Kevin McKendree - Hummers & Strings

Bitrate: 320K/s

Year: 2005
Time: 45:00 
Size: 103,1 MB 
Label: Powerhouse Records
Styles: Blues/Piano Blues
Art: Full 

Tracks Listing:
 1. Boogie #427 - 1:59
 2. From Way Behind - 5:01
 3. Mr. Boo - 3:36
 4. Henry's Dead - 3:09
 5. Let's Go Get Stoned - 3:29
 6. Sixty Sharp Knives - 4:56
 7. Think For Yourself - 2:59
 8. Just Before Sunrise - 3:14
 9. Fuss Bird - 3:40
10. Gone Away - 3:55
11. Funky Kayjay - 3:08
12. Fool's Paradise - 3:17
13. Cansion - 2:30

From the start of this CD, a very spirited version of Lionel Hampton's "Boogie Woogie" (here renamed "Boogie #427), through a set full of boogie-woogie piano (even on non-blues tunes), blues ballads, and New Orleans-style R&B, this is a delightful outing. Kevin McKendree's piano style mixes together boogie-woogie, Ramsey Lewis, and Ray Bryant without sounding like a copy of any of them. He and drummer Big Joe Maher (who recalls Ray Charles and Charles Brown) each take two vocals, including one apiece with the backing of a tasteful three-voice vocal section. The other players are fine, but it is McKendree's piano (occasionally augmented by organ) that keeps the excitement really going. Highlights include a laid-back "Let's Get Go Stoned," "Just Before Sunrise," "Fool's Paradise," and "Sixty Sharp Knives." This accessible outing is well worth checking out.

Hummers & Strings