Customer Reviews

I'll Be Your Mule

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This CD cooks with the pure essence of Chicago Blues. Freund's guitar wails with subtlety, never wasting a note. In that sense his playing is in the tradition of Buddy Guy and Hubert Sumlin, but with a unique sound all his own. His vocals ring with feeling and emotion and even some humor up in there.
The instrumental "Bill Reed's Blues" really blew me out. It reveals another dimension of this blues great. I can hear some roots that certainly pre-date Chicago, perhaps all the way back to New Orleans. On this cut his lead is reminiscent of early jazz giant Eddie Lang.
"Big Blue Mama" also really stands out. Its got that Howlin Wolf, Sunny Boy Williamson, Big Bill Broonzy type of feel.
"Hung Down Head" is probably my favorite with Freund's best solos and vocals and a killer horn section too.
And hey, this band really cooks, especially Braun on piano.

Yeah I like it.

Of course the master rule is that there's no arguing taste, but nonetheless, a main source of confusion to me is how Steve Freund has avoided becoming one of blues' biggest names. He's a tasty, inventive, technically brilliant player, adept at both stealing the show when appropriate, and supplying perfect backing for others in any style, a favorite session choice of many blues greats. After all of these years, you can still get in on the ground floor, and be one of the fans who 'knew him when'; sooner or later, the rest of us are bound to catch on.