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Bobby Messano - That’s Why I Don’t Sing The Blues

Prince Frog Records

www.bobbymessano.com

10 tracks

I met Bobby via our Crossroads’ Facebook page. After chatting for a while, he sent me a copy of his CD to listen to and review. I must admit that I along with other members of Crossroads get a lot of solicitations to listen to and review CDs; I work so as not to be skeptical and keep an open mind in all cases. So when this album arrived in the mail I popped it in my stereo and was pleased to have been very impressed from start to finish. This is one heck of a rocking blues CD!

Messano had a hand in all but one song, the other being a Jimmy Hendrix cover. The songs are not overstated, they are balanced and well-arranged. Messano’s vocals and guitar are spot on. Steve Geller provides support on bass, Joey B Banks is on drums and none other than our own local boy Jimmy Voegeli is on a variety of keyboards along with the Jimmy’s trio The Amateur Horns (Pete Ross on alto sax, Chad Whittinghill on trumpet and Bryan Husk on tenor and bass sax).

Messano blends blues and rock into a well-presented fusion of sounds. Opening up with a couple of more traditionally blues songs in “More Than Meets the Eye” and the title cut and then slipping into a more rocking mode for few cuts feels comfortable. But then he falls completely back into the blues with the “Gypsy Eyes” Hendrix cover using a beautiful acoustic slide- a touch of genius! He then blisters through a rocking cut entitled San Antone, gives us grooving some slow blues in “My Life in Bags”, and then switches through in a boogying country blues with “Nickels and Dimes”.

He finishes up the CD with a very interesting cut called “Pride of the Cockney Rebels”. When I saw the title I expected a grandiose take on rocking blues like the Who, Moody Blues or even Emerson Lake and Palmer. I was pleasantly surprised with a really nice mid-tempo rocking blues with hot guitar and B3 interplay by Messano and Voegeli.

I was really impressed by this CD- Bobby has laid down nine super original tracks and an inspired cover. He surrounded himself with some great musicians and has produced an exceptional CD- I really recommend this one!

Reviewer Steve Jones is a Board Member of the Crossroads Blues Society and is a long standing blues lover. He is a retired Navy commander who served his entire career in nuclear submarines. In addition to working in his civilian career, he writes for and publishes the bi-monthly newsletter for Crossroads, chairs their music festival and works with their Blues In The Schools program.

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