Cover photo © 2023 Joseph A. Rosen

 In This Issue 

Anita Schlank has our feature interview with Billy C. Wirtz. We have four Blues reviews for you this week including new music from Rochelle And The Sidewinders, Tom Hambridge, Doug Deming & The Jewel Tones and Billy Price. Scroll down and check it out!

Blues Blast Music Awards

Tickets on Sale NOW!

Get your tickets to the 16th Blues Blast Music Awards Weekend on September 22nd & 23rd.

The host hotel is the Quality Inn & Suites in Peoria, IL and rooms are filling up fast!

Check out the lineup and get your tickets NOW by clicking HERE

It might seem that blues & boogie-woogie pianist, Billy C. Wirtz (real name William Wirths), was unsure which career path to follow, so he found a way to follow them all.  He is a skilled musician, a former special education teacher, a satirist, published writer, former wrestling manager, music historian, music educator, radio show host, and he has even officiated at weddings as the ordained minister of the “First House of Polyester Worship and Throbbing Teenage Desire”.  Wirtz inherited his musical abilities from his father, who was not a professional musician but had perfect pitch and could play keyboards.  He likely inherited many of his other talents from his mother, who was a former police officer, turned psychologist, and was also a published author of several books.

“My mother was the first female police officer in Aiken, South Carolina, and she would save money on babysitters by bringing me to work with her and leaving me with the jail inmates.  The jail was segregated by race by ten, and I would trot into the Black cell block and listen to them playing the radio because James Brown had a radio station then.  She would also bring me into these wicked redneck bars because I was the little entertainer, dancing to the jukebox, and it would lighten up the situation if she had to go there to remove someone from the bar.”

“We moved to Washington DC when I was eight years old and I started out playing the guitar, but then picked up the organ.  Then my mother took me to see Muddy Waters at the Smithsonian when I was twelve, and that was right before Otis Spann died, so I got to see him play piano, and it was like somebody threw a switch.  It was like a portal to another world.  Muddy Waters walked out on stage with his hair processed eight inches off his head in a blue sharkskin suit and razor toe blue shoes.  Up until then I had wanted to be a park ranger, but I looked at them and said, ‘I want to be like that’.  I started buying blues records at the age of twelve.  The album that opened the door to me was the first Paul Butterfield album, Born in Chicago.  It was just so much cooler than the Crosby, Stills & Nash or Simon & Garfunkel records that came out around the same time.  I started buying blues records, but you had to order them because they didn’t have many in the stores.  My addiction to music was so bad that I ended up talking myself into a job at Waxy Maxy’s Record Store.  It was the weekend of Woodstock and a clerk had gone to Woodstock, so they were short.  I knew every album in the store, so they put me to work.  I amassed a huge collection before I was 18 and started playing piano professionally at 22.  I was working in Winchester, Virginia at a camp for the intellectually disabled.  There was this little country bar, and I had a few drinks there and asked the country band playing if they wanted a piano player and they said, ‘hell yeah!’.  I ended up moving to Harrisonburg, VA and somehow got a bachelor’s degree in special education, but was playing regularly with country bands, including with a few of the guys from Patsy Cline’s original band.”

In 1974 Wirtz met Mark Wenner, founding leader of the Nighthawks, and they developed a friendship which led to several professional collaborations.

“The blues lovers were like a secret club.  If you went into a music store, the blues was all the way in the back by the spoken word and polka records.  I was in a record store once and this guy came in with tattoos all over his arms and a nice-looking girl with him.  He asked for the blues records, and we started talking.  He said he had a band called the Nighthawks, and I went to see them. They weren’t playing straight blues—they also played rockabilly, and Jimmy Thackery was with them at the time with a flying V guitar.  I got to sit in with them a few times through the years, and now I play with them pretty often.  I have nothing but admiration for Mark Wenner.  People don’t give Wenner the credit he is due.  The Nighthawks blazed the trail.  Mark Wenner should be in the Blues Hall of Fame. “

In 1978, Wirtz saw Sunnyland Slim play, and was surprised to learn that the band hosting him was planning on putting him on a bus back to Chicago.  Wirtz thought he deserved better treatment than that, so offered to drive him home to Chicago.

