Monster Mike Welch & Mike Ledbetter - Right Place, Right Time

Album: Right Place, Right Time
Size: 117,0 MB
Time: 50:26
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2017
Styles: Blues
Art: Full

1. Cry For Me Baby (3:54)
2. I Can't Please You (4:12)
3. Kay Marie (4:20)
4. I Can't Stop Baby (5:15)
5. Down Home Girl (4:43)
6. How Long Can This Go On (3:43)
7. Big Mama (3:53)
8. I'm Gonna Move To Another Country (4:49)
9. Can't Sit Down (4:06)
10. Cryin' Won't Help You (3:41)
11. Goodbye Baby (3:36)
12. Brewster Avenue Bump (4:11)

With over 25 years under his belt, Boston-based blues guitarist Monster Mike Welch is handily considered a seasoned veteran of the international blues scene at just a mere 37 years old. Adorned with the nickname Monster Mike by actor/comedian Dan Aykroyd at the tender age of 13, Welch has since carved out a successful living as a highly accomplished and in-demand guitarist. To date, Welch has released six albums under his own name and in 2001, he joined the ranks of one of New England s most beloved blues institutions, Sugar Ray and the Bluetones. In addition, Welch has performed and recorded with Duke Robillard, Nick Moss, Johnny Winter, Darrell Nulisch and more recently, the Knickerbocker All-Stars, which has featured among others, Jimmie Vaughan and the aforementioned Robillard.

No stranger to the Delta Groove family, Welch also appears on recordings by the Mannish Boys and Sugaray Rayford, as well as playing a central role in the critically acclaimed album, Fifty Shades of Blue, by Anthony Geraci and the Boston Blues All Stars. Welch has received two consecutive Blues Music Award nominations by the Blues Foundation for Instrumentalist-Guitar beginning in 2016.

Chicago's own Mike Ledbetter has had nothing short of a rich and multi-dimensional musical journey thus far. Before making a home in West Side Chicago and Memphis style blues, Ledbetter set his feet in various genres ranging from soul, gospel, pop, jazz, and even spent the better part of a decade performing on Chicago opera stages. Spending eight years under the tutelage of his mentor, Nick Moss, Ledbetter recorded and toured the world with Moss as his lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist. In this short time, he has made more than a lasting impression and developed a legion of fans. He's also worked with and earned the respect of many of his heroes and influences (Anson Funderburgh, Barrelhouse Chuck, Billy Flynn, Curtis Salgado, Jimmy Johnson, Lazy Lester, Ronnie Earl) as a member of the new school of blues/soul musician whose style is cemented in its Golden Era.

On Sunday, June 12, 2016, Welch and Ledbetter took part in a special tribute to the legendary Otis Rush at the 33rd Annual Chicago Blues Festival. The chemistry between these two was so instantaneous and such a natural fit, that it became readily apparent that an album together must soon follow. Right Place, Right Time is the result of this inspired collaboration, born out of a mutual love and respect for the classic blues era of the 50s and 60s and artists such as Otis Rush, Magic Sam, Elmore James and B.B. King. Accompanying Welch and Ledbetter is an all-star cast featuring pianist/organist Anthony Geraci, bassist Ronnie James Weber and drummer Marty Richards, along with special guests Laura Chavez on guitar and saxophonists Doug James and Sax Gordon. For Monster Mike Welch and Mike Ledbetter this album is not just about being in the right place at the right time, but knowing what to do with it when you find yourselves there. /Amazon

(For personnel details, see artwork included.)

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Monster Mike Welch - Keep Living Til I Die

Album: Keep Living Til I Die
Size: 118,3 MB
Time: 51:15
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2025
Styles: Blues
Art: Front

1. Keep Living Til I Die (3:12)
2. Love Me Baby (5:20)
3. Your Problem To Solve (4:14)
4. Good To Me As I Am To You (3:58)
5. Hell Hound On My Trail (3:29)
6. I Finally Hit The Bottom (3:06)
7. Do What You Want With My Grave (5:59)
8. She Makes Time (3:11)
9. Dear Landlord (4:26)
10. I Just Don't Understand (3:19)
11. Some Other Guy (2:57)
12. The Whole Idea Of You (3:34)
13. Burial Season (4:25)

On ‘Keep Living Til I Die,’ renowned blues guitarist and three-time Blues Music Award winner Monster Mike Welch reteams with producer Kid Andersen to deliver searing guitar and impassioned vocals on a set of original songs and covers of Robert Johnson, Aretha Franklin, and Bob Dylan among others, exploring themes of life, death, love, joy and heartbreak.

With over three decades of touring and recording under his belt, Boston-based blues guitarist Monster Mike Welch is a seasoned veteran of the international blues scene. Given the nickname “Monster Mike” by actor/Ghostbuster Dan Aykroyd at the tender age of 13, Welch has since carved out a niche as a highly accomplished and in-demand guitarist.

To date, Welch has released several albums under his own name and in 2001, he joined the ranks of one of New England’s most beloved blues institutions, Sugar Ray and the Bluetones, where he stayed until 2017, recording five albums and racking up multiple Blues Music Award nominations for the band in that time. In addition, Welch has recorded with Shemekia Copeland, Ronnie Earl, Danielle Nicole, Duke Robillard, Johnny Winter, Victor Wainwright, Nick Moss, the Mannish Boys and Sugaray Rayford, among others.

Welch left the Bluetones in 2017 to focus on his partnership with Mike Ledbetter, which led to seven Blues Music Award nominations and the formation of the Welch Ledbetter Connection within the first year. Welch has received three consecutive Blues Music Award nominations by the Blues Foundation for Instrumentalist-Guitar beginning in 2016, a Boston Music Award for Best Blues Act, and is an inductee of the Rhode Island Music Hall Of Fame. In 2023, Monster Mike Welch embarked on the next phase of his career when he released the Blues Music Award-nominated Nothing But Time. 2025 sees the release of his most personal album yet, the searing ‘Keep Living Til I Die.’ /Bluestown Music

Personnel: Monster Mike Welch (vocals, guitar); Brad Hallen (bass); Fabrice Bessouat (drums, percussion); Brooks Milgate (piano, organ, Wurlitzer, clavinet).

