Allison August

August Moon

MoMojo Records

Allison August has had music in her veins since an early age. She grew up in a household of music aficionados. Her influences range from the Beatles to Billie Holiday, Etta James, Aretha Franklin, and Ray Charles. Included also is modern day Blues and R&B, as in the early years of her career, she collaborated with Coco Montoya, and then Paul Barrere of Little Feat. After a few years of dedicated energy to making this album, interrupted by Covid, she teamed up with the Grammy winning producer Tony Braunagel, and longtime bandmate and co-producer David J. Carpenter. The ensemble includes Braunagel, drums; Barrere, guitar; the late Mike Finnigan, keyboards; Lenny Castro, percussion; Carpenter, bass; and backing vocalists Maxayn Lewis, Jen Castonon, Teresa James, and Gregg Sutton. All songs are sung by Allison.

The lead off track “Afraid of Love” is about being torn between wanting love but being too guarded, as we get to hear Allison’s beautiful voice as she sings “I’m Afraid of love, when push comes to shove, I’m afraid of love”, with Bryan Head, drums; Sam Meek, guitar; and organ from Phil Parlapiano. “Dashboard Madonna” is about Allison’s love/hate relationship with the city of Los Angeles “music is the best side of me”, as the city offers musicians
opportunities amongst a visible cruelty to the poor and impovished. “I Won’t Say No” is about navigating a complicated relationship with some great percussion from Castro, organ from Finnigan, and a vocal duet with Sugaray Rayford.

“What Would Mama Say”, “about the cat I dragged in…for god sakes girl, put on a sweater” about mama’s attempts to protect and guide Allison with usually unheeded advice. “Blue Eyed Boy” is about Allison trying to parent her own teenage son. “Honey Jar” is the album’s only cover, and it’s from The Wood Brothers “honey livin’ off of your soul”, with more great Hammond B-3 from Finnigan. “Desiree” is another stunning vocal from Allison about her beloved cousin who passed away last year.

On “Dog In You” Allison sings “we both know, why you do the things you do, it’s just a job, it’s just the dog in you”. “Blues is My Religion” features bassist Bob Glaub, guitarist Josh Sklair, organist Parlapiano, saxophonist Joe Sublett, and trumpeter Les Lovitt, as Allison explores the misinterpretation of the teachings of the bible and how they are used to marginalize different groups of people. “The Cure” is about Allison and Barrere when both were battling cancer; they would talk about the side effects of their treatments “it’s a blessing or a curse, and I ‘m not sure which is worse, let’s say I might survive, if the cure don’t kill me first”.

“I Ain’t Lyin'” is about trying to keep things simple in relationships “I ain’t lyin’ I’m an honest gal, I ain’t trying to change the world…don’t make me wait”. On the closer “Born Yerterday” about making the most of what you’ve got even when the catds are stacked against you as Allison chimes “I was born yesterday but I’ve been up all night…that’s 24 hours, I know wrong from right…I’m gonna do the best I can, come on and take my hand, come on, come on”.

On “August Moon” Allison August delivers us an emotive album full of her autobiographical experiences. She dedicates this project to the memories of the late Paul Barerre, Mike Finnigan, and Greg Sutton. In the end she proves her-self a talent beyond comparison.

Richard Ludmerer
Contributing Editor/Making A Scene

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