Bob Angell with Kelly Knapp – Brand New Blues
Rawtone Records – 2024
17 tracks: 48 minutes
Brand New Blues is the latest album from Bob Angell, a veteran blues guitarist out of Providence, Rhode Island. Boston-based blues vocalist Kelly Knapp joins Angell on this album, as she did on Angell’s Supernal Blues, released in 2021. According to Angell’s online bio, he was heavily influenced by Chuck Berry and Jimmy Reed songs regularly played on local radio, but it was seeing Muddy Waters perform at the Newport Jazz Festival that “sealed the deal” (with Angell becoming a blues guitarist).
As Angell explained, “I saw an immediate connection between the blues and the church music I was familiar with since my earliest days. Somehow those giant handfuls of mighty Anglican organ chords found a sort of eerie reflection in the music produced by the giants of the blues. Something to do with the thundering emotion, I guess.”
Angell was inducted into the Rhode Island Music Hall of Fame in 2015, and his longtime mentor, the incomparable Hubert Sumlin once said of Angell, “He really is one of the best.”
Brand New Blues was recorded at Stable Sound Studio in Portsmouth, Rhode Island. Steve Rizzo was the engineer and both Rizzo and Angell share producer credits. Angell and Knapp worked with a variety of supporting musicians—referred to as heavy-hitting guest stars by Rawtone—many of them familiar to blues fans, including: Mark Cole, Charlz Ruggerio, Jack Moore, “Chicago” Vinny Earnshaw, Doug James, Duke Robillard, Buddy Whittington, Joe Yuele, and Chris Stovall Brown.
The album ranges through several blues variations, including a few well-known cover tunes, while highlighting Angell’s rock ‘n’ roll roots with a nod to that church music of his youth. In addition, there are some instrumental pieces of varying lengths among the seventeen tracks.
The party kicks off with “Trying to Keep the Lights On,” a gritty rockin’ number with good backbeat and a tight arrangement. “Heath Street Ramble,” another blues rocker, features Mark Cole’s intense harmonica and is a true toe-tapping dance number.
Brand New Blues shines brightest when Knapp sings, like on the slow and sultry “Drinkin’ All Alone,” or Willie Dixon’s classic “Little Red Rooster” with its country-twang guitar playing. Country is on full display with another classic, “Crazy Arms,” which has been covered by the likes of Jerry Lee Lewis and Willie Nelson. Knapp does a terrific job with her strong voice.
“A Woman Alone Without Love” is one of the album’s more interesting variations. A classical strings-oriented piece highlighting Knapp’s vocal range, “A Woman Alone…” is a pretty song that’s sure to capture the listener’s attention.
Of the album’s instrumental tracks, “Shake for Hubert,” Angell’s homage to his mentor, blues guitar legend Hubert Sumlin, is the strongest and most fun and features a living blues guitar legend, Duke Robillard, who, in the album’s liner notes said, “Shake for Hubert is a tribute to Hubert…(and) I think Hubert was watching over us (when we recorded the song).” Blues fans will recognize the song’s opening as Howlin’ Wolf’s “Killing Floor.” Another instrumental with a touch of that old blues guitar is “West Hampstead Feel,” which also features Cole’s intricate harmonica work.
Brand New Blues is certainly a bright spot for blues singer Kelly Knapp, while Bob Angell successfully delivers more rockin’ blues for his fans.