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Monster Mike Welch - All The Love In The World: Best Of 2005-2010

Album: All The Love In The World
Size: 129,3 MB
Time: 55:53
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2019
Styles: Blues
Art: Full

1. Please (4:43)
2. A Thrill To Be Alive (4:35)
3. My Father's Son (4:55)
4. I'm Gonna Move To Another Country (4:45)
5. She Makes Time (2:45)
6. Cryin' Hey! (4:21)
7. Sticky Whisket (3:39)
8. A Perfect World (4:05)
9. Everybody (4:11)
10. All The Love In The World (7:17)
11. Don't Expect Me To Cry (5:40)
12. Give Me Time (4:54)

With over 25 years of touring and recording under his belt, Boston-based blues guitarist Monster Mike Welch is considered a seasoned veteran of the international blues scene despite his relatively young age. Given the nickname “Monster Mike” by actor/Ghostbuster Dan Aykroyd at the tender age of 13, Welch has since carved out a niche as a highly accomplished and in-demand guitarist. To date, Welch has released six albums under his own name, and in 2001, he joined the ranks of one of New England’s most beloved blues institutions, Sugar Ray and the Bluetones, where he stayed until 2017, recording five albums and racking up multiple Blues Music Award nominations for the band in that time.

In addition, Welch has recorded with Shemekia Copeland, Ronnie Earl, Danielle Nicole, Duke Robillard, Johnny Winter, Victor Wainwright, Nick Moss, the Mannish Boys and Sugaray Rayford, among others. Welch left the Bluetones in 2017 to focus on his partnership with Mike Ledbetter, which led to four Blues Music Awards, seven further BMA nominations, and the formation of the Welch Ledbetter Connection. Welch has received four consecutive Blues Music Award nominations by the Blues Foundation for Instrumentalist-Guitar with a win in 2019, a Boston Music Award for Best Blues Act, and is an inductee of the Rhode Island Music Hall Of Fame.

(For personnel details, see artwork included.)

All The Love In The World: Best Of 2005-2010 mc
All The Love In The World: Best Of 2005-2010 gofile

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Monster Mike Welch - Live And In Lockdown

Album: Live And In Lockdown
Size: 111,0 MB
Time: 48:11
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2020
Styles: Blues
Art: Full (front, back, cd)

1. Cryin' Hey! (4:09)
2. Please (5:20)
3. Cold Poison (7:09)
4. I Ain't Sayin' (3:28)
5. A Thrill To Be Alive (4:21)
6. Time To Move (3:58)
7. Get Over Me (4:30)
8. Sticky Whisket (3:38)
9. These Blues Are Mine (3:56)
10. Right Place Wrong Time (7:40)

With over 25 years of touring and recording under his belt, Boston-based blues guitarist Monster Mike Welch is considered a seasoned veteran of the international blues scene despite his relatively young age. Given the nickname “Monster Mike” by actor/Ghostbuster Dan Aykroyd at the tender age of 13, Welch has since carved out a niche as a highly accomplished and in-demand guitarist. To date, Welch has released six albums under his own name, and in 2001, he joined the ranks of one of New England’s most beloved blues institutions, Sugar Ray and the Bluetones, where he stayed until 2017, recording five albums and racking up multiple Blues Music Award nominations for the band in that time.

In addition, Welch has recorded with Shemekia Copeland, Ronnie Earl, Danielle Nicole, Duke Robillard, Johnny Winter, Victor Wainwright, Nick Moss, the Mannish Boys and Sugaray Rayford, among others. Welch left the Bluetones in 2017 to focus on his partnership with Mike Ledbetter, which led to four Blues Music Awards, seven further BMA nominations, and the formation of the Welch Ledbetter Connection. Welch has received four consecutive Blues Music Award nominations by the Blues Foundation for Instrumentalist-Guitar with a win in 2019, a Boston Music Award for Best Blues Act, and is an inductee of the Rhode Island Music Hall Of Fame.

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Monster Mike Welch - Nothing But Time

Time: 65:41
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2023
Styles: Electric Blues, Blues Rock
Art: Full

01. Walking To You Baby (5:15)
02. If I Had Possession Over Judgement Day (3:45)
03. I've Got Nothing But Time (4:04)
04. I Me Mine (4:08)
05. Offswitch Blues (4:40)
06. I Ain't Sayin' (3:44)
07. In Case You Care (4:33)
08. Time To Move (3:58)
09. Losing Every Battle (5:49)
10. Hard To Get Along With (4:06)
11. Jump For Joy (3:01)
12. Ten Years Ago (6:07)
13. Afraid Of My Own Tears Part 1 & 2 (8:47)
14. Kind Hearted Woman Blues (3:36)

Monster Mike Welch makes a spectacular return to form after battling Long Covid and surviving on his new record Nothing But Time.

The new set comes out June 30th, 2023 and is his label debut on Mike Zito’s Gulf Coast Records imprint. Welch tracked at Greaseland Studios in San Jose, California with studio boss and Nightcat guitarist Kid Andersen producing, engineering, and playing on the sessions. The rest of Welch’s all-star studio band for the record includes bass legend and two-time Grammy winner Jerry Jemmott (Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, Wilson Pickett, Gregg Allman), harp master Rick Estrin, drummer Fabrice Bessouat, and pianist Bob Welsh.

Welch fought the Covid fight for more than 18 months and said of his experience “At its worst, Long Covid was completely debilitating, and I spent most of 2022 genuinely unsure whether I’d be able to play music full-time ever again. Kid Andersen and Mike Zito inspired me to take a leap of faith and make a new start; they both had my back and gave me the support and freedom to make the most personal record of my career.”

Given the nickname “Monster Mike” by actor/”Blues Brother” Dan Aykroyd at the age of 13, Welch went on to become a fixture on the international blues scene with nearly 30 years in the game. He had released a solid body of work as a solo artist, been a member of Sugar Ray and the Bluetones from 2001 to 2017, and recorded with the likes of Shemekia Copeland, Ronnie Earl, Danielle Nicole, Duke Robillard, Johnny Winter, Victor Wainwright, Nick Moss, the Mannish Boys, and Sugaray Rayford. He’s also won two Blues Music Awards, one with the late, great vocalist Mike Ledbetter and their band Welch Ledbetter Connection and one on his own. He’s a big part of the present-day blues climate and hearing him bounce back with this new album is cause for celebration.

Welch opens Nothing But Time with the powerful, B.B. King-inspired “Walking To You Baby.” Immediately, Welch is fully switched-on and swinging for the fences. His guitar lines are audacious and bold, as are his vocals. The horn-enhanced band swings hard behind him and gives him plenty of space to fly. You can easily tell how good he feels to be back in the hot seat.

Robert Johnson’s eternal “If I Had Possession Over Judgement Day” becomes a revved-up, train beat rocker with a down-home vibe in Mike’s grip. Rick Estrin guests on harp and does himself proud. Welch’s voice is urgent and full of soul and sounds like he’s singing right in front of you. This is real, ragged-edge blues and the energy it creates is what this thing of ours is all about.

In contrast, Welch’s title track “I’ve Got Nothing But Time” is laidback and deeply funky. Mike wails with a sweet vintage tone overtop of a chilled-out beat sure to get people moving wherever it’s heard. Figure in the horns and backup singers and you’ve got yourself a proper party. It’s a fun song and one of the best on the set.

