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with brass, then it's Johnny Nolan’s moody ‘The Way You Do’ with Rick Estrin’s

chromatic harp and an Otis Rush-like guitar solo from Tommy, while Johnny Nitro’s
‘One More Night’ is driving Texas blues with a stinging lead guitar solo.

‘Can’t Catch a Break’ is an original slow blues with tinkling piano and ‘Woke Up and

Smelled the Coffee’ is a song by his contemporary Chris Cain, ‘Keep Your Dog Inside’
is a semi-acoustic novelty song with Tommy on resonator and Deana Bogart on backup

vocals. Deana is back to play sax on Johnny “Guitar” Watson’s ‘She Moves Me’ and ‘A
Fool for You’ is another classic R&B song by Ray Charles, with more biting guitar from
Tommy, as well as his soulful vocals.

The Painkillers here are Mike Emerson (keyboards), Randy McDonald (bass/vocals)
and Bowen Brown (drums), with Kid Andersen also contributing rhythm guitar, piano,
organ and bass. ‘Freight Train’ is an Elmore James-style blues with slashing electric
slide and piano from Jim Pugh, there’s more electric slide on the catchy ‘Everywhere

I Go’, which has Randy McDonald on vocals but Tommy is back singing on Wynonie
Harris’ politically incorrect jump blues ‘Bloodshot Eyes’ (more sax from Ms. Bogart).

Rick Estrin is back on harp for a down home ‘Stroll Out West’ by Eddie Taylor and the

album ends with the Brownie McGhee song ‘Hole in the Wall’ (based on the Magic
Slim version) with blistering organ from Jim Pugh. I’ve really enjoyed Tommy’s last

couple of albums which have tended to combine blues and soul but this one is mainly
blues but still manages to have lots of variety with Tommy showing his mastery of
many different blues guitar styles. The playing and production is also superb

throughout thanks to Mr. Andersen and his cohorts giving it that special Greaseland
seal of quality.

Graham Harrison

Catfish Keith—Shake Me Up—Fish Tail Records

Apparently this is Keith’s 27th. album, it was

recorded at Flat Black Studios in Iowa City by Luke
Tweety and co-produced by Keith and his wife Penny
Cahill, who also engineered. We begin with an

original ‘My Only Little Darlin’ One’ a nice poignant,
romantic song followed by Lottie Kimbrough’s
powerful ‘Rolling Log Blues’ (as also covered by Rory

Block) and then the gospel song ‘Go, I Will Send
Thee’. We get one other original ‘Fuss and Fight’ –
which itself sounds like authentic country blues –

before a series of beautifully-played blues classics; Gary Davis’s ‘Candyman’, Blind
Willie Johnson’s ‘Nobody’s Fault but Mine’, Mississippi John Hurt’s ‘Creole Belle’,
Lonnie Johnson’s ‘Careless Love’ and ‘Blind Blake’s ‘Diddy Wah Diddy’.