Allison August – August Moon
MoMojo Records MMJ 377
12 songs – 47 minutes
When you grow up in a family that includes three grandparents who were orchestra conductors, first-chair violinists and country guitarists and parents who taught jazz theory and were celebrated concert pianists, there’s no doubt that you have music in your blood. And that’s the case with West Coast vocalist Allison August who’ll knock you out with this powerful blast of soul-drenched blues.
Growing up in a home filled with diverse sounds ranging from Billie Holiday to Ray Charles and Bessie Smith, Allison started composing songs at age nine. And by the time she reached high school, she was already in bands that gigged professionally at private parties, proms and local bars.
As an adult, her first band, Barebones, was signed to Monster Music in 1996 and released one album, For the Mind, to critical acclaim. The group went their separate ways shortly thereafter. But, encouraged by one of her idols, Little Feat’s Paul Barrere, she reunited with three former bandmates a decade later for her debut release, Holy Water, which featured guest appearances from guitarists Coco Montoya, Josh Smith, Lance Lopez and Greg Liesz.
This almost all-original follow-up was produced by Grammy-winning percussionist Tony Braunagel and in the works prior to the COVID 19 epidemic and features an equally impressive roster that includes appearances from Barrere on guitar, Bob Glaub (Rod Stewart, Stevie Nicks) on bass, Maxayn Lewis and Teresa James on backing vocals, Lenny Castro on percussion and the late Mike Finnigan on keys throughout.
The deep lineup also includes guitarists Sam Meek, Billy Watts, Buzzy James and John Sklair, keyboard player Phil Parlapiano, horns from Joe Sublett, Les Lovitt and Dino Soldo, bassist David J. Carpenter, drummer David Head, harp player Jimmy Z, violinist Don Teschner, backup vocals from Jen Castonon and Gregg Sutton and a special guest appearance from Sugaray Rayford, who shares the mic on one cut.
The funk kicks in from the opening drumbeat of “Afraid of Love.” And Allison’s honeyed, mid-range voice will grab you from the moment she opens her mouth. She’s so afraid of romance, she notes, that she’s got Kevlar wrapped around her heart for protection, warning prospective suitors: “If you let me in, you might not like what you find.”
The pace slows into a percussive shuffle for “Dashboard Madonna,” which describes her love/hate relationship with Los Angeles and the title object which protects her on the highway, before the heat kicks up again for “I Won’t Say No,” a duet with Sugaray, which deals with the push and pull of a couple’s relationship. The music lightens for “What Would Mama Say” but the funk remains the same as Allison looks back fondly on her mother and everything she hit from her during her youth.
The subject turns to motherhood with “Blue Eyed Boy,” a tune heaps love on her son as the recounts the difficulties raising him during his teen years. Penned by the Wood Brothers and the only cover in the set, Honey Jar” will send you to the dance floor before August pays tribute to a beloved, long-lost cousin in the ballad “Desiree.” But the quiet ends immediately with the funkified “Dog in You,” which offers up another love/hate view…this time with her man.
You might think that “Blues Is My Religion” is another anthem to the music, but it deals with the disappointment Allison fears about folks who take the Bible and misinterpret it to suit their means. And it definitely comes with a bite. A cancer survivor, Allison gets serious about her struggles in “The Cure” before the originals “I Ain’t Lyin’” – which advises to keep things simple in a relationship – and “Born Yesterday” – which urges folks to strive for the heavens in whatever they do – bring the album to a close.
This one’s strongly recommended. It’s chockful of powerful music, powerful music and a sugar-coated, in-your-face voice that’ll warm your heart.
