Blues Lyrics of the Week, Mother’s Day Edition: Nobody Loves Me But My Mother

Posted on May 9, 2010 by Mike

There are of course plenty of blues tunes directed at or about moms on which we could focus this special day, from the more traditional sounds of “Mama Don’t Allow” and Bessie Smith’s “Mama’s Got the Blues” to the likes of “Motherless Child,” “Mama He Treats Your Daughter Mean” and even those “Mother-in-Law Blues,” to name just a few possibilities. But we’ve chosen to go all the way down to the bottom with this one from none other than the King of the Blues, Mr. B.B. King, that starts like this:

“You left me for another man, baby,
Tell me what did he do for you.
Yes, you ran away with another man, baby,
I wanna’ know what did he do for you.
Because now all of your money is gone, baby,
And he ain’t got no more use for you.”

And concludes a few minutes later in a way that only B.B. could:

“Nobody loves me but my mother,
And she could be jivin’ too.
Yes, nobody loves me but my mother,
And she could be jivin’ too.
Now you know why I act so funny with you, baby,
When you do the things you do.”
– Nobody Loves Me But My Mother, B.B. King

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No Losers on Oli Brown’s Heads I Win Tails You Lose

Posted on May 5, 2010 by Mike

Oli%20Brown%20COVER_resizeIt’s pretty clear from the opening notes of Oli Brown‘s Heads I Win Tails You Lose (Ruf Records) that the British blues rocker’s latest album is another win-win for the artist and his fans.

Back with his fresh, vibrant sound and accomplished guitar, Brown kicks off the follow-up to his 2008 Open Road with the frantic-paced “Evil Soul” (imagine “Got My Mojo Workin'” on steroids) before moving into the shuffling sounds of “Makes Me Wonder.” A rocking version of the popular R&B standard “Fever” is fiery enough to set it apart from the countless other covers of the song you’ve heard, and Brown does an equally nice job showing his more sensitive side on the quieter “Not a Word I Say” and the slow grooves of “I Can Make Your Day.”

In addition to the album’s emotion-laden vocals and admirable riffs, listeners will also hear plenty of funk on songs like “Keeping My Options Open,” “No Diggity,” a hopping “Take a Look Back,” and the soulful “Real Good Time” with its smooth backing vocals, which also nicely complement the brisk rapping vocals of the closing “On Top of the World.” While there’s lots of great stuff to hear on this one, the two best tracks have to be a Matt Schofield-sounding “Speechless” and the slow blues scorcher “Love’s Gone Cold.”

Word around the campfire is that Oli will be making a return trip to the U.S. in the coming months, and it delights us to note that he now has two great albums from which to draw during his shows.

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Blues Lyrics of the Week: Lessons from the Derby Edition (You Can’t Beat the Horses)

Posted on May 3, 2010 by Mike

Here’s hoping that Saturday’s Kentucky Derby results turned out better for you than Ervin “Big Boy” Groves concludes in the lyrics to this blues rarity.

“If I could pick a horse
to win, place, or show,
I wouldn’t be so broke,
hungry n’ po’
But I done lost so much money
playin’ ’em across the board,
That I wouldn’t bet on Silver
if the Lone Ranger rode.

Oh, you can’t beat the horses
no matter how you try,
You can’t beat the horses,
They’ll break you by and by.”
–You Can’t Beat the Horses, Big Boy Groves

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Blues Lyrics of the Week: Double Trouble

Posted on April 29, 2010 by Mike

Combined with some fiery guitar, these lyrics – which have been performed by the likes of Eric Clapton, John Mayall, The Paul Butterfield Blues Band, James Blood Ulmer, and Sean Costello over the years, in addition to composer Otis Rush – make for one of the greatest slow blues songs of all time, a song that also served as the inspiration for Stevie Ray Vaughan’s band’s name.