“I had a ’63 Cadillac hearse at the time and I remember he said, ‘I am going to ride in the back soon enough, I might as well see what it looks like from the front!’.  He told me stories about playing with Big Bill Broonzy, and Memphis Minnie.  He said Minnie was a mean drunk who carried a razor and took no shit off anybody, but she could also burn almost anyone off the stage on guitar. I ended up staying with him for a while and learned the other side of the life of the blues man.  I didn’t see any cops around where he lived, and no white faces.  He told me not to go out at night—ever.  But it was a life-changing experience.  When we traveled, he always wanted to eat at Howard Johnson’s, and he would say he didn’t need a menu and would just order a fish sandwich.  One time there was no HoJo’s around, and he said he left his glasses in the car and asked me to read the menu to him.  It happened a few times, until I realized he couldn’t read and was trying to avoid embarrassment.  So, then I started saying ‘let’s see what we have on the menu’ and would kind of read it off so he wouldn’t have to ask. We had a great time.  He had so much spirit and his stories were just unbelievable.”

After he returned to Virginia, Wirtz started playing with the Charlottesville Allstars, working as a short-order cook on the side for extra money.  He also obtained his certification in Special Education from James Madison University, although he was almost prevented from graduating due to discrimination regarding his unusual appearance.  Luckily a teacher, impressed with his abilities, helped him navigate the politics of the department.  He still uses the skills he learned, as he has continued as a music educator.

“I frequently do Blues in the Schools programs.  I do a specific program for middle-schoolers.  I would teach them how you can take any song and change the beat.  I will take ‘Old McDonald’ and make it funky.  There are always one or two students that stand out.  In Ottawa there was a kid and the teachers told me he was adopted and had some real problems.  But he heard me talking about Muddy Waters and I gave them an extra credit assignment to learn about Muddy Waters.  He came back and said, ‘that guy was the coolest!’  That makes you realize why you do it.  The funniest thing was when I did a program for the special needs class at a Catholic School.  The nun was in the back, bopping to the music like she was out of Sister Act, and she came up to me at the end and asked me to play ‘Shake, Rattle and Roll’.  That is where the universal power of the blues is.  This music that we treasure can reach out to the special needs kids and to the nuns.”

Wirtz is possibly best known as a satirist, including writing parodies such as “I’m a Sissy” to the tune of “I’m a Man” (“I don’t have my mojo working.  I don’t even know what a mojo is….”)  And gospel-influenced songs, such as the one which wonders if there will be a shopping mall in heaven.  (“Will the escalators work up in the sky?  You’d better save me a parking place, or I’ll swipe the handicapped space.  Are there Taco Bells in the sweet by and by?”).  The satire is often delivered in a somewhat manic form, and it can require a fair degree of concentration to hear how truly clever his lyrics are.  (And his performances are likely the only ones that use vocabulary words such as ‘cerebellum’ and ‘undulate’.)

“I wrote funny songs my whole life as a kid.  The first time I got laughs, it was like a drug.  I got a warm glow all over me. I wrote my first parody at the age of twelve. And the blues falls right in there.  If you look at classic blues songs, there is often double entendre stuff, like in Tampa Red’s songs.  To scrub that off is wrong.  But I’m a little tired of the whole preacher schtick.  Now I’ll take songs and tell an entire story that leads into the song.  It’s not just a comedy routine.  It’s telling about who I am and also giving some lessons to the audience. For example, I’ll give them understanding about certain lyrics.  Such as Ray Charles’ song, ‘What’d I Say”.  When he says ‘Tell your mama, tell your pa–I’m gonna send you back to Arkansas if you don’t do right’ it’s a reference to some horrible race riots in Arkansas.  He’s saying, ‘I’ll send you back to someplace you don’t want to be’.  And the song about Kansas City that says, “there’s some crazy little ladies, and I’m gonna get me one,” is referencing how it was a wide-open sex city.  There were sex shows right in the middle of town.  I think this knowledge only adds to the audience’s appreciation of the song, and it makes for an interesting show.”

Wirtz took a brief detour from the blues at one point and ventured into the world of wrestling, working as a manager.

