Customer Reviews

Mess of Blues

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Jeff Healey's first blues-rock release in eight years, "Mess Of Blues" is primarily made up of recent studio recordings, a couple recorded live at his Roadhouse club in Toronto, and a couple recorded live at the Islington Academy in London.

Though some like to think that great musicians are elevated to a status of eminent legend once they're deceased, that announcement would be redundant in Jeff Healey's case. He was already an authentic legend before the fact.

Back in 1988, when he released his debut album, See the Light, listeners knew immediately that they were hearing greatness for the first time. The fact that he rested his Fender Stratocaster on his lap like a lap-steel and played all of the chordal and fretboard formations in an approach all his own rendered him truly innovative and courageous to guitar players and music fans everywhere.

He became an authentic six-string hero instantly.

The fact that he was blinded before the age of one from a rare cancer, the sole significance in forcing him to develop such an atypical playing style, shed a light of reverence on his amazing talent. Though he went on to live a rewarding and fruitful existence - garnering respect and admiration from fellow musicians and fans worldwide - cancer once again surfaced, taking him at the age of 41 on March 2nd, 2008.

The shining light to the story is that his musical legacy will live on, and his memory will fill the minds and hearts of many for years to come.

Mess Of Blues is very much a part of that legacy.

The disc is a collection of classic blues songs and a few good old bluesy rockers, most of which were live favorites of Jeff Healey fans. The album opens with a rollicking rendition of "I'm Tore Down," with Jeff's scorching lead work adorning the whole song. The band then slows it down for an eight-minute version of "How Blue Can You Get." They display an ability to connect in this slow blues classic, and show that they're at home in authentic blues territory. The rhythm guitar playing of Dan Noordermeer and the keyboard work of Dave Murphy are prominent here. Healey drives it home in the latter part of the song with a sweet and terse lead solo, an attribute of a genuine bluesman.

They take the atmosphere out of the city clubs and move it down to bayou country for "Jumbalaya," with bassist Alec Fraser on the vocals. The classic Americana song segues nicely into the earthy "The Weight," a respectful cover that easily would appease The Band and writer Robbie Robertson.

"Mess O' Blues" comes across as the pivotal blues song on the album, as solid musicianship completes this concise, vibrant number. Jeff's licks flow fluidly alongside his spirited voice. Pianist Dave Murphy is all over his own composition, "It's Only Money," vocally and instrumentally. His electrifying piano phrasing, in the vein of Jerry Lee Lewis, lights the room on fire. Jeff cuts loose in the latter part of the song with a scorching lead solo.

An interesting rendition of Neil Young's "Like A Hurricane" transpires next, one of only a couple of tracks that stray from blues territory on the album. The band enters slow blues mode for "Sittin' On Top Of The World," which highlights the talents of both Healey and Murphy once again. The album is complete with a rollicking "Shake, Rattle, and Roll."

Mess Of Blues is an exciting collection from the Jeff Healey Band. In the liner notes Jeff wrote: "I am most grateful to Thomas Ruf for making it possible for me to record this CD, a straightforward, straight-ahead collection of performances by a band of which I'm very proud to be a part."

We all thank you, Jeff, for bestowing upon us a lot of great music over the years. Thanks for the memories.

This live disc is one of the finest releases of his career after years of not having much of anything out on CD. A fine collectioin of songs, even though they're all covers they're done in his style. Great guitar and singing as well. It's sad that he won't be around to enjoy the good reviews I know he'll get, but this is a great epitaph.
PS - check him out on the DVD "Live At Montreux." Some great live performances there as well.

Its a shame Jeff died recently. This album shows that Jeff had a lot of music left in him. All songs are covers, but he makes them his own. Great guitar playing and he selects all types of blues and rock and roll songs. He is a great guitar player, especially when you consider the way he plays the guitar--on his lap and blind as a bat!!!!!! Incredible!!!! Just listen to the way he plays the Neil Young song--Like a Hurricane--the singing and the guitar solos are the best I have heard of this song done by someone other than Neil Young. You got to have this album if you love Jeff Healey--may he rest in peace up there jamming with Hendrix and Rory Gallagher.

Whether or not this album is the ultimate footnote to Jeff's career, it's one fine way to remember his genius.

While the song selection heads in some interesting directions (not all blues), the performances are right up there with anything from his earlier catalogue - "I'm Tore Down" is a perfect example.

If the song selection is varied, so too are the styles embraced, and it's a tribute to all concerned that the end results sometimes surprise. "Sugar Sweet" is one hell of a groove, and unlikely choices such as "Jambalaya" and "The Weight" turn out fine.

In conclusion - one of my guitar heroes leaves with a "BANG", and for that I salute him.

