Rachael B
Senior HTF Member
It's Edgar's new album that I picked up today, Jazzin' The Blues. If you liked his self-titled introductory album in a jazzy vein, well, here's it's follow-up, finally, like 30 + years later. Granted, it's jazz with a rock-y or R & B edge but it most resembles his very first album. This is the kind of music he's always wanted to do, I quess rockin' paid the bills though?
Most of the album is new stuff except for reworked versions of Free Ride and Frankenstein. Free Ride is subtitled, "(Smooth)" and it's a sort of smooth jazz version of the song with some tasty guitar pasted on top. It's all instrumental till the chorus of the song is sung in a smokey low voice for the last 40 seconds or so.
Frankenstein starts out with an organ leading the way, or synthesized organ? Anyway, it's a keyboard extravaganza. At one point I thought there was a horn player, but I soon realized it was a synth. Hiram Bullock supplies guitar where needed, he has a lovely solo towards the end. But, it's mostly Edgar on keys and alto sax and the drummer, of course. The whole thang has a swing feel to it and is aptly subtitled "(Frankie Swings)". It's nearly ten minutes long and changes moods alot, somewhere out in the middle I heard a few bars of Frankenstein played a bit like the original. The way the thang moves is remenisient of the All Out/Sky Train/Solar Strut Suite from his Jasmne Nightdreams album, sort'a.
The album has a bunch of vocals songs and a hearty share of instrumental pieces too. The vocal pieces are generally entertaining and Edgar's sings stille seems darn good after all these years. Hunk O'da Funk reminds me of the White Trash sound, funky, with a gospel edge, sort'a... Big Bad Bottom is a very amusing vocal about bass, hint: not the fish.
The title cut leads out the album and speaks to his desire to jazz the blues and not rock too much, more or less. The oddest thang on the album is Here's 2 Guitars. The intro of these two guitars sounds like theme music from an Italian film, with a clasical edge, but after a minute it breaks out into a salsa kind'a thing. Even then it sounds like it'd make right fine theme music for a film. The Guitar picking by Robben Ford and Michael Hakes on acoustic is rather nice but it's the different sounding cut on the album, in a way.
What you get with this album is R & B, jazz, blues, gospel, rock mashed up Edgar's way. I like it. The recording seems pretty good. It's on a German label, SPV. It's fun when an old favourite makes an album this good.
Most of the album is new stuff except for reworked versions of Free Ride and Frankenstein. Free Ride is subtitled, "(Smooth)" and it's a sort of smooth jazz version of the song with some tasty guitar pasted on top. It's all instrumental till the chorus of the song is sung in a smokey low voice for the last 40 seconds or so.
Frankenstein starts out with an organ leading the way, or synthesized organ? Anyway, it's a keyboard extravaganza. At one point I thought there was a horn player, but I soon realized it was a synth. Hiram Bullock supplies guitar where needed, he has a lovely solo towards the end. But, it's mostly Edgar on keys and alto sax and the drummer, of course. The whole thang has a swing feel to it and is aptly subtitled "(Frankie Swings)". It's nearly ten minutes long and changes moods alot, somewhere out in the middle I heard a few bars of Frankenstein played a bit like the original. The way the thang moves is remenisient of the All Out/Sky Train/Solar Strut Suite from his Jasmne Nightdreams album, sort'a.
The album has a bunch of vocals songs and a hearty share of instrumental pieces too. The vocal pieces are generally entertaining and Edgar's sings stille seems darn good after all these years. Hunk O'da Funk reminds me of the White Trash sound, funky, with a gospel edge, sort'a... Big Bad Bottom is a very amusing vocal about bass, hint: not the fish.
The title cut leads out the album and speaks to his desire to jazz the blues and not rock too much, more or less. The oddest thang on the album is Here's 2 Guitars. The intro of these two guitars sounds like theme music from an Italian film, with a clasical edge, but after a minute it breaks out into a salsa kind'a thing. Even then it sounds like it'd make right fine theme music for a film. The Guitar picking by Robben Ford and Michael Hakes on acoustic is rather nice but it's the different sounding cut on the album, in a way.
What you get with this album is R & B, jazz, blues, gospel, rock mashed up Edgar's way. I like it. The recording seems pretty good. It's on a German label, SPV. It's fun when an old favourite makes an album this good.
