Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
They Say I’m Different, perhaps not so much different, as distinctive, a symbol of female drive and Blues passion that is captivating, and which has thankfully been part of a growing with speed since the turn of the century; a far cry from the times in which to be part of the Blues arguably meant for a woman somehow being seen as the voice, and not as the face and the heart of the song.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
There is an undoubted sense of fascination that is attached to the Mississippi that few other mighty rivers can ever hope to attain, the perception of history it carries, both for ill and for the hope it may have once inspired. The blend of endless creative invention, the necessity in which it has thrived, the blues, the rock and the voices it has carried. Such is the privilege of the Muse that it has been blessed to offer thought on a musician who digs deep into the psyche and their talent; such is the honour that Ghalia offers in her brand new album, Mississippi Blend.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
You could be forgiven for thinking that the world turns on the presence of time and the grasping hands of those for whom money is all consuming; and whilst as we steam roller into possible extinction, while we seem to ignore lessons learned and put our fingers in our ears to drown out the sound of truth and reality, what we should finally realise is that the planet, each one us, runs on love, basic but beautiful, love.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10
Women of the Blues, wild, the finest and most beguiling of Tempests and such an asset to the genre that mere mortal men at times cannot, nor should they, compete with on the stage or in the hearts of the Blues lover.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
For the romantic at heart, a caravan can conjure up images of life on the road, the sun forever on some distant horizon and the sound of a well played instrument soothing the soul as a camp fire roasts a meal and children play with content. For Ruf Records that romance is heightened by having celebrated 10 years as a producer of excellent material and what better way than to enhance its prestigious output than combining three of its major stars together under the Blues Caravan 2014 title.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10
Roads are there to be travelled, no matter how long and straight it looks, it will lead somewhere. The road to Hell paved with good intentions, the sunny side of the street or the enclosed, tempting and quiet cul-de-sac in which you may never depart; all have their points of interest and all should contain a reason to be there. For the superbly talented Dana Fuchs the road is one in which Ruf Records have placed her vibrant live set down for all to hear and in Songs From The Road everything sounds sweet, vivacious and only enhances the Florida musician’s reputation.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
The people behind Ruf Records really have got to the very root of being able to capture the love of live music down to a tee. Not just on one artist, but on a collection of musicians who exemplify the point of seeing a band or solo artist live, striding the stage like ancient Athenian warriors ready to pounce on the admiration of the crowd with a small tickle of the guitar. Unlike ancient Athenians’ war like efforts, no blood is shed from the 21st Century axe but in the hands of Mike Zito and the Wheel, what is shed, what is let loose, is inhibition and what is gained is an emotional connection. In Songs From The Road, that connection is bought straight into the most inaccessible of arenas, that of the front room or dull long journey in which music is the only escape.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
If you take nothing else from the latest double album released by Ruf Records in their Songs From The Road Series, then the fact that Coco Montoya is a musical genius, a work of art painting the picture that itself deserves framing, placing inside a gallery for all too see and adoring wistfully that if only you could have stuck at the lessons granted you, should be the thought that haunts you till the end of your days.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
There are expectations that have to be met when listening to a live album. The first is that the sound recreated on a stage, possibly many hundreds of miles from wherever you are fortunate enough to actually listen to the gig, has to be able to make the imagination run riot, to revel in the flow and thrust of the guitar, to feel the sweat run down your neck in anticipation and to envisage the person infront of you in the audience nervously sweating along with you. The taste of the gig has to be captured just right, else it is lost and abandoned like an errant Victorian child left at the Poor House.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
If you want revolution, if the idea of the start of an uprising in the hearts of a specific music genre is something that takes your fancy then Samantha Fish’s latest offering to the mass public is sure to be more wrecking than a person with a 1000 pound metal ball on the end of a crane in a scrap yard could ever hope to achieve. Black Wind Howlin’ cuts through the storms, slices past the obstacles placed in its way and heads over the Atlantic in a flurry of musical fury and the result is utter brilliance.