Rendezvous With the Blues

Melvin Taylor | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 25, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Evidence
• ASIN: B0000690TT
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #132,242 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #68 in Music > Indie Music > Blues > Contemporary Blues

Track Listings

1. Comin' Home Baby

2. Help The Poor

3. Rendezvous With The Blues

4. I'm The Man Down There

5. Chill Out/The Healer

6. Help Me

7. Five Women

8. Blue Jean Blues

9. Eclipse

10. Black Queen

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Strong New Effort, July 11, 2002

By 

Jeff Mason (Boulder, Colorado USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Rendezvous With the Blues (Audio CD)

I have been following Melvin and his music ever since the release of 1995's "Melvin Taylor & The Slack Band" CD. While I agree with Mr. Earley that he has "wandered" a bit of late as far as the musical styles he has tackled, I don't think you can fault Melvin for trying to tackle both Blues and Jazz; he's done it from the beginning and will likely continue to do so. After all, he cites both Jimi Hendrix and Wes Montgomery as key influences. I'll Play The Blues For You, released in 1985, is a VERY jazzy album; Dirty Pool is probably his least jazzy. Rendezvous...has a healthy sampling of each style but certainly has enough bluesy numbers to appeal to the diehard purists. While it's true that there aren't any original compositions to be found here, some of the arrangements are unique and very creative. "Help Me" sounds nothing like the Sonny Boy Williamson II original (it even has a few lines from the Lowel Fulsom classic Reconsider Baby thrown in for good measure) and Black Queen is transformed from an acoustic Stephen Stills romp to a wah drenched rocker. The playing overall is, to borrow from another reviewer, tasteful and full of tone. If Melvin is guilty of anything, it's occasionally playing a bit too frenetically, cramming in as many notes into a song as he possibly can. I find no such instances on this album, however. Standout cuts for me include the very bluesy Tribute To John Lee Hooker and Five Women. Who else could take a slow Prince number and turn into a fantastic bluesy groove. Overall a strong effort from one of the best (if not the best) guitarists around today. Catch him live if you can, he is a regular at Rosa's in western Chicago.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rendezvous With the Blues, September 23, 2002

By 

Jackie Shaffer (Pacific Grove, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Rendezvous With the Blues (Audio CD)

Melvin Taylor is a genious. He not only can conquer the Blues scene with his unparralleled mastery of the guitar, he can bridge into worlds of Jazz & R&B as shown evident on his latest RWB release, and keep you beggin' for more! Upon first hearing Melvin in person at the Santa Cruz Blues Festival, I was immediately struck with his style and ability...it was as close to a incarnation of Hendrix as any I've seen in the flesh! His combination of flash and ease into every movement reflects his creativity...taking already proven songs like Stephen Stills' Black Queen and adding his own zest, taking it to the next level. True the RWB album is primarily cover tunes, but then, why fix something if it isn't broke? Melvin prooves that what is already a great groove in one genre doesn't mean he can't cross the boundries and truly give it somethin' to talk about with his Bluesy flare and spin. Those who haven't seen him in person don't have a clue that the finest guitarist currently on the planet is neatly tucked away in Rosa's, cozy non-commercialized home-town bar in Chicago. You'll never regret one visit to Rosa's or any of Melvin's albums if you're a true connoisseur of fine Bluesmanship and you're not stuck on the idea that there's only one way to play it...just kick back and let the gift rip into your soul and treat yourself to the most unforgettable music experience you'll ever encounter!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the All-Time greats, July 30, 2005

By 

AJ Love "http://www.ajlove.com" (Chicago IL) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Rendezvous With the Blues (Audio CD)

Melvin Taylor is one of the greatest blues players of All-Time and this album is one of the greatest blues albums in many years. I honestly don't know what some of the reviewers are hearing, but to me Taylor plays from the heart with great abandon and intensity, but always still blues and always referring back to the blues tradition in his phrasing (i.e. he'll rip in the 1st 8 bars of a 12 bar but will play a traditional turnaround lick on the 9th bar, or he'll quote Albert King in his solo without note for note copying King)... I'd be hard-pressed to name a better living blues guitarist. I have Taylor's album Dirty Pool and while I think its great, it is clear that Taylor has progressed alot in the 5 years between albums... If you are looking for Albert King, buy an Albert King album, if you are looking for a modern day Blues giant who is influenced by everyone from BB to Albert to Magic Sam to Buddy Guy to SRV and Hendrix and has SYTNTHESIZED THAT INTO HIS OWN STYLE, never abandoning the blues and always playing with heart and soul, this is your first stop.