​Powered by the dynamic vocals of Meghan Parnell and the blistering slide guitar work of Dave Barnes, this Toronto-based band has been generating acclaim throughout their native Canada and now the rest of the world. Remain features prominently Parnell’s raw, soulful vocals and Barnes’ emotional singing slide guitar. It was produced by Gypsy Soul Records’ Renan Yildizdogan, engineered by Ross Hayes Citrullo and recorded at Jukasa Studio near Hamilton, with follow up sessions at RHC Studio in Toronto. Born out of a love for Southern Soul, Blues and Roots music and a passion to create a powerful and moving experience for listeners, Bywater Call is completed by Bruce McCarthy on drums, Mike Meusel on bass, Alan Zemaitis on keyboards, Stephen Dyte on trumpet and Julian Nalli on tenor sax.

​Now new work has been released with the long player 'Nasty Crime'. The opener 'World On Fire' immediately characterizes Lopez's style. It's almost like a signature song. Guitar driven riffs are the spectrum for his appropriate sound. Highly recommended release !

Another Brit folk compilation? Well yes, but these three discs sample the famous Folk Heritage label which took great care of recording dozens of folk artists who ‘did’ the folk club circuit in the North East of England in the late sixties and the seventies. With not one hit or a famous name in sight, this is a splendid collection that delivers what it promises: to preserve the heritage of British folk music.  Most records were pressed in limited quantities and, therefore, nigh impossible to find. A good enough reason to release this box!
‘Heritage’ means no game changers, no avant-garde, no re-writing of the manual. Quite some artists here simply copy the age-old tradition, fiddles and all. Others have a go at the new folk movement (The Young Folk), some have listened to pop (Music Box, Saraband), a few are clearly singer-songwriters with potential (Porter Cunningham, Blue Horizon). Why, there is even a protest song again protesters! If you won’t discover anything ground-breaking, it must also be said that there are no fillers here. On the contrary, this compilation features many a good voice, such as Christine Hennesy’s raw chords.
Moreover, the recording quality is just great. I enjoyed listening to this and selected choice tracks for my shows on radio 68, to be heard on Wednesday 31 August.
Cherry Red has done another good job. A nice booklet allows you to discover all these beautiful people!

From Southern California comes an original band that has a sound and style all it's own. Jon English on vocals, guitarist Bruce Krupnick, drummer Stan Whiting and bassist Wil Anderson form the basis for the band and the EP 'Over The Pain'.  The foundation has already been laid for an exciting round of blues. This is certainly an overwhelming debut EP. This is an amazing album! Geat…! 

The Foundatons were part of the British Soul movement, alongside Geno Washington, Jimmy James and The Equals. Writers McLeod and McCaulay provided them with a number of hits, all nice soulish stuff to sing along and swing your hips to. Simple, entertaining and brilliant. As the format gathered dust by 1969, The Foundations faded away. Cherry Red here presents three albums, meaning you get all the hits too. McLeod and McCaulay also wrote many LP sides, showing all the weak points of their format. Fortunately, band members could place their product there too, resulting in nice tunes by, for instance, jazz-infused trombonist Eric Allendale. ‘Diggin’ the Foundations’ is their live album with many non-studio tracks, such as ’96 Tears’.
Three cds means you get lots of extras, such as solo singles (see Album Details on this page). As per usual, Cherry Red provide a splendid booklet.
Choice tracks were broadcast on www.radio68.be
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​Totally improvised album with enjoyable experimental jazz textures and melodies, sparingly supplemented with synths…or recto verso.

The Dig 3 is a new, exciting, & entertaining blues/roots all-star trio consisting of the supremely soulful vocalist /guitarist Andrew Duncanson of Kilborn Alley Blues Band fame, harp master & teacher Ronnie Shellist, and multi-instrumentalist Gerry Hundt.

​Onstage, Tim “Too Slim” Langford leaps into action, backed up by Zach Kasik on bass and Jeff “Shakey” Fowlkes on the drums. ‘Brace Yourself’ is the new live album by blues rockers Too Slim And The Taildraggers. It's a sizzling, energetic live set, recorded at Ohme Gardens in Wenatchee WA. It shows this album the true strength and versatility of the band. They create many influences in these original compositions and the songs show a mixture of classic rock, blues rock and Americana. All also have a lot of songs with a clear hint to that early electric blues and blues rock. It is high time to unleash Too Slim and The Taildraggers on our European audience. What a live performance! And now.. Replay, please! 