Another amazing moment on Nothing But Time is Welch’s complete reinvention of The Beatles’ “I Me Mine.” It’s wild how well George Harrison’s classic song transforms into a passionate blues/rock epic without losing any of its original greatness. Kudos to Monster Mike for taking an ambitious stab at an unexpected cover and slam-dunking it. This is how the blues songbook expands.

“Time To Move” is a haunting, minor key blues with a perfect late-night feel. Welch drops some of his most well-conceived guitar lines on it and sings with real grit and fire. A list of additional album highlights would have to include “Hard To Get Along With” and “Jump For Joy.”

Monster Mike Welch proves that he’s 100% back in the saddle all over Nothing But Time and the album will come to be known as another high-water mark in his blues career. He’s a guitar arsonist and a vocal force to be dealt with who is now recovered and ready to go harder than ever before. This is fine work from one of the top artists making roots music today. Listen loud and love it! ~Mike O’Cull

Nothing But Time MP3
Nothing But Time FLAC

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Sugar Ray & The Bluetones - Sugar Ray & The Bluetones (Feat. Monster Mike Welch)

Size: 135,7 MB
Time: 57:49
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2003
Styles: Electric Blues, Harmonica Blues
Art: Full

01. I Believe (4:03)
02. Get Over Me (4:16)
03. And The Angels Sing (2:54)
04. Love And Trouble (5:08)
05. Feeling Blue (4:12)
06. Tell Me Whats Going On (3:58)
07. Burial Season (5:25)
08. Why The Sun Sets Red And Low (2:21)
09. I Asked My Baby (4:47)
10. Funk-Shun (6:55)
11. Linda Lou (4:53)
12. Tomorrow Morning (4:19)
13. From Now On This Morning (11 September) (4:32)

Sugar Ray Norcia has a burnished and warm quality to his voice that's ideally suited to the laid-back and rockin' blues featured on Sugar Ray & the Bluetones Featuring Monster Mike Welch. In fact, the whole band sounds steeped in Hennessy and tradition. This includes guest Welch, whose work on his mid-tempo original "Get Over Me" proves how close he is to matching the quality of B.B. King and Jimmie Vaughan. As a whole, the album is a tasty affair moving deftly from interesting standards such as the Norcia harmonica-driven "And the Angels Sing" to the torrid balladry of "Love and Trouble." This is easily one of Sugar Ray's best efforts. ~Matt Collar

Sugar Ray & The Bluetones MP3
Sugar Ray & The Bluetones FLAC

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Breezy Rodio - If It Ain't Broke Don't Fix It

Size: 161,0 MB
Time: 68:55
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2019
Styles: Chicago Blues
Art: Front

01. If It Ain't Broke Don't Fix It (4:54)
02. From Downtown Chicago To Biloxi Bay (4:30)
03. A Woman Don't Care (5:05)
04. I'm A Shufflin' Fool (4:05)
05. A Minute Of My Kissing (3:35)
06. Look Me In The Eye (2:23)
07. Desperate Lover (4:28)
08. Los Christianos (4:13)
09. Led To A Better Life (5:15)
10. Green And Unsatisfied (6:28)
11. The Breeze (3:01)
12. I'll Survive (4:50)
13. Pick Up Blues (2:59)
14. Dear Blues (5:14)
15. I Need Your Love (4:25)
16. Another Day (3:23)

Young guitarist, who has worked hard for his merits in the blues clubs of Chicago. On his second album for Delmark he pulls out all of his prowess. He cultivates an individual style and convinces by his playing technique, originality and a dose of unusual notions. His band sounds laid-back and far from the stereotype of a Chicago blues combo.
Guests include guitarists Monster Mike Welch and Kid Andersen and harpists Simone Nobile and Quique Goemz as well as a powerful horn section.

If It Ain't Broke Don't Fix It

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Mike & The Mellotones (Feat. Monster Mike Welch) - Mike & The Mellotones

Year: 1997
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 70:24
Size: 162,5 MB
Styles: Electric blues
Scans: Full

1. Don't Raise Their Kids No More (4:28)
2. How Long (5:40)
3. Things I'd Do For You (3:43)
4. Sen-Sa-Shun (3:23)
5. Don't Put Me On Hold (5:19)
6. Cold Hands (4:55)
7. Mellotone Groove (4:18)
8. Things That Might Have Been (4:38)
9. Snobound (6:19)
10. Too Much Too Fast (3:40)
11. Blues Is My Religion (10:44)
12. Leave Well Enough Alone (5:41)
13. Honest I Do (3:18)
14. Nicky (4:13)

This band was founded in 1993 by singer/guitarist Mike ‘The Kid’ Donkers and bass player Jules ‘Lord Julius’ van Brakel. Both Mike and Jules were dissatisfied with the band they were playing in and decided to get together one Sunday afternoon. Mike had a love for Texas blues, particularly Jimmie and Stevie Ray Vaughan and Anson Funderburgh, and Jules was crazy about Ronnie Earl and Stevie Ray Vaughan.

It didn’t take long for them to decide they should form a new band together. “But where are we going to find a drummer?”, Mike asked. Jules said he knew just the guy. This turned out to be Jules’s rhythm partner, Guido ‘El Guido’ Willemsen. Mike and Jules decided right there and then they would quit their bands and form a Texas Blues trio. One morning soon after that Mike literally woke up with a name for the band – Mike & the Mellotones. This was, of course, based on such names as Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble and Anson Funderburgh & the Rockets.

When Mike & the Mellotones came on the Dutch blues scene, there was no other band like them. It seemed like everybody was trying to copy the Chicago blues sound and they all sported hats, shades, beards, and Gibson guitars. Along came Mike & the Mellotones with greased-back hairdos, Fender Stratocasters and sharp suits, introducng Dutch blues audiences (and soon international blues enthusiasts) to their particular brand of Texas blues. They took the blues scene by storm, often playing long sets for wild crowds.

(For personnel details, see artwork included.)

