Fades Away;” and Daniel Jackson’s awesome “Lesson Learned.” The boys from Spartanburg, SC really
outdid themselves on this one. I look for big things from these guys moving forward. Ex- pect no quarter.
-Michael Buffalo Smith
Reese Wynans & Friends Sweet Release (J&R Adventures) Talk about worth the wait! After 50 years as the ultimate sideman, Reese Wynans brings his
keyboard into the spotlight to pay tribute to former band mates including Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble , Duane Allman, Jerry Jeff Walker, Carole King, Boz Scaggs, Otis Rush and more. It’s a rock and blues party, folks, beginning with a redtooling of the SRV hit “Crossfire” that features the leg- endary Sam Moore on vocals alongside cur- rent boss, Joe Bonamassa on guitar. And that’s just the start! Joining the party are the Double Trouble guys, Tommy Shannon and Chris Layton, along with Kenny Wayne Shep- herd, Doyle Bramhall II, and our dear friend and she-ro Bonnie Bramlett! rousing “Say What?” leads into “That
Driving Beat,” and the funk is set loose! Step back, non-believers, musical miracles are happening here! “You’re Killing My Love” is drenched in the blues, and the title track, “Sweet Release,” is a passionate, acoustic fu- eled chiller. Buckets of soul. Honkytonk piano kicks off the rock and
rolling “Shape I’m In,” an outstanding romp. “Hard to Be” is a rocking duet that features the unmistakable vocals of Bonnie Bramlett, and “Riviera Paradise” is a beautiful, moody
instrumental that clocks in at over seven min- utes. A smooth groove. “I’ve Got a Right to Be Blue” goes retro with its sound to great effect, and the instrumental “Soul Island” kicks off with a nice, tight bass line, the drums falling right into the groove like perfection, laying down a fine bed for Wynans’ B-3. A lovely piano take on Paul McCart-
ney’s “Blackbird” is the perfect set closer for one of the finest albums of the past two years. Sweet Release is an amazing sonic experience that melds old happy musical memories with fresh new ideas from a true rock and blues icon.
-Michael Buffalo Smith
Joy Holden As Long as You Breathe (
joyholden.com) I first met Joy
Holden back in the early 1980’s here in Spartan-
burg, SC. She was fronting a young rock band called Extreme, and my buddies from Silver Travis band and I ended up seeing that band many times. Much like her bands that fol- lowed- Torn Lace and Holden, Extreme fea- tured some very talented kids, but Joy always stole the show. She was like our local Pat Be- natar. One thing I loved about Joy, besides her obvious vocal chops, was her profession- alism. She always dressed like a rock star, and her band did the same. It was obvious that this pretty young woman was not content with being just another local bar band. Her vocals were always amazing and spot on. Flash forward to the present day.
Holden is now an accomplished contempo- rary Christian singer, and she sounds better than ever. Her new album is called As Long as You Breathe and it is nothing short of a beautiful piece of work.
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