Dirty Red and the SoulShakers – SoulShakin Album Review

Hello!

This CD review was originally published in the March 28, 2013 edition of Blues Blast Magazine. Be sure to check out the rest of the magazine at thebluesblast.com

Dirty Red & The SoulShakers – SoulShakin

Self Release

www.dirtyredandthesoulshakers.com

9 tracks / 36:32

Recently I have been hearing a lot more blues music coming out of the lower midwest, and I finally got a CD from a band out of Oklahoma City, Dirty Red & the SoulShakers. They have recently self-released their first album, SoulShakin, and it is a real peach!

This group includes most of the band that blues legend Miss Blues has been using since 2007. Last year these guys decided to give the IBC Blues Challenge a go, so they started doing their own thing too. Their leader is Eric “Dirty Red” McDaniel on vocals and harmonica, with Michael Bell on drums, Reece Floyd on bass, Robb Hibbard on guitar, and Joe Intrieri on keys. The SoulShakers have played countless gigs, both with each other and for other projects, so they are super-tight and have no problem finding a groove and sticking with it.

SoulShakin includes nine tracks, all of them originals written by McDaniel, with Mr. Hibbard having co-writing credit on two of them. This album brings on the blues, both lyrically and musically, and is colored with influences of soul, R&B, funk and honky-tonk. It is a clean sounding project that is well-mixed, so credit should go to producers McDaniel and Hibbard as they picked a good team to record, mix and master this work. This is apparent from the very first track, “Cornbread,” which is a funky blues rock song with a neat organ part that provides a cool background. By the way, with the amount of sexual innuendo worked into the lyrics, it is apparent why they call him “Dirty Red” Mc Daniel.

Besides his pen, McDaniel also knows how to use the harp and I find his voice to be pleasantly worn and raspy – broken in, I guess you could say. He puts all of his skills to use on the hard-driving “Shotgun,” which could be yet another euphemism (“My shotgun makes me a man…”). Besides his harmonica solo, Hibbard and Intrieri are also worked into the spotlight; I came away impressed because these guys certainly have some chops. After the frenzied pace of this tune, the slow-boiling “Queen of New Orleans” comes as a welcome break. Bell breaks out the brushes, and his drums and Floyd’s smooth bass sync to create a cool Crescent City vibe as Dirty Red sings the lowdown blues.

The highlight of the SoulShakin for me was the guest appearance by Miss Blues on “Goin Back to Texas.” This walking tempo song is classic guitar-driven blues with heavy doses of organ and harmonica. Hibbard uses an electric guitar tone that is to die for and when Intrieri starts into the organ and McDaniel hits his harp this trio has great interplay. Miss Blues nails her part and her voice certainly nominates her for the queen of the Oklahoma blues; as a former Okie she gets my vote, although it is a shame she is singing about the Lone Star State.

“Hammer” breaks away from the more classical blues sounds and ventures out into the realm of Southern rock. This feeling is helped along by the heavy drums and harder-edged guitar. This is a smooth ride and there is quite a contrast as it segues into “Demons Swallowed Her Soul,” which is all about the voice and the harmonica. With the rest of the instrumentation kept to a minimum, Mc Daniel is able to show off a little, and his voice and harmonica skills are certainly up to the task. At barely two minutes, this is the shortest track on the album.

The SoulShakers put together another ballad for this album, and “Hard Liquor” is a winner. The lyrics are not the expected George Thorogood glorification of alcohol abuse, but are rather clever and touch on the root cause of the drinking. The background music, in particular the organ tone, is just lovely and when combined with the words this becomes a standout track. After this the mood quickly changes for the finale, “Sweet Potato Pie,” which is as hard as it gets. This is the bare bones with no drums as Mc Daniel howls the lyrics and blows a terrific harmonica while Hibbard tears loose on his guitar. What a sweet way to finish up.

