Vaneese Thomas — “Window to My Soul” — Overton Music

Vaneese Thomas has deep roots in a musical family — daughter of the legendary Rufus Thomas, sister of Carla Thomas — as well as deep roots in the soulful music she so effortlessly creates.

The multiple BMA nominee has honed her craft for over four decades, working as a background vocalist, songwriter, writer, producer, arranger, and as solo performer blending contemporary blues, gospel and R&B into her own unique vocal stylings.

Thomas also has the unerring ability to turn her thoughts and feelings into emotional statements expressed in song – in this case, in her latest album, very appropriately titled “Window To My Soul.”

Her tight-knit musical backers here serve as a perfect complement to the variety of styles that flow easily through the tracks.

The core band is Thomas on keyboards, Paul Adamy on bass, Al Orlo on guitar and Ross Pederson on drums. Dave Keyes lights up “I Still Got the Blues,” with piano and organ, and Rob Paparozzi’s harmonica sparkles on “Ain’t No Reason (For A Man Like You).” A four-piece horn section and four background vocalists add depth and texture on select tracks. Thomas wrote or co-wrote all the songs except “I’m a Diamond.”

The hard-driving “I Still Got the Blues” opens the session with the authority needed to assert its reassuring message with Thomas’s fiery vocal. “Every Moment Is a Lifetime” opens with a stinging guitar intro as Thomas pours out a soulful ballad of hope and optimism, spurred by soaring horns. The metaphorical “I’m a Diamond” projects a feeling of self-worth,of the ability to shine under pressure.

On the R&B-flavored, horn-powered “Ain’t Gonna Be No One’s Fool,” Thomas clearly means what she says in a defiant demand for respect. Paparazzi’s blues harp sparks the angry fire of “Ain’t No Reason (For a Man Like You).” “That’s A Woman” is a smoldering ballad declaring her pride and dignity. Keye’s church-like organ invokes a gospel flavor on the prayerful “Save Me” as Thomas appeals for saving — “from myself.”

The closer reveals Thomas at her soulful best on the torchy slow blues of “Livin’ With a Lie,” elegantly gift-wrapped in a wistful clarinet by Andy Drelles and a mournfully sensuous trumpet solo by Tim Ouimette.

Vaneese Thomas has opened this simply gorgeous window to her soul to let the power and passion of her musical vision shine on you. Soulful blues doesn’t get any better than this. Keep that window open.

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Here’s “I Still Got the Blues” from the album:

Tracklist:

I Still Got The Blues 4:39
Every Moment Is A Lifetime 4:36
I’m A Diamond 3:59
Ain’t Gonna Be No None’s Fool 3:41
Ain’t No Reason (For A Man Like You) 2:45
That’s A Woman 4:21
Save Me 4:28
Livin’ With A Lie 4:04

Jovin Webb — “Son of a Sinner” — Blind Pig Records

Jovin Webb — a furiously talented Baton Rouge-based, harmonica-playing bluesman — delivers a back-to-the-future message in his second album, “Son of a Sinner.”

Webb digs deeply into the past for the primeval passions of the blues while exploring the future with his personal songwriting and musical vision blending blues, gospel and Southern rock.

Webb says that “Drifter” was: “Me trying to figure out religion, women, my career, and everything I’ve gone through.” That personal rawness continues in “Sinner,” as Webb seems to be working out life’s pain and pleasure in his songs.

Webb explains his musical development: “At a young age, the longing and pain expressed by Southern Black Baptist church music spoke to me, but as I experienced my own trials and tribulations, I felt the pull of the blues. I soon realized that gospel and blues are related. Someone with the blues is in a low place, and when you seek salvation, you’re also usually in a low place.”

“Son of a Sinner” is Webb’s struggle to explore the means of his salvation.

The album is filled with five Webb originals, four original songs from veteran blues producer Tom Hambrige with Richard Fleming and two crackling-good covers that Webb re-creates as his own.

The band includes Webb on harmonica; Hambridge on drums, background vocals and percussion; Kenny Greenberg on guitar; Mike Rojas on keyboards and Tommy MacDonald on bass.

He tears it all open with the ferocious blue-rock assault of “Gunpowder & Lead,” with band cranked up behind its lyrical warning: “If you hold your neighbor’s wife / And love her as your own / You just bought a ticket / To fire and brimstone.” The swampy, bayou-drenched confessional of “Pray for Me” seeks salvation in the thematic title song: “Pray for me, pray for me / I’m just a son of a sinner / Pray for me.”

