Blues Blast Magazine DVD Review: Women of the Country Blues Guitar

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This CD review was originally published in the February 2, 2017 edition of Blues Blast Magazine. Be sure to check out the rest of the magazine at www.bluesblastmagazine.com

Women of the Country Blues Guitar

Stan Grossman’s Guitar Workshop

www.guitarvideos.com

One DVD / 124 Minutes

If you are looking for a good value in guitar instruction it would be a fine idea to head on over to Stefan Grossman’s Guitar Workshop website and see what they have to offer for you. For less than the price of one in-person lesson you can pick up a DVD or two that will get you a good head start towards your guitar playing goals.

Stefan Grossman is a music publisher AND a serious guitar slinger. He hails from Brooklyn, and was taught by the esteemed Reverend Gary Davis as well as other legends that include Son House, Skip James, and Mississippi John Hurt. After endless touring, in the late 1960s he started to produce instructional albums with play-along tablature, including his famous 1967 LP, How to Play Blues Guitar. As time went on the catalog grew and these titles became available on CDs, VHS tapes, and DVDs; now there are downloadable lessons too!

There are dozens of titles available from Stefan Grossman’s Guitar Workshop, and there is a diverse collection of artists that provide the instruction. One of these fine instructors is Erin Harpe, talented guitarist and vocalist with serious on-stage experience. Her contribution to the catalog is a two-hour lesson, Women of the Country Blues Guitar. This is a not only a cool opportunity to learn some classic tunes, but it is also an important history lesson for the learner. The subjects of this lesson include artists that you probably have heard of, such as Memphis Minnie, but there may be a few surprises for you too.

Memphis Minnie is one of the best known women of blues guitar, having recorded over 200 songs between 1929 and 1959. Erin Harpe guides the student through seven of Minnie’s tunes, and after playing through a song (and singing it too!), Erin provides a little history and a description of how to play the song along with split screen examples. Where necessary, Harpe goes through solos in more detail too. Each of these is broken up neatly into chapters so the learner can jump back and forth to the parts they need more help with. Memphis Minnie songs in this lesson include, “I’m a Bad Luck Woman,” “Nothing in Rambling,” “Can I do it for You,” “ Where is My Good Man At,” “What’s the Matter with the Mill,” and “When the Levee Breaks.”

A similar learning strategy is used with the other four songs, each of which was originally performed by artists with fascinating backstories. Geeshie Wiley and L.V. ”Elvie” Thomas made their way from Houston, Texas to Grafton, Wisconsin, to record country blues for Paramount Records, and you will find “Pick Poor Robin Clean” and “Motherless Chile” included in the lessons. There is also “I’m So Glad” from Mississippi’s Jessie Mae Hemphill. Jessie started playing guitar in 1930, but never was in the limelight, and did not start releasing albums until the 1980s. Lastly, there is the mystery of Mattie Delaney from Mississippi, who recorded only two songs in 1930 for Vocalion Records. There is nothing written about her after this, and it is beyond cool that her version of “Down The Big Road Blues” has not been forgotten.

As some of these songs were originally recorded in open G tuning (also know as Spanish tuning), Erin demonstrates tuning the guitar in this manner as well as some common chords that are used with this tuning. This is a handy reference and it is nice that Harpe guides the learner through this before teaching the songs that use this tuning.

There are a few bonus features on the Women of the Country Blues Guitar DVD. For starters, there is a .pdf booklet on the disc that includes tablature and lyrics for each song. This document does not come up on the DVD menu, but you can find it with Internet Explorer (PC) or Finder (Mac). Also, there are audio tracks by the original artists for each of the ten songs in the lesson; this provides a nice comparison to see how close the student is to achieving competency with the source material.

This DVD is a professional project with good lighting, clean editing, plenty of camera angles, and crystal clear sound. The guitar cuts through nicely, both through headphones and laptop speakers, but it would be nice to play it through a quality pair of speakers if you have the opportunity. It is helpful that the learner can move along at their own pace, though these lessons would probably be most appropriate for intermediate and higher level students. There are plenty of other blues DVDs available from guitarvideos.com that would be more appropriate for beginners.

