RONNIE EARL: Ronnie Earl & Friends

Since his tenure as lead guitarist with Roomful of Blues in the 1980s, Ronnie Earl has established himself as a force to be reckoned with in the crowded universe of blues guitarists. Influenced by old masters like T-Bone Walker, B.B. King, Magic Sam and Robert Lockwood Jr., Earl is a traditionalist and an innovator at the same time, merging old-school Chicago and Delta blues with more contemporary sensibilities.

In 2000, Earl dazzled fans and critics alike with the instrumental Healing Time (CD-83490), a jazz-flavored Telarc recording with unmistakably spiritual underpinnings. "Put this one on at three in the morning," one Blues Access writer suggested of Healing Time, "or any time you need to be healed by a cool wash of soulful blues and bluesy jazz." Blues Revue, meanwhile, noted that "this guitar god is as comfortable with the jazz idiom as he is with the blues."

But Earl has never been one to stray too far from his roots. Ronnie Earl and Friends, his followup on Telarc, is a multi-generational gathering of blues artists seeking to recreate the lively, impromptu spirit of the old Delmark blues recordings of the ‘60s, when heavyweights like Junior Wells, Otis Spann and Buddy Guy, Fred Below and the Myers brothers were at the peak of their powers—as individuals and as collaborators.

The guest list on Ronnie Earl and Friends includes some of the most prominent living blues artists. Luther "Guitar Junior" Johnson contributes lead vocals on the midtempo opener, "All Your Love," while Irma Thomas lends her pipes to the sultry medley, "I’ll Take Care of You/Lonely Avenue." Fabulous Thunderbirds alumnus Kim Wilson brings his vocal and harp skills to a half-dozen tracks, including the B.B. King classic, "Rock Me Baby," and trades harp licks with Chicago blues veteran James Cotton on "One More Mile," "No More" and "Mighty Fine Boogie." Levon Helm, drummer and co-founder of the Band, keeps it all together and in the pocket with tight drumming on all thirteen tracks.

Veteran journalist Ted Drozdowski, who was on hand when tape was rolling at Bearsville Studios in Woodstock, NY, in November 2000, called the sessions "a full-on collaboration between Ronnie and people he has known and loved for years."

"You could read the back of Roomful of Blues veteran Ronnie Earl's new album and wonder if a review is even necessary...If, by the company Earl keeps, ye shall know him, his future's looking mighty good indeed." -- Blues Revue

"...a warm, smoothly consistent collaboration that dips into R&B and a little piano boogie at times." -- Boston Globe

"Earl’s playing is superb throughout—stinging when appropriate, laying into shuffles with rhythmic fervor, squeezing every drop of juice out of each note on every slow blues…This one has him standing knee-deep in Chicago-style blues." -- JazzTimes

"Each cut shows that when you are among friends, the continuity between past and present is magnified and then fortified." -- BN.com

"Reclusive blues guitar hero returns to his roots..." -- Guitar One

"...smoky, after-hours blues, and worthy of the cast. Which is saying a lot." -- Ink 19

"...the material is strong and artfully understated…his six-string artistry also makes this a celebratory blues homecoming." *** -- Boston Herald

"Plenty of low down, back in the alley, gut bucket slow blues that you can really get lost in. Thirteen tracks and 68 minutes of pure listening pleasure." -- Twelve Bar Rag

"Earl remains one of the most proficient blues guitar players on the scene and he sounds right at home with his illustrious partners on his finest blues outing in years." -- Illinois Entertainer

"If you can judge a performer by his friends, then the guitarist Earl is obviously someone special." -- London Times

"This CD is solid blues all the way through...well done and definitely worth hearing, and having." -- Southland Blues

"...with musicians of this caliber, you’re unlikely to go wrong, and the resulting album is a relaxed, unpretentious chronicle of these artists’ interaction on blues classics and a few similarly themed originals." -- All Music Guide

Recorded at Bearsville Studio, Woodstock, New York on October 30-31 & November 1, 2000. Includes liner notes by Ted Drozdowski.

Personnel: Ronnie Earl (guitar); Luther "Guitar Junior" Johnson (vocals, guitar); Kim Wilson (vocals, harmonica); Irma Thomas (vocals); Paul Marrochello, Tim "Juice" O'Connor (guitar); James Cotton (harmonica);
David Maxwell (piano); Jimmy Mouradian, Michael "Mudcat" Ward (bass);

Tracks:

1. All Your Love
2. Rock Me Baby
3. I'll Take Care Of You / Lonely Avenue
4. Mighty Fine Boogie
5. One More Mile
6. Bad Boy
7. Twenty-Five Days
8. No More
9. Last Night
10. New Vietnam Blues
11. Marie
12. Blue and Lonesome
13. Looking Good

Details
.. Year: 2001
.. Label: Telarc 83537 (Please visit and buy)
.. Country: USA
.. Bitrate: 192 kbps
.. Home-Page: www.ronnieearl.com/
.. MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/ronnieearlandthebroadcasters
.. Last.fm: www.last.fm/music/Ronnie+Earl
.. Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronnie_Earl
.. BUY ME 1: Telarc http://www.telarc.com/basket.asp?mscssid=HGVSAM5M41599HQJUCWLQAQUH35LBM39
.. BUY ME 2: CD Universe http://www.cduniverse.com/productinfo.asp?pid=2103537&cart=780735379

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