Webb adds raw emotion and soaring harp to “Every Time I Roll the Dice,” one of those great songs from the Delbert McClinton songbook filled with memorable wordplay: “She got a big Oldsmobile / She got a dog that won’t bite / She got a heart I can steal / Just like a thief in the night.” There’s a more soulful turn on “I Started Young,” before funkiness sets in on “These Boots.”

“Pull ‘Em In” is homespun advice with a pounding rhythm. “After the Rain” and “When I’m Gone” pair up to explore love, loss and starting over. “It’s Alright” is a joyous reminder that it is alright: “But I’m strong enough to fight / And it’s alright, it’s alright to have the blues.” In “Crybaby,” a roving lover gets his comeuppance, with a tasty piano solo. The closer is a rock-hard version of Gregg Allman’s classic “Whipping Post.”

​Jovin Webb’s “Son of a Sinner” invokes the pain and pleasure of the blues in a searing quest for personal salvation that scorches his musical landscape with raw emotion. If you’ve never experienced his music, treat yourself to this powerful reminder that the blues is still all right. If you’re already a fan, add this experience to your life. ​

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Here’s an interview with Jovin Webb by Michael Limnios at Blues.Gr.

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Here’s “Every Time I Roll the Dice,” from the album:

Tracklist:

1. Gunpowder & Lead (Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming) — 3:11
2. Pray for Me (Jovin Webb) — 4:24
3. Every Time I Roll the Dice (Max Barnes, Troy Seals) — 4:42
4. I Started Young (Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming) — 3:25
5. These Boots (Jovin Webb, Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming) — 3:25
6. Pull ‘Em In (Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming) — 3:12
7. After the Rain (Jovin Webb) — 6:05
8. When I’m Gone (Jovin Webb) — 4:50
9. It’s Alright (Jovin Webb) — 3:47
10. Crybaby (Jovin Webb) — 4:28
11. Whipping Post (Gregg Allman) — 4:20

Big Harp George — “No Shortcuts” — Blues Mountain Records

On the surface, Big Harp George is easily described as a San Francisco Bay Area blues singer and songwriter who plays the chromatic harmonica.

Just beneath that veneer, you’ll find George Bisharat, a former law professor and Mideast analyst whose creative songwriting ranges from biting humor to passionate social commentary, all driven by his mastery of the distinctive chromatic.

There’s no shortage of that sharp lyricism and harp wizardry on the 16 original tracks that make up Bisharat’s eighth album, the artfully crafted No Shortcuts.

He skillfully blends hard-hitting observations with complex musical creativity featuring 20 artists using a variety of ancient and modern instruments.

Bisharat comes out swinging hard on the first of four instrumentals, aptly titled Come Out Swinging, urging his chromatic into sax-like runs. Supplement Life follows, a whimsical, blues-tinged guide to store-bought health: “Mushroom powder gonna do wonders for you.” Yes Dear! Is a musical romp offering marital advice with a bite: “Here’s another pearl I swear is true / You hate that nagging but it’s best for you.” Sun Drifting is an elegant slow-blues instrumental that speaks through its chromatic soul.

Ain’t My Circus juggles sideshow music with political metaphor sparked with a stinging guitar solo: “Carnival barker strutting in his booth / Spouting lies through a megaphone,red, white and blue.” I Will Find You shifts the tone with a dirge-like Mideastern intro to its soaring promise: “They came from lands of cross and crown / Where prayers were hushed and books burned down / My kin pled for mercy across the sea / And I swore to send a hand to free.” Bury My Head hides the frustration of frantic daily life behind its jaunty melody: “Can you back off for God’s sake / I need to take a break / I’m gonna bury my head in the sand.”

Struck Out Again is frustration on a more personal level behind Kid Andersen’s late-night blues guitar and a mournful harp solo: “Well I drain me one last double / Slide off my barstool to face the rain …. Knowing that I struck out again.” Be Adorable sparkles with Dixieland jazz and advice on love featuring featuring Mike Olmos on trumpet and Lisa Leuschner Andersen’s sweet background vocals: “If you want to be adored be adorable / Just ain’t no shortcuts to love.” Do You Remember? Is a gorgeous, wistful duet with Andersen: “Living today means having to pay / With everything you once held dear.”

