Every week our staff of CD Reviewers bring you the best in Independent CD releases. Making a Scene is considered the number 1 resource for the independent musician and the fans that love them.
Peter Veteska & Blues Train Grass Ain’t Greener On The Other Side Independent New Yorker Peter Veteska learned to play guitar by listening to Eric Clapton and Duane Allman. He played his first gig at the age of fifteen but as he grew older his tastes turned toward Jazz. He reconnected with his passion for […]
Dustin Laurenzi’s Natural Language A Time and a Place Woolgathering Tenor saxophonist Dustin Laurenzi’s A Time and A Place, follows-up his 2016 self-titled album with his quartet of Chicago-based musicians, Natural Language, intact. Their sound embodies unbridled invention and cohesiveness that creates moods and textures in favor of aggressive soloing although there is some of that too, mostly […]
Mick Kolassa If You Can’t Be Good, Be Good At It! Endless Blues Records Michigan born Mick Kolassa has lived in the greater Clarksdale, Mississippi area for over twenty-five years. Kolassa is part of the local Memphis blues scene and a former member of the Board of Directors of The Blues Foundation. After years of […]
The Allman Brothers Band The Final Note – Painters Mill Music Fair 10-17-71 Warner Theater, Erie, Pa 7-19-05 (2 CDs) Allman Brothers Band Recordings/Peach Records These two live recordings of the Allman Brothers Band, as the dates suggest, represent two incarnations of the lineup, neither ever heard on record until now. The Final Note is […]
Laura Tate Live From El Paso 811 Gold Records Dallas’ Laura Tate studied acting in New York City at both the Herbert Berghoff Studio, and the Stella Alder School of Acting. She performed off-Broadway and toured in theatrical productions in Los Angeles, and Nashville. She soon found herself on the production side of the business […]
The Shrubs Equation Of Love Today I have the honor to present the new song from the fantastic band “The Shrubs” called “Equation Of Love”. The Shrubs are: Charlie, Lead Vocals, Guitar… Ithaca NY, Spike, Vocals, Drums… Cortland NY, RJ, Bass, Vocals…San Diego CA Spike and RJ started to make music in the basement of Spike’s mothers house, […]
Big Harp George Living In The City Blues Mountain Records George Bisharat a.k.a. Big Harp George is a San Francisco singer, songwriter and harp player. He favors the chromatic harp which gives his music a jazzier sound then most blues players. Formerly George was a criminal defense attorney and award winning law professor at the […]
Ben Levin Carryout or Delivery Vizztone This young college student (yes, he’s still in college three albums later) sounds so good playing the rollicking piano and singing like a veteran that it would be impossible for the uninformed listener to guess that Ben Levin has just reached legal drinking age. Having received two Blues Blast […]
Johnny Rawls Where Have All The Soul Men Gone Third Street Cigar Records Johnny Rawls was born in Mississippi in 1951. The guitarist learned by backing musicians when they would tour the state. In 1975 Rawls joined O.V. Wright’s band and became his musical director until Wright’s passing in 1980. Rawls kept the band together […]
Budos Band Long in the Tooth Daptone The Budos Band’s sixth studio album Long In The Tooth, on their longstanding label, Daptone Records, marks the 15th anniversary of the band’s eponymous 2005 full-length debut. The album was recorded in just five days at Diamond Mine Studios in Queens, NY. After one listen, you might expect a full orchestra behind […]
Para Lia Gone with the Flow “All The Colours, Step By Step, Are Blending With Her Spider Web” Lyrics from “My Muse” Today I have the honor to present you the new album from Para Lia, “Gone With The Flow” Para Lia is a band based in Cottbus, Germany, founded in 2018 and the members […]
Edward Simon 25 Years Ridgeway Celebrating a quarter century of inventive music, Venezuelan-born pianist, composer and bandleader Edward Simon, who now resides in the Bay Area, releases the two-disc career retrospective 25 Years on Ridgeway Records, affirming his status as a key figure in the wave of Latin American musicians who’ve transformed jazz in recent decades. Featuring tracks […]
