Ones That Got Away 1 – The Cadillac Kings

The Blues Matters blog from today begins a new series of articles.

Our bi-monthly magazine, cram-packed with 132 pages of Blues news, features and reviews bursts at the seams with content. So much so that some articles burst out and can’t fit in the issue! So here we have our first “One that got away”, a review of The Cadillac Kings recent album, Gonna Tell Your Momma, on 33 Records.

cadillac kings gonna tell your momma Gonna Tell Your Momma has the clear sound essential in a quality live recording. The Cadillac Kings sound is that of 50’s and perhaps 60’s Rock ‘n’ Roll, the kind of thing that suits bryl cream and energetic jiving, and which tips its hat to Muddy Waters, Bo Diddley, Louis Jordan, and others. If you like their music – and the more contemporary, twangy, but equally bright Big Boy Bloater – you’ll really enjoy this.

Ding Dong Daddy stands out for Mike Adcock’s bursts of lively accordion. Mike Thomas’s strident vocals are a great listen on songs like the opener, Gonna Tell Your Momma, while Gary Potts contributes vocals reminiscent of Jerry Lee Lewis and cool amplified harmonica on Somebody, a very fine song also featuring some memorable guitar licks. Just a Matter of Time is a song about the arrival of old age. Pleasingly, the tune is as bright and bubbly as its lyrics, such as “The girls ignore you at the bar/ the last time you got lucky was when you found your car/ old age is coming.” Finally, the album features some top boogie woogie piano – this time like Jerry Lee Lewis on keys – from Henri Herbert. Henri also includes a stunning original tune, Boogie Hamar.

Often, you can hear the audience having a fine time. If you buy this, you’ll find out why.

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