Must Be Jelly: Live at Wrox in Clarksdale Mississippi [LIVE]

Jelly Roll All-Stars

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 21, 2004)
• Original Release Date: September 21, 2004
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Live
• Label: Severn
• ASIN: B0002VEYFY
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #398,551 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
The Jelly Roll All-Stars deliver an uncommon prize, a live-recorded, raw and raggedy debut album by a working blues band. Rather than create a fussed-over product in a polished recording session, this band of distinguished journeymen jammed into the studio of WROX in Clarksdale, Mississippi, to keep the letter and spirit of Chicago and modern Delta blues intact. The three gents with ties to Muddy Waters--longtime rhythm section Willie "Big Eyes" Smith and Calvin "Fuzz" Jones and harmonica player Arthur Williams--join drummer Sam Carr (of the great Delta band Jelly Roll Kings) and young helpmates Jesse Hoggard (guitar) and Bob Lohr (piano) for a series of heartfelt performances, with Williams's Hohner squalls being especially noteworthy. On the down side, the material is only decent and three different All-Stars flop as singers. --Frank-John Hadley

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is the real deal, folks..., September 27, 2004

By	Mr. Gutbucket "gutbucket blues fan" (St. Louis, Missouri United States) - See all my reviews

This is classic juke joint gutbucket blues at it's finest. The vocals are very cool and "real deal" as well, especially Willie "Big Eyes" Smith's vocal cuts...the Amazon reviewer is totally wrong on that note.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sweet Blues Jam From The Masters!, March 9, 2005

By	tgfabthunderbird (York, PA United States) - See all my reviews

A blues summit of living legends and established pros gathered in Clarksdale, Mississippi to cut this CD, and it's a throwback to a time that may soon be lost forever. "Must Be Jelly" goes against the prevailing rules of recording, making for a raw, exceptional session.

Crowded into one room of WROX Radio with their instruments, amps, mikes and skills were the Jelly Roll All-Stars, each in their own right worthy of the name -- Calvin "Fuzz" Jones and Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, the longtime rhythm section for Muddy Waters and later the Legendary Blues Band, Sam Carr and Arthur Williams, along with guitarist Jesse Hoggard and pianist Bob Lohr get together for a session that recalls the backroom jams that always occur among like-minded artists before and after gigs. This time, however they got it on tape.

Smiths leads off on the mike, on Jimmy Reed's "Baby Don't Say That No More." Williams, who played with Reed takes off on another of his classics, "I'm Gonna Get My Baby."

Other recognized standards, "The Sun Is Shining," B.B. King's "Country Girl" and Sonny Boy Williamson's "Nine Below Zero" get slightly different takes from the originals, and Hoggard provides two of his own songs, "King Motel" and "Arkansas Boogie." The latter gives Hoggard plenty of room to show his stuff, but the give and take is good on the session, with no one member trying to take over.

All in all, the old masters and the seasoned vets getting together in a different lineup shows their true talent and professionalism. The egos were left at the station's front door, and the result of the work is a strong recording that is a joy to listen to.