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When veteran blueswoman Joanna Connor issued the Joe Bonamassa-produced 4801 South Indiana Avenue in 2021, it introduced her gritty, wildly adventurous guitar pyrotechnics to a new generation of blues lovers. On its follow-up, Best of Me, on Mike Zito's Gulf Coast Records label, Connor had complete control in the studio, and she delivers a multi-dimensional portrait of her work. Cut in Chicago with her road band and a cast of top-shelf guests including the Grooveline Horns and alternating support guitarists Zito, Bonamassa, Josh Smith, and Gary Hoey, the album was co-produced by Connor and her bassist/songwriting partner Shaun Gotti Calloway, and her drummer Jason "J Roc" Edwards.
Opener "House Rules" features a sampled clip from a live gig; legendary promoter, club owner, and emcee Frank Pellegrino introduces Connor above the crowd's roars. The band dig deeply into raucous blues-funk with punchy horns framing her meaty slide guitar and soulful vocals. "Pain and Pleasure" is a choogling minor-key blues boogie with Smith guesting. It's tense and laden with tasteful reverb. Her winding slide solo is equaled by her expressive vocal. The title track is a gospel-inflected blues that testifies to love and heartbreak. Piano, backing voices, and drums frame Connor's committed vocal. Horns and her guitar wind around the melody, punctuating it in each chorus. There is no mistaking Bonamassa's guest spot on the squalling country-rock blues of "Highway Child." He goes head-to-head with Connor trading fours and eights in the middle and at the end. That said, "I Lost You" and "Pain and Pleasure" are slow heartbreak blues and set highlights -- ballads are much harder to put across in a studio, but she does them beautifully here. The production offers a mix that wouldn't be out of place in a club. Piano and organ create a deep blue backdrop for Connor's bereft vocal and incendiary guitar playing that is as emotionally intense as her lyrics. K.C. Douglas' and Robert Geddins' "1948 R&B classic "Mercury Blues" features a guest spot by former Pearl Jam drummer David Abbruzzese, who drives it like he stole it, even as Connor delivers a masterclass in unhinged slide guitar soloing. "Shadow Love," another highlight, is a majestic souled-out rocker, with Zito guesting. Their twinned leads frame a lilting hook before each guitarist solos melodically atop the simmering B-3 and drum kit. The anthemic closer "Shine On" features Gary Hoey on backing vocals and second guitar as the Grooveline Horns swagger and swirl through a biting modern Chicago-style blues. Connor's vocal testifies above the band's focused roil and burn. She and Hoey trade solo breaks with smoking harmonica breaks between them by guest Jason Ricci.
Best of Me is Connor's self-curated showcase of musical strengths. It is long established that she is a brilliant and original guitar stylist, and this set amply highlights her writing, singing, arranging, and production skills, all of which go into making one of the artist's most diverse, emotionally resonant albums.
© Thom Jurek /TiVo
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Carlos Sosa, FeaturedArtist - Josh Smith, FeaturedArtist - Fernando Castillo, FeaturedArtist - Grooveline Horns, FeaturedArtist - Raul Vallejo, FeaturedArtist - Joanna Connor, Lyricist, Producer, MainArtist - Frank Pellegrino, MC - Eric Demmer, FeaturedArtist - Shaun Gotti Calloway, Composer, Producer, Band - Jason J Roc Edwards, Producer, Band - Curtis Moore Jr, Artist - Shaun Gotti Muzik (BMI), MusicPublisher
2023 Gulf Coast Records. All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable law. 2023
Josh Smith, FeaturedArtist - Joanna Connor, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, MainArtist - Shaun Gotti Calloway, Composer, Producer, Band - Jason J Roc Edwards, Producer, Band - Shaun Gotti Muzik (BMI), MusicPublisher - Bluesblaster Music (BMI), MusicPublisher
2023 Gulf Coast Records. All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable law. 2023
Carlos Sosa, FeaturedArtist - Fernando Castillo, FeaturedArtist - Grooveline Horns, FeaturedArtist - Raul Vallejo, FeaturedArtist - Joanna Connor, Producer, MainArtist - Shaun Gotti Calloway, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Band - Jason J Roc Edwards, Producer, Band - Shaun Gotti Muzik (BMI), MusicPublisher
2023 Gulf Coast Records. All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable law. 2023
Joe Bonamassa, FeaturedArtist - Joanna Connor, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, MainArtist - Shaun Gotti Calloway, Composer, Producer, Band - Jason J Roc Edwards, Producer, Band - Curtis Moore Jr, Artist - Shaun Gotti Muzik (BMI), MusicPublisher - Bluesblaster Music (BMI), MusicPublisher
2023 Gulf Coast Records. All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable law. 2023
Joanna Connor, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, MainArtist - Shaun Gotti Calloway, Producer, Band - Jason J Roc Edwards, Producer, Band - Bluesblaster Music (BMI), MusicPublisher
2023 Gulf Coast Records. All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable law. 2023
Carlos Sosa, FeaturedArtist - Fernando Castillo, FeaturedArtist - Grooveline Horns, FeaturedArtist - Raul Vallejo, FeaturedArtist - Joanna Connor, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, MainArtist - Shaun Gotti Calloway, Composer, Producer, Band - Jason J Roc Edwards, Producer, Band - Shaun Gotti Muzik (BMI), MusicPublisher - Bluesblaster Music (BMI), MusicPublisher
