Blues Blast Magazine Album Review: Brad Vickers and His Vestapolitans – That’s What They Say

Good day!

This CD review was originally published in the December 3, 2015 edition of Blues Blast Magazine. Be sure to check out the rest of the magazine at www.bluesblastmagazine.com

Brad Vickers & His Vestapolitans – That’s What They Say

ManHat Tone Records

www.bradvickers.com

15 tracks / 47:31

What exactly is a Vestapolitan, anyway? Vestapol (one of many spellings) is an open guitar tuning and the term is commonly used to describe the relationship between different chords. Brad Vickers uses this type of tuning, and he also was looking for a cool name that started with V for his band. It looks like he solved his dilemma, as Brad Vickers and the Vestapolitans certainly is catchy! Fortunately this group has a lot more going on than just a clever name, as their unique blend of American roots and blues is both entertaining and enthralling.

Brad, a Long Island native, is a singer, songwriter, and guitarist with impressive credentials. He has played with Bo Diddley, Hubert Sumlin, Odetta, Chuck Berry, and Jimmy Rogers, not to mention appearing on two of Pinetop Perkins’ Grammy-nominated albums. He has put out five albums of his own with his Vestapolitans since 2008 and the latest, That’s What They Say, is the best of the bunch. Vickers was joined on this project by a core crew of Margey Peters on vocals, bass, and fiddle, Bill Rankin on drums, and Dave Gross on the double bass, banjo, mandolin, percussion and piano. There were a lot more people involved in the studio, as you will soon see.

The album starts out with Tampa Red’s “Seminole Blues” and the trio of Vickers, Peters, and Rankin give this song a lovely acoustic treatment with jangly bottleneck guitar and a backbeat drums. Then the band launches into the traditional “Don’t You Love Your Daddy No More,” which was taught to Brad by Leadbelly. Matt Cowan and Jim Davis brought their sax and clarinet in on this one, which give it a cool New Orleans ragtime feel. Brad takes the lead vocals on both of these, and his voice is mellow with a laidback drawl.

After these openers, the remaining songs (a baker’s dozen!) are originals that were written by Vickers and Peters. These two have mature song-writing skills, and they penned clever lyrics to go along with the fantastic music that is heard throughout.

It sound like they had a lot of fun putting together That’s What They Say. There is a bit of Chuck Berry in “Another Lonesome Road” which is a neat duet with Brad and Margey on vocals, and a little yakety sax from Jim Davis. They also has a blast with “Mama’s Cookin’,” and Peters’ litany of international treats will get your mouth watering as she is accompanied by Davis and Matt Cowan on sax and Little Mikey on backing vocals. Both of these tunes are timeless, and sound like they could have been recorded any time in the past sixty years.

The band also cut an awesome ragtime track, “21st Century Rag,” which provides Margey and Charles Burnham the opportunity to bring out their fiddles. Like the title suggests, this song recounts how the things we have become used to are falling by the wayside. This is a funny contrast as this song has a definite old-time feel to it with its richly acoustic tone, including nice round double bass from Dave Gross.

One of the standout tracks is the a capella song, “Fightin’,” and you will find that it is certainly the most serious of the bunch. The lyrics are a wonderful blend of gospel harmonies from Vickers, Peters, and Mikey Junior, and they are a poignant conviction of the terrible things that people do and the way we treat each other nowadays.

Brad Vickers and the Vestapolitans have a winner with That’s What They Say, thanks to solid songwriting and their excellent performance in the studio. If you are a fan of roots or Americana music it would be in your best interests to check it out for yourself and pick up a copy if it strikes your fancy. If you want to see their live show you are in luck if you are on the east coast of the United States. The band has plenty of shows coming up in the Philadelphia/New York/New Jersey area as well as in Florida. Go to their website for details on shows and how to buy their CD.

Blues Blast Magazine Album Review: The Hep Cat Boo Daddies – Down Right Nasty

Good day!

This CD review was originally published in the March 12, 2015 edition of Blues Blast Magazine. Be sure to check out the rest of the magazine at www.bluesblastmagazine.com

The Hep Cat Boo Daddies – Down Right Nasty, A Tribute to Sean “Evil” Gerovitz

Mosher Street Records

www.parklaneprod.com

11 tracks / 55:30

If you are not from South Florida you may never have heard of them, but back in the day the Hep Cat Boo Daddies played an intriguing blend of blues, rockabilly and surf music. Though the band went their separate ways in 2010, they recently put together a tribute album dedicated to their bass player who had passed away in 2013. Down Right Nasty, a Tribute to Sean “Evil” Gerovitz is a fine way to remember this departed soul.

