2 different reviews:
Not one of Junior's better albums unfortunately. Not enough real blues essence and too many funky rhythms. The guest artists don't espeically help, they seem to be just going through the motions. Come On This House, also on TELARC, is infinitely better - now that one's the real deal. (by J. Timmerman)
The review by Timmerman here is understandable. But he's missing the point. Jr. recorded this as a Funk disc, NOT as a Blues CD. Because he's identified as a Blues harmonica player (and a pretty damn great one at that), all his music falls under the heading of Blues so this becomes misplaced in that category. Although I agree he has other great recordings that most Blues lovers would rank far above this one, as Funk, he pulled it off well. Just listen to "Use Me" or "Sweet 16." His harmonica playing is top notch and his vocals fit the lyrics. Guest performers such as Bonnie Raitt only raised the bar and Jr. stepped up to the challenge. It's hard to play music outside of your usual genre.
I've seen him perform numerous times and he was always fantastic playing traditional Chicago style Blues. But I always enjoyed when he'd throw in some Funk now and then just to mix it up and refresh his play list with an occasional surprise. This was a venture outside of his usual realm and overall I think he did a pretty good job of it. I like this disc for it's uniqueness. Everybody's gettin' some Jr! (Peter Chordas)
Personnel:
Donals Ray Charles (percussion)
Brian Jones (drums)
Sonny Landreth (guitar)
Rico McFarland (guitar)
Dave Torkanowsky (keyboards)
Willie Weeks (bass)
Junio Wells (vocals, harmonica)
+
Charlene Howard (background vocals on 01. + 06.)
Bonnie Raitt (background vocals on 02.)
Carlos Santana (guitar on 04.)
+
The Legendary White Trash Horns:
Steve Howard (trumpet)
Jon Smith (saxophone)
Ward Smith (saxophone)
Tracklist:
01. Sweet Sixteen (Green) 4.53
02. Everbody's Gettin' Them Some (James) 4.28
03. I Can't Stand No Signifying (Daniels/Moore) 6.15
04. Get Down (Allen/Brown/Dickerson/Jordan/Miller/Oskar/Scott) 4.58
05. Keep on Steppin' (Wells) 4.47
06. Shaky Ground (Bowen/Boyd/Hazel) 5.00
07. You're Tuff Enough (Daniels/Moore) 2.29
08. Use Me (Withers) 5.19
09. Trying To Get Over You (Colin/Williams) 4.12
10. Last Hand Of The Night (Steen) 3.25
11. Don't You Lie To Me (McGhee/Whittaker)
12. That's What Love Will Make You Do (Campbell) 5.55
ARMU 2325 (zippyshare)