“I lay awake at night,
It’s false love, I’m just so troubled.
It’s hard to keep a job,
Laid off, I’m havin’ double trouble.
Hey, hey, yea,
They say you can make it if you try.
Some of this generation is millionaires,
It’s hard for me to keep decent clothes to wear.”
– Double Trouble, Otis Rush

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The Fabulous Johnny Moeller

Posted on April 19, 2010 by Mike

Johnny Moeller, BlooGaLoo! (Severn Records, April 20)

johnny_moeller_bloogalooIf you’re reading this wondering who in the heck Johnny Moeller is, well, you’re probably not alone. But fortunately the answer is simple: he’s one of the best and most energetic guitarists you’ve likely never heard – at least not on his own, although he’s certainly been around. In addition to fronting his own band and handling house guitar duties for the Severn Records label, the Texas guitarist also keeps busy playing with an outfit you probably have heard by the name of the Fabulous Thunderbirds.

There’s no doubt that hailing from the land that has served as home to so many other guitar greats (Stevie Ray and Jimmie Vaughan, Johnny Winter, Johnny Copeland, T-Bone Walker, Albert Collins, and Lightnin’ Hopkins, to name a few) can be both a blessing and a curse: a blessing in the region’s being recognized as a hotbed for six-string talent, and a curse in the fierceness of the competition and the fact that you’re not anywhere close to being the only guitarist looking to make a name for yourself. Fortunately, Moeller gets a little help from both Severn Records and some friends on BlooGaLoo!, his first release on the label.

After starting off with the surf-sounding instrumental title track, Moeller keeps things moving with “I’m Movin’ on Up,” which is kind of like a modern-day party version of the Guitar Slim blues classic “Well I Done Got Over It” (recently featured as our Blues Lyrics of the Week). Johnny’s take on Earl King’s “Trick Bag” might be a little more Johnny Rotten than Johnny B. Goode for some blues purists, but they’ll find plenty of other songs on the disc to be squarely down the blues alley, including “Well Goodbye Baby” and “Got a Feelin’,” both of which feature fellow T-bird Kim Wilson on vocals and harmonica. Also joining Moeller as guests on BlooGaLoo! are fellow Texans LouAnn Barton, who handles vocals on “I’m Stuck on You” and the album’s second Earl King cover “Everybody’s Got to Cry Sometime,” Gary Clark, Jr., on background vocals and horns for the catchy “Raise Your Hands,” and Shawn Pittman on vocals for the aforementioned “I’m Movin’ on Up.”

Top it off with a number of happening instrumentals, including “Shufflin’ Around” and “Theme from the One Armed Swordsman,” and a closing, early Stones-sounding cover of Earl Hooker’s “Tease Me,” and there’s no denying that Moeller’s got a unique and interesting sound that demands – and deserves – to be heard far beyond Texas.

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Blues Lyrics of the Week: Well I Done Got Over It

Posted on April 15, 2010 by Mike

Here’s another classic blues tale involving triumph over adversity. Originally performed by Guitar Slim, this song has been covered by the likes of T-Bone Walker, Billy Boy Arnold, Ike Turner, Lazy Lester, and James Cotton (both on his Take Me Back album and with Muddy Waters and Johnny Winter on Breakin’ It Up, Breakin’ It Down).

“Now the day that I first met you,
You seemed such a sweet little thing.
But after a while you got so bad,
You know it was a cryin’ shame.
But I done got over it,
Lord I done got over it.
Well I done got over it,
I done got over it at last.”
– Well I Done Got Over It, Guitar Slim

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Remembering Phil Guy

Posted on April 13, 2010 by Mike

For the second time since his death in August 2008, friends of blues musician (and true blues brother to the legendary Buddy) Phil Guy are asking musicians and fans to help in remembering the performer later this month.

Although the Second International Phil Guy Day is officially set for what would be Phil’s 70th birthday on April 28, organizers Dario Lombardo (an Italian bluesman who’s worked across Europe with Phil for 20 years) and Phil’s manager Lisa Mallen (who spent a few years on Pittsburgh’s North Side before moving to Chicago) are asking musicians to mention Phil, dedicate a song in his memory, or perhaps even include one or two of Phil’s songs in their performances between April 21 and May 1. Participating musicians can have their shows noted on the International Phil Guy Day sites on Facebook and MySpace, which already include Janiva Magness, fellow Chicago bluesman and Muddy Waters band alumnus John Primer, Sugar Blue, and Dave Specter among the performers who will help to remember Phil as part of shows taking place around the world, from Philadelphia to Athens, Greece, and from San Antonio to Chicago to Torino, Italy.

