Published on May 19, 1999
I saw blues vocalist/guitarist Joe Louis Walker play live a
couple of summers ago. He put on a great show and electrified the
crowd with a song called “Bluesifyin'” which he told the crowd he
was going to play “the Joe Louis Walker way – slow and hard”. He
wasn’t lyin’; he surely was bluesifyin’!
The recording for this song is on his 1995 release called
Blues Of The Month Club, and this studio version is pretty
intense as well. “Bluesifyin'” is a tribute to legendary bluesmen
of the past such as Muddy Waters and many others that are mentioned
by name. I am guessing that the old masters would be proud of
Walker for this song.
Unfortunately, very little on
Blues Of The Month Club comes close to that kind of
intensity. Walker doesn’t seem to be even trying to get to that
level, as this is pretty much a pop-oriented recording. This CD is
Walker’s bid for the kind of crossover success that Robert Cray had
with his
Strong Persuader album. One problem is that Walker is not
the charismatic singer that Cray is. The other problem is the songs
are not consistently as strong.
Not that there aren’t any good moments on
Blues Of The Month Club. The title song is very clever, and
the cover of Ike Turner’s “You’ve Got To Lose” moves along nicely,
enhanced by some nice backup vocals by The Spiritual Corinthians.
Walker’s performances here are decent, helped out by the strong
material.
The very poppy “Lost Heart” proves that he can write a good
hook, and even under such lower expectations, the band does
provides great instrumental support. Mike Epply’s organ solos are a
standout, and Walker truly is a gifted guitar player.
But once you get to “Bluesifyin'”, then you realize what this CD
could have been, and everything that comes afterward is a big
letdown. The rest of the CD is mostly forgettable pop-oriented
tunes that sound a bit tired. Even a rockabilly track called “Play
‘Em Where They Lay” lacks any real spark.
The only time he returns to form is on “Second Street”. Not that
this is a great song, but it sticks out as a highlight of the
second half of the CD. Here Walker plays a mean slide guitar, and
he sounds like he is having fun again. Another change of pace tune,
“Your Lyin’ Eyes”, is an unsuccessful attempt at John Lee Hooker’s
brand of folk blues. Walker lacks the nuances needed to pull off
this type of number.
Blues Of The Month Club is certainly a listenable CD but it
is also a disappointing one. Walker and his band are too talented
to make a terrible recording, but they deserve better material than
they get here. Instead of looking for that crossover hit, he should
have been playing it “the Joe Louis Walker way”.