Tom Rigney - A Blue Thing / Back Porch Blues

Album: A Blue Thing
Size: 132,7 MB
Time: 56:59
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2004
Styles: Blues Folk, Louisiana Traditions
Art: Front

01. Lunch With Satan's Grandma (3:49)
02. Blow Away My Blues (3:37)
03. The Blue Hour (4:38)
04. Hold Me Tight (4:12)
05. Deep River Blues (3:44)
06. Gate's On The Heat (4:37)
07. Wayfaring Stranger (5:51)
08. Don And Dewey (4:28)
09. Gator Boy (3:49)
10. House Of The Rising Sun (6:41)
11. That Nasty Swing (3:01)
12. St. Louis Blues (4:33)
13. Baby Please Don't Go (3:54)

Fiddler Tom Rigney has contributed more than a quarter-of-a-century to roots music in San Francisco. After graduating from Harvard with a Masters in fine arts, he went on to play the fiddle for a band named Back in the Saddle. That stint brought him a Bammie (Bay Area Music Award) in the early '80s, thanks to his performance on the group's first album. The band independently issued one of Rigney's compositions, "Time & Again," which became a regional hit. When Back in the Saddle folded, Rigney moved on to Queen Ida & the Bon Temps Zydeco Band. While touring with the group, he came to fully appreciate the music of Louisiana, specifically zydeco, Cajun, and some sounds of New Orleans. He took his new appreciation for Louisiana's music to his next venture, a band called the Sundogs that teamed Rigney with T.J. Politzer and Joe Paquin. Rigney and the Sundogs put out more than half-a-dozen albums and spent more than a dozen years together. They took their mixture of blues, Cajun, and roots music to stages and festivals throughout the U.S., as well as in Europe and Canada. Upon leaving the Sundogs, Rigney pulled together a new outfit, Flambeau. The band consists of guitarist Danny Caron, accordionist and pianist Caroline Dahl, drummer Jimmy Sanchez, and bassist Steve Parks. Rigney composes most of the band's music, but Flambeau also plays several of the old zydeco and Cajun favorites. In addition to recording with his bands, Rigney also has a solo effort to his credit. Chasing the Devil was released in 1998 by Parhelion. Rigney, son of the late San Francisco Giants infielder and manager Bill Rigney, was raised in the Bay Area. ~by Linda Seida

A Blue Thing

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Album: A Blue Thing
Size: 117,6 MB
Time: 50:18
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2008
Styles: Blues Folk, Louisiana Traditions
Art: Front

01. Back Porch Blues (3:23)
02. Happy Home (3:55)
03. Shake Rattle And Roll (4:24)
04. Rigo's Blues (4:16)
05. Right Now Blues (3:52)
06. Windowpane Blues (3:42)
07. It's A Blessing (4:53)
08. California Blues (3:16)
09. Solid Gone (3:44)
10. Swamp Beat Boogie (3:11)
11. Drivin' That Thing (4:17)
12. Struttin' It Up (3:52)
13. Back Porch Blues (Reprise) (3:26)

Tom Rigney has not been an easy artist to categorize. The violinist/singer has focused on what is loosely defined as "roots music," but he hasn't embraced one type of roots music specifically -- and along the way, Rigney has played everything from Cajun music to bluegrass. Back Porch Blues, it turns out, favors a mixture of pre-World War II country blues and pre-World War II country (with elements of 1920s and '30s jazz at times). This early 2009 release makes it clear that Rigney has spent a lot of time listening to recordings from the '20s and '30s, and he celebrates that era with inspired performances of material ranging from the Mississippi Sheiks' "Drivin' That Thing" to Jimmie Rodgers' "California Blues" and the Carter Family's "Solid Gone." Country doesn't get much more old-time than Rodgers and the Carter Family -- they were among the giants of country's pre-honky tonk, pre-Hank Williams, pre-Ernest Tubb era -- so the inclusion of those gems is quite appropriate for an album that is so mindful of pre-World War II music. That said, Rigney isn't being a purist when it comes to saluting that time. Charles Calhoun's "Shake Rattle and Roll," another highlight of Back Porch Blues, wasn't written until 1954 -- and the moody instrumental "Rigo's Blues" (a Rigney original) owes a lot to '60s and '70s soul-blues. Further, the fact that Rigney uses acoustic instruments extensively on this album doesn't mean that he uses them exclusively. But none of those things are problematic; actually, Rigney's lack of "purity" is a big part of the fun. Even though Back Porch Blues is, to a large degree, a shout out to the 1920s and 1930s, the fact that Rigney doesn't forget about the '50s, '60s, and '70s adds to the intrigue. Back Porch Blues is an excellent CD that Rigney should be proud to have in his catalog. ~by Alex Henderson

Back Porch Blues

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