Kurt Crandall tries hard. Tries hard with various flavors of the blues Chicago Blues, West Coast Swing, and Kansas City Jump. Playing the Blues is deceptively simple, but it takes a master to express the down and flirty grit and the raw soul baked on the where the sidewalk ends. Kurt Crandall does a credible job. He and his band are certainly competent. His voice sounds reminiscent of Elvis, especially on ‘Quibble with a Nibble.’ The band plays and struts with verve. ‘Sammy’ is a wonderfully sleazy story embraced with a wonderfully slippery sordid way of telling it. ‘My Little Machine’ has that grunt of the blues, but the lyrics sound like something a twelve year old boy would aspire to write. ‘Marinara Mambo’ is fairly retro and borderline offensive...on a couple of levels. ‘Eep Opp Ork Ah Ah’ has potential, but it is marred by references to a forty year old cartoon show, The Jetsons, which just seems out of place except for that small range of middle-aged guys still pondering the joys of yestercentury’s Saturday morning fare.
The overall effect is that they are a good bar band on a hot Friday night in a joint off Highway 61 filled to the brim with rowdy locals and flat Buds. Kurt Crandall tries hard. The band plays hard. But after a hard night, it may have been fun, but not that memorable.
06 Jul
True Story by Kurt Crandall
- Written by John Doll
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Additional Info
- Artist / Group Name: Kurt Crandall
- CD Title: True Story
- Genre: Blues
- Year Released: 2004
- Record Label: Relevant Records
- Tracks: But One Regret, Marinara Mambo, Sammy, Quibble with a Nibble, Eep Opp Ork Ah Ah, Self-Servin’ Woman, Ella Roo Blues, Bed has One Pillow, Bumpity Bump, My Little Machine, Evans Shuffle
- Musicians: Kurt Crandall (harmonica & vocals), Karl Angerer (guitar, acoustic bass), Pete Kanaras (guitar), Mike Sedovic (piano), Ralph Ybarra (acoustic and electric bass), Jaisson Taylor (drums and background vocals), Tom Baker (background vocals and percussion)
- Label Website: -
- Rating: Two Stars
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Blues - CD Reviews
