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to recent work by other younger black artists (such as Gary Clark Jr. and Son Little) who also
combine blues with more modern musical styles.

Graham Harrison

JD Taylor—The Coldwater Sessions—VizzTone ASIN:
B08B3MTFWZ

Despite singing and playing harp with the group Little Boys Blue
for twenty five years this is JD Taylor's first solo album, it
features 11 original songs recorded at Jim Dickinson's Zebra
Ranch Studio near near Coldwater, Mississippi and uses
musicians from the Grammy-nominated Southern Avenue, plus
Hammond organ by Rev. Charles Hodges. We get off to a good

start with 'Got Me Where You Want Me’ a relaxed blues shuffle
that sounds really authentic but the nice Hammond from Hodges
and the jazzy backup vocals just add a little extra something—not
forgetting JD's big-toned harp solo. ‘Ooh Wee' is another shuffle where we get some Stax-style
brass and chicken-pickin' guitar, more brass on 'Nothing Left To Say' a slow soul ballad and
'Cocomo' is a laid-back shuffle with understated guitar and harp.

I loved 'At First Glance', a melodic soul ballad in the Percy Sledge mould, whereas 'By All Means'
ups the tempo as does 'If It Ain't Good' a slab of funk with brass and stinging blues guitar. 'Honey
Honey Baby' is pure Jimmy Reed - a chugging 12-bar with that Reed-style blow bend harp and
'Anastasia' is a moody slow blues featuring chromatic harmonica and we play out with 'Coldwater
Swing' an instrumental where everyone gets to step up and take a solo, with JD again on the
chromatic. There is nothing new here, but I did like its mix of blues and soul sounds which I found
quite original and added a pleasing variety. JD is a good singer and harp player and all the playing
is very good throughout but Charles Hodges’ Hammond is particularly excellent.

Graham Harrison

Bobby Lewis—Mumblin’, Tossin’ and Turnin’—Jasmine
Records JASCD 1034

Now THIS is R&B the way it should be, accept no substitute. Yep,
the real deal. All tracks recorded over a ten year period, 1952 -
1962 and only one big hit among ‘em: Topping the Billboard pop
chart for seven weeks and the R&B charts for ten, selling upward
of three million copies in the process, the title of that massive hit
was, ‘Tossin’ And Turnin’’ (1961).

The cd contains twenty seven thumpin’, pumpin’ jump blues,

including his first record cut for Chess, the controversial and
definitely non-PC ‘Mumbles Blues’. Comprehensive booklet notes from Roger Dopson, label shots
on the inside of the case, and strangely, the artist’s photo is on the back. (Why not the front?)

Bobby Lewis was born in 1925 and sadly died in April this year (2020), aged 95, it would've been

nice for him to have known about this release, hopefully he did.

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