Women of the Country Blues Guitar from Stefan Grossman’s Guitar Workshop has a lot going for it, as Erin Harpe is an outstanding teacher, and this is a well-made DVD with compelling subject matter. Better yet, it is also a great value, as the learner only has to pay $29.95 for a two-hour lesson. Even if you are not a guitar player, it is fascinating to see how the songs are constructed, as well as the effort that goes into learning and playing these tunes!

Blues Blast Magazine DVD Review: The Guitar of Robert Johnson and The Guitar of Skip James

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This DVD review was originally published in the January 7, 2016 edition of Blues Blast Magazine. Be sure to check out the rest of the magazine at www.bluesblastmagazine.com

The Guitar of Robert Johnson and The Guitar of Skip James

Stan Grossman’s Guitar Workshop

www.guitarvideos.com

If you have always wanted to learn to play the blues guitar but do not know where to start, pick up a decent acoustic 6-string and head on over to Stefan Grossman’s Guitar Workshop website and start looking around. For the price of one lesson you can pick up a 3+ hour DVD set that will get you headed in the right direction.

Stefan Grossman is not just a publisher, he is first and foremost a real-deal guitar player with serious credentials. He hails from Brooklyn, and was taught by the esteemed Reverend Gary Davis as well as other legends that include Son House, Skip James, and Mississippi John Hurt. Though he was touring extensively, in the late 1960s he saw the opportunity to reach guitarists with albums that included tablature so they could be played along with, which is how we got his fabulous 1967 LP, How to Play Blues Guitar. As time went on, he added many titles and eventually got into CDs, videocassettes, and DVDs.

Today there are dozens of titles available from Stefan Grossman’s Guitar Workshop, with different artists providing instruction. One of these folks is Tom Feldman, a blues preservationist and talented guitarist who has the uncanny ability to play amazing reproductions of works as originally done by the masters of the blues guitar. He has produced videos on bottleneck slide, Delta blues, and Mississippi hill country blues, as well as a series of videos that can show guitarists how to play like their favorite guitarist, including Son House, Frank Stokes, Charlie Patton, Blind Willie Johnson, Bukka White, and many others. I recently had the opportunity to go through two of these DVD lessons: The Guitar of Robert Johnson and The Guitar of Skip James, and came away very impressed.

The Guitar of Robert Johnson is quite an undertaking, with three discs and almost six hours of material included. Johnson’s discography includes only 29 songs that were recorded in 1936 and 1937, and Feldman’s lessons include nearly all of them. Unlike some other releases from Stefan Grossman the original artist recordings are not included in the lessons (due to licensing issues), so you will need to buy your own. Of course, if you are a Robert Johnson fan that wants to learn how to play like him, you certainly already own his complete catalogue. Tom groups the songs by type (standard and open tunings, then by position) then plays each of the tunes as he sings along. Feldman has a pleasant demeanor, and he is an excellent teacher who goes through the nuances of each the songs in the proper amount of detail, slowing down and explaining the structure as necessary. As an added bonus, there is a .pdf booklet on each of the disks that includes tablature and lyrics for each song. This document does not come up on the DVD menu, but you can find it with Internet Explorer (PC) or Finder (Mac).

The Guitar of Skip James has the same features as the Robert Johnson lessons, including the .pdf documentation and Tom Feldman’s excellent instruction. But it takes a slightly different tack, as its two disks (234 minutes) include bonus material of original audio performances by James, as well as some of his performance at the 1966 Newport Folk Festival. The fifteen songs that are covered are divided into standard, crossnote, and Spanish tuning.

Both of these DVD-based lessons are well produced, with clear cinematography that is lit properly and numerous camera angles (including a very helpful split-screen mode). The sound is clear and the guitar cuts through nicely, even on laptop speakers, though it would be optimal to put the sound through a decent set of speakers. From an instructional perspective, this is a sound learning method that allows the student to work at his or her own pace and to be immediately rewarded by hearing the results, which is a wonderful motivational factor. But it should be kept in mind that these are not beginner lessons, and they are recommended for intermediate or advanced players.

