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“pre-blues” numbers. This could all sound somewhat folksy and contrived, but
doesn’t – Jerron has completely absorbed the nuances of the music and is expressing
himself personally. Yes, he has obviously studied the music, but then matched it with

his own experience. He’s not putting it on, or just recreating what has gone before.

No wonder he’s causing a stir… And even without all that, his music is really rather
wonderful.

Norman Darwen

Mojo Man—Love and Revolution—Continental

Europe CECD 101
(www.mojoman.nl)

This Dutch outfit made their well-received debut

album in 2015, and had recorded a second in 2017, but
they broke up soon afterwards and it still remains in
the can. Now they are back, a big horn-laden ten-piece

with front man Marcel DuPrix on vocals and guitar.

Marcel was inspired by a range of outfits: he names
Otis Redding, Led Zeppelin, The Isley Brothers and The

Rolling Stones as major influences, and they are all fairly obvious on this set as is the
big sound of Stax – try ‘The Losing Blues’, with its tinges of Memphis soul to the vocal,
a slight hint of country to the song itself, and a definite blues inflection in the guitar

work. There is certainly a late 60s/ early 70s sound to many tracks, right from the
rock-tinged opener, ‘Love Revolution’ – but it’s a gospel-tinted rock.

‘Sexy Lady’ is almost psychedelic soul – very Hendrix-y, with a wah-wah pedal on the

guitar – in contrast to the smooth pop-soul of ‘R.I.P.’. ‘Utopia’ is pure psychedelic rock,
whilst ‘Before We Forget’ is a strong deeply-rooted modern blues, and closer
‘Revolution’ is a gutsy-sounding slab of out-and-out blues rock.

An album of contrasts then, but consistently interesting and almost all very bluesy.
It’s worth checking out.

Norman Darwen

Robert Gordon and the Di Maggio Connection—
New Shot NSR03082024

The late Robert Gordon’s albums used to crop up in

the blues sections of London’s record shops in the
early 80s or so. He wasn’t a blues artist though, and

although he was too young to have been one of the
original rockabilly artists (born in Maryland in 1947),
he was strongly inspired by them. He began recording
in 1964, and was kind of associated with punk in the