Blues Blast Magazine Album Review: Southern Avenue – Southern Avenue

Good day!

This CD review was originally published in the May 11, 2017 edition of Blues Blast Magazine. Be sure to check out the rest of the magazine at www.bluesblastmagazine.com

Southern Avenue – Southern Avenue

Stax Records

www.southernavenueband.com

www.concordmusicgroup.com

10 tracks / 38:47

Southern Avenue is a street that cuts across Memphis, and it also happens to be then name of a band that does a marvelous job of representing all of the musical sounds of this diverse city. Their eponymous debut album takes a solid guitar-blues base and then captures pieces of many genres, including gospel, rhythm and blues, soul, rock, jazz, and even a touch of country. This is American music at its finest, and to top it off the band is signed to the newly revived Stax record label!

The band’s guitarist, Ori Naftaly, came to the United States from Israel to compete in the 2013 International Blues Competition. He decided to stay, and after touring on his own for a while he joined up with a powerful vocalist from Memphis, Tierinii Jackson, and things just clicked. Southern Avenue was born, and Tikyra Jackon (Tiernii’s sister) pitched in on drums and backing vocals, with Daniel McKee on bass and Jeremy Powell on keyboards. Within a year, the band was touring and playing festivals, was chosen to represent Memphis at the IBC, and got signed to the aforementioned Stax record deal.

Southern Avenue is a fresh and original release, with nine new songs that were written by Ori and Tiernii, and one cool cover. The disc was cut at Inside Sounds in Memphis and Zebra Ranch in Coldwater Mississippi, and Kevin Houston took care of production, recording and mixing. You may be familiar with Houston from his work with the North Mississippi Allstars, Lucero, and Patty Griffin.

The set kicks off with a hard-hitter, “Don't Give Up,” with a cool acoustic intro that quickly evolves into a blazing country rocker with a little help from the slide guitar of Luther Dickinson (also a member of the Allstars). But the real shining star here is Tierinii, who has parlayed her previous experience of singing in church and cover bands into a true leading lady role. Her voice is nothing but soulful; it is powerful and clear, and her range is certainly enviable.

Next up on the songlist is “What Did I Do,” an upbeat soul tune that features organ from Powell, sweet vocal harmonies from the Jackson sisters, and tight horns from Houston and Suavo Jones (the Bo-Keys). This is followed by the jazzy R&B of ““It’s Gonne Be Alright” and the lone cover tune on Southern Avenue: “Slipped Tripped and Fell In Love.” The latter is a neat tune that was written by George Jackson and recorded by Clarence Carter in 1971. It has since been re-done a few times, including an interesting 1982 take by Foghat. In this case it is a fun and funky piece that is built around Ori’s guitar and Tikyra’s snare drum. The horns of Art Edmaiston and Marc Franklin join in to make this an epic track that is one of the standouts on the disc.

Tierinii lays down a single ballad for this project, and it gives the listener a chance to really hear what this woman can do, showing that there is a lot going on here. On “Love Me Right” there is a lot of texture to her voice, and she demonstrates the ability to go from smooth to jagged in a heartbeat. The overall effect is very emotional and heartfelt. This is a cool contrast to the in-your-face outrage of “Rumble,” which includes the soon to be classic lines: “You can see the crazy on my face / You can smell it running through my veins.” This is obviously not a woman to mess with!

This is a relatively short album, and before 40 minutes are up it is over, ending with “Peace Will Come.” This song has gospel lyrics over a country rock beat, and it features a few more Jacksons on guest vocals: Ava, Laurie, and Bradley. This the last opportunity for Naftaly to lay down a guitar solo, and as always it is tasteful and smooth without creeping into the realm of self-indulgence. This song builds consistently to the end, and as it finishes up it is apparent that this was the perfect choice for closing out the set.