So, these video lessons from Stefan Grossman’s Guitar Workshop are not going to make a novice player sound like either one of these esteemed artists, but an intermediate or advanced player will definitely get their money’s worth in a hurry. If you go to a guitar teacher and tell them you want to learn Robert Johnson or Skip James songs, what they will be able to do for you will not even begin to approach what Mr. Feldman has put together here. These DVDs are worth every penny ($49.95 for Robert Johnson or $39.95 for Skip James), and even if you are not aspiring to be just like one of these artists be sure to see what else the website has to offer. Surely something will strike your fancy as there is a little something for anyone who wants to get started playing, or who is interested in taking his or her guitar skills to the next level.

Blues Blast Magazine Review: All My Friends: Celebrating The Songs and Voice of Gregg Allman

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This CD review was originally published in the November 27, 2014 edition of Blues Blast Magazine. Be sure to check out the rest of the magazine at www.bluesblastmagazine.com

Various Artists -- All My Friends: Celebrating The Songs and Voice of Gregg Allman

Rounder Records

www.greggallman.com

www.rounder.com

2 CDs / 26 tracks / 2:31:54

1 DVD / 2:40:55

The Allman Brothers Band has survived its share of adversity since their first paying gig in 1969, and after 45 years they have finally called it quits and had their finals shows at New York City’s Beacon Theatre. One of the founding members, Gregg Allman, will continue on with his solo career, which is to be expected as he has quite a following of fans, including countless professional musicians.

On Friday, January 10, 2014, some of these legendary artists joined at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia to honor Gregg and join him in song. All two-and-a-half hours of this show were captured on two CDs and a DVD, so you can experience this magical evening for yourself! All My Friends: Celebrating The Songs and Voice of Gregg Allman includes 26 songs with performances from a lengthy list of industry hard-hitters and hall-of-famers, including Warren Haynes, Derek Trucks, Susan Tedeschi, Dr. John, Eric Church, Pat Monahan, Jackson Browne, John Hiatt, Vince Gill, Martina McBride, and more! Gregg Allman joined in the celebration too, along with the rest of the Allman Brothers Band for a.

The set list is chock full of Allman goodness, with early Allman Brothers Band albums represented as well as tunes combed from Gregg’s solo catalogue. It is noteworthy that the Allman Brothers Band actually performed a few of the tunes, but they also assembled a house band to die for that played for the rest of the evening. This included Don Was on bass, Kenny Aronoff on the skins, Jack Pearson and Audley Freed on guitar, Chuck Leavell on piano, Rami Jaffee behind the Hammond, and Jimmy Hall tearing it up the harmonica. This would have been good enough, but they also brought in the McCrary Sisters on backing vocals and a killer horn section of Jim Hoke, Vinnie Ciesielski, and John Hinchey. These are all pros with centuries of combined stage experience and they made the evening enjoyable and complete.

This is a high-quality release with excellent production values, and the producer for this Rounder Records project is the one-and-only 3-time Grammy award winner Don Was. He was definitely qualified for this task, with credits that include The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, Roy Orbison and Neil Diamond. The sound and mix is as good as you will get with a live album, and the cinematography and editing of the DVD is crystal clear and it was put together so that fans get to see everything worth seeing.

Listening to the CDs is more challenging than the DVD as the first few times through it is difficult to envision what is happening on stage and who is actually singing – and most of the time it is not Gregg Allman. In fact, he does not even appear on stage until almost an hour in, when he joins Grammy-winning blues musician Taj Mahal on “Statesboro Blues.” But, without the visuals there is also a better of idea of who is getting the mail delivered, and there are definitely standout vocal performances. The highlight of the evening was “Midnight Rider” with Zac Brown and Gregg on lead vocals and Vince Gill backing them up on the harmonies: it induced goose bumps! Not far behind was McBride and Monahan’s duet of “Can You Fool” and the Sam Moore (of Sam & Dave) take of “Please Call Home.”

But the best part of the set is the DVD, and if you are not terribly busy you can take most of an evening to sit back and watch it. There are no special features or commentaries, but it is probably one of the better-produced concert videos that you will ever see. On the screen you get to see the mountains of amplifiers and the huge cast of musicians that made this tribute possible. This video gives a better idea of what a bang-out job that the house band does, including the powerful drumming of the indefatigable Aronoff, and the kicking yet subtle contributions of Pearson and Freed on guitar. The pedal steel work of Robert Randolph on “You Can’t Lose What You Ain’t Never Had” was a complete jaw-dropper and he did a righteous job alongside Gregg’s son, Devon Allman, on guitar. Also, the finale of “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” is very touching as all of the musicians returned to the stage one last time with Gregg kicking things off.