“When I was in school, they were really stressing how important it was to have sportsmanlike conduct.  I wasn’t very good at sports, and then I turned on the TV and saw these guys who were completely disrespectful, and they cheated and had wild costumes.  I was enthralled by that.  I especially liked the managers with their rhinestone turbans, and they would say these hilarious things to get the fans completely enraged.  I saw this female wrestler who was a little person, and I thought she was cute, so I wrote the song, ‘Teeny Weeny Meanie’.  That led to a gig in professional wrestling after they did a video for that song.  Wrestling makes the music business look sane, well-organized, and honest.  It was heavily drug-ridden with painkillers and steroids.  And, they have secret handshakes and a secret way of talking that came out of the Carny tradition.  There was a whole mystique of how to project and protect the business.  People thought it was legit.  Now everyone knows it’s scripted and it’s like a big Rocky Horror show with people yelling chants, but back then about 80 percent of the audience thought it was genuine.  I have been tripped by fans, and had lit cigarettes thrown at me.  I wrote a book about that experience.  It is called Red-Headed Geek, because that’s what the audience would chant at me when they saw me.”

Wirtz has had many other opportunities to educate others.  He was an invited speaker, partnering with Dr. Jerry Zolten at the conference in memory of Woody Guthrie’s 100^th Birthday which was held at Penn State.  There they presented a workshop on the history of Gospel music.  Wirtz has also delivered a few workshops while performing on the Blues Cruise.

“On the Blues Cruise, I’ve given a workshop entitled ‘Gospel 101’, and also led a panel discussion about the history of the blues.  The panel had Bobby Rush, ScrapIron, Leon Blue, and Latimore, telling us stories about what it was like to work with artists like Elmore James and Little Milton.  It was very well-received and led to me being asked to give the eulogy at ScrapIron’s funeral.  It was very intense.  I’ve been working with Roger Naber since before it was called the Legendary Blues Cruise.  I like the way he runs his game.  He is a visionary! His cruises are like a combination of a 24-hour blues festival and a summer camp for grownups.  He usually will place me in the piano bar on the first day.  I kind of welcome the new guests and get them ready for the week.  I tell them to just have a ball for this week—no politics, no struggle.  One of the things about the blues world is there is much less of the divide between artists and the audience.  People can approach and talk with the artists.  And we do have those workshops too.  There is a great deal of substance in those.”

Roger Naber expressed why he repeatedly invites Wirtz to join the lineup on the Legendary Blues Cruise.

“’I’ve known Reverend Billy C. Wirtz for 30 years now since he was performing for me at my live music club, The Grand Emporium, in Kansas City.  Billy has always been a fascinating musician as he researches various aspects of African American music culture.  Rev. Billy had researched Gospel music before coming on the Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise, giving workshop talks on the beginnings of recorded gospel records.  Once he came on our cruise and met some of the blues legends who have worked the deep blues & soul circuit (commonly called the ‘Chitlin’ Circuit’), he delved into the history of that culture.  He is an avid fan of music history and always offers to bring his knowledge to either piano workshops or other discussions on the history of American Black music which many of the cruise fans onboard the ship have not experienced.  He is also what I consider an event ‘team player’, offering to do more than that for which is contracted. For example, he was asked to lead the services and sermon at Frank ‘ScrapIron’ Robinson’s funeral service in Memphis following Robinson’s tragic freeway accident in 2020.  In addition to being a talented pianist and humorist, Reverend Billy C. Wirtz is a generous human with a lot of intellectual soul.”

Wirtz noted that he also credits the blues cruise for saving his life.

“My knee was killing me, and I couldn’t walk and was strung out on prescription opiates.  A cruise staff member grabbed a doctor who frequents the cruises and asked him to fix my knee.  They flew me out to Texas, and he fixed my knee.  Only then was I able to get on Suboxone and get off the opiates.  Using just a little bit of medical marijuana helped too.  We need to make marijuana federally legal, so we can do the research.  The FDA has come out showing that in states where marijuana is legal the recidivism rate of opioid addiction actually drops.”

