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Days’ and Leadbelly’s ‘’Bring Me A Little Water Sylvie’ and everyone joins in on
Stephen Foster’s ‘Hard Times Come Again No More’ featuring stand-out vocals
from Eleanore Shanley.
Disc 2 begins with a bluesy version of ‘My Girl’ (actually Leadbelly’s ‘Black Girl’)
and Mississippi John Hurt’s ‘Slidin’ Delta’ sounds great with Hans’ guitar and
beautiful harp from Christian Dozzler. Mr. and Mrs. Bibb are back to play Eric’s
signature song ‘Needed Time’ with Hans, and Guy Davis joins Hans to sing and
play harp on ‘Going Down Slow’. Britain’s Dana Gillespie sings ‘Blue Blood’ and
the risqué ‘Fsk Blues’ and Hans does very moving versions of Blind Lemon Jefferson’s
‘One Kind Favour’ and Skip James’ ‘Hard Time Killing Floor’ with his trademark
slide guitar.
Christian Dozzler is back to join Hans for a lovely take on ‘Sitting on Top of the
World’ and everyone and their dogs join in on the six and a half minute finale
‘People Get Ready/One Love’. This is a great way to celebrate Hans’ birthday and
a career that has seen him being one of the greatest blues slide guitar players in
Europe with a record featuring a pleasing variety of blues styles and also different
performers.
Graham Harrison
Brandon Santini—Which Way Do We Go? —
MoMojo Records ASIN :B0DZ48PWFZ
In this case the answer to the title’s question is
South! Brandon is now based in Illinois but to
record this album he returned to Memphis where
he learned to sing and play harmonica in the clubs
of Beale Street in the early 2000s. This is his
seventh album and was produced by Jeff Jensen
and features songs written by Brandon, with
occasional help from Jensen and Timo Arthur.
The opening title track lazily unwinds like the
Mississippi River flowing through Memphis, with
Brandon’s dark, rich vocals and harmonica playing that reveals the influence of
his early hero John Popper. Brandon is joined by Jensen and Arthur (guitars), Cliff
Moore (bass), Ron James (drums) and Jesse James Davis (backing vocals). Tracks
like ‘The War Ain’t Over’, ‘See That Pony’ and ‘Mile After Mile’ are similar mid-tempo
atmospheric songs with chiming electric guitars and Brandon’s voice and harp.
‘Working on a Mystery’ and ‘She Got the Way’ up the pace and ‘Trouble Stay Away’
is kind of semi-acoustic but I’m afraid that I found many of the songs a bit too
samey even though the overall sound is good.
Graham Harrison