2023 Gulf Coast Records. All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable law. 2023
Joanna Connor, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, MainArtist - Shaun Gotti Calloway, Composer, Producer, Band - Jason J Roc Edwards, Producer, Band - Shaun Gotti Muzik (BMI), MusicPublisher - Bluesblaster Music (BMI), MusicPublisher
2023 Gulf Coast Records. All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable law. 2023
Joanna Connor, Producer, MainArtist - Robert Geddins, Composer - David Abbruzzese, FeaturedArtist - K.C Douglas, Composer, Lyricist - Shaun Gotti Calloway, Producer, Band - Jason J Roc Edwards, Producer, Band - B-Flat Publishing Co BMI GEMA, MusicPublisher - Tradition Music Co BMI GEMA, MusicPublisher
2023 Gulf Coast Records. All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable law. 2023 Gulf Coast Records
Joanna Connor, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, MainArtist - Mike Zito, FeaturedArtist - Shaun Gotti Calloway, Composer, Producer, Band - Jason J Roc Edwards, Producer, Band - Shaun Gotti Muzik (BMI), MusicPublisher - Bluesblaster Music (BMI), MusicPublisher
2023 Gulf Coast Records. All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable law. 2023
Joanna Connor, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, MainArtist - Shaun Gotti Calloway, Producer, Band - Jason J Roc Edwards, Producer, Band - Bluesblaster Music (BMI), MusicPublisher
2023 Gulf Coast Records. All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable law. 2023
Gary Hoey, FeaturedArtist - Joanna Connor, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, MainArtist - Jason Ricci, FeaturedArtist - Shaun Gotti Calloway, Composer, Producer, Band - Jason J Roc Edwards, Producer, Band - Shaun Gotti Muzik (BMI), MusicPublisher - Bluesblaster Music (BMI), MusicPublisher
2023 Gulf Coast Records. All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable law. 2023
Album review
When veteran blueswoman Joanna Connor issued the Joe Bonamassa-produced 4801 South Indiana Avenue in 2021, it introduced her gritty, wildly adventurous guitar pyrotechnics to a new generation of blues lovers. On its follow-up, Best of Me, on Mike Zito's Gulf Coast Records label, Connor had complete control in the studio, and she delivers a multi-dimensional portrait of her work. Cut in Chicago with her road band and a cast of top-shelf guests including the Grooveline Horns and alternating support guitarists Zito, Bonamassa, Josh Smith, and Gary Hoey, the album was co-produced by Connor and her bassist/songwriting partner Shaun Gotti Calloway, and her drummer Jason "J Roc" Edwards.
Opener "House Rules" features a sampled clip from a live gig; legendary promoter, club owner, and emcee Frank Pellegrino introduces Connor above the crowd's roars. The band dig deeply into raucous blues-funk with punchy horns framing her meaty slide guitar and soulful vocals. "Pain and Pleasure" is a choogling minor-key blues boogie with Smith guesting. It's tense and laden with tasteful reverb. Her winding slide solo is equaled by her expressive vocal. The title track is a gospel-inflected blues that testifies to love and heartbreak. Piano, backing voices, and drums frame Connor's committed vocal. Horns and her guitar wind around the melody, punctuating it in each chorus. There is no mistaking Bonamassa's guest spot on the squalling country-rock blues of "Highway Child." He goes head-to-head with Connor trading fours and eights in the middle and at the end. That said, "I Lost You" and "Pain and Pleasure" are slow heartbreak blues and set highlights -- ballads are much harder to put across in a studio, but she does them beautifully here. The production offers a mix that wouldn't be out of place in a club. Piano and organ create a deep blue backdrop for Connor's bereft vocal and incendiary guitar playing that is as emotionally intense as her lyrics. K.C. Douglas' and Robert Geddins' "1948 R&B classic "Mercury Blues" features a guest spot by former Pearl Jam drummer David Abbruzzese, who drives it like he stole it, even as Connor delivers a masterclass in unhinged slide guitar soloing. "Shadow Love," another highlight, is a majestic souled-out rocker, with Zito guesting. Their twinned leads frame a lilting hook before each guitarist solos melodically atop the simmering B-3 and drum kit. The anthemic closer "Shine On" features Gary Hoey on backing vocals and second guitar as the Grooveline Horns swagger and swirl through a biting modern Chicago-style blues. Connor's vocal testifies above the band's focused roil and burn. She and Hoey trade solo breaks with smoking harmonica breaks between them by guest Jason Ricci.
Best of Me is Connor's self-curated showcase of musical strengths. It is long established that she is a brilliant and original guitar stylist, and this set amply highlights her writing, singing, arranging, and production skills, all of which go into making one of the artist's most diverse, emotionally resonant albums.
© Thom Jurek /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 11 track(s)
- Total length: 00:38:41
- Main artists: Joanna Connor
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: Gulf Coast Records
- Genre: Blues
2023 Gulf Coast Records. All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable law. 2023 Gulf Coast Records
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