JOHNNY AND JAALENE
RIP CAT RECORDS
RIC 1806
BABY I LOVE YOU–GEE WHIZ–TEENAGE CUTIE–LET IT BE ME–GOOD LOOKING–LOS CHUCOS SUAVES–ANGEL BABY–WHY WHY WHY–LET’S HAVE A PARTY–PLEASE GIVE ME SOMETHING–CUANDO CALIENTE–ONE SUMMER NIGHT
Regular readers of this humble forum will be familiar with the fact that David “Kid” Ramos has always been one of our favorite bluesmen. David’s son, Johnny, is a mature-beyond-his-nineteen-years-young player in his own right, following in his dad’s footsteps. He’s been tearin’ it up all over Orange County and SoCal in general, and his Rip Cat debut finds him teamed with sixteen-year-old singing sensation Jaalene DeLeon. Together, their amazing talents bring forth “Johnny And Jaalene.”
Johnny’s had a lot of musical influences, obviously from blues to Broadway and everything in between. That’s where these twelve cuts fall in, also. It’s heavy on rockabilly, blues, and Chicano-infused, highly-danceable grooves. Jaalene’s resume’ is equally as impressive, as this theater student is sho’ nuff now a rockabilly diva with the apt nickname, “Queen of the Teens!”
This Enchantment Under The Sea dance party kicks off with a rocked-up duet from our players on The Ronettes’ “Baby I Love You,” and continues as Jaalene tackles vintage soul with Carla Thomas’ “Gee Whiz,” featuring excellent tremolo guitar. They return a bit later for one of the outstanding cuts on the album, and one of our favorites, Phil and Don’s “Let It Be Me.” Johnny puts on his tough-guy leather jacket for a slick-as-Brylcreem read of Eddie Cocran’s Teenage Cutie,” and gets into a fine comfort zone with the Espanol take on the lively romp, “Los Chucos Suaves.”
Jaalene puts on her rockabilly filly heels on an amped-up run of Wanda Jackson’s “Let’s Have A Party,” with guitars runin’ wild all over this one!
We had two other favorites, both unique in their own ways. First up, Jaalene leads off “Cuando Caliente” in Spanish, then finishes in English with Johnny on duet vocal, “With Every Beat Of Your Heart.” And, our 21ST Century Danny and Sandy close the set with a fired-up “One Summer Night,” originally done by The Danleers. This one has the added attraction of Jesus Cuevas on squeezebox.
The future is so bright for Johnny and Jaalene that there is no limit to where their talents will take them. Whoever said “oh, to be young again,” hit the nail on the head with these two. A brilliant self-titled outing that sizzles with passion, fire, and fun! Hasta luego…Sheryl and Don Crow, The Nashville Blues Society.
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