Jimmy T & Sidetracked – Right Place Right Time
Hander Pander Records
8 songs time – 31:50
Jimmy T & Sidetracked based out of Austin, Texas appear to be a bar band that would be appreciated in a bar setting where the patrons would be a bit lubricated. Their music comes off a bit light weight. The guitar players are fine in tone and execution, but the singing and songwriting are a bit lackluster. Jimmy handles vocals and guitar. Richard Radbil plays guitar with Dean Keller on bass and Jason Blank on drums. Jimmy wrote the five original songs. There are no extra musicians involved.
Smooth and jazzy guitars lead into “Big City” whose lyrics are too repetitive for my liking. Once again on “Low Down Blues” the lyrics are no great shakes. “Sweet Tooth” is kind of a throw away although the guitar playing is always on track. They fare better with the tried and true words of Otis Rush’s “Right Place, Wrong Time” and give a good interpretation of this classic blues. Somehow they partially transform John Denver’s “Leaving On A Jet Plane” into a blues.
Freddie King’s instrumental “Sidetracked” is given a good showing. Jimmy professes his yearning for old school values in the easy going “Tried And True”.
Despite this CD being a tad low key at times, you can count on their guitar presentation. How the rhythm guitar supports the lead lines. Nothing revelatory here, things tend to grow on you. A little more thought to lyric creativity would help. This record is a tad short in length. Whatever the case the solid musicianship is here. Nothing here that can’t be improved. They’re not blues impostors, they got the blues sound down.