​With 'Patiently', his first album for the German Bear Family label, American rockabilly artist Marcel Riesco immediately delivered one that hits like a bomb. In other words, an album of such a high level that you don't get sent every now and then. Marcel has all the assets you could wish for as an artist. He is a brilliant guitarist, has a more than formidable voice and writes songs that grab you immediately and never let go. The recording took place at the famous Jack Clement's Cowboy Arms Studio in Nashville. Clement is best known as a producer at Sam Phillips' Sun Studio. This immediately guarantees a superior, pure fifties rock 'n' roll sound, to which Riesco adds a pinch of sixties honky-tonk. Marcel learned to sing with the songs of Roy Orbison, whom he also sees as his example. Coincidentally, Riesco's voice is also reminiscent of the young Orbison's, which in no way means that he copies Roy, quite the contrary. Riesco does his own thing with it. His songs are perfect for that. Rock 'n' roll, rockabilly and even a touch of country thrive on his voice.
The 10” vinyl contains 10 tracks, of which 7 are originals and 3 are covers. On the enclosed CD and digital platforms you get 9 originals and 5 covers. It is clear that Riesco is not easily satisfied with his compositions. He pays a lot of attention to both the melody and the arrangements. Everything is right down to the last detail. As he himself indicates, he must have a real click with the covers. He proves that in Orbison's 'You've Got Love', which he puts in a more rocking look.
He and his band of top musicians from the Nashville scene recorded 12 songs live in 2 days. Marcel Riesco feels like no other contemporary artist how fifties rock 'n' roll, rockabilly and country should sound. That his songs come straight from his heart is certainly part of that.
'Patiently' is an absolute must for fans of contemporary fifties genres and don't say afterwards that we didn't warn you! You can't get any purer than this!

Multi-award winning blues and soul diva Shemekia Copeland is promoting her powerful and groundbreaking new album 'Done Come Too Far' this summer, on the renowned Chicago blues label Alligator Records. It is the sequel to 2019's groundbreaking 'America's Child' and to 2020's Grammy-nominated 'Uncivil War'. It is a reflection of her vision of America's past, present and future. In her songs she translates the hard musical, and often personal, truths. That of a young American black woman, who is also a mother and wife. But Shemekia also likes to have a good time, which is reflected in her musicianship.  Shemekia Copeland has probably realized one of her most differentiated albums. And that characterizes her musical progress. Highly recommended…

Blues-based tunes with original twists, intensive playing and evocative vocals makes this debut worth listening….recommended!

​Preach to my Soul, Mackenzie’s third studio album, pushes the boundaries with his talent, passion, and an incredible team behind the album. Spencer Mackenzie has developed his own sound, a vintage sound, a style that resonates and also has the phrasing of a seasoned musician. And this despite his young age. Great! 

Keith Tippett (1947-2020) was a unique pianist and a musical innovator who was also appreciated in rock circles, although a composition like ‘Septober Energy’ is basically steeped in jazz patterns with changing tempi, voices and brass sections going in different directions, classically sung passages alternating with atonal ones. The basic rhythm pattern is funky, the vocal thread is based on lyrics expressing hope for a more humane society (written by his wife Julie Driscoll).
Tippett recruited no less than fifty excellent musicians, many from the world of jazz and experimental music, but equally from rock’s avant-garde and progressive circles (Soft Machine, Blossom Toes, Nucleus), with Robert Fripp overseeing production. This is both a re-mastered and expanded version, the 2LP now being a 2CD!
Radio 68 ​ selected some radio-friendly passages to be broadcast on Wednesday 17 August from 11 a.m. onwards.

​American band Seatrain released four albums between 1969 and 1973, slightly dented the Top 50 twice, then fade away little by little. It’s good to know their story actually starts in New York in 1965 with sextet The Blues Project.  After a few albums, Al Kooper and Steve Katz invest their skills in Blood, Sweat& Tears, whereas the rhythm section of Andy Kulberg and Roy Blumenfeld attract new players and create Seatrain. They mix blues patterns with rock, country and very traditional folk, a blend perfected by The Band. The result is at times predictable and often sounds like good time music – fiddling about, so to speak. ‘Marblehead Messenger’ is entirely written by the group members and sounds more melodic and more varied. BGO now makes both discs available again as a double cd. One can only agree with booklet author John Tobler that both discs taken together do contain “some excellent music”. Just one example: before joining Seatrain, singer, guitarist and composer Peter Rowan had played with both bluegrass star Bill Monroe and If soft psychies Earth Opera! If you like that American roots sound, have a listen. Or go to Radio 68 on Wednesdays 17 and 31 August from 11 a.m. onwards. 

