1. Soul Station
2. Sugar
3. Lazy Days
4. T Bone's Take
5. Some Blues
6. Green Jeans
7. Chitlins Con Carne
8. For Those Who Dream
9. Full Monty
10. Midnight Voyage
11. Admission Impossible
Roger Beaujolais - Vibes
Mark Lockheart - Tenor sax (tracks 2, 3, 8,
9, 10)
Robin Aspland - PIano (tracks 1-6, 8-11)
Simon Thorpe - Double bass (tracks 1, 5, 6,
7, 11)
Orlando LeFleming - Double bass (tracks 2-4,
8-10)
Winston Clifford - Drums
Having
been very impressed by hearing Roger Beaujolais
recently (admittedly with a different group),
I am wondering why I don't feel more enthusiastic
about this CD. There are several possible
reasons. This album lacks the spark I experienced
from hearing Roger in concert. Or perhaps
it's the concept of the album, which is centred
around the blues (hence the album title).
This should make the music gutsy and earthy
but instead much of the album is reminiscent
of some of those Blue Note blowing sessions
which often seemed characterless. Even Kenny
Burrell's Chitlins Con Carne doesn't
provide as much stimulation as it should.
The
musicians are fine, although their playing
tends to be rather low-key. By contrast, Winston
Clifford's drumming is sometimes a bit too
busy and intrusive. The generally low-key
approach suits a ballad like For Those
Who Dream but it is ill-suited to a predominantly
bluesy album, where five of the tunes are
by the likes of Hank Mobley and Stanley Turrentine.
The other six tracks are originals by Beaujolais.
On only three of these (Some Blues,
Full Monty and Admission Impossible)
do the musicians let their hair down and get
funky.
It's
a bit of a mystery why this album isn't more
successful, as the players are all experienced
and technically adept. And it's a pity, because
I wanted to like it more than I do.
Tony
Augarde
CD Reviews
Stay
Tuned ST 007