This cd actually made me cry when I listened to it. I had forgotten how incredibly talented Healey was and now that he is gone, we have lost a truly amazing musician. This is an awesome release from an amazing individual. You must get this cd.

When Canadian blues-rock guitarist Jeff Healey lost his battle to cancer in early March at age 41, he was known mostly for his early successes, notably the multi-platinum disc `See the Light' from 1988 and his appearance in the film `Roadhouse'. In that film, the blind bluesman whose blazing licks were played with his guitar flat in his lap played the leader of a hard-core bar band. With `Mess of Blues', recorded in late 2007, he appears to have come back to his roots.
Healey had not released a blues or rock studio album since `Get Me Some' in 2000. A musicologist with an enormous collection of vintage jazz albums, he turned his attention for the past seven years to exclusively dixieland jazz and big band music, hosting a radio show as well as singing, playing trumpet, and guitar. Three CDs recorded during 2002-2006 feature his Django-influenced guitar lines, but most often showcase his workmanlike trumpet solos. These discs showed that Healey was an amazing talent, able to play just about any type of instrument and any style.
In the liner notes for `Mess of Blues', Healey explains the use of his tour and house band from his nightclub as the musicians on the CD, and four live songs, as an effort `to be the best bar band one could possibly ask for'. This is both the strength, and a limitation, of the music on the disc. The band starts strong with two live blues standards, "I'm Torn Down" and "How Blue Can You Get", then gets a little funky with a blues-drenched reading of "Sugar Sweet". On these three, Healey is in top form; no doubt aware of B.B. King's well-known cover of "How Blue", he walks a few bars in the master's shoes, giving the listener some stinging of B.B.'s vibrato and quicksilver licks before letting his fingers go.
The next cut, "Jambalaya", illustrates the one problem with the disc-questionable material selection on several songs. This classic is is sung by Healey's keyboardist Dave Murphy, and the bar band sounds just like that on this one. A brief, toned down solo fitting the zydeco-boogie feel of the tune gets steamrolled by an overplayed, distorted second solo by Healey. Next, The Band gets a tribute with a straight-ahead reading of "The Weight" that is uninspired and appears out of place on the disc of guitar-oriented music.
The material problem crops up again in the next two tunes, "Mess of Blues" and "It's Only Money". The first, a Brill Building B-side for Elvis in 1960 arranged a lot like the original, except for a couple of lines of hot guitar by Healey, is not likely to be familiar to most listeners. With "Money", the composer is keyboardist Murphy, who again sings. This is a derivative, straight-ahead rocker, with one of the most incendiary guitar solos on the disc. The remainder of the song sounds like Dan Baird of Georgia Satellites fame singing "Train Kept a Rolling", leaving one wishing that song (or another choice) had been included instead or this original.
The next two songs are back on firm footing. "Like a Hurricane' is an excellent live cover of fellow Canadian Neil Young's anthem, with Healey again working his guitar approach to mimic, to an extent, Young's electric primal scream and the arrangement carrying the feel of the original song. Also live, and probably the guitar highlight of the disc, is "Sitting on Top of the World". Healey's recent past playing jazz lines is evident on this chestnut, which starts with Murphy's keyboards (his playing is outstanding throughout the album), builds with some jazzy scales and accelerates to the classic, blazing style that gave Healey his reputation. The disc closes out with "Shake, Rattle, and Roll", done with rockabilly swagger and fluid solos by Healey.
Jeff Healey's final album has the feel of a well-rehearsed bar band doing a set, with an exceptional guitarist. That certainly was the stated goal, and it bears much similarity to his 1998 CD `Cover to Cover.' The few missteps do not detract from this being an overall success, a very good album, and a must for Healey fans. Listening to the brilliant guitar work on this album it is easy to forget, this guy was blind, and playing the guitar on his lap. Jeff Healey was an amazing guitarist and musical talent who will be greatly missed.

This is an awsome cd by an awsome artist it is a shame hehas passed away.This cd I can highly recommend to any blues fan.

I was very sad when I read Jeff Healy had passed away. This album is a testament to his guitar skill and blues foundations. These are mostly covers, but they are played with enthusiasm and are solidly within the classic blues tradition. The keyboard work on this album is a delightful addition to Jeff's guitar work. It is a shame that Jeff did not leave us with more Blues focused music. Jeff could play it with the best.

This has to be one of Jeff's excellant genious piece of work.... Very sad that he is no longer with us. I have never had the chance to see him.. wish I had.... His band will keep on going. I hope they find some hidden cords and put it to music and make another cd.... He will be missed as Stevie Ray Vaughn is.... But Jeff's music will live on through his fans and band..... EXCELLANT!!! Cd!!!!!!!!! Everyone should own one.

A blast to listen to ! Especially if you're a guitar player.
In my area every song would go over well.Buy it!