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| LAZY CRAZY BLUES - PAUL JAMES (1998) |
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| This 1998 release (of Paul James recordings that date back as far as 1980) only just came to my attention recently, but it could just as well have fit into an early Sixties jukebox! And that�s a good thing, considering the classic blues-based rock coming out of that era. The opening track, �Joint Out Back�, is an innovative jukejoint boogie featuring Paul�s dead-on Wolfman Jack vocal emulations and John Hammond on harmonica. It is followed by the delightful honky-tonkin� title track (with Rod Ramsay on harmonica), to which any rock�n�roll delinquent can joyfully relate, or at least vaguely remember� Speaking of �Good Old Rock and Roll�, this track may or may not have been written around the same time Seger�s �Old Time Rock & Roll� was released on his Stranger in Town in 1978. I�m a huge Bob Seger fan, but Paul�s ode to the genre is instrumentally superior, especially with Ken and Chris Whitely, on keys and trumpet, respectively. Johnson, Waters, Berry and the Stones are mentioned in the lineage of rockin� blues. �Mean and Evil� is my favourite track, featuring Paul�s sassy blues slide guitar, bandmember Gary Gray�s superb keyboarding and some very clever lyrics about his own �Lucretia McEvil�. Paul�s other rock-steady band mates � bassist Brian Kipping and Adrian Vecchiola - are augmented by a topnotch horn section consisting of arranger Sarah McElcheran on trumpet, Nic Gotham on sax, Steve Donald on trombone and percussionists Rob Hancock and Dick Smith. �Slow Jive�, a �hip�, laid-back swing-jazz (yeaaaah!) is up next and then �Crazy Little Baby�, with its more aggressive blues-rockin� tone on slide guitar and keys. R&B gets a nod on the brassy �Suzette�, and when Paul sings �Heyyyyyy�, you know he�s particularly impressed with this woman! �Anna Banana� is a passionately wild Latina production and �Hey, Rosita� is a tantalizing rhumba with quivery-shivery vocals and harmonica (John Hammond). Elvis would have felt at home performing this one as well as the next - �I Got To Move� (the epitome of �Bug Music�). Traditional country music with an Okie origin (and perhaps Chet Atkins) is given a nod on �I Don�t Want to Get Married�. It�s corny but lots of fun. For that matter, the entire CD is an �upper�, except for �Broken-Hearted Lovers�, a sappy, but otherwise guitar-sweet tune that had me imagining Greg Godovitz or John Lennon doing Jimmy Ruffin. �She Don�t Care� is another song (in addition to �Mary Ann�) with Caribbean flavouring, and �One More Heartache� is a gentle and catchy surf-guitar opus that Brian Wilson probably would have dug. Paul�s vocal versatility is displayed particularly well here. The CD ends with a bluesy but content Satchmo-type jazz composition, with the Whiteleys and Steve Donald on piano, trumpet and horn � a perfect coda! |