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more keening soul ballads, ‘A Lonesome Way’ is a melodic poppy song and we bow out with
the bluesy ‘Hard Time Letting Go’ with its lovely breathy brass and skipping percussion. I was
very impressed by this band and their album (their second), their music is very subtle (too
subtle?) with its nods to classic American tracks from Muscle Shoals and Memphis.

Graham Harrison

Mickey Jupp—Up Snakes, Down Ladders—Conquest
Records ASIN: B0B4SJH4T1

Mickey Jupp emerged from the Pup Rock scene in the 70s and
seemed to be heading for the big time like his contemporaries
Dr. Feelgood and Nick Lowe but he didn’t quite make it. He
‘retired’ to the Lake District where he has continued to make
multiple home recordings and some of these are collected on
this new album. ‘I Love to Boogie’ starts us off rocking – it
could be Jerry Lee Lewis, then the title track - laid back funk a

la Little Feat, ‘Why Don’t You Don’t’ is a poignant mid-paced
rocker with some nice Cajun accordion. And so we carry on,
well-written songs with a nice turn of phrase – “I’m drowning my sorrows but my sorrows are
learning to swim” - all delivered in a seemingly effortless flow of old skool R&B and rock -
check out ‘Get Hot’ and ‘Bad News Can Travel Slow’.

‘Lonely Boy’ is a melodic rolling boogie with an almost acoustic backing and ‘I Beg Your
Pardon (You Heard)’ is more classic rock and roll, while ‘I Threw Myself at You (and Missed)’
is a country-flavoured blues with sad lyrics that the title undermines every time it comes
round.

I like the easy rolling ‘The Blues Ain’t What They Used To Be’ and the closing ‘Pilot’ (originally
written in 1975) is a heart-breaking acoustic song of lost love. These are wonderfully well-
written and delivered songs which probably won’t change the world – which is just as well
because Mickey has said “At 78 I don’t want my career being resurrected!”.

Graham Harrison

Geoff Muldaur—His Last Letter—Moon River Music

Sub-Titled ‘The Amsterdam Project” this wonderful double CD set,
with a magnificent book, documenting the individual cuts and
explaining the rationale for their inclusion in this stunning

collection is a must for anyone who considers her or himself a
connoisseur of blues and roots music. Priced at about £42 for a 2
CD set or £71 for the vinyl version it is one for the Christmas list
(in September!)

Originally issued in 2021, this is Muldaur’s first solo album since
2003 and in it he pays his respects to artists from the fields of
jazz, blues, folk, country and music written for the stage, who
have affected him over the years. Music includes: