Suzanne McNeil takes it several notches higher with Shimmer
Suzanne McNeil’s third CD Shimmer finds her a bit feistier and funkier. She’s found her stride and she expresses it with a little edge this time around. Utilizing singer-songwriter sentiment, country, folk, and pop idioms, and her own astonishingly pure vocal, McNeil’s album tugs at the listener’s ear and heart in pleasingly equal amounts. It would be a crime if nobody important in the music industry notices this surefire work by this good girl from Boston.
Jay Psaros takes it to a higher level with self-titled CD
Jay Psaros’s latest, self-titled CD follows along similar roots as his previous works. This time around he brings a fresh, wide-ranging feeling to his singer-songwriter flare. With a voice that many singer-songwriters would kill or die for, Psaros never fails to deliver the emotive, musical goods with understated artfulness and vivid details.
Kelley Bolduc proves an exceptional artist with More Trumpet
Kelley Bolduc has made quite a name for herself in the last 20 years as the lead singer and trumpet player for her reggae band Hot Like Fire. On her new solo album, simply titled More Trumpet, Bolduc indulges her creativity and showcases a high skill level on her instrument, offering her listeners something that stands alone as a bold statement of her musical abilities. These 12 instrumental tracks speak volumes about what this young lady can do with her horn.
Jeff Przech provides warm, gritty, memorable tunes on Sounds Like Fresh CD
Jeff Przech’s latest CD Sounds Like Fresh is fine singer-songwriter faire with a country roots edge. Przech has one of those smooth, warm country vocals that makes the listener feel he’s having a personal conversation with him. Thoughtful reflective lyrics with considered selections of acoustic instruments, pedal steel, and percussion are all part of the charm on this CD. Each track, whether bright or dark, makes the listener feel Przech is taking him down a long country road where his stories unfold like the bucolic scenery.
Shor’ty Billups grows big on Young Woman “Ana” Old Man CD
Shor’ty Billups and his Foxxx Band have come up with a fantastic CD. Young Woman “Ana” Old Man is loaded with fine blues offerings and soul flavored numbers. Billups’ voice makes him sound like a thirty year old crooner even though this Bostonian is 80 plus. His songwriting is solid and he has selected some of the best standards in blues to croon over with his deep down feeling of cool. Billups is also a drummer, keeping the backbeat alluring and irresistible throughout this disc. Like many drummers from the old days, Billups is also a band leader, keeping a bus load of players on track, making sure he milks the talent out of each to get what he needs for each track.
Gay Barboza proves her worth with sophomore effort Work In Progress
Gay Barboza’s sophomore CD Work In Progress is a pared down offering of her beautiful voice, pretty melodies, and engaging chords. She carries her message well with this approach, as her voice is strikingly strong and rangy while her acoustic guitar work adds plenty of pluck to each of her original numbers.
Jim Libby Band take it higher on new CD, meshing hard country and rock and roll
Jim Libby’s latest CD simply titled Jim Libby Band is a step up from his last fine album three years ago. Here, his vocal work, his songwriting, and his crack country rock band reach the human heart on some tunes but also knock down doors on others. There is an earnestness and a heartiness that […]
Rick Lockwood dazzles with guitar work on Welcome To The Now CD
Rick Lockwood’s latest CD Welcome To The Now is an eight track excursion through his musical imagination. Lockwood’s instrumental album features him playing several different styles on guitar and bass while offering a fine display of his musicianship. It certainly helps to have drummer Jim Beauchaine on deck to keep this music movable and moving.
Rosemary’s Baby Blues Band make the classics come alive with On Time & Feelin’ Fine CD
Rosemary’s Baby Blues’ debut album On Time & Feelin’ Fine is a journey through some of the greasiest, down and dirty, and most fun blues songs to ever grace a band’s party set. All of these fun tunes are played by some of Boston’s finest blues musicians. Aside from the band’s name sake, saxophonist Rosemary Casey, this outfit includes guitarist Jake “The Snake” Jacobsen, drummer Larry Bassick, bassist Joe Peck, trumpeter John Abrahamsen, harmonica man Bismo Beerbelly, trombonist Wayne Mogel, and with renowned and infamous keyboardist Travis Colby.
Cheryl Arena to play Nelson’s Candies/Local Café in Wilton, New Hampshire Oct 17, 2015
Tomorrow night, October 17, Boston-based singer-songwriter-harmonica player Cheryl Arena, will be the latest blues act featured at Nelson Candies. Arena will treat New Hampshire and New England blues fans to the kind of steamy, exciting blues she’s been know for these last few decades. Local blues fans would know Cheryl Arena from her gigs at Rynborn in Antrim, New Hampshire several years ago.