Like older brother Buddy, Phil began his career playing with Raful Neal, where he spent a decade before moving on to become a member of Buddy’s band, playing on such classics as Stone Crazy!, Hold That Plane, This is Buddy Guy!, Buddy Guy and Junior Wells Play the Blues, Breaking Out, and DJ Play My Blues. In addition to Buddy and Raful, Phil accompanied many other blues greats through the years, including Son Seals, Albert Collins, Koko Taylor, Memphis Slim, Slim Harpo, and Big Mama Thornton. While the brothers Guy did put out one album (Buddy and Philip Guy, P-Vine Records, 2007) in both their names, Phil has recorded some pretty good, often funky, stuff with his own bands, including It’s a Real Mutha’, Another Guy, Tina Nu, Say What You Mean, a Chicago’s Hottest Guitars CD with Lurrie Bell, and Phil’s last, 2006’s He’s My Blues Brother featuring Buddy on the title track.

I can’t think of a better way we can help in remembering Phil than breaking out a few of his albums (or ordering one or two from his web site if you don’t already have them) and giving them a spin before heading out to catch some live blues, which – with enough luck and word-of-mouth – will include plenty of reminders of this late, great showman in the coming weeks.

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Local blues champions

Posted on April 11, 2010 by Mike

A quick congratulations to Ron Yarosz and the Vehicle and Carnegie’s Gary Prisby, who last night won the honors of representing the Western Pennsylvania region in the band and solo performer categories at next year’s International Blues Challenge in Memphis. Gregg Krupa of Jill West and Blues Attack was also recognized with the Best Guitar Player Award at the annual Blues Society of Western Pennsylvania (BSWPA) competition.

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Shakura S’Aida Finds Sweet Spot on Brown Sugar

Posted on April 9, 2010 by Mike

With strong, smooth vocals and a great jazz/blues sound, Shakura S’Aida‘s Ruf Records debut, Brown Sugar (April 13),makes for a pretty sweet treat.

ShakuraSugarAnything but shy in kicking off this follow-up to her 2006 Blueprint, the Toronto-based vocalist digs right in with the opening “Mr. Right,” then continues to command your attention with “Walk Out that Door” and “Gonna Tell My Baby,” featuring some notably fine guitar from Donna Grantis. Shakura quiets things down for a few songs beginning with “(Did It) Break Your Heart,” which, along with the closing “Outskirts of Memphis,” earn my votes for the album’s best songs. Another of the more timid tunes worth checking out is “This is Not a Love Song” (which, followed as it is by “Anti Love Song,” starts to give the impression she may not be all that into love songs), while a jazzy “Missing the Good and the Bad” and the funky title track also help make this a solid outing for the 2008 International Blues Challenge runner-up.

When it comes to Brown Sugar, you’re going to want a taste.

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Blues Lyrics of the Week: Why are People Like That?

Posted on April 7, 2010 by Mike

This week’s lyrics likely won’t help in restoring faith in your fellow man, but hey, it’s the blues, baby. Written by Bobby Charles, “Why are People Like That?” is probably best recognized coming from Junior Wells, although it’s also been recorded over the years by Muddy Waters (The Muddy Waters Woodstock Album) and Muddy’s son Big Bill Morganfield (Nineteen Years Old), among others.

“They’ll take your love and your money,
They’ll take your sug’r and your honey.
They’ll take ya’ skinny or fat,
Why are people like that?”

And since it’s such a good one, we’ll even throw in a bonus verse, from the song’s close:

“They’ll take your dog and your car,
They’ll promise you’ll be a star.
They’ll break your heart and leave you flat,
Why are people like that?
I don’t know why they act like that,
Why are people like that?
Don’t be like that…”

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