New tunes this Friday rather than Tunage Tuesday, blame the delay on band practice. (That has a nice ring to it!) This week we have Blues/Rock artists times three. Hard-hitting Albert Castiglia, known for his work with Junior Wells, newcomer Chris Watson from the D/FW area in Texas cuts his sophomore release, and Devon Allman, Cyril Neville and Mike Zito form a new band.
Royal Southern Brotherhood
Renaissance Man
2012 Ruf Records GmbH
- New band from guitarist Devon Allman (son of Gregg), singer percussionist Cyril Neville, and young guitar slinger Mike Zito form forces for some Southern blues, rock and soul
- Thoroughly enjoyable stew of southern rock, soul, blues, rock, featuring strong guitar work from Allman and Zito, soulful vocals from Cyril Neville and anchored by Atlanta blues bassist Charlie Wooton and drummer Yonrico Scott formerly of Derek Trucks Band, is why this group’s release debuted at #5 on the Billboard Blues chart
Download: Brotherhood, Moonlight Over Mississippi, Fire on the Mountain
»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»
Albert Castiglia
Living the Dream
2012 Blues Leaf Records
- Castiglia is best known for his work with Chicago blues singer, harmonica howler Junior Wells (famed for working with Muddy Waters and Buddy Guy in the ’50s and ’60s), this is his 6th studio release
- Rollicking, rockin’, muscular, old school blues from this not-well-known veteran showcases his gruff vocals and gritty guitar on five original tunes plus a slew of sweet covers from Freddie King , Little Richard, Paul Butterfield and Mose Allison
- Band is tight and well-suited to his appealing brand of blues, featuring his regular band mates Bob Amsel on drums and A.J. Kelly on bass and some guests (John Ginty on keyboards, Sandy Mack on harmonica, among others)
Download: Living the Dream, Fat Cat, Walk the Backstreets
»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»
Chris Watson
Pleasure and Pain
2012 Gator Music
- Chris Watson is a Texas-based young guitarist from the Dallas-Fort Worth area who caught my eye for no specific reason on iTunes the other day and this is second release (though the only one on iTunes) and he’s opened for blues heavy hitters like Kenny Wayne Shepherd and Walter Trout
- Great effort from this newcomer with stinging guitar chops and a strong vocal effort on a blend of originals and excellent covers (traditional gospel song Going Home is one of my faves, as is his version of Bobby Womack’s Check it Out)
- Drummers Jason Thomas and Jon Zoog lay down some of the tastiest and out-front blues drumming I’ve heard recently (special thanks to Chris Watson via Twitter for the update!)
Download: Pleasure and Pain, Going Home, Check it Out
»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»