Kara Grainger – That’s How I Got To Memphis
Station House Records
9 tracks/36 minutes
Hailing from Sydney, Australia, Kara Grainger grew up influenced by Stax Records and the sounds of music from Memphis and New Orleans . She made an album in Australia and then moved to America where she now has made four more. Beginning in Los Angeles and now Nashville based, she recently worked in Memphis with the Boo Mitchell Royal Studios. The album features the Hi Rhythm Section and is is being released under the tutelage of Red Parlor Entertainment Group. Her soulful voice and slide guitar work have been her trademarks. She tours the US and across the globe extensively.
In addition to Grainger, on this album are Reverend Charles Hodges on Hammond organ, Leroy Hodges on bass, Archie Turner on Wurlitzer, Lina Beach on rhythm guitar, and Candise Marshall, Shontelle Norman, Sharisse Norman, Jackie Bristow, and Louis Grainger on backing vocals, The horn section of Marc Franklin (trumpet), Kirk Smothers (baritone sax), and Lannie McMillan (tenor sax) are joined on strings by Bobby Chase (violin and viola) and Alex Krew (cello).
Grainger opens with her cut “Texas Blues.” Funky and sultry stuff with lots of horns and organ, this song is a breathy and slick piece where Grainger’s guitar and vocals shine. The title tracks is next, a Tom T. Hall cut that Grainger transformed from basically a country song into something closely resembling Stax Records styled soul music. “Then it’s her original “Light Your Fire” where we get some ethereal slide guitar to listen to with more delightful organ backing her up. She sings with passion as she lays out some pretty slide for us to savor.
Next up is “Wake Up With You,” another slower, soulful cut. The song builds slowly in intensity as guitar and organ accompany her for a cool ride. The pace quickens for her song “Mama Said,” where she gets a more vibrant groove going; Kara howls out the lead vocals. Again we get some well done organ and she delivers a stinging solo on guitar. Ann Peeble’s “Love Played a Game” follows; Peebles is one of Kara’s major influences and Grainger does a nice job on the cut. Horns and guitar ring out sweetly throughout.
“Doodle Loop (World Is A Little Bit Under The Weather)” has a great funky groove going and Grainger does another nice job delivering a breathy and emotional performance. The horns work hard in support and her guitar again shines. Her song “Same Old River” showcases some more slide and guitar licks as Grainger sings forthrightly. The organ also continues to shine, a stalwart constant musical force in each cut. She concludes with “Lessons,” a final original track. Here we get acoustic guitar and strings as a change of pace. It’s a pretty ballad that winds along nicely as Kara emotes as do the equally impassioned strings. It builds up to a nice finish, and one must compliment the restraint by all of the players as they deliver a very cool, low keyed conclusion to a fine album.
I think Grainger did a fine job on this new album and the production was spot on, too. Her guitar was solid throughout and I already noted the organ carried a lot of weight, too. The horns and backing vocalists all were quite good. We got to here the sounds made famous in Memphis with a very strong set of musicians who all showcased there skills. I enjoyed the CD and if your are a fan of Stax and Memphis soul then you will like this one, too!