If you are a fan of Gregg Allman or the Allman Brothers Band, then purchasing All My Friends: Celebrating The Songs and Voice of Gregg Allman will be an easy decision. If you like Southern rock, you will certainly want to pick up a copy too. But the universal appeal of this well-produced set is that it includes work from some of the most influential artists of today, which makes adding this well-rounded music collection to your library almost irresistible, even if you are only the least bit interested in the man or the band. Check it out for yourself, and do not be surprised if you end up buying a copy too!

Mahalo!

Blues Blast Magazine DVD Review: Chaz DePaolo – Live In Iona

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This DVD review was originally published in the June 5, 2014 edition of Blues Blast Magazine. Be sure to check out the rest of the magazine at www.bluesblastmagazine.com

Chaz DePaolo – One Night Live in Iona | DVD Review

Smoke Tone Records

www.chazdepaolo.com

www.smoketonerecords.com

11 songs / 1:20:36

Chaz DePaolo is not only an extremely talented blues and rock guitarist, he is also one of the hardest working men in show business. He has been on tour for ages, playing 150 shows a year all over the U.S., Canada and Europe, sometimes barely making ends meet, but plugging along for the love of the music. Along the way he has earned a loyal cadre of fans and caught the ear of some fine artists, and has shared the stage with the likes of Buddy Miles, Jose Feliciano, David Maxwell, Blue Lou Marini, and Blues Blast Magazine perennial favorite Michael Packer!

Besides releasing four solid albums, he can also be heard on projects from Little Milton, Kim Wilson, Rory Block and Charlie Musclewhite. One Night Live in Iona is Chaz’s first DVD, and this disc provides his fans with something fresh as he has not released a new CD since 2009. This is a recording of the March, 2013 show at Lebanon, Pennsylvania’s Zion of Iona Methodist Church. DePaolo handles the vocal and guitar chores, and he is joined by Hank Kaneshige on bass, Cliff McComas on drums, and Rob Chaseman on the sax.

This DVD is set up so that it can be watched in its entirety, or individual songs can be selected from the main menu. If the entire show is watched there are no pauses between songs, and all of Chaz’s interplay with the audience is included. Up front there is an intentionally grainy introduction that shows the stage being assembled and the arrival of the band. At the end of the disc there is a bonus five-minute question and answer session with DePaolo, in which he sits with an acoustic guitar perched on his knee while he candidly talks to the interviewer.

This is no ordinary church performance -- they made up for a relatively small stage by bringing in a full lighting truss and a fog machine, and visually it is appealing. The image quality is clear (this was shot in HD) and they did not skimp on the cameras, with at least four in play for this performance. Also, the audio portion is very well recorded and mixed, and as far as live recordings this is about as good as you could hope for. This means that there is little to distract the viewer from the band’s performance, and is electrifying.

Chaz has a hearty voice with obvious emotion and his guitar work is complex. His command of electric blues is undeniable, and his playing is flavored with hints of jazz and funk. His technical skills are tempered by a genuine feel for the music, and Chaseman, Kanashige and McComas have a tight connection to DePaolo so that they work together as a single entity.

The band runs through two tunes from, Flirtin’ with the Blues, including the opener, “Chicago 101.” DePaolo starts this short instrumental with a classic 12-bar blues riff, and introduces each member of the band before trading solos with Chaseman. Kanashige and McComas hold down a solid bottom line and deliver the goods without showing off, which would be a temptation with such a small ensemble. The other song from this album is “Stormin’,” a blues rocker with a slightly funkier backline and an assortment of tones that show that his Stratocaster is not a one-trick pony.

Much of the evening was spent covering five songs from his most recent release, Bluestopia. A standout of these was “Woman in a Black Dress.” This is a sexy slow-rolling blues number that Chaz belts out with heartfelt emotion while never missing a cue on the guitar. DePaolo accepts this leadership role with ease and he is truly a bluesman of the highest order.

Chaz draws on his history with The Groundhogs, the English band that he fronted for 2 ½ years, by including two of their songs. “No More Doggin” is a fun rock and roll song that can also be found on his Bluestopia album. “Cadillac Baby” is of the same ilk, though on this evening he got the Iona audience involved with a little call and response (and they actually did it!).

