The Texas Horns

Everybody Let’s Roll

Blue Heart

Everybody Let’s Roll is the third album for the vaunted three=piece horn section, The Texas Horns –Mark “Kaz” Kazanoff (tenor saxophone, harmonica, vocals), John Mills (baritone saxophone), and Al Gomez (trumpet). Each of these members pens originals, together making up eleven of the thirteen tracks. You’ve likely heard them many times as sidemen on albums from Texas artists such as Jimmy Vaughan, Marcia Ball, Anson Funderburgh, and others. Here, they return the favor, inviting an elite group of special guests that includes those three along with Carolyn Wonderland, Mike Flanigin, Carmen Bradford, Johnny Moeller, Mike Zito, Guy Forsyth, and Michael Cross. We should also note that the rhythm tandem of bassist Chris Maresh and drummer Brannen Temple hold down the bottom on most of the tracks with rotating keyboardists that include Sean Giddings, Matt Hubbard, or Flanigin on B-3.

As the title suggest, this is mostly a flat-out jump blues party, with Carolyn Wonderland taking the lead vocal on the opening title track, an autobiographical sketch that outlines the musical mission of the trifecta. Mike Zito weighs in with the Mills penned tale of a down and outer, “Why It Always Gotta Be This Way” with Hubbard burning in his B3 solo. “Kaz” inaugurates the jump blues series of five all instrumental tunes with “I Ain’t Mad at You” with Hubbard taking another fiery turn, this time on both piano and organ. Moeller makes his presence known as well. Blazing horn lines go without saying. On most tunes, we hear concise statements for each of the three members.

Guest drummer, Tom Brechtlein, sets the NOLA beat for the party tune, “Alligator Gumbo” with Michael Cross’ lead vocal getting strong assists from Guy Forsyth and Carolyn Wonderland. Forsyth then uses Kazanoff’s clever word play from a classic western phrase in “Die With My Blues On,” an ode to enjoying life to a full extent. The trio does a very inventive arrangement of the Beatles’ “I Want You (She’s So Heavy)” from Abbey Road, with its practically unrecognizable funky arrangement, a chance to stretch out for all three of them. Jimmie Vaughan imbues Mills’ “Too Far Gone” with his distinctively clean guitar picking and vocals with collaborator Mike Flanigin on the B3 and Jason Corbiere on drums. In a nice contrast, Mills’ gutsy baritone follows Vaughan’s bright, crisp, guitar lines.

Jazz vocalist Carmen Bradford raises the roof on the swinging “Watcha Got to Lose” while Kaz shows his chops on blues harp. Trumpeter Gomez goes Caribbean in his sole written contribution, the instrumental “Apocalypso” with Mills doubling on baritone and flute while tenorist Kaz must have had visions of Sonny Rollins’ “St. Thomas” in his solo. “Prisoner In Paradise” is an odd one, evoking early ‘70s horn bands in a meandering mid-tempo with Forsyth in the vocal lead. While this writer was hoping to hear lyrics in “The Big Lie,” it’s a funky, clavinet-fueled burner with inspired spots from all three horns. Kaz leads the vocal on the jump blues “Ready for the Blues Tonight” with Marcia Ball pounding out the boogie woogie after Kaz’s rousing tenor spot. The proceedings conclude with the second cover, J.B. Lenoir’s “J.B’s Rock,” a Chicago tune transformed Texas style with Jimmie Vaughan, Mike Flanigin and the horns as they’ve done in live shows for the past three decades.

Their third one is a charm, as Kaz, Mills, and Gomez provide the material for a varied group of mostly familiar collaborators. As the saying goes, ‘it all sounds better with horns.”

• Jim Hynes

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