Dirty Red & the SoulShakers have done the Lord’s work in putting together their debut album. SoulShakin captures the spirit of the Oklahoma blues scene, and not surprisingly the band is already working on a sophomore effort that should be released later this year. They are out gigging around the state and are still playing with Miss Blue, so be sure to check them out if you are in the neighborhood!

Mahalo!

Musical Theatre West’s Oklahoma! Review

Howdy!

Musical Theatre West assembled a terrific season for their 60th anniversary and they have included one of my top five favorite musicals – Oklahoma! I think every single person in the western hemisphere has seen this musical, either the Academy Award-winning 1955 big screen version (with the smoking hot Shirley Jones and that dreamy Gordon MacRae), or in person. Heck, many of you probably were in the musical in high school…

In case you grew up under an uncultured rock, here are a few key details. This was Rodgers and Hammerstein’s first hit book musical, and it is now 70 years old. It is set in pre-statehood Oklahoma in 1907, and is an age-old love story of men fighting for the love of lovely young prairie gals, and conflict abounds. Besides the title track, there are quite a few great songs, including “Kansas City,” “People Will Say We’re in Love,” and “I Cain’t Say No.” And there is also a Rodgers and Hammerstein dream ballet, which they revisited in subsequent shows, such as Carousel.

Musical Theatre West staffed this show with a live orchestra and a big cast that are led by Davis Gaines as director (his debut in the role), Lee Martino as choreographer and Dennis Castellano as musical director. Apparently this is a symbiotic relationship as the acting, dancing and music were perfectly integrated throughout. Anthony Ward went with a more modern stage design, with sparse sets, and it worked out well, and Jean-Yves Tessier’s lighting and Jessica Olson’s costumes were also very good. The sound was not consistent – the singers were occasionally drowned out by the pit orchestra (which was also mic’d), so I am blaming the sound guys for this one.

Despite the dicey sound, the cast really pulled this show off. The main love triangle of Curley (Bryant Martin), Laurey (Madison Claire Parks) and Jud (Christopher Newell) was perfect. Actually, it is not really a love triangle, as everybody hates Jud, but all three of these actors had a great chemistry with each other and were very believable. Martin and Parks voices were well-matched, which is vital as their duets are integral to the show. And Newell’s take on Jud Fry was appropriately scary and creepy.

Contrasting with this serious relationship is the comedic love triangle of Ado Annie (Teya Patt), Will Parker (Luke Hawkins) and Ali Hakim (Amin El Gamal). Patt’s version of Annie is perhaps the best I’ve seen and her confidence on the stage translates well to the character. Hawkins worked dancing magic but still kept his cowboy persona, and Gamal had perfect comedic timing.

The dancing was universally good, climaxing with the dream ballet sequence. This is never my favorite part of the show as I feel it kills the flow, but it was very well done. Lee Martino’s showed inventiveness with her choreography, and it was very well laid-out, and at times even unabashedly sexy. The ensemble was stocked with capable dancers, and Katya Preiser and Steve Ewing were breathtaking as Dream Laurey and Dream Curly.

For a change, the Carpenter Center was the weak link of this production. The parking guys had their heads in their butts, the temperature of the theatre was freezing, and I have never seen longer restroom lines -- I think all 1000 people at the show must have had to go pee at the intermission. I am willing to forgive this because this is usually a great place to see a show, and the rest of the performance was so great.

Rising above the problems with the venue and the sound, Musical Theatre West really knocked this one out of the park, and it turned out to be a great three hour show! Not only was this the best show I have seen MTW perform, it is the best live version of Oklahoma! I have ever attended. If you are only familiar with the movie version, you are in for a treat if you see this show as there is a lot of stuff they left out of the film.

Oklahoma! closes this Sunday, so you only have a few more opportunities to catch the show, and there are still a few seats available, so check www.musical.org for details. The Carpenter Performing Arts Center is located at 6200 East Atherton Street in Long Beach, on the campus of Cal State Long Beach, and parking is $5.

Mahalo!