Of course, Chaz is first and foremost a guitar player, and he proved it handily with “Voodoo Style Chazy,”his interpretation of Jimi Hendrix’s classic blues rocker. In this same vein, for the encore they pulled out a new song, “Slo Bite,” a tribute to the late Roy Buchanan. DePaolo shows off his chops on this slow-burning instrumental that is packed with innovative guitar pyrotechnics and a dynamic sax interlude from Chaseman.

One Night Live in Iona is a fun DVD that gives great insight into Chaz DePaolo’s live show that is always tight and entertaining. Rumors are that there will soon be a CD with just the audio portion of this show, but the visual part of this package is equally compelling and should not be missed. If you are a fan of electric blues go ahead and splurge for the DVD – chances are good you will watch it again and again!

Mahalo!

Murali Coryell Live CD and DVD Review

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This review was originally published in the April 4, 2013 edition of Blues Blast Magazine. Be sure to check out the rest of the magazine at thebluesblast.com

Murali Coryell – Live

Shake-It-Sugar Records

www.muralicoryell.com

Disc 1 (CD): 11 tracks / 1:12:40

Disc 2 (DVD): 10 tracks / 51:28

When I opened up Murali Coryells’ Live CD set last week, I did not know that I was in for a few surprises. For starters, I have not heard of anybody else with the Coryell surname, with the exception of the astounding fusion guitarist, Larry Coryell. Well, it turns out that Murali is his son. The second surprise was what that this two disc set includes both a CD with 72 minutes of music AND a live performance DVD from another show – what a bonus!

As I said, Murali Coryell was born into a musical family, and he grew up in the Northeast surrounded by great musicians such as Carlos Santana and Miles Davis. He started on the drums, but switched to blues guitar after being exposed to B.B. King’s Live at the Regal, which should be in any blues fan’s collection. Mostly self-taught, he has played both as a sideman and with his own bands since the late 1980s. Over the years he has released at least seven of his own albums (by my count), as well as a neat collaboration with his father and his brother, Julian.

The first disc in his Live collection is the CD, Live at Club Helsinki, which was recorded on July 30, 2012 at the fabulous club in Hudson, New York. Murali takes care of the guitars and vocals, with Dorian Randolph on drums, Vince Leggiere on bass, Bill Foster on guitar, and Stacey Waterous on the sax. Cameron Melville (the owner of Club Helsinki) sits in on a few tracks on the B-3 organ, too. This disc is mostly original songs, with a couple neat covers, including Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On.”

After a quick intro, the set kicks off with “In the Room with Jimi,” which is a neat way to find out what Murali is all about. He has a smoky voice that doesn’t sound the least bit like Connecticut, and his guitar skills are formidable. As he cut loose with powerful riffs over Randolph’s machine gun drums, it is apparent that he is not a carbon copy of his dad, but rather has become his own man.

Despite the Hendrix-inspired first track, Coryell is not a flashy player and there is a nice mixture of genres on this disc. The solidly-written original songs are firmly rooted in the traditions of the blues. For example, “I Can’t Give You Up” is an upbeat tune in the 70’s R&B tradition that borrows a refrain from Traffic’s “Feelin’ Alright” that turns into a sing-along with the audience. From there they segue into “I Could’ve Had You,” and this Smokey Robinson-style ballad manages to put into words the feelings that any man with a lost love has felt.

The sleeping giant of Live at Club Helsinki is Freddie King’s “Love Her with a Feeling” a 10-minute slow-grinding blues jam. The band is totally in the pocket on this one with Randolph and Leggiere holding down the bottom line under an onslaught of guitars, horns, distortion and 60-cycle hum. Listening to Waterous soar on the sax and Coryell howl on the guitar, I am reminded of why I got into music in the first place.

The music is great throughout, and I like the banter that Murali throws out to introduce songs, but find the way the CD was edited to be a bit off. The fade-ins and cutoffs of some of the tracks are very abrupt, and this is quite a distraction when trying to get into the live performance vibe. Despite this small criticism, it is a very good disc, and it is certainly worth making the time to listen to it.

