Roger “Hurricane” Wilson Trio – Live at MadLife Volume 2
Bluestorm Records – 2024
7 tracks: 44 minutes
The Roger “Hurricane” Wilson Trio returns to MadLife Stage and Studios for another set of live performances in their latest CD — Live at MadLife Volume 2. According to the trio’s one-pager, Wilson has worked as a music educator, radio DJ, music journalist, and broadcaster. He has been an International Blues Challenge (IBC) judge and, based on his fourteen-year relationship with the Dusk ‘til Dawn Blues Festival (held in Rentiesville, Oklahoma) and local “Blues in the School” initiatives, Wilson was inducted into the Oklahoma Blues Hall of Fame in 2015.
The Roger “Hurricane” Wilson Trio was formed in 2023 with Paul Arredondo on bass guitar and Sandra Senn on drums. As stated in the one-pager, Arredondo is originally from Houston, Texas and has played many styles of bass—classic blues, jazz, rock, and heavy metal—in the Atlanta, Georgia area for several years. Senn has been playing drums with various bands in Atlanta since 2009. Senn has also played with Atlanta-based bluesman Billy Sheffield and the all-female Blue Velvet Atlanta.
Wilson handles the guitar and vocals on Live at MadLife Volume 2 with Arredondo on backing vocals and Marvin Mahanay (bass) and Billy Jeansonne (drums) on the album’s final track. The seven-track CD was recorded, mixed, and mastered at MadLife, a music and recording venue located in Woodstock, a suburb to the north of downtown Atlanta. Steven Morrison of MadLife handled all mixing and mastering.
Live at MadLife kicks off with a Wilson original, “I Did What I Wanted To,” a swingin’ and groovin’ blues number with Wilson’s signature terrific guitar solos. Up next is “Apache” the well-known surf-style instrumental originally released by The Shadows in the early 60s. “Done Somebody Wrong” continues the party with Wilson picking and shuffling through this Elmore James classic immortalized by The Allman Brothers Band (At Fillmore East in 1971).
Two more originals by Wilson find a nice home in the album’s middle: “I’m Coming’ Home” is a country-rock rambler, full of gritty guitar breaks and a toe-tapping backbeat, while “Talking Heads” with its contemporary commentary on today’s new trends has a great groove. The trio also does justice to “The Way I Am,” first recorded by country music legend Merle Haggard.
James Peterson’s “Don’t Let the Devil Ride” rounds out the album with a resounding flourish. As mentioned earlier, this track features Marvin Mahanay’s driving bass and Billy Jeansonne’s spot-on drumming. Wilson’s guitar playing is tremendous on this closing number.
Live albums always offer music fans an “open window” into a band’s musical soul, and “Live at MadLife Volume 2” not only opens that window, but invites you to savor the sweet sounds of a rocking blues band.
