Blues Matters

Guitarist, producer and songwriter Barry Levenson's main influences include Magic Sam, Muddy, Wolf and great jazz guitarists like Kenny Burrell and Grant Green. This man plays with tone, technique, taste and toughness and it's all on display in this fine album. Opener "Hard Times Won" has a Wolf type groove featuring superb guitar from Levenson, with excellent vocals and harp from old-timer Johnny Dyer. "Chasing The Money" kicks off with a Slim Harpo style harmonica riff and features a funky guitar groove and honking horns - a real killer this one. All of the material is original and combines hard-hitting Chicago blues with a more subtle, jazzy west-coast style blues. "Inhumanity Blues" is an instrumental tribute to those who died on September 11 and Levenson stretches out in fine style with his guitar weeping and moaning. "I Ain't Going Back" is an old-fashioned big band styled number with a slow, lazy groove T-Bone inspired guitar telling tales of wild crazy women and straight-up bottles of gin. "9 o'clock Blues" is a classic Muddy style early 50's mid-tempo grinder straight out of Chicago, with stinging slide guitar and wailing harp. A mention here for Mike Thompson on piano and organ, especially the B3 on the jazzy "Slip Me Some Green, Jack", a tribute to Grant Green and Jack McDuff. This is a fine album of rare, heartfelt blues, no frills, no rock excesses, sheer class and quality. I thoroughly enjoyed it and recommend it to all blues lovers.....Dave Drury