The Hep Cat Boo Daddies came about after the demise of Sean Gerovitz and Joel DaSilva’s old psychobilly band, Underbelly. Based out of the Fort Lauderdale area, the band played almost every week at the Poorhouse Bar as a trio with DaSilva on vocals and guitar, Gerovitz on bass, and Randy Blitz on drums. The mostly played live, but they also put out two CDs and a DVD in the mid-2000s. This new album is made up of material culled from their set at the 2004 Fort Lauderdale Riverwalk Blues Fest and their 2005 session at Sun Studios in Memphis, Tennessee. In the final mix for this disc, most of the songs are from the live show.

Their set kicks off with the original studio recording of “The Fatboy Shake,” an instrumental that starts with a Bo Diddley beat and then transitions into a hard-rocking surf tune. From there they change directions and play a live version of John Lee Hooker’s “Boom Boom” with rockabilly-style vocals. On both of these songs, DaSilva shows great prowess on the guitar, so it is not too much of a stretch as they transition in a “You,” a 6-minute AOR jam that could have come from a mid-70s Robin Trower album. This trio rocks!

After this, the rest of Down Right Nasty is all live material. Covers include a hard rocking version of Lazy Lester’s “Sugar Coated Love” (with lounge singer vocals), a slightly sloppy version of Jimi Hendrix’s “Voodoo Child,” and the rockabilly fun of Lil’ Ed & the Blues Imperials’ “Chicken, Gravy and Biscuits.” They threw Alec Rice Miller’s “I’m Just a Playboy” into the mix, and it ends up sounding like an energetic drum solo with a 12-bar blues song laid over the top of it. There is also Ron Holden and the Thunderbirds’ 1940 song, “My Babe” with blistering guitar work, punk rock drums and a jamming bass interlude. This is the standout track of the album and it really captures what the band was all about.

Their original tunes are very solidly written, including the more conventional blues of “Evil Woman,” a nine-minute live track. Guest artist Joe Saint brings his classy organ work to “Beale St. Shuffle” which provides a fun break from the rest of the guitar-centered playlist. Lastly, they chose to wrap things up with their usual show closer, “Double Surf,” a high-energy surf rock instrumental.

As you can see, there is a little something for everybody in this CD. So, if you only listen to classic blues material, the Hep Cat Boo Daddies’ Down Right Nasty, a Tribute to Sean “Evil” Gerovitz will surely expand your horizons. If you give it a chance you might even want to track down their previous albums, Long Time Comin’ and hotrodsexgod, as they were a seriously tight and creative trio who gave it their all in their live show and in the studio. Check it out for yourself to see if it is your cup of tea!

Sauce Boss – 100% Pure | Album Review

Sauce Boss – 100% Pure | Album Review

Self Release

www.sauceboss.com

12 tracks / 43:07

Not too many one-man band blues albums come across my desk, so Sauce Boss’ 100% Pure really stood out when it arrived in the mail. After giving it a listen or two, I found out that it is a fun disc that has a lot to say for itself!

The Sauce Boss is Bill Wharton, and it is not just a clever nickname – he actually sells his own brand of hot sauce on his website and at his shows. But, more than this, Wharton mixes his loves of music and food together, while also giving back to his Florida community. He donates his time, talents, and gumbo to shelters to help out and lift up the spirits of those that are not as fortunate.

For 100% Pure, Wharton did all of the heavy lifting, performing all of the instrumental parts as well as handling the vocals, songwriting and production chores. The twelve tracks are a fun blend of roots and swampy Florida blues-rock, and he kicks off the set with “Zipper Bird” and right off we learn that the Sauce Boss has the tastiest guitar tone in town. He combines this fuzzy six-string with an array of percussion instruments to obtain a surprisingly full tone, and you will hear that his one-man band concept is not a gimmick – he is the real deal.

For “Marquis de Swamp” (greatest title ever) Bill uses guitar synth to achieve a dark and spooky mood as he howls the vocals with gusto. He then changes gears quickly to play the hopeful “Gonna Be All Right” which features righteous slide work and Latin-tinged rhythms. Wharton digs deep for the vocals for “Chains,” a song about being tied down by the ones we care about.

The standout track on 100% Pure is “Delta 9 Blues,” an ode to the demon weed. For this song, Bill dirties up Delta blues with heavily processed slide guitar and combines it with innovative rhythms to get a very dark effect. But the mood does not stay down for very long, as after this track he tears off “Peckerwood,” a super-funky country tune with a really catchy guitar hook.

Many of the Sauce Boss’ songs are personal, and he has a fascinating life story, starting with his childhood in the Windy City. In “Chicago Combat Zone,” as Bill rips into his resonator guitar he references the tale of his daddy being mugged and beaten. And in “Outlaw Blues” he gives an amusing narrative of his brush with the law for an unauthorized agricultural project in the Sunshine State.

There is a little bit of everything on 100% Pure from the Sauce Boss, and it is all presented with the intention of providing the listener with a good time. Check it out if you get a chance, and head over to his web site at www.sauceboss.com to check out his gig schedule, as his live show must be something to see. You will find his gumbo recipe there too!