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Mike & The Mellotones zippy

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Anthony Geraci - Why Did You Have To Go

Size: 140,7 MB
Time: 60:27
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2018
Styles: Piano Blues, Electric Blues
Art: Front

01. Why Did You Have To Go (Feat. Sugar Ray Norcia & Monster Mike Welch) (3:37)
02. Don't The Grass Look Greener (Feat. Sugaray Rayford, Kid Ramos & Monster Mike Welch) (3:12)
03. Fly On The Wall (Feat. Willie J. Laws, Jimi Bott, Willie J. Campbell & Kid Ramos) (3:54)
04. Angelina, Angelina (Feat. Sugaray Rayford, Monster Mike Welch, Willie J. Campbell & Jimi Bott) (6:25)
05. Long Way Home (Feat. Sugaray Rayford, Kid Ramos, Willie J. Campbell & Jimi Bott) (3:10)
06. Two Steps Away From The Blues (Feat. Michelle 'Evil Gal' Willson & Monster Mike Welch) (3:31)
07. Time's Running Out (Feat. Sugar Ray Norcia, Ronnie Earl & Monster Mike Welch) (5:17)
08. Baptized In The River Yazoo (Feat. Willie J. Laws) (5:16)
09. Too Many Bad Decisions (Feat. Dennis Brennan & Monster Mike Welch) (4:06)
10. What About Me (Feat. Michelle 'Evil Gal' Willson, Brian Templeton & Monster Mike Welch) (3:47)
11. Hand You Your Walking Shoes (Feat. Dennis Brennan & Monster Mike Welch) (3:41)
12. My Last Good-Bye (Feat. Sugar Ray Norcia, Ronnie Earl & Monster Mike Welch) (9:16)
13. A Minor, Affair (Feat. Kid Ramos, Willie J. Campbell & Jimi Bott) (5:09)

It’s been said often that one’s reputation is determined by the people one picks as friends and collaborators. If true, then count Anthony Geraci as one well respected musician. Geraci has spent most of the last four decades climbing into the rarified air of the blues. In the nascent days of the 1970s Boston blues scene, Geraci learned from keyboard mentors like David Maxwell, Ron Levy, and Al Copley who thrived in the New England blues scene back in the early 1970s. Next, Geraci was the first to play keys with Ronnie Earl’s Broadcasters and Sugar Ray Norcia’s Bluetones. Throughout the decades, Geraci’s dedication to mastering the intricacies of the blues piano burned in his soul, which led to Geraci searching out elders in the genre like Pinetop Perkins and Henry Gray to assimilate the traditions into modern outlooks.
The most important lesson Geraci absorbed is surrendering the individual to the will of the music. In all his previous recordings, especially his 2015 critically acclaimed Fifty Shades Of Blue (Delta Groove,) Geraci understands the artistic power of sharing the spotlight with an all-star cast of backing musicians.
"Why Did You Have To Go" follows that same blues print. Each song features Geraci enlisting an outstanding cast of artists to paint his musical landscapes. Geraci’s West meets East blues features past members of the Mannish Boys – Kid Ramos (guitar), Willie J. Campbell (bass), Jimi Bott (drums), Sugaray Rayford (vocals)– on five tunes while the Bluetones – Monster Mike Welch (guitar), Troy Gonyea (guitar), Sugar Ray Norcia (vocals), Michael Mudcat Ward (bass), and Neil Gouvin (drums) – blend with New Englanders Ronnie Earl (guitar), Michelle “Evil Gal” Willson (vocals), Brian Templeton (vocals), Dennis Brennen (vocals), Marty Richards (drums), Sax Gordon (sax), Doug Wolverton (trumpet) on six tunes. Including Geraci, count how many Blues Music Awards and nominations this talented roster has amassed. The real fun comes when Geraci shuffles the players from each coast to ignite the session.
Most exciting is the reunion of the original Sugar Ray and the Bluetones on Geraci’s “My Last Goodbye.” At nearly ten minutes of unhurried, emotional blues, the song spotlights Earl’s sharp phrasing combining with Geraci’s tight, Chicago blues keyboard lines that crest to stirring crescendos that ebb and flow into fresh musical vistas. The Bluetones also reunite on the up-tempo “Time’s Running Out.”
The unexpected surprise is the after hours testifyin’ on “Baptized In The River Yazoo,” an intimate duet featuring Texan blues force Willie J. Laws bearin’ witness to Southern folk lore as Geraci’s lonely piano floats out of cotton field churches.
In his performance of various piano styles, Geraci presents listeners with a concise history of the piano in American roots music. From New Orleans-styled R&B – “Long Way Home” – to stylish West coast – “Angelina, Angelina” – to Texas organ trio – “Don’t The Grass Look Greener” – to Chicago blues – “My Last Goodbye” – to the more modern Blue Note inspired “A Minor, Affair” – Anthony Geraci is right in step with his blues. ~Art Tipaldi – Editor, Blues Music Magazine

Why Did You Have To Go MP3
Why Did You Have To Go FLAC

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Sugar Ray & The Bluetones - My Life, My Friends, My Music

Size: 142,0 MB
Time: 60:17
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2007
Styles: Harmonica Blues, Modern Electric Blues
Art: Front & Back

01. Oh, Babe (3:06)
02. Little Green Talking Frog (4:19)
03. I Want To Be With Her (4:36)
04. You Better Change Your Ways (2:49)
05. Money Talking Mama (4:54)
06. Shut Your Face (5:42)
07. I Don't Know (2:56)
08. No Sorrow No More (3:11)
09. The Last Words Of A Fool (4:06)
10. Oh, Oh, Oh, Pretty Baby (3:56)
11. Do Your Remember (3:41)
12. Think It Over Again (5:46)
13. I Like My Baby's Pudding (3:41)
14. My Last Affair (3:43)
15. Until The Real Thing Come Along (3:46)

Sugar Ray Norcia is well respected on the blues circuit for his contributions to electric Chicago blues, but he has had a fondness for jump blues for some time -- and on My Life, My Friends, My Music, the singer/harmonica player pleasantly surprises us by making jump blues and early R&B (of the jazz-influenced, pre-soul, pre-James Brown variety) the main course. Norcia doesn't stay away from Chicago blues altogether on this 60-minute CD; he is in fine form on Big Maceo Merriweather's "Do You Remember?" and Sonny Boy Williamson's "I Don't Know," both of which were written by singers who epitomized blues in the Windy City. Nonetheless, jump blues and early R&B certainly dominate the album. Norcia and his skillful Bluetones open My Life, My Friends, My Music with a passionate, hard-swinging performance of Louis Prima's "Oh, Babe," which sets the tone of the disc -- and Norcia's celebration of jump blues and early R&B continues with inspired originals such as "The Last Words of a Fool," "Shut Your Face," the Charles Brown-ish "Think It Over Again," and the goofy "Little Green Talking Frog." Another memorable, jazz-influenced highlight of My Life, My Friends, My Music is Norcia's version of "Until the Real Thing Comes Along"; the expressive Norcia has no problem giving this well-known standard the type of earnestness it needs, and his obvious awareness of the influence that jazz (especially swing) had on early R&B in the mid- to late '40s and early '50s (just before the dawn of rock & roll) is a definite plus. My Life, My Friends, My Music is an excellent addition to Norcia's catalog and is among his best releases. ~Review by Alex Henderson

My Life, My Friends, My Music

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Peter Ward - Blues On My Shoulders

Size: 117,9 MB
Time: 50:18
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2017
Styles: Chicago Blues
Art: Front

