Page 47 - BiTS_06_JUNE_2021

The Halley DeVestern Band—Money Ain’t Time—Independent

This timely release from Halley and her band, who are; Halley;

lead vocals, Tom Heinig; bass, Steve Jabas; guitars, keyboards
and vocals, Rich Kulsar; drums and vocals and David M.
Patterson; guitar and vocals, was recorded live at The Studio
Winery, Lake Geneva Wisconsin on September 1st, 2019 in front
of a live audience. On this ten track album the Brooklyn based
band delivers a tight knit combination of blues, soul, funk, rock
and Jazz within the mixture of originals and covers here. The
opening number is the Aretha Franklin Classic ‘Chain Of Fools',
and it is a wise choice for; the echoes of Janis Joplin in Halley’s

muscularly deep and inviting vocals grab your attention and
invade your ears, allowing the band to delve into a percussion driven groove, while a floating
tremolo allows some Hendrix inspired solos to weave in and out. ‘T-Bone Walkers’ ‘Stormy
Monday', features drawling, sweeping brushwork as a resonating, slow burning, distantly desolate
guitar rises to the fore, while over the top, Halley’s pain fuelled emotive vocals deliver a scorching
rendition. Another classic, ‘Dancing In The Streets', is enjoyably re-worked into a crowd pleasing
Texas shuffle, the gently infective tramping, howling guitar and percussion, underpins a rousing

and rallying vocal from Halley. The slow burned melancholic, title number ‘Money Ain’t Time', is a
perfect lament for honesty and integrity, as Halley’s raw vocal, duets and duels with the screeching
and wailing indifferent guitars. In the same vein, Halley and the band deliver a sincere, hurt filled
performance on the ballad ‘American Pain', which laments lost values and the rampantly rising
hypocrisy embedding the world today. An urging, rising hypnotically brooding percussion and bass
line dominates ‘Boil', a polemic on racism, here, Halley infuses her vocal with disgust and rage.

Greatly endorsed!

Brian Harman.

Garry Cogdell—Shortcuts—Independent
deltablues88@gmail.com

As are virtually all artists at the moment, Garry is stranded at
home and has decided to make available this 5 track EP CD. (It
would normally only be available from Garry himself after live
performances). The numbers here are reminders of a career that
has now spanned over fifty years. In this solo performance
Garry uses an acoustic guitar, (a genuine) cigar-box guitar,

hollow-body electric and bass. Here, he delivers a master-class
performance that the clientele of his favourite place to play,
which is St. George’s Country Store in Delaware, would
certainly appreciate and be only too aware of. For those who
are not familiar with his music, they should seek out the album ‘The Bridge', by Garry and his band,
‘The Complainers.’

Garry’s mellow and inviting vocals draw you in, creating a warmly intimate atmosphere, this is
very evident from the opening number, the crisply stark acoustic and vocal hill country inspired

‘Two Tones Calling', a number which he has honed to perfection over the years. The raw and