Delta By The Beach – Cold Night Rainy Day
C Street Records
12 songs time – 43:02
This is the sophomore release by Delta By The Beach, a blues trio from Ventura, California. Doc Ventura handles vocals, guitar and bass, Otis Bradley on harmonica and Eddie Layman on drums. There are various guest artists. Their music is a musical stew of blues, blues-rock and rock with a modern bent. Doc Ventura wrote eight of the songs and co-wrote four with TONE Scott. Tone also produced the recording along with Doc as the executive producer. The musicianship is solid throughout.
The title track “Cold Night Rainy Day” is a slow, moody and atmospheric saga about trying to find salvation. Otis’s harmonica weaves in and out, adding drama. Doc lets loose with a nifty guitar solo. Sort of a Jr. Wells jumpy and rhythmic groove and a strong bass line by Doc propels “Get Your Wish”. Financial woes are the subject of “Don’t Ride On My Money”. Doc uses a throwback psychedelic guitar tone here. Doc recorded rhythm and lead guitar parts for “Lonely As Two”. Fine guitar playing here as usual. Guest Jimmy Vivino from Canned Heat provides the lead guitar on the heavy blues-rock of “Little Rock Arkansas”. It concludes with a fragment of Steppenwolf’s “Born To Be Wild” riff.
Longtime Canned Heat drummer Fito De La Parra is featured on “Hit The Bricks”, a brief blues-rocker. Piano ace Carl Sonny Leyland struts his boogie-woogie goodness on the jump blues of “Thanks For Nothing”. Jimmy Calire adds his considerable organ skills to “Bad Dream Coming True”. “Fever” is another heavy rocker. Harp man R.J. Mischo and guitarist Frack Goldwasser (aka Paris Slim) liven up the blues of “Is That You Baby”. Robert Kimbrough sr., the son of the legendary bluesman Junior Kimbrough delivers his ‘Cotton Patch Soul Blues’ guitar to the pounding “Like Nobody Else”. The brief “I Made It Over” closes out the show with a vocal accompanied by only acoustic guitar accented by chiming electric guitar.
Three California blues guys and various friends have delivered a satisfying, blues-based record tempered by blues-rock, rock, Americana Music along with their own modern twist. Good stuff!