01. She Took It All (3:08)
02. Which Hazel (3:10)
03. Blues On My Shoulders (3:16)
04. Collaborate (4:55)
05. Shiprock (2:36)
06. What Can I Do To You (3:10)
07. It's On Me (4:23)
08. Southpaw (4:09)
09. A Little More (5:17)
10. On The Ropes (3:08)
11. Colletta (3:38)
12. Kansas City Blues (4:23)
13. Drummin' Willie (4:58)

Guitarist Peter Ward announces his new CD, Blues on My Shoulders, on Gandy Dancer Records. Besides Ward on guitar and vocals, special guests on the new disc include multiple Blues Music Award-winning guitar legend Ronnie Earl, Sax Gordon Beadle on sax and the members of Sugar Ray and the Bluetones: Sugar Ray Norcia (vocals and harmonica), “Monster” Mike Welch (guitar), Anthony Geraci (piano), Michael “Mudcat” Ward (Peter’s brother – bass) and Neil Gouvin (drums).

“It pleases me to present Blues on My Shoulders, my first solo project,” Peter Ward says about the new album. “I wrote the words and music to 12 of the 13 songs. I grew up wearing out the vinyl records trying to understand how Robert Jr. Lockwood, Tiny Grimes, Louis Meyers and Jimmy Rogers made songs sound so good. It’s what I wanted to do. I was lucky to sit in often with my friend (and former roommate) Ronnie Earl and play alongside many of my musical heroes. A highlight was touring with the Legendary Blues Band: Joe Willie ‘Pinetop’ Perkins, Willie ‘Big Eyes’ Smith, Calvin ‘Fuzz’ Jones and Jerry Portnoy, who had brilliantly backed Muddy Waters for years. The way they played blues was everything I believed in, then and now. Willie Smith was an inventive drummer — and a wily character. I pay tribute to him in the song, ‘Drummin’ Willie.’ The track ‘Which Hazel’ is my homage to Chuck Berry. Sugar Ray Norcia honored me by singing the heck out of ‘Collaborate,’ a tribute to Lockwood and Lonnie Johnson. I appreciate that Ronnie Earl and Sax Gordon Beadle accepted my invitation to perform on two songs: ‘A Little More’ and ‘It’s On Me.’ ‘Southpaw’ is my ode to lesser-known left-handed swing guitarist Dickie Thompson, who worked with organist and front man Wild Bill Davis. My instrumental, ‘Shiprock,’ reminds me of a hallowed part of Navajo country I visited with my wife Mai Cramer, who died of breast cancer in 2002 and previously hosted a popular blues program every weekend for 24 years on WGBH-FM. She was an avid supporter of the blues and its purveyors. I think she would have liked Blues on My Shoulders. I hope you do.”

As a teenager growing up in Lewiston, Maine, Peter and his brother Michael (“Mudcat”) listened intently to blues records and went to see Muddy Waters, Buddy Guy, Junior Wells, Taj Mahal and Hubert Sumlin whenever they performed in the area. Peter played blues with Mudcat and did gigs also with his younger brother Jeff, who died in 1991. “Jeff was too young to drink, but club owners would let him in so he could play bass with New York City drummer Ola Dixon and me,” Ward recalls.

Ward later moved to Boston and played in various bands, frequently sitting in with Sugar Ray & the Bluetones, who then featured his brother and Ronnie Earl, and backed blues artists such as Jimmy Rogers, Eddie ‘Cleanhead’ Vinson and Lowell Fulson. ~by Mark Pucci Media

Blues On My Shoulders

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Kilborn Alley Blues Band - The Tolono Tapes

Size: 114,8 MB
Time: 49:10
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2017
Styles: Chicago Blues
Art: Front

01. Fire With Fire (3:29)
02. Going Hard (4:46)
03. Misty (3:59)
04. Do What I Do (4:20)
05. Terre Haute (3:39)
06. Christmas In County (4:19)
07. Home To My Baby (3:14)
08. Town Saint (5:00)
09. Cold Chills (5:18)
10. Easy To Love You (2:58)
11. Sure Is Hot (3:29)
12. Night Creeper (4:33)

Personnel:
Andrew Duncanson: Vocals, Guitar
Josh Stimmel: Guitar
Chris Breen: Bass Guitar
Ed O'Hara: Drums

2 time Nominated Blues Music Award artist
Best New Blues Band, 2006 "Put it in the Alley"
Best Contemporary Blues Album, 2007 "Tear Chicago Down"

Kilborn Alley blasted on to the blues scene in 2006, with award nominated and winning releases on Nick Moss' Blue Bella Records label. Kilborn is known for their traditional Chicago blues and R&B sounds with a rollicking contemporary sensibility. With seventeen years on the road, The Tolono Tapes is a taste of what happens when Kilborn Alley gets together in the studio with some of the friends they've made in their travels. Jackie Scott stops by to share some sweet R&B, piano man Henry Gray and harp master Bob Corritore lay down some Chicago blues, guitarist Monster Mike Welch and piano guru Anthony Geraci give a fresh take to some Kilborn Alley originals, Ronnie Shellist and Joe Asselin contribute harmonica work on some Kilborn and Scott originals, Corey Dennison and Gerry Hundt lend their blues wizardry to some ''in the studio'' compositions, and Cerbo raps over ''Sure Is Hot.''

The Tolono Tapes

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Sugar Ray & The Bluetones - Seeing Is Believing

Size: 112,5 MB
Time: 47:59
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2016
Styles: Chicago Blues, Harmonica Blues
Art: Front

01. Sweet Baby (3:53)
02. Seeing Is Believing (3:49)
03. Noontime Bell (3:51)
04. Keep On Sailing (4:59)
05. Blind Date (3:39)
06. You Know I Love You (4:39)
07. Misses Blues (2:43)
08. It Ain't Funny (6:09)
09. Not Me (3:56)
10. Got A Gal (4:24)
11. Two Hundred Dollars Long (2:54)
12. It's Been A Long Time (2:58)

After winning seven Blues Music Award nominations for their 2014 ‘Living Tear to Tear’ CD release, Sugar Ray & the Bluetones follow up with a genuine and solid blues CD release that brings you back to the time before blues became blues-rock. It’s got that feel, that ambience, that emotion often devoid in many of the so called blues rock releases found elsewhere.

Of the 12 tunes on this disc, 11 are originals plus one instrumental cover of B.B. King’s “You Know I Love You” which rivals B.B.’s own original recording.

The Bluetones, led by Sugar Ray Norcia on vocals and harmonica, are really a ‘super star’ group within themselves featuring Monster Mike Welch on guitar, Anthony Geraci on piano and organ, Michael Muscat Ward doing duty on bass and Neil Gouvin solidly understated on drums.

