Customer Reviews

Sometimes I Just Feel Like Smilin'

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This was the last Butterfield Blues Band studio album. To me it is tied for third best with "Resurrection of Pigboy Crabshaw"--the band's "Butterfield Blues Band" and "East West" are their two greatest albums to me. However, this is a very enjoyable, excellent album, a big step up from "In My Own Dream" and "Keep On Movin'". Butterfield sings and plays harmonica very well. The compositions are strong. The group is really tight and together, with the horns integrated better with the rest of the group than on any other album. In terms of something you can enjoy on repeated listens, it is a very successful album. If only the group could have continued on from this point, who knows what continued heights they could have hit.

Take an Album done in the 1970's and wait 40 years. Most of the time the production and music don't age well....well this has aged very well. I just got this album again after a 30 year absents and was hoping to listen to only "Trainman". This time I rediscovered the entire album. Played it for my picky Bro-in-Law. He went wild. Paul does not over burden the album by constantly hammering on his harmonica. He sprinkles the right amount and lets the rhythm,, the horns,,, the vocals round out the entire album. It strikes a very, very balanced approached in the instrumentation. I think this is one of his best...yes the other, more popular albums are good, but this one is a FULLER rounded album. Now that I listen to it more and more and more, I think Paul was a genius in not over doing it on the harp. Yes there are some awesome harmonica parts, but not tiresome. Some harp players just blast away on an entire album. Not here. Just look at the liner notes and who is on this album. Empressive list and the talent jumps out when you listen. This is a perfect album to play in the car, on the road with some spiritual condiments to accompany the tunes. This one is a winner and perhaps my No. 1 Blues album,,,for the time being.