Last Trip to Itaipu is a lovely Latin-flavored instrumental dedicated to Bisharat’s late friend Roberto Kant de Lima, who “introduced me to Brazil and its incredibly inspiring music traditions.” Then an upbeat, jazzy tune answers the philosophic question, What’s Wrong with Dying?: “Don’t have to be stupid, don’t throw life away / But what’s the use of staying if you can’t play?” Mista Boins! is a bouncy instrumental featuring the chromatic dueling with roiling organ by Chris Burns.

Bisharat wraps up this impressive album with three songs that serve as its emotional heart – their elegant lyricism defining vital human issues. And it’s all done with engaging musicality.

Rusty Spoon, dedicated to political prisoners worldwide, especially Palestinians, is gripping epic poetry set to music that evokes country gospel, featuring rousing violin by his brother and Grammy winner Charlie Bisharat: “You can chain the body, cage the mind / Breath of freedom the soul will find / Every wall’s just misery spoken / Ain’t no lock can’t be broken.”

Death Rattle of the Republic is an anthemic, bluesy shuffle, a contemporary counterpoint to its inspiration, the Battle Hymn of the Republic, serving up its own political metaphor: “Ain’t no glory here, no truth marching on / Just a death rattle dressed up as a song.” The finale, One Day, pits its gorgeous, gentle melody against its not-so-gentle observations: “Pray to your gods while bombing babies / Never once touched by a sense of shame / One day, you will be judged.”

George Bisharat has a lot to say on his powerful No Shortcuts, and he says it eloquently, with considerable Big Harp courage and style. His majestic chromatic flavors every song; his provocative lyrical content stimulates the imagination. Come for the music, stay for its message!

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Here’s “Death Rattle of the Republic” from the album:

Tracklist:

Come Out Swinging — 4:09
Supplement Life — 3:47
Yes Dear! — 3:41
Sun Drifting — 4:08
Ain’t My Circus — 4:53
I Will Find You — 4:02
Bury My Head — 4:01
Struck Out Again — 7:21
Be Adorable — 3:25
Do You Remember? — 4:26
Last Trip to Itaipu — 3:46
What’s Wrong with Dying? — 4:04
Mista Boins! — 3:31
Rusty Spoon — 5:21
Death Rattle of the Republic — 4:09
One Day — 3:07

Donna Herula — “Cold Feet” — Self Release (Sept. 18)

Donna Herula is — among other things — a Chicago-born blues singer, slide guitarist, songwriter and Chicago Blues Hall of Fame inductee.

Those “other things” include her award-winning 2021 release, Bang at the Door, which hit No. 1 on the 2021 Acoustic Blues Album Chart and was named Best Acoustic Blues Album by the 2022 Independent Blues Awards, where she was also named Best Traditional Blues Artist. The title song won Best AAA/Alternative Song in the 2022 International Acoustic Music Awards. She leads the acoustic folk-blues Donna Herula Trio and the Donna Herula Band, a six-piece electric blues band.

Herula has taken that success, including her formidable resonator slide guitar talents and her distinctively personal songwriting, and created the eloquent music that overflows into her fourth and latest album, Cold Feet

Herula’s sparkling guitar work throughout highlights eight sharply crafted originals and two stunning covers of classic blues. No matter what the style — Delta, finger-picking, slide — she brings an effortless authenticity to her music.

In the album liner notes, Herula says: “I am particularly proud of how I stretched myself artistically and vocally. I wrote songs in genres beyond acoustic blues, utilizing electric and acoustic styles while blending soul, pop, gospel, folk and Chicago blues influences.”

Herula’s band is Tony Wittrock on guitars, Marc Edelstein on bass, Alton Smith on organ, Kenny “Beedy Eyes” Smith on drums. Special guests include session producer Jon Shain on guitars, Alton Smith on keys, Anne Harris on violin, John Jochem on harmonica, Steve Eisen on sax, Rick Barnes on percussion, and Candy LaFlora, Kary Ream and Rebecca Toon on backup vocals.