The second disc is the DVD, Live at Roots & Blues, which was taped on August 14, 2010 at the festival in Salmon Arm, British Columbia. This one features a more bare bones set-up, with Coryell on vocals and guitar, Randolph on drums, Henry Oden on the bass and Dave Fleschner sitting in on the keys. All of the songs in this set are originals with the exception of his finale of Sam Cooke’s “Bring it on Home to me.”

This late afternoon / early evening set is captured by at least five cameras, and everybody gets some screen time. This performance has plenty of guitar and popping bass and maybe not quite enough drums for me, but overall it is still super listenable, and it is certainly enjoyable to watch. The band is tight, and it was a good move getting Fleishner to join in as he adds a whole new element to their sound.

The set list is a bit different than the Club Helsinki show, but the level of professionalism is the same. Their festival show starts out with “Sugar Lips,” which was a good choice as it is a really strong song and provides the viewer with the opportunity to compare it to the version on the other disc, and find out that Murali Coryell’s live show is consistently good. As I have already gassed on too long here I will not give a track-by-track account, but will simply say that this was a fun show and I would love to get the chance to see Murali perform in person some day.

After playing both discs I was struck with how unique Murali Coryell’s guitar tone and voice are. I can play any track and know just by the sound that it is him, which is a great compliment. Live is over two hours of great music for the money, and both the CD and DVD are worth the money. By becoming familiar with these discs, you will gain an appreciation of his formidable live performance skills, so you should give them a try!

Mahalo!

Technical Pro DVB80 Professional CD / DVD / Karaoke Player Review

Greetings!

In the digital world, audio equipment keeps progressing so quickly that formats drop by the wayside pretty frequently. If you had told me 10 years ago that I would never use any of my CDs anymore I would have thought you were a nutjob. Well, it has happened, and nowadays my entire music library is on my computer, and shared with my phone, iPad and iPods.

Despite these advances, I still need to bring a CD player to my shows as people always seem to bring along a CD that they want to play a track from, or if somebody requests karaoke (shudder). I am still stuck in the dinosaur days of CD+G for my karaoke library, BTW.

Well, my Numark dual disk player recently pooped the bed and I was loathe to spend much on a replacement, and decided to try the Technical Pro DVB80. It met my format requirements, came with rack mount tabs (1U) and was dirt cheap.

The DVB80 will play back a dizzying array of formats, including DVD, DVD-R, DVD-RW, VCD, CD-R, CD-RW, MP3, Kodak CD and CD+G. So you can watch movies, play music, view photos, or do karaoke with onscreen playback. By the way, this is a region-free DVD player (PAL/ NTSC), so it will play discs from other countries too. It is not Blueray compatible, though, but what do you expect for 90 bucks? As an added bonus you will find an SD card slot and a USB port on the front, so you can use these as music or photo sources too.

On the back you will find two microphone inputs (1/4-inch TRS) that can be used for karaoke or if the DJ is too cheap to buy a mixer. There are two RCA audio outs and a 5.1 RCA set-up that goes along with a Dolby AC-3 decoder so you can use your surround sound system. Oodles of video output jacks are also available, including YCbCr/YUV, RF DIN, Coax, CVBS, VGA, digital signal fiber optic.

All of these features are crammed into a normal-sized package and the DVB80 player measures (19" w/brackets) x 2.5" x 10" and comes in at around 6 pounds. It is capable of running on 110 or 220V systems, so it will work in pretty much any civilized country as long as you have the correct power cable (this player uses a removable IEC cord). A full-function remote control is included, which makes cuing up tracks a lot easier.

Prior to getting this player I had no experience with Technical Pro’s products, but they have not disappointed me. The players works well and cues up tracks nicely. There is no added noise to the audio output, and the picture quality is as good as non-Blueray players get. Overall it is a nice piece of equipment, and I hope it holds up better than my Numark player did.

My only gripe is that I do not think this player was originally designed to be a rack-mounted unit. The tabs are flimsy, and the metal that makes up the chassis is thin, so the whole thing sags quite a bit when it is bolted into place. I put shims between mine and rack units above and below it so it cannot flop around.

I think the Technical Pro DVB80 is a good deal, with a list price of $159.00 and a smoking hot street price of $88.95. This includes the remote, rack mount tabs and a 1-year warranty. It is a lot of player for the money!

Mahalo!