Wirtz has also educated others through his writing of blues articles for various magazines, and recently won an award for an article he wrote for Forum Magazine.  He hosts a weekly radio show called “The Rhythm Revival” which often features lesser-known roots music.  And his next project is a documentary about the Chitlin Circuit, a collection of performance venues in the south and eastern US which offered opportunities for African American musicians during the era of racial segregation.

“I’m very excited about this documentary and I’ve been trying to locate some of the old clubs.  There was a club in Jacksonville called the Two Step.  It was an all-Black club with a dance floor that held a thousand people, seats around the floor for many more, and two stages.  Some nights they would have Count Basie at one end and Louis Jordan at the other.  The music would start at midnight and go until 5 am.  I’d like to get some markers down to commemorate where these venues used to be.”

Whatever he decides to do next, you can be sure Billy Wirtz will be finding creative opportunities to teach others about the blues.

“It’s my mission.  I want to see the blues artists get the recognition they deserve.  I want the blues to receive the same accolades that jazz and classical music get as so-called ‘serious’ music.  The blues should not be simply pushed off to one side as ‘party music’.  There’s more to it than that.”

Wirtz currently lives in Ocala, Florida, with his wife, Linda, and a house full of cats.  You can find out more about Billy Wirtz’s projects, including his tour schedule, at his website: www.revbillycwirtz.com

Writer Anita Schlank lives in Virginia, and is on the Board of Directors for the River City Blues Society. She has been a fan of the blues since the 1980s. She and Tab Benoit co-authored the book “Blues Therapy,” with all proceeds from sales going to the HART Fund.

Rochelle And The Sidewinders — Live at the Live Oak Listening Room

Self-Release — 2023

www.rochelleandthesidewinders.com

14 tracks: 59 minutes

Live at the Live Oak Listening Room captured Rochelle and The Sidewinders performing at the Live Oak Listening Room in Nacogdoches, Texas on November 11, 2022. The Live Oak is a former church turned into an intimate concert venue in the heart of Nacogdoches, an East Texas town about three hours east of Waco and home to Stephen F. Austin University.

Based in Austin, Texas, the band has been together since 2015 and tours extensively throughout the Lone Star State, where they’ve built a reputation for high energy shows full of fun and flair. Winners of the Austin Blues Society’s “Heart of Texas Blues Challenge” and two-time semi-finalists at the International Blues Challenge (IBC) in Memphis, TN, Rochelle and The Sidewinders’ 2016 live album received honorable mention for a debut album by Blues Blast Magazine.

The Sidewinders are Rochelle Creone, lead vocalist, Tom Coplen on guitar and vocals, Jim Trimmier, saxophone, keyboards and vocals, Steven Campbell, bass guitar and vocals, and Arturs Reirs on the drums. Creone and Coplen are The Sidewinders’ principal songwriters and Live at the Live Oak Listening Room, the band’s fourth full-length album, contains several songs from their third album, 3^rd Times a Charm. George Storey of LRK Studios mixed, mastered, and produced Live at the Live Oak Listening Room.

Rochelle Creone, the “Texas Songbird” has serious vocal chops, which shine on tracks like “Gotta Get Going,” a 1940s swing-styled number generating a great groove complemented by Trimmier’s outstanding sax lines. “Party Time” features Coplen’s dynamic guitar licks and is a dance-funky taste of that fun and flair The Sidewinders are known for in Texas. Both “Get Off (The Couch)” and “You May Be My Honey” are brassy funky tunes that exemplify the bands fun, no holds barred style—with more tremendous sax from Trimmier.

Live at the Live Oak…slows down a bit when the band covers several well-known tunes, including Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On” and a nice, smooth rendition of the Marshall Tucker Band’s timeless hit, “Can’t You See.” The best of the five covers on the album is “Put Your Records On,” the 2006 hit single by English singer and songwriter Corinne Bailey Rae. “…Records On” highlights the versatility and intensity of Rochelle’s voice.

“Good Love,” a true “foot stomper” with its bluesy beat, Rochelle’s booming voice, and a terrific guitar solo from Coplen, and “My Baby Came Back,” a rockin’ tune highlighting, once again, Rochelle’s vocal chops, are strong numbers to finish out a magical night in Nacogdoches, Texas. Both songs showcase what Rochelle and The Sidewinders do best—put on a party and have a fun time doing it.

