L.A. Jones & The Blues Messengers - 2 albums: L.ittle A.lbert / Jumpin' At Shadows

Album: L.ittle A.lbert (Albert King Tribute)
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 47:29
Size: 108.7 MB
Styles: Electric blues
Year: 2007
Art: Front

[5:32] 1. I'll Play The Blues For You
[4:52] 2. I've Made Nights By Myself
[7:01] 3. Too Scared To Sleep
[3:07] 4. Let's Have A Natural Ball
[4:20] 5. Floodin In Calif
[3:42] 6. The Very Thought Of You
[5:50] 7. Crosscut Saw
[9:18] 8. Long Distance Love
[3:45] 9. Overall Junction

L.A. Jones - guitar and vocals; Vincenzo Barattin - drums; Gigi Todesca - bass; Loris de Checchi - Hammond B3 Organ; Marco Ponchiroli - piano track 6, 9; Max Negri - Sax; Lilian Stoimenov - trumpet; Francesco Boldini - guitar solo track 2, 7.

Seance time: L.A. Jones & the Blues Messengers come close to conjuring Albert King on their self-released tribute L.ittle A.lbert. Jones, who claims King showed him his secret tuning, strings his guitar upside down and, like Albert, bends strings into the stratosphere. The phrasing, the lines, even the edge-of-breakup tone is here. Its uncanny. Of course, such a talent wouldn't amount to more than a curiosity without excellent music, ably provided by Gigi Todesca (bass) and Vincenzo Barattin (drums), with keyboards (great Hammond work from Loris De Checchi), sax, and trumpet fleshing out the sonics. Songs include lovingly re-created or reinterpreted staples of the King repertoire such as "I've Made Nights by Myself," "Natural Ball," "I'll Play the Blues for You," and "Crosscut Saw," as well as the fine originals "Long Distance Love" and "Too Scared To Sleep." Jones' dedication to King's style is apparent, as is his intent to share the master's music. His singing is excellent, though his voice, unlike his playing, is distinguishable from King's. ~Tom Hyslop

L.ittle A.lbert mc
L.ittle A.lbert zippy

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Album: Jumpin' At Shadows
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 43:34
Size: 99.7 MB
Styles: Electric blues
Year: 1994
Art: Front

[4:08] 1. I Am A Loner
[5:50] 2. Goin On The Road
[5:29] 3. Pick Up The Pieces
[5:45] 4. Long Distance Love
[4:17] 5. Girl I Been Dreamin About
[4:26] 6. I Get The Job Done
[7:25] 7. Jumpin At Shadows
[6:10] 8. Somewhere In Your Heart

This is my third full length recording and I am very proud of it. I am very happy to have some special guests on it which I will make mention of in the following paragraphs. "Magic" Dave Therault, makes his recording debut here. He is a pioneer in developing a style for playing jazz standards on a diatonic harmonica, an approach rarely heard.He handles traditional Blues harp as well as advanced jazz-like melodic styles with equal facility. For an example of Therault more fully exploiting the traditional "tongue block" technique pioneered by early Delta and Chicago harmonica masters to get his B-3 style, give a listen to "Pick Up the Pieces" and the title track, "Jumpin' at Shadows."

I want to emphasize the fact that no keyboards were used on this recording! Guitar wizard Brian "Hash Brown" Calway also lends a hand here with his distinctive style. Calway hails from Dallas, Texas, where he is a major kingpin in the local and regional Blues scene. He can be heard most notably on "She Can't Not Be Satisfied" and "I am a Loner." I consider Calway to be an expert in many styles of Blues and was really excited when he agreed to appear in the studio with us. Hash Brown's bassist Terry Montgomery also did me the honor of appearing for this recording. He is one of Dallas' best and one of my personal favorites. I wish to thank all the musicians that helped me make this fun and fine recording.

Jumpin' At Shadows mc
Jumpin' At Shadows zippy

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