JEFF JENSEN
LIVE—THE RIVER CITY SESSIONS
SWINGSUIT RECORDS
INTRO–T BONE SHUFFLE–MAKE IT THROUGH–EMPTY BOTTLES–JJ BOOGIE–FIND MYSELF ALL ALONE–BRUNETTE WOMAN–ELEPHANT BLUE–HEART ATTACK AND VINE–CAN’T BELIEVE WE’RE THROUGH–BAND INTRO–ASH AND BONE–ALL ALONG THE WATCHTOWER
When one of the most inspired and exciting bluesmen on the planet finds himself in a studio full of his biggest fans, you KNOW something special is about to go down. That’s precisely what occurred at the iconic Ardent Studios down in Memphis on December 15, 2015, as Jeff Jensen played an intimate set of eight originals and three covers that comprise his latest release, “Live—The River City Sessions.” Jeff is a whirling dervish of a guitarist and vocalist, going all in for every performance, and this one was sho’ nuff a hot one.
Joining Jeff are Robinson Bridgeforth on drums and Bill Ruffino on bass and vocals. They waste no time in getting on with gittin’ down, leading off with a torrid “T Bone Shuffle.” “Make It Through,” a strong cut dealing with triumph and redemption, keeps things rockin’, and Jeff shows his incredible guitar chops on two sparkling instrumentals, the Sun-inspired rockabilly of “JJ Boogie,” and “Elephant Walk.” He closes the set with nine minutes of guitar-fueled bliss with a dynamite read of “All Along The Watchtower.”
We had two favorites, too, both of which were real crowd-pleasers. A raucous band original is the loping story of “Empty Bottles,” where “it’s hard to stand for something when you can’t stand at all!” And, everybody knows somebody down at the corner of “Heart Attack And Vine.” On this one, Jeff pulls out all the guitar pyrotechnics he knows, and includes a cool “megaphone” vocal on the last verse.
Jeff Jensen continues to be one of the most energetic players in all of blues. “Live–The River City Sessions” shows just what magic can occur when a powerful player in the midst of his biggest fans lets loose! Until next time…Sheryl and Don Crow.
donandsherylsbluesblog 