​The album 'You Shocked Me' is another beautiful collection of deep Southern blues songs. This release is one long drawn out highlight!
Harmonica ace Bob Corritore once again puts together an all-star blues showcase of his amazing friends. The cream of today’s current crop of blues artists deliver 16 killer songs and electrifying performances on the VizzTone release ‘You Shocked Me’. Captured during 12 recording sessions between 2018 and 2022, these 16 hard-hitting tracks deliver pure, unvarnished blues of the highest order. Recorded at Tempest Recording in Tempe Arizona, Corritore’s masterfully understated production captures the urgency of a live performance and the finishing touch to make complete, memorable songs.
If Bob even has 5 minutes, he plays his harp. Waiting for the tour bus, in front of the hotel, at a pit stop in a gas station… Bob takes every opportunity to pull a harmonica out of his pocket and play some. What a lovely guy..!

​Shovelin Stove offers us a musical coloring book and we color with it. The band Shovelin Stone is now promoting a second full-length with 'Summer Honey'. The eleven songs were recorded in the Appalachian Mountains with Grammy Award winning producer Chance McCoy of The Old Crow Medicine Show. The polyphonic title track describes the naivety of a summer flirt. But especially musically they impress in the song. The release 'Summer Honey' is an accurate mix of Americana and gorgeous roots songs. Briljant album! 

​After playing and writing original roots music for over forty years, Jeff Dale now delivers a series of tunes written during the pandemic lockdown. The songs reflect not only the South Side of Chicago, but also what it means to navigate the blues right now. The songs were recorded together with the rhythm section The Dirty Jacks, just as he got backing from some old South Woodlawners band members. By adding solo cellist Dane Little, of the LA Opera, to a number of songs, Jeff Dale continues an out-of-the-box approach to his blues.

​Chris Antonik has recorded his most divergent record. This is how modern blues should sound! The release ‘Morningstar’ is the fourth studio album by Canadian blues rock guitarist, singer-songwriter and multi Maple Blues Award nominee Chris Antonik. With some special guests like Jarekus Singleton , Multiple Maple Blues Award winner Paul Deslauriers and Mike Mattison (Tedeschi Trucks Band, Derek Trucks Band), Chris went into the studio. The album 'Morningstar' is an upbeat mix of incendiary blues rock songs, which welcome a poignant songwriting and sonic landscapes. Antonik's guitar sound nails itself with some unbridled cruelty and the necessary passion.

​Debut from the Greece jazz quartet written by Thomas Mitrousis. ‘The Seed’ has planted and will definitely be appreciated in the contemporary jazz scene.

​Much like Schermer’s live shows, the album runs a gamut of music styles from blues to soul to funk to rock & roll, country, Americana and nearly every stop in between. An autobiographical title track may unlock the release. A funky backbeat, a handsome horn section and fat guitar riffs, in short… a pleasant opener. The closing 'It's Not Me, It's You' is with a big nod to The Texas Tornados. And that only brings about the diversity that lies in this beautiful album. Everything in between is something you have to discover for yourself. In a word; it sound all gorgeous. What a stunner of an album! Some things just get better with age. Mighty Mike Schermer is Just Gettin’ Good! Highly recommended…! 

​Breezy Rodio has released his most remarkable album with 'Underground Blues'. Hell yeah… and then now replay please…! Breezy Rodio promotes his sixth release 'Underground Blues' on the Windchill Records label, the successor to the successful 'If It Ain't Broke Don't Fix It' from 2019 and 'Sometimes The Blues Got Me' from 2018, both on Delmark Records. Breezy found his soulmates in Josh Fulero (harmonica), Dan Tabion (piano), Johnny Bradley (bass) and drummer Lorenzo Francocci. The fourteen original tracks were recorded at the Wire Recording Studio in Austin, Texas and produced by Anson Funderburg, who also uses his guitar strings in two songs. Highy recommended album! 

​The songs on the release ‘I’m Just Getting Started!’represent an expansion of the Free Range Blues where Mick is noted for. On his eleventh album, Mick explored different subgenres of the blues. He has teamed up again with producer/guitarist Jeff Jensen and together they have assembled a cadre of seasoned musicians. Great! 

​Very strong and recommended debut from the Czech band Damask Rose, written and sung by the Scottish musician Steven Johnston.  Absolutely one of the best singer-songwriters of the century.

​The release 'When You Call' is a blues based collection that brings the genre back to it's origins in popular music. Matt Lomeo is apparently at home in all musical markets. This album is a pleasant introduction to a very talented artist.