Steve Gerard & The National Debonaires - Voodoo Workin' (feat.James"Rock"Gray)

Bitrate:320K/s
Year:2011
Time:30:57 
Size:71,3 MB 
Label:Blue Edge Records 
Styles:Blues 
Art:Front 

Tracks Listing:
 1. Voodoo Workin' - 2:08
 2. Michelle - 2:28
 3. One Of These Days - 3:47
 4. TV Mama - 3:12
 5. Please Stay With Me - 3:07
 6. Ain't Gonna' Let Her Go - 3:58
 7. There Is Something On Your Mind - 3:20
 8. My Girl Josephine - 2:39
 9. Sweet Little Woman - 3:27
10. My Baby - 2:46

I’m always open to hearing musicians take the blues in new directions, but when somebody makes the attempt to do a recording like they used to be done in the ’50s or early ’60s, it always puts a hop in my step. Such an example is the latest release by Steve Gerard & the National Debonaires, called Voodoo Workin’ (Blue Edge Records). This latest release, their third overall, finds the band shifting somewhat from the jump blues and shuffles of their first two efforts and moving more toward Southern blues and soul, with the able assistance of Jackson, MS-based singer James “Rock” Gray. Gray’s smooth, relaxed vocal style suits the material perfectly. Of the ten tracks, seven will be familiar to most blues fans, ranging from the swamp blues of Charles Sheffield’s title track and Jimmy Anderson’s “Ain’t Gonna Let Her Go,” which opens the disc, to Chicago-style (Willie Mabon’s “Michelle” ) to Crescent City R&B (Fats Domino’s “My Girl Josephine” and Jay McNeely’s “There Is Something On Your Mind”) to jazzy swing (Nappy Brown’s “My Girl”). Gray also contributes three original compositions (“Please Stay With Me,” “One of These Days,” and “Sweet Little Woman,” all of which lean toward the soul/R&B side. The Debonaires are a tight little unit. Gerard’s guitar work, economical, but on the money, is impressive. The rest of the band (keyboardist Mike Sedovic, drummer Dwight Ross, Jr., bass player Preston Hubbard, tenor sax man Doug James, and harmonica player Greg Demchuk) are outstanding. If old school blues and soul in a southern vein are what you’re looking for, Steve Gerard & the National Debonaires have just what you need with Voodoo Workin’. This is the real deal, folks!

Voodoo Workin' (feat.James"Rock"Gray)