The challenge with live albums in any genre has always been capturing the magic of a single performance, along with the interplay between the band and the audience. Successfully recreating that chemistry on an album is the ultimate goal of any performer and their production team. Live at the Live Oak Listening Room definitely captures the fun and flair of Rochelle and The Sidewinders. The band’s musicianship shines through on each song, and Rochelle can definitely “sing the blues”—and anything else she sets her sights on

Writer Ken Billett is a freelance writer based in Memphis. He is a Blues Foundation member and former docent/tour guide at the Blues Hall of Fame. Originally from Tampa, Florida, Ken writes about travel, music, and the Mississippi Delta.

Tom Hambridge – Blu Ja Vu

Quarto Valley Records

www.tomhambridge.com

13 songs – 44 minutes

One of the foremost tunesmiths, producers and drummers in blues music, Tom Hambridge, is usually more content working in the background for others rather than let the spotlight shine on himself. But every time he steps into the studio for an album of his own, it’s a treat. And that’s never been more true of than this one, a star-laden set that shows why he’s earned dozens of awards in his career.

A Buffalo native who’s been based in Nashville for decades, Hambridge worked out of Boston with Bo Diddley, Chuck Berry and others, earned acclaim in 1998, when in was at the controls for Susan Tedeschi’s debut release, Just Won’t Burn. He’s written more than 1,000 songs in his career and produced more than 100 albums, earning six Grammys – three for Buddy Guy and one each for Keb’ Mo’, James Cotton and Christone “Kingfish” Ingram – in the past 12 years alone. An in-demand percussionist, he’s spent a large part of the past few years touring the world with Buddy, too.

Tom’s first CD under his own name since The NOLA Sessions, a tribute to New Orleans that included Allen Toussaint’s final session, this long-awaited follow-up features guest appearances from several friends, including Buddy, Kingfish, Joe Bonamassa and Josh Smith on guitars and vocals, Chuck Leavell of the Allman Brothers/Sea Level on keys and a never-previously-released track that features Cotton on harp.

Like the title infers, Blu Ja Vu revisits material recorded when Tom was producing for others in the past, many of whom repaid him by making contributions to his work, too. Hambridge penned all 13 tracks on this one, most in partnership with longtime friend Richard Fleming, and recorded them at Ocean Way, Soundstage, Black River Studio and The Switchyard in Nashville.

Tom handles percussion and vocals throughout with backing from a core ensemble that includes Music City heavyweights Rob McNelley and Bob Britt on guitars, Tommy MacDonald on bass, Kevin McKendree and Jon Coleman on keys. Glenn Worf guests on bass on one song, and Emil Justin provides backing vocals throughout.

“Ain’t It Just Like Love,” a sprightly shuffle that celebrates both the highs and lows of romance, kicks off the action with Tom sharing vocals with Buddy, who lays down guitar licks like only he can. “That’s My Home” delivers a somewhat harder, blues-rock edge with Bonamassa on board. It’s a treatise that any traveling musician can understand because home – in this case – is anywhere in the world the artist sets down his suitcase for the night.

Hambridge takes center stage alone for the first time “Wear You Out,” a rock-steady, 2/4 pleaser that pays tribute to a ’54 Stratocaster, a Cadillac Eldorado and a woman who “can’t be satisfied” before giving way to “Blues Don’t Care,” a number that features Kingfish and states the music is indifferent no matter what your state or who you hate, noting: “You try to run, but there’s no escape. It’s the middle finger on the hand of fate.”

“Sick With Love,” a fiery rocker, gives McNelley space to shine before “Automatic” heaps love on a V-8 ’65 Ford Thunderbird, while the percussive “Symptoms of Love” describes trips to the doctor and preacher only to discover that there’s no cure for what’s ailing him other than the healing hands of a good woman. Cotton joins forces on chromatic harp for the burning instrumental, “Brother John Boogie” in what was one of his last sessions, then gives way to “Get Outta Town,” an uptempo two-step with barrelhouse appeal, and  “Smarter Than I Was,” the realization on a cold, dark night that a lady’s not coming home. It features Smith laying down tasty six-string runs in the mix.

