JW-Jones
Belmont Boulevard
(Blind Pig Records)
I first became aware of JW-jones after being invited to a live music show in a tiny place called Coolham in United Kingdom. Apparently Coolham has an intimate village hall which is home to a regular blues music club and you can eat a fish and chips supper during the interval!
Well JW-Jones was the headliner of this show and it was part of his nineteen –date UK Tour which took place in a straight nineteen day period. Hardworking or what? Well JW visited the UK for the first time to support the release of his new album ‘Belmont Boulevard’ which is out now on Blind Pig Records.
The new album has received some radio airplay on Paul Jones’s ‘Hour of Rhythm and Blues’ on BBC Radio 2 at 7pm (BST) on Monday nights and been well-received by the crowds at his live shows. I recently purchased this new release and fancied reviewing it so here goes;
Recorded at Sound Emporium and Switchyard Studios in Nashville, Tennessee ‘Belmont Boulevard’ is jam-packed with songs that have emotion but also real musical drive. It opens with ‘Love Times Ten’ a Texan blues song about loneliness which was written by Tom Hambridge and Colin Linden. The guitar solo lets the world know straight away that JW-Jones is something special. The countdown in this is really classy too.
‘Watch Your Step’ is a Bobby Parker blues shuffle and JW just lets the guitar sing whilst his vocals are clear throughout. A definite live favourite as the song leaves a lot of room for improvisation. ‘Blue Jean Jacket’ makes you smile and is very percussive. If I’m perfectly honest though the live version of this song is phenomenal and I prefer it to the studio version. Clever lyrics though.
‘Thank You’ has crème de la crème of musicians as the album’s legendary producer Tom Hambridge is behind the drumkit (Buddy Guy, George Thorogood, and Susan Tedeschi. Most recently, Hambridge co-wrote the song ‘Mountain Climbing’ on Joe Bonamassa’s latest studio album ‘Blues Of Desperation’.)
JW’s personal lyrics are delivered with a passion and an authority in his voice which is well suited to Dave Roe’s solid bass and Reese Wynans (member of Stevie Ray Vaughan’s Double Trouble and recently inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame) powerful keyboard mastery.
‘Magic Westside Boogie’ features JW on lead guitar and once he starts he does not stop! The rhythm section is changed a bit with Laura Greenberg on bass duty and Jamie Holmes in charge of the beat. This is a song for fellow guitarists as it is essentially a duel between Jones and Rob McNelley who blend their biting guitars beautifully.
‘What Would Jimmie Do?’ has Jones asking what a fellow contemporary would do (musically). The individual in question is Texan guitarist Jimmy Vaughan who is also the brother of the late Stevie Ray Vaughan. At this point I would like to briefly mention that I was fortunate enough to see Jimmie perform live with the Tilt-A-Whirl Band at Under The Bridge, Stamford Bridge, London, United Kingdom a few years ago and he is an incredible electric guitarist who plays off his fellow musicians with such ease and precision.
‘If It Feels This Good Tomorrow’ is more Bryan Adams territory in terms of the song and is my favourite track on this cut as it is catchy and has radio written all over it. Although this is poppy in its delivery it does not mean that JW-Jones has completely abandoned the blues but rather he has given it a contemporary twist to help get the genre into the mainstream. I would try and get in touch with fellow Canadian guitarist Bryan Adams to see if he would be up for recording it as a duet. It would be a massive hit I’m sure of it.
‘What’s Inside Of You’ is a Buddy Guy song that JW takes on with complete respect as he does not try and imitate or copy Buddy in any shape or form which is incredibly refreshing. It is clear that with Hambridge onboard they were going to allow it to become a ‘version’ rather than a note for note cover and they have accomplished that.
‘Never Worth It’ is a song which I think a lot of people in the world can relate to when they have consumed too much alcohol on a night out as he sings ‘when the daylight reminds you’. JW uses Gibson guitars and has a great use of space as he allows Greenberg and Holmes to really play out alongside Wynans swirly Hammond sound. One of the best hangover songs out there.
Closer ‘Cocaine Boy’ really puts the listener on edge with the echo-y lead vocals and electric guitar which creates an uneasy disorientated feeling. It is clear that JW-Jones had had to fight some serious personal demons but those demons have allowed him to pen original and raw material and really give it his all as a musician.
In conclusion, JW-Jones has a strong body of work with ‘Belmont Boulevard’ has it is a healthy balance between well-written songs and first-class musicianship. Hambridge has been able to get the best out of JW-Jones on this release and he took the music bull by the horns and just went for it.
If you hear of JW-Jones is coming to your town, city state, festival or country then go and experience a live show for yourself. I think you’ll be very impressed.
Glenn Sargeant
JW Jones’s new album ‘Belmont Boulevard’ is out now on Blind Pig Records. For more information visit JW Jones’s official website here: http://bit.ly/214E8Sc