Herula’s acoustic virtuosity is on full display with her National Tricone slide work on the elegant instrumental opener, On My Way Home. The jaunty Cold Feet follows, a rocker sparked with electric slide and wedding-day blues: “The organ’s playing ‘Here Comes the Bride’ / I’m backed in a corner, running out of time / I got cold feet … And I’m keeping the ring.” Herula and Tony Wittrock co-wrote the country-flavored Honey Darlin’ Baby Please, with Herula’s standout vocal plea: “Honey darlin’ baby please / Pick up your phone and talk to me I know that I was wrong.”

Herula fires up her resonator and electric slide in a haunting re-creation of Skip James’ Cypress Grove Blues. A road trip with her band inspired the humor of Backseat Driver: “Backseat driver, you’re out of control / Who are you to tell me where I should go.” What You Gonna Do? features soulful sax from Eisen with Herula asking other-woman relationship questions: “I’ll wait and see what happens, you’ll have to decide / Will it be me – will it be her, that’ll be left behind.”

Wish I Could See You Again is a gorgeous acoustic guitar duet with John Shain, featuring Herula’s longing vocal: “Memories are on display / Graduation, wedding day / I’m packing all of them away / Wish I could see you again.” Things Can Change is rich with gospel overtones invoked by Herula’s commanding vocal with LaFlora’s backup, and Jochem’s flowing harp: “Only the Lord knows what will happen child / Things can change.”

Herula says her epic poetry in Float to Heaven is a “John Prine-style storytelling song that I am really proud of.” Her elegant finger-style guitar and Harris’ emotive violin create an impassioned tale of a man unable to shake his lifelong sense of blame for the death of a teenage friend: “So tomorrow I’m gonna take my boat / Down to the river and I’m gonna float / To heaven, I’m going to heaven.”

Herula shows off her deep Chicago blues influences on the rousing closer, the Elmore James/Robert Johnson classic, Dust My Broom, driven by her furious slide and Smith’s propulsive drumming.

There are no musical cold feet in Donna Herula’s sophisticated production of Cold Feet. She steps easily through a stylish blend of songs and genres that kick her eclectic influences into one artistic delight.

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Here’s a live version of “What You Gonna Do?” from the album:

Tracklist:

1.  On My Way Home
2.  Cold Feet
3.  Honey Darlin’ Baby Please
4.  Cypress Grove
5.  Backseat Driver
6.  What You Gonna Do?
7.  Wish I Could See You Again
8.  Things Can Change
9.  Float to Heaven
10. Dust My Broom

Steve Cropper & the Midnight Hour — “Watching the Tide” — Provogue

This just a brief post to alert Steve Cropper fans (everyone should be one!) about the posthumous release of his final album, “Watching the Tide,” completed just before his death in December of 2025.

It’s a splendid album, a tribute to his musical skills, his massive influence, and the longevity of his great music.

The band’s name, and of course, the album title both reflect songs written by Cropper and Wilson Pickett — “In the Midnight Hour” and “Dock of the Bay” — both giant hits for Pickett.

Here’s a Wikipedia entry about the recording of “Midnight Hour”:

Wilson Pickett recorded “In the Midnight Hour” at Stax Studios, Memphis, May 12, 1965. The song’s co-writer Steve Cropper recalls: “[Atlantic Records president] Jerry Wexler said he was going to bring down this great singer Wilson Pickett to record at Stax Studio (where Cropper was a session guitarist) and I didn’t know what groups he’d been in or whatever. But I used to work in [a] record shop, and I found some gospel songs that Wilson Pickett had sung on. On a couple [at] the end, he goes: ‘I’ll see my Jesus in the midnight hour! Oh, in the midnight hour. I’ll see my Jesus in the midnight hour.'”, and Cropper got the idea of using the phrase “in the midnight hour” as the basis for an R&B song.^[3] More likely, Cropper was remembering The Falcons’ 1962 song “I Found a Love,” on which Pickett sings lead and says “And sometimes I call in the midnight hour!” The only gospel record Pickett had appeared on before this was the Violinaires’ “Sign of the Judgement,” which includes no such phrase.

But Cropper is remembered for much more. Cropper and his now legendary band, Booker T. and the MG’s, built the foundation of Southern soul as the house band at Stax Records. Cropper was its heart and soul.

Packed with quality songs, superb musicianship and memorable guest appearances, Watching The Tide is a fitting celebration of one of music’s true greats.

Don’t just listen to this exceptional album; find more of Cropper’s legacy and enjoy. It’s American music history — and music — at its finest.