Three more pleasers — “Johnny Winter,” which questions why the bluesman isn’t in the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame; “Meet Me in Chicago,” a rocker that features McNelley and sings praise for the city; and “End of the Line,” a simple complaint about being the last to leave after a night of musical merriment – bring the disc to a close.

Tom Hambridge is a superstar in the control room, but he’s also a star on stage, too. Give this one a listen, and you’ll agree.

Blues Blast Magazine Senior writer Marty Gunther has lived a blessed life. Now based out of Mason, Ohio, his first experience with live music came at the feet of the first generation of blues legends at the Newport Folk Festivals in the 1960s. A former member of the Chicago blues community, he’s a professional journalist and blues harmonica player who co-founded the Nucklebusters, one of the hardest working bands in South Florida.

Doug Deming & The Jewel Tones – Double Down – 20th Anniversary Reissue

Blue Bella Records

www.dougdeming.com

16 songs – 76 minutes

What a treat. A re-release of Doug Deming’s blistering debut release from 2002, with four bonus live tracks recorded at the original CD release party  at Fifth Avenue Billiards in Royal Oak, MI, in October 2002.

Deming has always been comfortable treading a thrilling line between traditional blues, West Coast and Texas swing, and early 50’s roots rock and this CD has it all. The studio tracks feature Deming on vocals and guitar throughout, ably supported by Dale Jennings on upright bass, Don Gruendler Jr on drums, Brian Miller and Gregg “Fingers” Taylor on harmonica, Denny Freeman on piano and Chris Codish on organ.  Producers Steve Mugalian and Rick Holmstrom add percussion to “Blackjack” and jump guitar to the riotous closing instrumental, “Double Down”, respectively. The live tracks feature Deming and Taylor with Bob Conner on upright and Fender bass and Jason Gittinger on drums.

Of course, Deming is widely recognized as a virtuoso guitarist and first rate singer, and his skills are on open display on Double Down, from the jump blues of the opening “Goodbye Baby” and “You Don’t Even Care” to the funky “Blackjack” where he channels T-Birds-era Jimmy Vaughan and the T-Bone Walker-inspired “It’s A Crime”.

Deming is also generous with ensuring that all the musicians get to stretch out. There is a lot great harmonica on the album, from Taylor’s aching solo on the slow blues of “Let Me Be”, to Miller, not to be overshadowed, laying down some great lines on the speeding train rumble of “HDF”, which also features a drum solo from Gruendler.

The self-written songs are all top quality, from the memorable guitar riff that introduces the jumping “You Don’t Even Care”, to the jazzy instrumental, “All About The Digits.” For added impact, on the live recording of “You Don’t Even Care”, the melody is echoed by Taylor’s deft harmonica. There are very few simple 12-bar routines here. Every track has something quirky and memorable in its structure, whether it be the guitar/harp interplay on “Mr. Blues”, or the clever shift from a single note intro riff to the jazzy verse structure of “Make It Last.”

It’s hard to believe that Double Down is 20 years old. Thanks in no small part to the excellent production from Holmstrom and Mugalian, engineering by Glenn Nishida and mastering by David Torrey, the recording (made at Pacifica Studios in Culver City, CA) fair leaps out of the speakers at you. Perhaps because it was the debut recording of a young and hungry band, there is a also rare vitality and energy about the entire project.

Frankly, you should probably already own a copy of Double Down, but the four live tracks make this reissue also an essential purchase. If you haven’t explored the music of Doug Deming yet, Double Down is a great place to start.

Reviewer Rhys “Lightnin'” Williams plays guitar in a blues band based in Cambridge, England. He also has a day gig as a lawyer.

Billy Price – 50+ Years of Soul

Get Hip Recordings

www.billyprice.com

41 songs – 220 minutes

One of the absolute best vocalists in the world, honey-voiced Billy Price often flies under the radar when it comes to blues and soul. But the New Jersey native was already hitting the high notes in style for a decade before serving as the front man for guitarist Roy Buchanan in the early ‘80s and launching an award-winning solo career. And all of his talent is on display in this stellar three-CD set.

