BOB MARGOLIN
THIS GUITAR AND TONIGHT
VIZZTONE RECORDS VT SRR 004
THIS GUITAR AND TONIGHT–EVIL WALKS IN OUR WORLD–OVER TIME–DANCER’S BOOGIE–BLUES LOVER–GOOD DRIVING SONG–CAN’T TAKE THOSE BLUES AWAY–TOGETHER–PREDATOR
When blues legend Muddy Waters passed away in May, 1983, guitarist Bob Margolin and the surviving members of Muddy’s band–James Cotton, Pinetop, Willie “Big Eyes” Smith, and, from the Blue Sky days, Johnny Winter–carried on in various incarnations until, sadly, all those legends passed on. The literal last man standing, Steady Rollin’ Bob Margolin, sounds as powerful and as vibrant today as he did while standing at Muddy’s side for all those years, and he continues to tour and record extensively. His latest set for Vizztone is a first for him also. “This Guitar And Tonight” is an all-acoustic affair, with all the music written and played by Bob, save for appearances by Bob Corritore and Jimmy Vivino on one cut each.
Bob offers up a jumpin’ call for everyone to “get out on the floor and dance,” and, most importantly, “don’t look at your phone,” on the way-cool “Dancer’s Boogie.” Bob Corritore is on harp on a shout-out to Phoenix, AZ, and the world-famous Rhythm Room, to chronicle a true “Blues Lover,” looking for “all the blues she can.” Jimmy Vivino adds second guitar on the title cut, and Bob sings of “the love of my life” in the tender blues of “Together.”
Our favorites were topical in nature, and equally as scathing. The cancers of “open racism,” anti-Semitism,” as well as “fake news” and “fake politicians” are the subjects of “Evil Walks In Our World,” with Bob’s slide growling like the proverbial HellHound. However, he saved his best for last. He traces his life growing up in Berkline, MA, through Presidents Kennedy, Nixon, and Carter, up to the current “Predator of the United States,”causing Bob to grieve not only for this country, but the world as well.
Every adjective used to describe Bob Margolin’s talents and contributions to the blues community has already been written. We’ll close by saying that Bob is a great friend, and continues to carry this bidness on with the excellent acoustic “This Guitar And Tonight.” We love you, man….Sheryl and Don Crow, The Nashville Blues And Roots Alliance.
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