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Here’s a track from the album:

Tracklist:
01 – Tandoori Chicken
02 – Ticket First
03 – My Angels Are Calling
04 – Until Now
05 – Blood From A Stone
06 – Here & Gone
07 – It’s Gonna Get Worse
08 – Down & Out
09 – Stand Right Here
10 – Tip Off To The Rip Off
11 – House Of Cards

Mark Hummel Allstars — “Road Dog”– Rockinitus

The Mississippi saxophone — the blues harmonica — is a marvelously expressive instrument for digging deep into the blues.

One of its most talented practitioners on the contemporary blues scene is Mark Hummel, who brings the essence of traditional blues styles to his latest album, “Road Dog,” featuring the Mark Hummel Allstars.

The stars on this sparkling session of 14 songs include guitar wizards Anson Funderburgh and Junior Watson, drummer Wes Starr, Elvin Bishop sideman and Fabulous Thunderbird members Bob Welsh on piano, and Kedar Roy on bass.

The band is completed by RW Grisby on bass on three tracks. On eight of the tracks, Bob Welsh is on piano, while Brett Brandstatt and Chris Burns each play on one. Eric Spaulding is the featured saxman player on four tracks, . Other guitarists include Little Charlie Baty, Rusty Zinn, and Randy Rattray. Hummel’s razor-sharp harp and tough vocals drive all the tracks home.

Hummel says that “The Anson/Junior combo made perfect sense as a continuation of a unique pairing. Kid Andersen’s Greaseland Studio was the site of all of these recordings since 2008, with spectacular results.”

There are six Hummel originals here, with eight covers from the deep well of the blues lexicon. There are recordings from 2024, with three previously unissued tracks from the 2015 sessions for Golden State Lone Star, with a pair of previously unreleased gems.

This album was engineered by the criminally talented Andersen and recorded at his Greaseland Studios, except for “Gypsy in My Soul” and “Gadjo’s Swing,” recorded at Jim Day Studios in Pacifica, Calif.

The great blues standard “Black Nights” kicks the door open with piano from Welsh, fiery guitar from Funderburgh and Watson and Hummel’s soaring harp lines. The sturdy shuffle “Jugglin’” is a Hummel original, followed by Hummel’s “Real Good Woman,” with a flashy harp intro. Hummel rocks into “I Got to Find My Baby” written by Peter Joe Clayton in 1941 and recorded by B. B. King, Little Walter and Chuck Berry, among others, fueled by a terrific harp solo.

Hummel’s sly vocal turn sparks “Why Did It Happen,” written by Willie Mabon and released in 1962. Spaulding’s sax drives it all along. Hummel’s own “Road Dog” churns along with his ode to the road featuring a fierce solo from Watson: “When a road dog starts to barkin’, he packs his bag and out he goes, / When he leaves this town, you know he might be back no more.”

Hummel reincarnates Little Walter’s “You Better Watch Yourself” from 1954 with his own harmonica fireworks, then leans into the slow-driving R&B of Johnny Otis’ 1951 “Rockin’ Blues.” “Say You Will” is another fine, stinging blues original from Hummel. Van Morrison’s “Gypsy in My Soul” gets a bite of Latin flavor, then Hummel’s “You Are Right” shuffles into view.

Hummel’s harp pierces the heart of “She’s My Baby,” written by Alex “Rice” Miller, who became Sonny Boy Williamson II. Hummel then captures the essence of Jimmy Reed’s “When You’re Doin Alright” with its trademark high-pitched harp and Little Charllie Baty on guitar. The closer is Hummel’s gypsy-flavored instrumental “Gadjo’s Swing.”

Mark Hummel and friends have dug deep into the blues on the excellent “Road Dog,” absorbing their influences and creating an outstanding session based on their traditional blues heritage. It stands on its own as simply great music from the blues highway.

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Tracklist:
01 – Black Nights
02 – Jugglin’ 
03 – Real Good Woman 
04 – I Got To Find My Baby 
05 – Why Did It Happen 
06 – Road Dog 
07 – You Better Watch Yourself 
08 – Rockin’ Blues 
09 – Say You Will 
10 – Gypsy In My Soul 
11 – You are Right 
12 – She’s My Baby 
13 – When You’re Doing Alright 
14 – Gadjo’s Swing