Southern Avenue is a hit, and after just one listen it is obvious why this band was the hometown choice for the International Blues Challenge. The band is worthy of the Stax Records label, and this is one of the best debut albums of the year. It deserves a listen, and be sure to take a peek at their website as they have a heavy touring schedule through the end of summer, including shows all over the states and a few festivals in the Netherlands. If this album is any indication of what their live show is like, it would be a great idea to make the time to seek them out!

Blues Blast Magazine Album Review: Lazer Lloyd

Good day!

This CD review was originally published in the May 30, 2015 edition of Blues Blast Magazine. Be sure to check out the rest of the magazine at www.bluesblastmagazine.com

Lazer Lloyd – Lazer Lloyd | Album Review

Lots of Love Records

www.lazerlloyd.com

12 tracks / 56:01

There are not exactly a ton of blues albums coming out of Israel, but fortunately for us one of the most talented artists around, Lazer Lloyd, is the country’s blues statesman. His new eponymous album is a departure from the tasty acoustic folk blues that he perfected on Lost on the Highway, and this blend of electric blues and rock is a winner!

Lazer Lloyd has taken quite a journey to get to this point in life. He was born in New York (his birth name is Eliezer Blumen), and he started playing the guitar when he was 15. After attending Skidmore College he drew the notice of producer Gary Tallent (from the E Street Band) and was ready to continue his music career in Nashville when another opportunity presented itself. After playing a gig with the late Ray Shlomo Carlebach (The Singing Rabbi), he decided to visit Israel and he figured out that was where his calling was. For the past 20 years he has been using that as his home base, and been busy gigging, recording, touring, and raising a family.

Lazer Lloyd is a powerful collection of twelve songs, with all but one being written by Lloyd. He is the frontman, harp guy, and guitarist, and he is joined by a seriously dangerous backline that features Moshe Davidson on bass, Elimelech Grundman on drums, and Kfir Tsairi on the keys. He co-produced the album with Yocheved Seidman and all of the tracks were cut at a studio in Tel Aviv.

Though Mr. Lloyd has a wonderfully strong voice and good harmonica chops, his most notable talent is his uncanny guitar feel and tone. He is a bit of a gear hound and is always searching for the perfect sound, but electronics are only the icing on the cake. Without his fingers channeling the mojo from his soul, it would not be possible to produce the killer tone that he achieves.

This disc is a journey through blues and rock, and all of the songs should please blues fans and guitar aficionados alike. If you like traditional blues, “Time to Love” is as close as you are going to get, though Lloyd does throw a few jazz chords into the mix. There is also a little country rock in “Rockin’ in the Holy Land,” which features some slick harmonica work from the man, as well as a little insight into how he ended up in Israel.

But this album is most populated by catchy blues-rock, including the opener “Burning Thunder,” the extra greasy “Out of Time,” and the poppy “Love Yourself.” The latter is ripe for airplay, and could certainly be a great opportunity for Lloyd to get some radio time in the states.

This is all good, but where Lazer Lloyd really shines is with “Set My Soul Free,” an awesome 1970s style psychedelic blues-rock song that is chock full of licks that would make Robin Trower jealous. This song has everything: smooth guitar virtuosity, fat bass from Davidson, and amazing drums courtesy of Grundman. In fact, the drums have a tremendous presence, and at times it sounds like a drum solo that just happens to have a song happening on top of it.

Then there are a couple of softer songs to round things out. Notably, there is an acoustic cover of “Dock of the Bay” that transforms it from Otis Redding’s easygoing melancholy tune into a stone cold bummer. The other is Lloyd’s testimony, “Whole Heart,” a soft blues-rock ballad that closes out the set with a touch of Hammond organ from Tsairi.

Though all of the songs are very good musically, his lyrics might be even more powerful. They are not terribly fancy, but they are heartfelt and most seem autobiographical. They are a portfolio of sadness, hope, love, and faith. There is a spiritual feel to much of it, but this is not a preachy or religious album – instead, the words come across as personal and heartfelt.