Sugar Ray reels you back to hollars of the Mississippi Delta with his original tune, ‘Keep on Sailing’ when black workers on the levee’s, prison road gangs and cotton fields could only sing surreptitiously of escaping the denigrating social/racial system prevalent in the South.

There isn’t a song on this fine release that is not true to its roots. A mix of tempos, a mix a topics and a wailing good CD release which wouldn’t surprise me if it matched Sugar Ray & the Bluetones 2014’s 7 nominations. ~by Steve Douglas

Seeing Is Believing

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Duke Robillard Band - Independently Blue (Feat. Monster Mike Welch)

Year: 2013
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 52:39
Size: 123,2 MB
Styles: Electric blues
Scans: Full

1. I Wouldn't-a Done That (4:04)
2. Below Zero (3:53)
3. Stapled To The Chicken's Back (4:08)
4. Patrol Wagon Blues (5:24)
5. Laurene (2:52)
6. Moongate (5:56)
7. I'm Still Laughing (3:25)
8. Strollin With Lowell And BB (3:46)
9. You Won't Ever (3:19)
10. This Man, This Monster (5:03)
11. Groovin' Slow (5:55)
12. If This Is Love (4:48)

For over four decades, Duke Robillard has been one of the most respected blues and roots music guitarists working today. This release shows endless creativity in bringing new ideas to blues forms. Fellow New England guitar hero Monster Mike Welch is an important contributor providing Duke with a daredevil foil on all tracks.

Personnel: Duke Robillard (guitar, vocals, banjo), Bruce Bears (piano, Hammond organ, synth), Brad Hallen (acoustic & electric bass), Mark Teixeira (drums)

Special guests: Monster Mike Welch (electric & acoustic guitar), Doug Woolverton (trumpet), Billy Novick (clarinet)

Independently Blue mc
Independently Blue zippy

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Big Pete - Live At Bluesnow! (Feat. Kid Ramos, Monster Mike Welch & Anthony Geraci)

Size: 142,3 MB
Time: 61:29
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2016
Styles: Modern Electric Blues
Label: Coast Company
Art: Front

01. Mean (Live) (6:17)
02. Born To Die (Live) (3:55)
03. Come On In This House (Live) (6:27)
04. This Time No Lies (Live) (4:16)
05. 6-45 (Live) (6:58)
06. I've Got My Eyes On You (Live) (6:25)
07. Ball And Chain (Live) (6:11)
08. Just To Be With You (Live) (5:07)
09. Only Time Will Tell (Live) (4:14)
10. Rockin' Daddy (Live) (5:11)
11. My Backscratcher (Live) (6:25)

Dutch blues vocalist and harp master Pieter "Big Pete" van der Pluijm may not be a familiar name to American blues audiences, but he's already well-established in the Netherlands – his native home base in North-West Europe. At 23, Pete was handpicked for a European memorial tour to honor the music and memory of legendary harmonica player and vocalist Lester Butler (the Red Devils and Thirteen), backed by several of Lester's original bandmates. The project was met with great success and critical acclaim, so more tours and a CD by the Lester Butler Tribute Band soon followed, securing Pete's arrival on the scene as one of the premier next generation blues performers in the Benelux region. Since then, Big Pete has gone on to form and record many other successful projects including his debut release "Bathroom Acoustics" by The Strikes, a couple of CDs by the rockin' 50's Chicago blues outfit The Backbones, and most recently, the more progressive and forward-thinking group M.O.C.T. (Men Of Considerable Taste). Pete's growing reputation has also led to tours and performances backing many internationally acclaimed blues artists including Alex Schultz, Mitch Kashmar, Monster Mike Welch, Hook Herrera, Matt Schofield, and Ian Siegal. Pete's informal introduction to the U.S. market materialized in March 2010 with his appearance on The Mannish Boys' 5th anniversary release "Shake For Me." Pete closed out the album in style paying tribute to his hero Lester Butler on the storming New Orleans romp "Way Down South," backed by Kid Ramos, Willie J. Campbell and Jimi Bott along with special guest pianist Andy Kaulkin, who previously recorded with Lester Butler on the classic album "Thirteen." Now Holland's best kept secret makes his official American solo album debut with an incredible all-star recording lineup featuring Kim Wilson, Paul Oscher, Al Blake, Johnny Dyer, Alex Schultz, Kirk Fletcher, Kid Ramos, Rusty Zinn, Shawn Pittman, John Marx, Mojo Mark, Rob Rio, Willie J. Campbell and Jimi Bott. “Choice Cuts (DGPCD149)” is guaranteed to be an instant classic not to be missed by anyone who considers themselves a true blues lover!

Live At Bluesnow!

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Chicago Bob Nelson - Flyin' Too High

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 54:02
Size: 123.7 MB
Styles: Chicago blues
Year: 2006
Art: Front

[2:54] 1. Taking Care Of Business
[4:03] 2. That's Why I Love You
[4:08] 3. Flyin' Too High
[4:10] 4. My Bleeding Heart
[4:13] 5. Party After Hours
[4:16] 6. Retirement Plan
[3:45] 7. Howlin' For My Darlin'
[4:31] 8. It's Hard Goin' Up
[5:16] 9. The Blues Never Die
[3:34] 10. Popcorn Man
[3:14] 11. Wish I Had Someone To Love
[3:02] 12. I'm Leavin'
[3:14] 13. Shake For Me
[3:38] 14. Christmas Tears

"Chicago" Bob's new record "Flyin' Too High" FEATURING DAVID MAXWELL on piano with "Monster" Mike Welch on guitar is the first release in ten years for the man that Muddy Waters nicknamed.

With an extensive live performance resume including John Lee Hooker and Johnny Shines, Nelson's rejuvenated style steeped in the "post-war" Blues with a semi-modern sound is a true Blues fans delight. Maxwell, who also produced the CD, is on top of the ivories along with "Monster" Mike Welch and Troy Gonyea tasty blues guitar licks. "Flyin' Too High" contains 14 tracks with a mix of Nelson penned originals and not your run of the mill covers. Deep, smoky and sometimes humorous vocals with top shelf harmonica by "Chicago" Bob make this disc a great a must have for any fan of the Blues.