Kim Wilson Take Me Back! The Bigtone Sessions MC Records Harmonica player and vocalist Kim Wilson fronts the Fabulous Thunderbirds while also maintaining a solo career. Wilson has seven previous studio albums under his own name; the last being 2017’s “Blues and Boogie Vol. 1”. Wilson is winner of six Blues Music Awards. He is […]
Sonny Green Found! One Soul Singer Little Village Foundation Robert “Sonny” Green was born in Monroe Louisiana in October, 1941. At the age of eighteen the vocalist was hired by saxophonist Big Jay McNeely who had a 1959 hit single “There is Something On Your Mind” sung by Little Sonny Warner. As Warner’s replacement Green […]
Chuck Bergeron & South Florida Jazz Orchestra Cheap Thrills The Music of Rick Margitza Summit Bassist/bandleader Chuck Bergeron celebrates the 15th anniversary of his South Florida Jazz Orchestra (SFJO) with the music of saxophone great Rick Margitza. The SFJO is one of the best unheralded big bands, very versatile and comprised of some of the […]
Brianna Thomas Band Everybody Knows Self-released Maybe it’s a fitting coincidence that rising jazz vocalist Brianna Thomas is releasing her second album, Everybody Knows, on the same day that Ella Fitzgerald’s Lost Berlin Concert is out. All female jazz vocalists point to Ella as a major influence but not many are in the same conversation […]
Chris Smither More From The Levee Signature Sounds Chris Smither recorded his debut album “I’m A Stranger Too!” in 1970. Included was the song “Love You Like a Man”. Two years later the song was recorded by Bonnie Raitt and helped establish Smither as one of our foremost songwriters. Smither’s last album was 2018’s “Call […]
Benn Clatworthy & System 6 Bennie’s Lament Skipper Productions London-bred and Los Angeles-based saxophonist Benn Clatworthy has been a fixture on the Los Angeles jazz scene since 1980. Clatworthy was originally heavily influenced by late-’50s John Coltrane, but would soften his tone and sometimes sound a little like Warne Marsh with touches of Sonny Rollins. He debuted in 1990 with Thanks Horace (which […]
Johnny Iguana Chicago Spectacular! Delmark Records Brian Berkowitz known professionally as Johnny Iguana is a highly regarded Chicago blues pianist having toured or recorded with Otis Rush, Junior Wells, Carey Bell, James Cotton, Eddy Clearwater, Buddy Guy, Lurrie Bell, Matthew Skoller and Lil’ Ed. More importantly he appears on three notable Larry Skoller produced projects: […]
Drive-by Truckers The New OK ATO One of America’s most important rock bands, Drive-by Truckers (DBTs), delivered an inspired, ferocious, and angry at times performance in Philadelphia the day after the 2016 Election. Their performance was as one would have expected. Yet, the collective vibe both onstage in the audience was collective release from the shocking numbness still […]
Nicholas Brust Frozen In Time Fresh Sound Frozen in Time is saxophonist, composer, and educator Nicholas Brust’s debut full-length album, with nine originals in a quintet setting. Brust did release an EP of original music in 2015 but has mostly stayed busy playing in NYC and serving as a educator at three institutions. Brust has […]
Little Richard The Rill Thing Omnivore Recordings Little Richard, born Richard Wayne Penniman in Macon Georgia, is one of the architects of Rock n’ Roll. He recorded his debut album “Here’s Little Richard” on Specialty Records in 1957. Nine of the twelve songs hit the Billboard Hot 100 including mega-hits “Tutti Frutti”, “Long Tall Sally”, […]
Kerry Kearney Tales from The Psychedelta Highlander Records Kerry Kearney is among my favorite slide guitarists. Although not as well-known as Sonny Landreth or Roy Rogers, Kearney has been honing his craft for over forty years. Many of Kearney’s most sought after recordings are long out of print. This collection was remastered by Chris Wallitsch […]
Fiona Boyes Blues in My Heart (20th Anniversary Edition) Reference Recordings This writer fondly remembers the Australian finger-picking blues singer-songwriter from about a dozen years ago when she performed live on my then radio show. One couldn’t help but be struck by her undeniable talent, both playing the guitar and singing, yet the overriding takeaway […]
Bart Ryan Starlight and Tall Tales Blackbird Initially what is striking about LA-born/Nashville-based session guitarist and award-winning singer- songwriter Bart Ryan’s Starlight and Tall Tales is his soulful bluesy guitar and lap steel playing, but the album offers a good dose of roots variety as it unfolds, including some very soulful tunes. Twangy and bluesy […]
