Little G Weevil – Three Chords Too Many
XLNT Records
12 tracks
The blues can come from anywhere. In Little G Weevil’s case it’s Budapest, Hungary. Growing up with the blues, he became a musician and started his own blues band. He began as a drummer and at 17 he switched to guitar. European touring success led to US emigration in 2004 and Little G now resides in Atlanta. One could say he found success in America. In 2013 he won the IBC Solo/Duo Category and won the guitar for top guitar player in his category at the IBC. In 2014 he was nominated for a BMA for Acoustic Artist of the Year and a Blues Blast Music Award nomination for acoustic album of the year for his third album entitled Moving.
Success has not eluded him and this, his fourth CD, is a fine set of nine original and two cover tunes with a spoken track recorded in two settings (St. Louis for the first 5 cuts and Budapest for the remainder). Joining him are Paul Nieahus on upright bass, mandolin and guitars in the US session, Matyas “Champ” Pribojski on harp, Zoltan “Jambalaya” Nemes on piano and Zsolt Pinter on fiddle for one track. His 3rd release was on Bob Margolin’s Vizztone
“Apple Picker” kicks off the CD. It’s a nice slow blues with slick finger picking and gritty vocals in a very traditional style. The tempo picks up in “Dad’s Story,” a song about what the titles says it is. It’s a cool little piece. Jimmy Rogers’ “You’re The One” follows and Weevil does a fine job with it. The guitar and backing has a country porch sort of lazy goodness to it, giving a winding on and on feeling while sipping on a cold lemonade on a warm summer’s day. Little G offers up a really good solo here, too. “Going Back South” is a sultry and deep slow blues in a hill country style that was sweet.
“Place A Dollar In My Hand” is completely solo, just Weevil with his guitar and stomp box. He aptly demonstrates why he won the IBC with his music. “The Tale of Captain Seagal” is the first of the Budapest recordings and has the fiddle added for good support as he and Pinter give an upbeat performance as Weevil tells the story of the sea captain named Seagal. “One Little Cup” and “Wealthy Man” feature the harp and piano. The former is a jumping boogie woogie that is a lot of fun and the supporting cast does a superb job. The piano drives the song along and the harp punctuates well. Both offer well-done solos and Weevil’s vocals are great, too. The latter is a mid tempo cut with jazzy influences with Weevil singing about how this woman needs a man with lots of money to sustain her. Again the harp and piano add a lot to the song.
Solo slide guitar is featured next on “Outdated Citizen.” Little G does a nice job on the slide and vocals as he stomps out the beat. “Sunshine Blues” is another finger picking gem, slower in tempo as Weevil moans out his slow, traditional blues. “Meet Me In The City” is the last cut and it’s a thoughtful instrumental Junior Kimbrough piece. “Saving A Marriage” concludes things for real; it’s a spoken track of a story of sharing a bed with his drummer on tour in Lapland. It’s funny and maybe a little out of place, but what the heck- it’s his album.
The songs are well-crafted, the lyrics are solid, the sound is authentic and Weevils vocals and guitar work are very cool. The 11 songs are all an excellent listen and I recommend this for all fans of acoustic blues. Weevil gives us a highly professional and outstanding CD to enjoy here!
