Blues Blast Magazine Review: All My Friends: Celebrating The Songs and Voice of Gregg Allman

Good day!

This CD review was originally published in the November 27, 2014 edition of Blues Blast Magazine. Be sure to check out the rest of the magazine at www.bluesblastmagazine.com

Various Artists -- All My Friends: Celebrating The Songs and Voice of Gregg Allman

Rounder Records

www.greggallman.com

www.rounder.com

2 CDs / 26 tracks / 2:31:54

1 DVD / 2:40:55

The Allman Brothers Band has survived its share of adversity since their first paying gig in 1969, and after 45 years they have finally called it quits and had their finals shows at New York City’s Beacon Theatre. One of the founding members, Gregg Allman, will continue on with his solo career, which is to be expected as he has quite a following of fans, including countless professional musicians.

On Friday, January 10, 2014, some of these legendary artists joined at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia to honor Gregg and join him in song. All two-and-a-half hours of this show were captured on two CDs and a DVD, so you can experience this magical evening for yourself! All My Friends: Celebrating The Songs and Voice of Gregg Allman includes 26 songs with performances from a lengthy list of industry hard-hitters and hall-of-famers, including Warren Haynes, Derek Trucks, Susan Tedeschi, Dr. John, Eric Church, Pat Monahan, Jackson Browne, John Hiatt, Vince Gill, Martina McBride, and more! Gregg Allman joined in the celebration too, along with the rest of the Allman Brothers Band for a.

The set list is chock full of Allman goodness, with early Allman Brothers Band albums represented as well as tunes combed from Gregg’s solo catalogue. It is noteworthy that the Allman Brothers Band actually performed a few of the tunes, but they also assembled a house band to die for that played for the rest of the evening. This included Don Was on bass, Kenny Aronoff on the skins, Jack Pearson and Audley Freed on guitar, Chuck Leavell on piano, Rami Jaffee behind the Hammond, and Jimmy Hall tearing it up the harmonica. This would have been good enough, but they also brought in the McCrary Sisters on backing vocals and a killer horn section of Jim Hoke, Vinnie Ciesielski, and John Hinchey. These are all pros with centuries of combined stage experience and they made the evening enjoyable and complete.

This is a high-quality release with excellent production values, and the producer for this Rounder Records project is the one-and-only 3-time Grammy award winner Don Was. He was definitely qualified for this task, with credits that include The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, Roy Orbison and Neil Diamond. The sound and mix is as good as you will get with a live album, and the cinematography and editing of the DVD is crystal clear and it was put together so that fans get to see everything worth seeing.

Listening to the CDs is more challenging than the DVD as the first few times through it is difficult to envision what is happening on stage and who is actually singing – and most of the time it is not Gregg Allman. In fact, he does not even appear on stage until almost an hour in, when he joins Grammy-winning blues musician Taj Mahal on “Statesboro Blues.” But, without the visuals there is also a better of idea of who is getting the mail delivered, and there are definitely standout vocal performances. The highlight of the evening was “Midnight Rider” with Zac Brown and Gregg on lead vocals and Vince Gill backing them up on the harmonies: it induced goose bumps! Not far behind was McBride and Monahan’s duet of “Can You Fool” and the Sam Moore (of Sam & Dave) take of “Please Call Home.”

But the best part of the set is the DVD, and if you are not terribly busy you can take most of an evening to sit back and watch it. There are no special features or commentaries, but it is probably one of the better-produced concert videos that you will ever see. On the screen you get to see the mountains of amplifiers and the huge cast of musicians that made this tribute possible. This video gives a better idea of what a bang-out job that the house band does, including the powerful drumming of the indefatigable Aronoff, and the kicking yet subtle contributions of Pearson and Freed on guitar. The pedal steel work of Robert Randolph on “You Can’t Lose What You Ain’t Never Had” was a complete jaw-dropper and he did a righteous job alongside Gregg’s son, Devon Allman, on guitar. Also, the finale of “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” is very touching as all of the musicians returned to the stage one last time with Gregg kicking things off.

If you are a fan of Gregg Allman or the Allman Brothers Band, then purchasing All My Friends: Celebrating The Songs and Voice of Gregg Allman will be an easy decision. If you like Southern rock, you will certainly want to pick up a copy too. But the universal appeal of this well-produced set is that it includes work from some of the most influential artists of today, which makes adding this well-rounded music collection to your library almost irresistible, even if you are only the least bit interested in the man or the band. Check it out for yourself, and do not be surprised if you end up buying a copy too!

