New York, NY (Top40 Charts) James Montgomery is simply one of the most in-demand blues harmonica players in the game today. Whether it's being tapped to record alongside Kid Rock, or sharing the stage with legends such as B.B. King,
Buddy Guy, Aerosmith, Bruce Springsteen,
Gregg Allman and numerous others, or just performing with his own band of veteran blues brothers, Montgomery has kept the flame of soulful blues alive and burning bright. Now, on October 7, The
James Montgomery Band is set to release their first studio album in years on the blues imprint of
Cleopatra Records, a Los Angeles based record company since 1992. The album is in part an homage to one of Montgomery's longtime heroes, blues harpist/vocalist and recent Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame inductee Paul Butterfield. It also features stellar guest performances by keyboardist Mark Naftalin (a member of the original Paul Butterfield Blues Band), Jimmy Vivino (leader of Conan O'Brien's band), Paul
Nelson (guitarist with
Johnny Winter and the album's Grammy winning producer), the Uptown Horns (of The Rolling Stones, J. Geils and more), and saxophonist
Grace Kelly (a rising star in jazz who's been featured on Amazon's hit series "Bosch").
The influence of the Paul Butterfield Blues Band cannot be understated. His early tours, starting around 1964, woke up a new generation of musicians demonstrating that when called upon they could jam, create their own music, and not be bound by what was on any of the records of the time. When
Bob Dylan chose to go electric in Newport in 1965 it was after seeing Butterfield the previous day and he chose most of the Butterfield Band to back him up. When Butterfield played San Francisco in 1965 with such intense musicality and the complex extended solos of his incredible band members, it inspired the whole San Francisco music scene and led to the creation of the "Jam Bands" and "Acid Rock" as performed by The Grateful Dead, the Jefferson Airplane, and others. When
James Montgomery first saw Butterfield around 1966, he was so blown away that it changed his approach to music forever. Every incarnation of the
James Montgomery Band has tried to capture the intense energy Montgomery witnessed for the first time that night.
Montgomery's new album simply titled The
James Montgomery Blues Band features 7 Butterfield classics, some re-arranged greatly, plus 3 originals inspired by the Butterfield Band. Montgomery's band includes
David Hull on bass,
George McCann on guitar, and Jeff Thompson on drums. Since Paul Butterfield let one of his guitarists, Elvin Bishop, sing on his early records,
David Hull and
George McCann each sing a lead vocal on the record. The CD is hot and energetic with masterful solos and a strong rhythm section. We hope you like it and we hope that Paul Butterfield would have liked it too.
Track List:
1. One More Heartache
2. Born In Chicago
3. Blues With A Feeling
4. Young Woman's Love
5. Mary, Mary
6. I Got A Mind To Give Up Living
7. Shake Your Moneymaker
8. Good Question
9. One Plus One
10. Mystery Train
Buy the CD: https://flyt.it/JamesMontgomeryCD
Buy the digital version: https://flyt.it/JamesMontgomeryDig
