Usually, when someone does a tribute to an artist, the first thought is “Why should I listen to this when I can just get something by the original artist?” Very valid question. This collection of fourteen tunes that define Chicago blues is going to have to be in your catalogue because Mud Morganfield, the son of the great Muddy Waters, sounds at least as ominous if not more so than the Chess master, and the accompanying harp player Kim Wilson can make that thing wail like a wrestled down alligator.
If you’ve only heard of Muddy Waters, this is a great place to get your feet wet. The team of Morganfield and Wilson with Billy Flynn-Rusty Zinn/g, Barrelhouse Chuck/p, Steve Gomes/b and Robb Stupka/dr sound like they grew up on the South Side. And the songs? The band can shuffle boogie like there’s no tomorrow on material like “Gone to Main Street.” Then, ominous moods like the lurking “I Want You To Love Me” or “Trouble No More” might make you hide under the bed. Guitar strings moan on “Nineteen Years Old” and iconic riffs that have been imitated but never improved get down and dirty on “She’s Got It” and “She Moves Me.” Chuck goes eight to the bar on “I Don’t Know Why” and Mud leaves some tracks as he shimmies on “I Want To Be Love.” This is a disc to cherish and hold up as a true representation of America as much as a 61 Caddy with fins.
Severn Records