Mahalo!

Blues Blast Magazine DVD Review: Chaz DePaolo – Live In Iona

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This DVD review was originally published in the June 5, 2014 edition of Blues Blast Magazine. Be sure to check out the rest of the magazine at www.bluesblastmagazine.com

Chaz DePaolo – One Night Live in Iona | DVD Review

Smoke Tone Records

www.chazdepaolo.com

www.smoketonerecords.com

11 songs / 1:20:36

Chaz DePaolo is not only an extremely talented blues and rock guitarist, he is also one of the hardest working men in show business. He has been on tour for ages, playing 150 shows a year all over the U.S., Canada and Europe, sometimes barely making ends meet, but plugging along for the love of the music. Along the way he has earned a loyal cadre of fans and caught the ear of some fine artists, and has shared the stage with the likes of Buddy Miles, Jose Feliciano, David Maxwell, Blue Lou Marini, and Blues Blast Magazine perennial favorite Michael Packer!

Besides releasing four solid albums, he can also be heard on projects from Little Milton, Kim Wilson, Rory Block and Charlie Musclewhite. One Night Live in Iona is Chaz’s first DVD, and this disc provides his fans with something fresh as he has not released a new CD since 2009. This is a recording of the March, 2013 show at Lebanon, Pennsylvania’s Zion of Iona Methodist Church. DePaolo handles the vocal and guitar chores, and he is joined by Hank Kaneshige on bass, Cliff McComas on drums, and Rob Chaseman on the sax.

This DVD is set up so that it can be watched in its entirety, or individual songs can be selected from the main menu. If the entire show is watched there are no pauses between songs, and all of Chaz’s interplay with the audience is included. Up front there is an intentionally grainy introduction that shows the stage being assembled and the arrival of the band. At the end of the disc there is a bonus five-minute question and answer session with DePaolo, in which he sits with an acoustic guitar perched on his knee while he candidly talks to the interviewer.

This is no ordinary church performance -- they made up for a relatively small stage by bringing in a full lighting truss and a fog machine, and visually it is appealing. The image quality is clear (this was shot in HD) and they did not skimp on the cameras, with at least four in play for this performance. Also, the audio portion is very well recorded and mixed, and as far as live recordings this is about as good as you could hope for. This means that there is little to distract the viewer from the band’s performance, and is electrifying.

Chaz has a hearty voice with obvious emotion and his guitar work is complex. His command of electric blues is undeniable, and his playing is flavored with hints of jazz and funk. His technical skills are tempered by a genuine feel for the music, and Chaseman, Kanashige and McComas have a tight connection to DePaolo so that they work together as a single entity.

The band runs through two tunes from, Flirtin’ with the Blues, including the opener, “Chicago 101.” DePaolo starts this short instrumental with a classic 12-bar blues riff, and introduces each member of the band before trading solos with Chaseman. Kanashige and McComas hold down a solid bottom line and deliver the goods without showing off, which would be a temptation with such a small ensemble. The other song from this album is “Stormin’,” a blues rocker with a slightly funkier backline and an assortment of tones that show that his Stratocaster is not a one-trick pony.

Much of the evening was spent covering five songs from his most recent release, Bluestopia. A standout of these was “Woman in a Black Dress.” This is a sexy slow-rolling blues number that Chaz belts out with heartfelt emotion while never missing a cue on the guitar. DePaolo accepts this leadership role with ease and he is truly a bluesman of the highest order.

Chaz draws on his history with The Groundhogs, the English band that he fronted for 2 ½ years, by including two of their songs. “No More Doggin” is a fun rock and roll song that can also be found on his Bluestopia album. “Cadillac Baby” is of the same ilk, though on this evening he got the Iona audience involved with a little call and response (and they actually did it!).

Of course, Chaz is first and foremost a guitar player, and he proved it handily with “Voodoo Style Chazy,”his interpretation of Jimi Hendrix’s classic blues rocker. In this same vein, for the encore they pulled out a new song, “Slo Bite,” a tribute to the late Roy Buchanan. DePaolo shows off his chops on this slow-burning instrumental that is packed with innovative guitar pyrotechnics and a dynamic sax interlude from Chaseman.

One Night Live in Iona is a fun DVD that gives great insight into Chaz DePaolo’s live show that is always tight and entertaining. Rumors are that there will soon be a CD with just the audio portion of this show, but the visual part of this package is equally compelling and should not be missed. If you are a fan of electric blues go ahead and splurge for the DVD – chances are good you will watch it again and again!

Mahalo!