number of couples do get up and shake their hips to a neat reading of Albert King’s ‘Let’s Have A Natural Ball’.

Al Brown’s set is just one of several sides to a multi-faceted line-up that makes for a stimulating inaugural Edinburgh Blues’N’Rock Festival though.  So who’s up for next year?