Flyin' Too High mc
Flyin' Too High zippy

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Monster Mike Welch : Catch Me / Adding Insight to Injury

Album: Catch Me
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Source: LL (from CD)
Released: 1998
Styles: Blues
Time: 52:27
Size: 120,3 MB
Covers: Full

(4:39) 1. As Good as Gone
(4:27) 2. Make Up Your Mind
(3:56) 3. If I Love You
(5:56) 4. Mole's Blues
(3:53) 5. Changing of the Guard
(2:30) 6. Catch Me (Nothing Lasts Forever)
(4:41) 7. Worried Life Blues
(3:37) 8. Can't Reach You
(2:50) 9. My Love Belongs to You
(2:55) 10. A Price to Pay
(6:18) 11. Blues for Cara
(3:09) 12. Money (That's What I Want)
(3:33) 13. Don't Worry

In the kid-blues sweepstakes, "Monster" Mike Welch was one of the first on the scene and one who quickly got lost in the shuffle. This probably had more to do with his non-Hanson-like looks (à la Kenny Wayne and Johnny Lang) than his actual talent on his instrument, never a real consideration in these matters. Therefore in a move to distance himself from the pack and grab a little credibility in the bargain, his third album finds him dropping the teeny bopper "Monster Mike" tag, growing a beard, and scowling into the camera whenever possible. Musically, this time around he shows little growth since his previous two outings. Welch dials in every SRV-approved sound from his Stratocaster and his playing is still highly derivative, offering note-for-note guitar runs from everyone from Magic Sam to Albert Collins to B.B. King. To his credit, however, Welch sounds less like a Stevie Ray "Vaughanabee" than Kenny Wayne does, and if his vocals are wispy-kid embarrassing on tunes like "Catch Me" and "My Love Belongs to You," he never tries to strangle his voice to attain Johnny Lang's phony blues rasp. But nobody can deny that Welch can play his rear end off; if all blues album were ever meant to be was one big hot lick festival, then this one would rank as an all-time great. -- Allmusic.

Catch Me

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Album: Adding Insight to Injury
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Source: LL (from CD)
Released: 2004
Styles: Blues
Time: 55:40
Size: 128,0 MB
Covers: Full

(3:07) 1. But for the Grace of You
(3:40) 2. Get Over Me
(4:01) 3. Lose You
(4:18) 4. Good at Goodbye
(3:54) 5. Slapback
(7:09) 6. Thunder in the Distance
(3:35) 7. I Don't Want to Come Down
(3:56) 8. Do You Know Who You Are
(5:10) 9. Masters of War
(4:35) 10. Flying High
(5:20) 11. Tomorrow Morning
(2:39) 12. Into Thin Air
(4:10) 13. Kings and Pawns

Mike Welch, a guy who has won a Boston Music Award, been profiled on CNN, and hung out with Dan Akroyd, who bestowed Mike Welch with his bestial nickname and Monster Mike keeps things going monstrously strong with his new record Adding Insight to Injury. Every track on Insight displays tendencies of the classic blues sound, yet many of the pieces could be more truly called neo-blues. While some artists appear highly concerned with classical blues arrangements and instrumentation, Welch works with anything that sounds good. There is an invigorating newness to Monster Mike's sound that spaces him away from the pack. There's plenty of stuff on this record to give the artist his road-house cred, such as "Get Over Me." Insight isn't all just senseless, mass produced "I Love the Blues!!" fluff however, this Monster has multiple dimensions. Welch displays his dark side in the acidic why-don't-you-just-die-already "Masters of War," the ultimate piss-off song apparently directed at someone who may be the Monster's bad side. From the sound of this track, it's not a fun place to be. Welch also proves his funk quotient on the record in songs such as "Do You Know Who You Are?" a funky inquisition peppered with Welch's ripping guitar a funky, well-tempered Clavinet that would have Stevie himself take notice. -- Amazon.

Adding Insight to Injury

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Anthony Geraci & The Boston Blues All-Stars - Fifty Shades Of Blue

Size: 126,7 MB
Time: 53:55
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2015
Styles: Blues
Art: Front

01. Everything I Do Is Wrong (3:23)
02. Fifty Shades Of Blue (3:25)
03. Sad But True (3:53)
04. Heard That Tutwiler Whistle Blow (5:17)
05. If You Want To Get To Heaven (4:15)
06. Don't Keep Me Waiting (4:10)
07. The Blues Never Sleeps (3:13)
08. Too Late For Coffee (2:53)
09. Diamonds And Pearls (4:12)
10. Cry A Million Tears (5:56)
11. In The Quicksand, Again (3:10)
12. Your Turn To Cry (3:55)
13. Blues For David Maxwell (6:06)

Personnel:
Anthony Geraci: piano & Hammond organ
Monster Mike Welch: guitar
Michael "Mudcat" Ward: acoustic/electric bass
Marty Richards: drums (all tracks except 2 & 4)
Sugar Ray Norcia: vocals (2, 3, 4, 6, 8 & 12), harmonica (3, 4 & 12), Native American flute (13)
Darrell Nulisch: vocals (1, 7 & 10), harmonica (7)
Toni Lynn Washington: vocals (9)
Michelle "Evil Gal" Willson: vocals (2 & 5)
Neil Gouvin: drums (2 & 4)

Anthony Geraci (pronounced Jur-Ah-See) it seems has always known he was going to be a piano player. Out of the blue as a four year old, he told his parents he needed a piano. Although he describes his folks as not being into music or being particularly musical, they always supported his passion. The New England native admits, “Music is just something that I was born with. It is something that is just inside me.”

Geraci started out on an old upright and soon thereafter a baby grand piano was introduced into the household. So were lessons and some serious musical training. Even at a young age his teachers recognized his sense of improvisational instincts. Geraci attended the Neighborhood School of Music in his hometown of New Haven, Connecticut, which was affiliated with nearby Yale University. That education continued at the Berklee College of Music in Boston.

Outside of these prestigious institutions in this Ivy League environment, another type of musical education was happening after school. At a young age Geraci befriended a like minded school mate, Ed Cherry, who would go on to become an accomplished jazz guitarist. Day after day, year after year, the two youngsters would go home after school and listen to blues records. Muddy Waters, early Buddy Guy and perhaps most notably Jimmy Rogers and others were listened to over and over again. “I remember the album Chicago Bound by Jimmy Rogers. That record turned my mind around. Here was music that was so simple yet, so complex at the same time. That record took me by storm. It had everything I was looking for in music. I heard that record when I was sixteen years old. Five years later Jimmy Rogers was my roommate on the road.”

That’s pretty much the way it has been for Anthony Geraci. He has played and recorded with a laundry list of the greatest blues musicians in the most prestigious blues nightclubs and at major festivals around the world. The names read like a who’s who of the blues. They include Muddy Waters, Big Joe Turner, J.B. Hutto, Big Walter Horton, Otis Rush, Big Mama Thornton, Hubert Sumlin as well as Jimmy Rogers and that’s the short list. He was also a founding member of Ronnie Earl and the Broadcasters. However, Geraci is probably best known as a founding member of Sugar Ray and the Bluetones and after 35 years he remains an essential component of that band, which is still going strong.

