Album Details

• Artist: Joe Louis Walker
• Album: Live On The Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise
• Label: Stony Plain
• Year of Release: 2011
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: patchen on 2011-03-05

Well, you know what to expect from Stony Plain Blues records: competent, slick and slightly funky, a sound that either strikes the listener as generic or as hot and steamy as their favorite bar band. "Live On The Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise" offers a couple variations from that theme: 1) Joe Louis walker is a bona fide blues heavyweight and his stinging guitar (with help from fellow guest stingers like Johnny Winter and Duke Robillard) and passionate vocals make for a set with plenty of tasty moments; and) this was recorded live on a cruise ship, which seems an odd place for a blues legend or two.

But that is 21^st century mainstream blues, so these eleven tunes, delivered amidst the shrimp cocktail and shuffle board, are a mixed bag of venue kitsch and the real deal on stage.

"Slow down GTO" opens with Walker in fine, raw form, spewing out a killer solo. Johnny Winter shares some evil slide on "Ain't That Cold." That is a lot of hardcore blues, and those are just the first two tracks. The rest of the record has more gold moments too, especially the eleven minute slow sex shuffle of "Sugar Mama," and the soulful "Tell Me Why." Other tracks, like "It's a Shame" and "747" fall a bit on the generic side, but even there Walker's guitar saves them

With other guests such as Tommy Castro, Kirk Fletcher and Watermelon Slim, "Live On The Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise" has plenty of fire power on hand (on deck?) to help out Joe Louis Walker bring home the blues for the paying cruisers. Yes, it is easy to dis the venue, but not the hot, passionate sounds recorded over those two nights at sea.

User Reviews and Comments