Doug Webb Apples and Oranges Posi-Tone Posi-Tone, the highly selective label that only issues about a dozen recordings annually, a label that we began covering on these pages this year, now releases Doug Webb’s Apples & Oranges, the latest from the veteran saxophonist and composer, one of the label’s longest tenured artists. Some of the […]
Andy Watts Supergroove Booga Music/Vizztone Label Group Andy Watts was bitten by the blues bug when he was twelve. He started playing guitar and developing a reputation as Israel’s Ambassador of the blues, bringing in the world’s leading artists to perform and record with his band The Blues Rebels. They released their first album “Open […]
Lloyd Jones Tennessee Run Vizztone Label Group Lloyd Jones was born in Portland in 1950. His father was a trumpet player, and his older brother taught him drums. As a teenager he took up guitar. Early blues and soul influences include Muddy Waters; Walter Horton; Jimmy Reed, Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee, and James Brown. […]
Elvin Bishop and Charlie Musselwhite 100 Years of Blues Alligator As this writer has said before of other artists, the eventual pairing was inevitable. Not only are Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame guitarist Elvin Bishop and Grammy-winning harmonica master Charlie Musselwhite fellow blues travelers and Blues Hall Of Famers with over 100 years of […]
Band of Heathens Stranger BOH The Band of Heathens (BOH) have made a pandemic record, loosely alluded to by its title, Stranger, the sixth studio album for the Austin-based unit, and their first of original material since 2017’s Deuende. Actually, the title for this one, wasn’t directly drawn from the pandemic but rather influenced by […]
Eric Revis Slipknots Through the Looking Glass Pyroclastic GRAMMY award-winning bassist and composer Eric Revis, if nothing else, is consistently explorative and experimental. Slipknots Through a Looking Glass, his debut for Pyroclastic Records is definitely “out there.” Like his label mates he lives on the cutting edge. Revis is not embarrassed to admit that his music is […]
José Rizo’s Mongorama Mariposas Cantan Saungu Jose Rizo’s Mongorama, founded in 2011, is a nonet consisting of four percussionists and other musicians performing high spirited Latin jazz. As the band name implies, their music is inspired by conquero Mongo Santamaria’s early 1960s band, one that paved the way for popularity of Latin jazz worldwide. This […]
Pete Kronowitt Do Something Now Self-released San Francisco-based, New Jersey born, Florida raised singer/songwriter and activist Pete Kronowitt is out with his latest set of rallying cry songs, Do Something Now. Kronowitt is the founder of the Face the Music Collective, a grassroots organization driving social and political change. However, what may be more notable […]
John Nemeth Stronger Than Strong Nola Blue Records The Boise, Idaho born John Nemeth was a rock fan until a friend turned him on to Junior Wells’ classic “Hoodoo Man Blues”. He joined a local blues band and would sing and play harp often opening for national touring acts. He released his own debut album […]
Orlando Le Fleming Romantic Funk: The Unfamiliar Whirlwind Renowned bassist Orlando le Fleming makes his debut with Whirlwind Recordings with Romantic Funk: The Unfamiliar, paying tribute to the high-intensity fusion of the 1980’s with an impressive team of elite players including Philip Dizack on trumpet and fellow Londoner and OWL trio mate, alto saxophonist Will Vinson , Sean Wayland on keys, and […]
Bette Smith The Good, The Bad and The Bette Ruf Records Bette Smith grew up in the rough Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn. “My father was a church choir director. I was singing since I was five years old. My mother listened to nothing but gospel, every Sunday morning, she would get up and put on […]
Miki Yamanaka Human Dust Suite Outside In Music You could say the centerpiece for this album by New York-based musician and composer Miki Yamanaka is based on a rather strange and alarming subject but then again, you’ve probably had your own experience of wandering through an art museum, only to be totally stunned by a particular […]