With his new disc, Lazer Lloyd shows once again that he has strong writing skills, a mature voice, and guitar skills that are hard to match. Each of the dozen tracks has a different feel and they are sequenced perfectly so that this is project is a complete picture. It would be a shame to cherrypick a few songs off this album, as they are all winners. So, do yourself a favor and buy the whole disc, not just a few tracks from your favorite online seller. Also, if you go to his website you will see that he is touring Israel and the United States extensively through the end of the year (including my home town!), so make of note when he is coming to your area so you can catch his live act. It will certainly be a worthy use of your time!

Blues Blast Magazine Album Review: Lazer Lloyd – Lost on the Highway

Hello!

This CD review was originally published in the December 12, 2013 edition of Blues Blast Magazine. Be sure to check out the rest of the magazine at www.bluesblastmagazine.com

Lazer Lloyd – Lost on the Highway

Blues Leaf Records

www.lazerlloyd.com

www.bluesleaf.com

13 tracks / 54:44

I have been listening to the blues for most of my life and had never run into a blues record from Israel before, but this first one is setting the bar high. I recently had the opportunity to listen to Lazer Lloyd’s newest album, Lost on the Highway, and it certainly gave me a lot to think about.

Lazer Lloyd was born in New York as Eliezer Blumen, and he started playing guitar at the age 15. After attending Skidmore College his music career turned the corner, and he was about to go to Nashville to work with producer Gary Tallent (also Springsteen’s bassist) when he found another calling. After being asked to play at the Millinery Center Synagogue with the late Ray Shlomo Carlebach (The Singing Rabbi), he accepted the challenge of taking his music to Israel, where he has lived for the past 19 years. He has been busy plying his trade, working with various bands as well as his own power trio, Yoon.

The Lost on the Highway album cover advertises “Solo Recordings” and that is exactly what he delivers. This CD includes thirteen original tracks, and features Lloyd in the singing role, as well as playing six and 12-string acoustic guitars, with a little harmonica thrown in for good measure. And when you listen to his songs, you are getting to the roots of the blues and folk, with no filler added.

“Lost on the Highway” is the first track, and it is raw blues that sounds like it was cut live in one take, which is a good thing in this case. From the first strains of his acoustic guitar, the listener can hear that Lloyd has serious chops, with confident fingerpicking and slide work. His voice is pleasantly full and strong as he tells the traditional lament of a man on the road, adding the bonus destination of Tel Aviv to the usual list of cities that you find in songs like this.

Lloyd does not speak much of his homeland on this album, and he only lightly touches on the standard blues subjects, instead focusing on man’s relationship with spirituality. “Higher Ground” is about finding one’s place in the world, and this folk blues song features beautiful fingerpicking and intense harp interludes. This is backed up with a heartfelt ballad, “Been Trying,” which is laden with sentiments about trying to lead the good life. This is one of my favorite tracks on this disc.

He lets his guitar do the talking on “Swamp Meditation,” a slow rolling Delta blues instrumental. He does not do anything fancy here, but he already proved his technical skills on the first four tracks. Here he demonstrates his feel for the instrument and the song, and the results are impressive. I thought that “Back Porch” would be another a capella tune, but after a 3 ½ minute intro he launched into verse. This song is notable in his use of guitar chords that are not generally used in blues music, but they work well here to add an exotic mood to the song.

“Politician” is a cranky commentary that relays the frustration we all have with our elected officials. As he does not call out any parties or policies, this is more of a social commentary than a political song. After skirting the political minefield, be takes a tasteful approach to discussing his prayer relationship in “Talk,” as well as a trip to the Garden of Eden in “Man” and the judgment day on “Landlord Blues.” He put a lot of thought into writing these songs so that he could talk about what is on his heart without being preachy or in your face.

Lazer Lloyd’s Lost on the Highway provides a fresh take on the blues and it is definitely worth a listen. His guitar playing alone is worth the price of admission, and when you add in his vocals and strong songwriting skills, this disc is a winner. He toured the United States this past summer in support of his new CD, and I hope he comes back again soon so I can catch one of his performances. From what I heard here it should be a show to remember.

Mahalo!