Forty-one tunes spanning three hours 40 minutes that are so tasty that you’ll be yearning for more, the material here spans a career that began in 1971 as a member of the Keystone Rhythm Band in Pittsburgh — his adopted home — and a solo career highlighted by soul-blues album-of-the-year honors for This Time for Real in 2016, on which his rich tenor played perfect counterpoint to Chicago superstar Otis Clay throughout.

Produced by Billy, the choice cuts here – many of which are his originals — have populated many of the 20 albums he recorded with Keystone, the Billy Price Band and more. And even with the time jumps in the material, the package reflects the consistent, must-listen talent that the singer has exhibited through every stage of his career.

Mark Wenner & the Nighthawks, French guitar great Fred Chapellier, Grammy-winning sax player Eric DeFade, Clay and both Duke Robillard and Kid Andersen — who independently produced some of the songs in the set – are just a few of the top talents who exist within these grooves. Remastered by Tom Walsh at Electric Tommyland studio in Erie, Pa., the package includes a 16-page booklet in which Price takes a deep dive into the backstory of his career.

Disc one opens in styles with a five-minute rendition of “I Know It’s Your Party (I Just Came Here to Dance).” And like Billy, you’ll be grabbing a partner and heading straight to the floor from the opening notes. A cover of Jr. Walker & the Allstars’ “Why Can’t We Be Lovers” keeps the mood going before the original deep-blue anthem, “Lifestyles of the Poor and Unknown,” and before Price’s reading of Bobby Blue Bland’s burner, “This Time I’m Gone for Good,” his own.

The heat’s on for “When the Lights Came On,” which features Chapellier, before Billy dips into his Keystone era for “Absolute Love” and then puts an azure spin on “Nothing Stays the Same Forever,” a number by ‘70s Aussie glam-rockers Hush. Other choice cuts include “It Ain’t the Juke Joint Without the Blues,” “You’ve Got Bad Intentions” and an O.V. Wright medley that includes “The Jury of Love,” “Cry, Cry, Cry,” “BP’s Dream” and “Eight Men & Four Women.”

Disc two doesn’t miss a beat to open with “Real Time” before Price takes a turn at Al Green’s “Let’s Get Married” and truly makes it his own before turning back the clock with Keystone’s “Free” and hooking up with Chapellier again for the silky-smooth original, “Under the Influence.” Southern soul lovers will adore his rendition of Sam Mosley’s “Is It Over” before a teaming of Huey Lewis’ “Power of Love” with Clay’s “I Didn’t Know the Meaning of Pain.”

Updated versions of Jesse Belvin’s sexually charged 1953 pleaser, “When My Love Comes Tumbling Down,” and Ann Peebles’ “Tripped, Slipped and Fell in Love” follow. Other highlights include Price’s “Hard Hours” and a medley of Latimore’s “Somethin’ ‘Bout ‘Cha” and “That’s How It Is” with “Blind Man” before “39 Steps” — a tune composed by Billy’s keyboard player, Jim Britton – draws disc two to a close. The original, “Let’s Go for a Ride,” keeps the action in high gear to open disc three, yielding to “Beautiful Feeling,” which flows into a reworking of Z.Z. Hill’s “Part Time Love, Bettye LaVette’s “Your Turn to Cry” and a medley of Tyrone Davis’ “There Is Something on My Mind” and “Is It Something You’ve Got.”

A jaw-dropping duet with Otis on the Holland-Dozier-Holland pleaser, “Don’t Leave Me Starving for Your Love” follows before “I Can’t Lose the Blues,” “Mine All Mine,” “Who You Working For” and four more other bluesy, soul-drenched tunes bring the collection to a close.

A feast for your ears – and dancing pleasure, too, put this one high on your shopping list. It delivers on all counts!

Blues Blast Magazine Senior writer Marty Gunther has lived a blessed life. Now based out of Mason, Ohio, his first experience with live music came at the feet of the first generation of blues legends at the Newport Folk Festivals in the 1960s. A former member of the Chicago blues community, he’s a professional journalist and blues harmonica player who co-founded the Nucklebusters, one of the hardest working bands in South Florida.