Igor Kogan In a Big City Self-released In a Big City is the debut studio album as a bandleader for bassist /composer Igor Kogan for this quintet setting, He features 9-time Grammy Award nominee vocalist Tierney Sutton on “Vocalise.” The members of his fiery, versatile, contemporary sounding quintet are Jeremy Lappitt (tenor saxophone), Joshua Aguiar […]
Al Basile Last Hand Sweetspot Records Al Basile got his start as the first trumpet player in “Roomful of Blues” when it was formed by Duke Robillard in 1973. Basile’s solo debut “Down on Providence Plantation” was produced by Robillard in 1998. Since then, each of Basile’s studio recordings were produced by Robillard. Between 2010 […]
Matt DeMerritt Fool’s Journey Self-released Woodwind master Matt DeMerritt (MD) has appeared on 75 albums in his 25 years as a sideman. Now he finally steps forward with his own, Fool’s Journey. Yes, it’s primarily a jazz album but he taps into a few other genres that he’s played in during his wide spanning career. […]
Lisa Mann Old Girl JayRay Records As a child West Virginia born Lisa Mann relocated to Portland. Originally inspired by rock bands she gravitated to the Blues when she began her professional career at the age of nineteen. Early influences included Etta James, Koko Taylor, Bonnie Raitt, and Little Milton. Mann has shared the stage […]
Joan Osborne Trouble and Strife Womanly Hips Music Trouble and Strife, self-produced on her own label, is her tenth solo studio album and the first album of Joan Osborne’s original material in six years, since 2014’s Love and Hate. It’s Osborne, one of the best and certainly most versatile singers of our time, responding to […]
Hazar Reincarnated (featuring Al DiMeola) IAN Productions Any time there’s a chance to a great guitarist play Luiz Bonfa’s iconic “Black Orpheus,” that’s reason enough to investigate an album from a new artist, at least to this writer. Hazar is a superb acoustic guitarist who teams with luminary guitarist Al DiMeola, percussionist Mehmet Katay, pianist […]
Ronnie Earl & The Broadcasters Rise Up Stony Plain Records Ronnie Earl believes in the power of music to heal the mind and spirit, and continues to derive inspiration from personal experiences and observations. This is his twenty-seventh recording. We are the benefactors of his “flow”. Earl is the most soulful blues/jazz guitarist working today. […]
Jim Waller Big Band Bucket List Self-released Have you ever noticed that the word ‘debut” appears often on these pages for upstart and veteran jazz artists alike? Yes, we now bring you yet another from veteran multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger, and educator Jim Waller. As the title indirectly suggests, this is Waller’s fulfillment of a dream […]
Various Artists Put Down That Weapon (Make Music Not War) Y & T Music By Jim Hynes The social unrest we are experiencing now inevitably brings comparisons to the sixties and its wealth of protest songs. For example, “For What It’s Worth” has this line “What a field day for the heat, a thousand people […]
Sugar Ray and The Bluetones featuring Little Charlie Too Far from the Bar Severn Records Sugar Ray Norcia formed the original Bluetones in 1979. They released their first full length album, “Knockout”, ten years later. This is the Bluetones eighth album for Severn Records and eleventh overall, their last being 2016’s “Seeing Is Believing”. The […]
John Daversa Quintet Cuarentena: With Family at Home Tiger Turn John Daversa has been amazingly impressive in his career by especially in the past couple of years. His 2018 American dreamers: Voices of Hope, Music of Freedom earned him three Grammys, Including Best Large Jazz Ensemble, Best Improvised Solo and Best Instrumental Arrangement of A […]
San Gabriel 7 Red Dress – Featuring Vocalist Songwriter Femi Knight JRL-SGS This is yet another new discovery not only for this writer but likely for most folks outside of California. Even though San Gabriel 7 was formed 14 years ago and have issued nine albums prior to this, Red Dress, they have carried on […]
David Sills Natural Lines Gut String Here’s another rather unique jazz configuration as prolific reedist David Sills forms his David Sills Double Guitar Quintet for the generous 70 plus minutes Natural Lines. At times, you’d think this was primarily a guitar album as Sills gives plenty of solo room to guitarists Mike Scott and Larry […]
