Jewel Brown — “Thanks for Good Ole’ Music and Memories” — Nic Allen Music Federation Just as this recent album has lingered unnecessarily on my shelf for a while, superb songstress Jewel Bown has unnecessarily lingered outside the recording studio. An electrifying jazz and blues singer in the 1950s and ’60s — best known as a stylish vocalist with Louis Armstrong and His All-Stars from 1961 until 1968 — she pretty much gave up the music business in the 1970s. In 2012 she recorded her first album in many years, “Milton Hopkins & Jewel Brown,” followed by a solo effort in 2014, “Roller Coast ..read more

Savoy Brown — “Blues All Around” — Quarto Valley Records Savoy Brown (originally the Savoy Brown Blues Band), one of the quintessential and most prolific of the British blues-rock bands, was formed in London by Kim Simmonds in 1965. That’s right. They’re older than many of us. Simmonds was the founder, guitarist and primary songwriter of the band, and the only member who remained constant in its 57 years of existence. They came out of the British blues-rock tradition, but settled in New York state, and much of the band’s musical success came in the U.S. This session, “Blues All Arou ..read more

Sometimes I just want to luxuriate in some good, old-fashioned, down-home blues. Especially when there’s a hole in my soul that needs … well, you know. Lucky me, I just happen to have a few such new albums on hand to listen to, and that I also want to write about. So this will be a three-fer post, with capsule reviews, which also gives me a chance to catch up on the backlog of albums that are piling up on the Roadhouse bar. (Well, the albums don’t exactly pile up anymore as much as the digital files accumulate, possibly in the cloud, and who knows what kind of blues storm that might ignite.) B ..read more

Paul Cowley — “Stroll Out West” — LBM007 (Feb. 27 release) The music of the blues is classically American, but its influence has been felt worldwide for many decades. In fact, it was British bands who found their inspiration in this music in the 1950s and ’60s who helped to reinvigorate our passion for those sounds on this side of the pond. So it’s no surprise then that there are still Brits who have been influenced by the blues and who are keenly interested in supporting and performing various styles of the music. Paul Cowley is one of those performers. He’s an Englishman now living in the B ..read more

The Nighthawks — “Slant Six” — VizzTone That terrifically tough quartet, the Nighthawks, have decided to kick off the second half of their first century of hard-driving blues with approximately half of a new album. The band celebrated its first 50 years last April, with “Established 1972,” a hard-charging exit from the Covid shutdown that kept alive the “Hawks reputation for scorched-earth roadhouse blues. (Roadhouse review here.) Their latest, “Slant Six,” is a mini-album, or EP, of six fine blues tracks that leave you wondering what became of the other half. (Roadhouse Digression: For our y ..read more

Long ago, in the formative years of the Blues Roadhouse, I wrote about blues shouters, that category of big-voiced blues singers that has all but disappeared, but can still provide some of the best blues listening around. Jimmy Witherspoon That early post focused on one of my very favorite musical personalities, Big Joe Turner, and his larger-than-life persona and vocal style. Since then, I’ve focused more on new album releases, with new music for blues and roots fans. But it’s time to offer something old again. Yes, there are legions of younger artists on the stage, but it can be refreshing t ..read more

Douglas Avery — “Take My Rider” — Greenwave Music A few days ago, I realized that I had let another new album that I enjoyed slip through the cracks between the Roadhouse floorboards. Someday I’ll get them fixed. So, my apologies to Douglas Avery for this delay in writing about his inspired debut album, “Take My Rider.” Avery seems to be a very talented multitasker, since he has also earned substantial props as a surfer and as a photographer. This first album of finely tuned mostly original blues also shows him to be a creative songwriter and first-rate practitioner of the Mississippi saxopho ..read more

The Grammys don’t all happen late at night. Many of the awards are announced early, and that includes the blues and some related categories. Here are those nominees and winners (winners in bold). Read more about the Grammys here. Best Traditional Blues Album Heavy Load Blues — Gov’t Mule The Blues Don’t Lie — Buddy Guy WINNER: Get on Board — Taj Mahal & Ry Cooder The Sun Is Shining Down — John Mayall Mississippi Son — Charlie Musselwhite Best Contemporary Blues Album Done Come Too Far — Shemekia Copeland Crown — Eric Gales Bloodline Maintenance — Be ..read more

Various Artists — “Moon and the Stars” — Valcour Records I have to confess that the music of honky-tonk piano wizard Aubrey “Moon” Mullican had not been on my playlist radar until I heard a preview of this excellent tribute album on the radio (yes, you heard that right – radio!). Specifically, I heard it on my favorite (and pretty much only) radio show, The Rhythm Revival, hosted by the prodigiously musically knowledgeable Rev. Billy C. Wirtz on WMNF in Tampa, Fla. The Rev was playing songs from this album a few months back, and singing the praises on Mullican, a honky-tonk / hillbilly / blu ..read more

Barbara Blue — “From the Shoals” — Big Blue Records (Jan. 27 release) Barbara Blue opens her latest album in typical Barbara Blue fashion — with powerful vocals wrapped up in the tightly crafted music of her backers. She’s not known as the reigning queen of Beale Street for no reason. Although she’s been reigning on Memphis for about 25 years at Silky O’Sullivan’s on Beale, where, Sullivan says, “Barbara Blue can make a glass eye cry.”  Blue spent ten years before that working Pittsburgh clubs on a regular basis, where I’m pleased to say I enjoyed these powerful pipes myself. And before ..read more