BLUES JUNCTION Productions
7343 El Camino Real
Suite 327
Atascadero, CA 93422-4697
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On Groovin’ In Greaseland, Rick Estrin and the Nightcats put together a solid collectionof originals that feels like songs you have already been listening to your entire life. Yet these offerings are as fresh and invitingly irresistible as a bakery at sunrise. These tunes, mostly Estrin originals, fit my ears like a comfortable pair of shoes that still have a lot of miles left in them. Each is an individual, self-contained gem that has listeners following this great band to several destinations along the blues highway. Various tempos, textures and moods serve as a backdrop for Estrin’s wonderful talents.
As a songwriter, Estrin’s attention to detail and superb editing puts him in a class by himself. For years Estrin’s calling card has been that of the wise sage and urban hipster who it seems has been placed on this earth to tell us the score and the inside dope. It would be easy to dismiss his material as being just clever and entertaining, which it is of course, but that would be missing the larger point. What he brings to the table is also thought provoking and poignant. When you can do all of this and get people to dance, all at the same time, you have created something very special.
This August, 2017, Alligator Records release is the fourth album under the Rick Estrin and the Nightcats banner. For most of the previous two decades before that, Estrin fronted the band known as Little Charlie and the Nightcats. Like the current version of this band, he was also that ensemble’s singer and harmonica player as well as their principal songwriter.
When guitarist Little Charlie Baty announced what he called a “soft retirement” ten years ago, Estrin was determined to carry on the great Nightcat tradition. He reached up and tapped a young Norwegian ex-pat, Chris “Kid” Andersen on the shoulder. The guitarist is an extraordinarily gifted player and versatile multi-instrumentalist. He has emerged in recent years as a phenomenal recording engineer as well. It is in his San Jose, California, based Greaseland Studios where Groovin’ at Greaseland was recorded and from where it gets its name. Immediately, and of course over time, Andersen has proven to be a perfect fit for the big shoes that left such a large footprint on the blues, those worn by the great Charley Baty.
Longtime Nightcat Lorenzo Farrell plays organ, piano and Wurlitzer on this album. His contributions here are indispensable. The newest member of the ensemble, drummer Alex Pettersen, was plucked from the talent rich Norwegian blues scene and his playing is superb.
There is a whole host of guest Nightcats who make contributions to various tracks, perhaps most notably the legendary bassist Jerry Jemmott, who plays on three cuts.
The star of the show is of course Rick Estrin; here his vocals and harp playing are put on full display. He has been at the top of the blues harmonica hierarchy for decades now and his playing remains superb throughout this CD. As far as his vocals are concerned, I suppose that would be best described as an acquired taste which by now one would hope that most have caught on. There is simply nobody who sounds quite like Rick Estrin. This is probably a good thing, as one Rick Estrin is probably enough.
Now after ten years of putting the slight “Little Charlie” identity crisis behind him, Rick Estrin is what he has always been, a true driving force in the blues business. That business has, it seems, all but disappeared, but Estrin has an answer for that in the opening tune on Groovin’ in Greaseland, The Blues Ain’t Going Nowhere.
This song is the perfect table setter for an album that is expertly paced and sequenced. There isn’t a single clunker in the bunch. One great original Estrin jewel after another pour out of this band. A couple of carefully placed sorbets on Groovin’ in Greaseland include an Andersen surf style guitar based instrumental, Mwah! and a Farrell organ based jazzy number, Cool Slaw.
The band hits on all cylinders and revs like a finely tuned sports car which at times simply cruises right on by with that knowing glance and sly grin that says at any moment, ‘I could step on the gas and blow your doors off’. Throughout the album this band demonstrates that they not only have chops to spare, but more importantly they demonstrate that they know how to use their prodigious talent in service of each song.
I look forward to hearing these new songs performed live. Tunes like Dissed Again and Living Hand to Mouth, among others, are destined to be crowd favorites and I can practically hear festival audiences around the world singing them already.
Upon listening to Groovin’ in Greaseland it becomes very apparent that Rick Estrin and the Nightcats have, after all these many years, emerged as the undisputed heavyweight champions of the blues. So many bands and artists have come and gone through the time span in which this band has been recording and thrilling live audiences, it has now become obvious that there are very few, if any, who could lay a glove on these Bay Area blues blasters.
If there is any confusion as to the merit of this bold assertion, one listen to Groovin’ in Greaseland will clear that up fast.
- - David Mac
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BLUES JUNCTION Productions
7343 El Camino Real
Suite 327
Atascadero, CA 93422-4697
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