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Mike Morgan and the Crawl—The Lights Went Out In
Dallas—Must Have Music/ Proper

Born in Dallas, TX, Mike Morgan was a motorcycle racer
before applying himself seriously to playing blues guitar. He
wears an eye-patch over his right eye as the result of a racing

crash.

Morgan founded The Crawl in the mid-80s with the late
harmonica player Lee McBee. The band’s repertoire and
delivery of right-on Texas Blues, placed them alongside
Anson Funderburgh And The Rockets and Ronnie Earl’s Broadcasters. Nice place to be.

The last album by the band was in 2008 when ‘Stronger Every Day’ was released. Mike said he
was “…ready for a break from the road and full time gigging”. In 15 years since then Mike
managed a motorcycle dealership in the Dallas area. During that time Mike was playing mostly
local gigs and as he puts it “very part time”. The shop closed in 2018 and Mike decided to start
focusing on music again. Whoops! Covid19… So, at last, four years later…here it is! And a
great job it is too.

Thirteen tracks, much in the same mould as before. The Crawl is ably enhanced by the
presence of some stunning guitar talent. Anson Funderberg does some choice work on the
opener, the Jerry McCain special ‘Ding Dong Daddy’ and later the band is embellished by
guitar work from Reo Casey on the excellent ‘Working For the Man’, and by Shawn Pittman
who contributes some exemplary work on the tribute to Mike’s hero, the song simply called
‘Lazy Lester’. Dallas keyboard wizz Christian Dozzler exercises his fingers on a couple of tracks

too.

This is a cracker and there is little doubt that despite his (far too long) absence from the north
Texas music scene, Mike has moved up a notch or two. Let’s hope he gets the breaks to make
the Crawl a big name well beyond the boundaries of the Lone Star State.

Ian K McKenzie

Mean Mary—Portrait of a Woman Part 1—Woodrock
Records

OMG, how have I missed this lady? Stunning banjo work,
excellent 6 and 12 string guitar playing, vocal skills to die for
and song writing talent par excellence. This is an acoustic and

ethereal delight.

Mary James was born in Geneva, Alabama, but the family moved
home to just south of the Alabama border in Florida. Blessed
with a father who enjoyed seeing the world, Mary and her

family lived a nomadic life during which time she learned to play the banjo well enough to