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‘Rosa’ is a poignant tale of crossing the Mexico / USA border and all that it entails, heightened
by the blast of some Mexican horns. The heavy drums of ‘Thought I Had A Problem’ drive it along
nicely and the album closes with the simple stripped back sounds of acoustic guitar and fiddle
to accompany his voice on ‘Stepping Stones’.

First thing to say is that this is not a blues album. However, if Americana is your bag then this
could be an album for you. Bob Bradshaw is an accomplished songwriter producing well
constructed lyrics that dovetail well into his compositions. He has surrounded himself with a set
of first class musicians and collaborators to produce a fine album overall. At times this album
reminded me of Elvis Costello with shades of Nick Lowe so if that is your thing be sure to check
this album out.

Ged Wilson

Lee Oskar—She Said Mahalo—Lee Oscar Productions

Lee Oskar doesn’t need any introduction as he is well established
both as a consummate harmonica player and a successful busi-
ness man with his own brand range of harmonicas used the
world over. Of course he shot to fame with the hit ‘Low Rider’
whilst playing harmonica for War back in the day and he has now
just released an album of ten instrumentals that feature his well
honed harmonica skills.

‘Caribbean Love Song’ is a nice gentle opener that indeed takes
you to the Caribbean. ‘Be Happy’ explores some more great
rhythms to underpin his punchy harmonica work. ‘Morning Rush’ has a reggae beat that morphs

in with some eastern influences and bluesy slide guitar, really liked this one. The title track ‘She
Said Mahalo’ is very laid back and almost has that feel about it that it could be used for theme
music for a tv series.

‘Most Favored Nation’ is back on a reggae footing that leads into a minor blues whilst there is a
nice jazz funk vibe to ‘Funky Rhetoric’ with some really clever high register harmonica work.
The album closes with ‘One World Fist’ which has a nice ska type feel about it.

This album is not really blues but the fact that it features the great harmonica work of Lee Oskar
means it will appeal to a lot of blues fans. Oskar is mainly playing his “Melody Maker” range of
harmonicas here which means it’s going to sound more like Stevie Wonder than Little Walter so
not your usual rasping harp blasts but something more melodic.

This album is well produced with some great musicianship throughout although I would say
overall that the album is rather safe, not edgy. Oskar really nails the simple melodies and if you
are a fan of the harmonica then please give this a spin.

Ged Wilson