Geraci cites a long list of influences. They include musicians from a variety of schools, including boogie woogie masters like Meade Lux Lewis and Pete Johnson to New Orleans players such as Professor Longhair and Huey “Piano” Smith. He also cites Chicago blues masters such as Otis Spann, Eddie Boyd and Memphis Slim as important ingredients of what he calls the “Anthony Blues Stew.”

Anthony Geraci and the Boston Blues All-Stars make their Delta Groove Music debut with their album "Fifty Shades of Blue." The Boston Blues All-Stars are the same musicians Geraci has been playing with for parts of the last five decades. They include vocalists Toni Lynn Washington, Darrell Nulisch, Michelle “Evil Gal” Willson and of course Sugar Ray Norcia. As Geraci points out, “I don’t sing, so why not get the best.” The “best” are backed by guitarist “Monster” Mike Welch, bassist Michael “Mudcat” Ward and drummers Marty Richards and Neil Gouvin. The All-Stars take on thirteen Geraci penned numbers that are full of fresh original ideas that are applied to music that come from many shades of the blues palette.

Fifty Shades Of Blue

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Brian Templeton - Bloozin'

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 52:45
Size: 120.8 MB
Styles: Modern electric blues
Year: 2006
Art: Front

[2:31] 1. Bloozin'
[4:08] 2. Stay Gone
[4:57] 3. The Reign
[4:02] 4. She's A Pleaser
[7:03] 5. Let Me Down Easy
[3:04] 6. Jean Nine Lives
[4:02] 7. Evil Love
[3:52] 8. Sugar Girl
[3:58] 9. Singin' In My Soul
[5:11] 10. You Aint Coming Home
[5:39] 11. He's A Mighty Good Leader
[4:13] 12. An Answer For Isaac

Well, after six years Brian Templeton has finally released his second CD. On this self-produced, self-released record entitled “Bloozin”, Templeton wanted to do a more solidly Blues based recording and put together what he called the “Dream Team” for the band on this powerhouse recording. The CD features Michael “Mudcat” Ward on Bass and Per Hanson on Drums. Collectively these two musicians have played on hundreds of Blues recordings, backing such legendary artists as James Cotton, Ronnie Earl and Hubert Sumlin, to name a few. On guitars, Templeton once again called on “Monster” Mike Welch and also recruited the great Kid Bangham (Fabulous Thunderbirds) for two guitar attack that really delivers the old school blues sound. Making special appearances are David Maxwell on Piano and Greg Piccolo, founding member and former front-man of the legendary Roomful of Blues on Tenor Sax. Scott Aruda on Trumpet and Travis Colby (of Roomful) on the Hammond B3 round out this killer ensemble.

The disc features 7 songs penned by Templeton and some interesting covers. These include a full out Gospel version of Skip James’ “He’s A Mighty Good Leader” and a take on “Singin In My Soul” made popular by Sister Rosetta Tharpe both of which feature the great backing vocals of Boston favorites “The Family Jewels”. Bloozin’ runs the gamut of a many Blues styles. From Rockin’ Blues to Jump and everything in between, Templeton’s new CD is sure to be a “must have” for Blues fans all over the world.

Bloozin'

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Monster Mike Welch - These Blues Are Mine / Axe To Grind

Album: These Blues Are Mine
Size: 115,7 MB
Time: 49:28
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 1996
Styles: Modern Electric Blues
Art: Full

01. Freezer Burn ( 2:25)
02. These Blues Are Mine ( 3:42)
03. It Might Not Be ( 3:48)
04. I Forget ( 4:20)
05. Texas Girl ( 3:37)
06. Lover And A Friend ( 2:49)
07. Jessie's Blues ( 4:31)
08. Looking Back ( 2:46)
09. Honest Love ( 3:44)
10. Keep On Doing ( 3:00)
11. Leroy's Mood ( 3:40)
12. Cold Poison (11:01)

He was only 16 years old at the time of release, but you wouldn't know it from the way he plays guitar -- this kid has the chops some seasoned professionals dream of, and has gained a lot of respect for them. The big problem comes when he opens his mouth to sing -- he does a credible job of trying to nail down that rough blues vocal tone, but he more often than not sounds just like a kid trying to get to a grown-up voice. Meanwhile, his band is well-worn and the songwriting is definitely up to par. ~Review by Steven McDonald

These Blues Are Mine

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Album: Axe To Grind
Size: 113,7 MB
Time: 48:27
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 1997
Styles: Modern Electric Blues
Art: Full

01. Did She Say (3:31)
02. Palm Of Her Hand (3:07)
03. Axe To Grind (4:59)
04. The Elkmont Stomp (2:36)
05. Every Time You Lie (3:11)
06. Afraid Of My Own Tears (2:53)
07. Take Your Best Shot (4:30)
08. She Couldn't Know (3:16)
09. Time Stands Still (3:14)
10. That's My Sin (4:33)
11. My Emptiness (9:02)
12. Cruise Control (3:32)

Mike Welch is a Boston-area blues guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter who has released several albums on the Rounder Tone-Cool subsidiary. The fact that he's so good and so young is part of the reason why they called him "Monster." Welch got this name from actor/comedian/Blues Brother Dan Aykroyd, although the moniker was dropped following his second album.

Welch's releases for Tone-Cool, which essentially launched his career as an international touring act, include a 1996 release, These Blues Are Mine, and his 1997 album Axe to Grind.

He began his blues education with his father's record collection, and he picked up the guitar at age eight and tried to emulate the sounds he heard from recordings by Magic Sam, Earl Hooker and B.B. King. Welch also studied the rock & roll and blues-rock records of the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, but after hearing more of Albert King and other blues guitarists, he found his calling in life.

When he was 11, his parents began driving him to blues jams around Boston. In the clubs, Welch learned from some of the greats of that scene, including Ronnie Earl and Luther "Guitar Jr." Johnson. Welch was invited to play at the opening of the first House of Blues club in Cambridge, Mass. in 1992. After co-owner Aykroyd heard him, his nickname changed from "Little Mikey" to "Monster Mike."

A few months later, Welch began working with George Lewis, who ran the blues jams at House of Blues, to put together the Monster Mike Welch Band. Welch is accompanied on his records by Lewis on guitar, Jon Ross on bass and Warren Grant on drums. Welch's biting, stinging Albert King-style guitar playing has better-than-average backing from these three on his Tone-Cool releases.

The crop of original songs he wrote on his first two albums for Tone-Cool demonstrate his prowess as a crafty blues songwriter. Whether he decides to go on to college or not, Welch has a bright future. All indications are that Welch, who got a flood of publicity because of his age, and was even quoted in People magazine -- "being an adolescent is more than enough blues for anyone to handle" -- should go on to a lengthy and varied career as a bluesman. He returned in 1998 with Catch Me. ~Artist Biography by Richard Skelly

Axe To Grind

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