Sauce Boss - The Sauce

Bitrate:320K/s
Year:2024
Time:40:11 
Size:92,5 MB 
Label:Self-Released 
Styles:Blues 
Art:Front 

Tracks Listing:
 1. Little Rhythm and Blues - 2:19
 2. The Word - 2:29
 3. Delta 9 Blues - 5:04
 4. Space Ocean - 1:44
 5. Down by the Sea - 3:32
 6. Stop Breaking Down - 2:49
 7. Don't Know How to Tell You - 3:39
 8. I Will Play for Gumbo - 3:20
 9. Lonely Crowd - 3:04
10. Gloria - 5:13
11. Little Rhythm and Blues Reprise - 1:10
12. Left Handed Smile - 5:45

Musicians:
Bill Wharton Guitar - Vocal & One Man Band;
Damon Fowler - Guitar & Lap Steel;
Neal Goree - Guitar;
Brett Crook - Drums.

When I went to listen to the album ‘The Sauce’ by the musician with the unimaginative name Sauce Boss, I also looked at some photos and album covers. General impression: a bit of a lame gimmick: a musician dressed/disguised as a chef and album and song titles that regularly refer to food, spicy food mostly. Listening to the tracks on ‘The Sauce’ I had to adjust my first impression. Both musically and in terms of ‘ideology’. On ‘The Sauce’ there are some nice, fat rhythm ‘n blues numbers (Little Rhythm and Blues, Stop Breaking Down and I Will Play For Gumbo) and a few blues numbers that sound like they were played by Bill Wharton’s one-man band, aka Sauce Boss (Down By The Sea, Don’t Know How to Tell You, Delta 9 Blues and Space Ocean). On Delta 9 Blues, the Boss is sitting on the beach smoking a joint. On Down By The Sea he plays solo, on his National Steel guitar from 1933. The choice for covers of The Word (Lennon/McCartney) is striking, and especially Gloria (Van Morrison) is not something you often come across as a cover. Interesting, therefore. Even more interesting is Bill Wharton’s way of working and the way in which this approach gives shape to his social involvement. Over the years, he has provided meals - usually gumbo - and performed for his guests at hundreds of locations, such as food banks and shelters for people in need. Wharton: “It’s what I do. I cook a pot of gumbo and I feed the audience, while splooging my hot sauce into the pot”. Wharton has founded an organization (Planet Gumbo) to formalize his idealism (also for tax purposes).
Words and music: Bill Wharton, except:
The Word (Lennon/McCartney)
Stop Breaking Down (Robert Johnson),
I Will Play For Gumbo (Jimmy Buffett)
Gloria (Van Morrison)
In short: Bill Wharton has his heart in the right place with his music and his meals. Hats off, Sauce Boss!

The Sauce