MYLES GOODWYN
FRIENDS OF THE BLUES 2
LINUS ENTERTAINMENT 270421
HIP HIP–LIKE A DOG AIN’T HAD IT’S DAY–ALL OVER NOW–YOU GOT IT BAD–FISH TANK BLUES–SPEEDO (REVISITED)–DADDY NEEDS NEW SHOES–BEING GOOD (WON’T DO US ANY GOOD TONIGHT—FEAT. ANGEL FORREST)–I LOVE MY GUITAR–HELP ME BABY–WHEN YOUR SHIP CAME IN (I WAS AT THE TRAIN STATION DRINKING)–SICK AND TIRED (OF BEING SICK AND TIRED OVER YOU)–EVEN SINGING COWBOYS GET THE BLUES (BONUS TRACK)
Myles Goodwyn gained quite a measure of fame back in the day as the leader of the multi-platinum-selling rock group, April Wine.” He’s always had a “thing” for the blues, tho, and his debut blues release, “Friends Of The Blues,” earned him a Juno nomination and the whole enchilada at the East Coast Music Awards, for Blues Recording Of The Year. That brings us to his latest, aptly-entitled, “Friends Of The Blues 2.” It features thirteen originals and a cool cover and also has some of the cream of the Canadian crop of backing blues musicians.
Myles’ voice has always had that instantly-recognizable quality that goes all the way back to the April Wine days, and that voice carries the day on these cuts. Check out the opening cut, as Myles perhaps chronicles his youth, “marked for sin,” and “the girls kept comin’ in,” “Hip Hip,” with keys from Kenny “Blues Boss” Wayne. The set’s lone cover, Bobby Womack’s “All Over Now,” has more of a stuttering, Louisiana-swamp groove than other versions, and has “Shrimp Daddy” Reid on harp.
One of our favorites was a re-working of the Cadillacs’ “Speedo,” from 1955. The song opens with a minute or so of that original, giving way to Myles’ vocal, talkin’ ’bout that woman-stealer whose “real name was Mister Earl,” with hot sax from Jeff Mosher. It keeps the spirit of the original with a fine backing chorus, too. The boogie woogie rolls on with the roadhouse rock of “Daddy Needs New Shoes,” and Myles takes us all down to the Delta with a vintage-sounding take on his original, “When Your Ship Came In (I Was At The Train Station Drinking).”
The set closes with our other two favorites. Rockin’ blues is the theme of our hero’s shout-out to a lover, who’s been long gone, but “tonight, I Saw Someone Who Wasn’t There (And It Was You).” The final cut is a country-tinged, yodel-licious tribute to Myles’ late friend, Ralph Murphy, entitled “Even Singing Cowboys Get The Blues.”
Myles Goodwyn’s career would have been a resounding success just thru his work with April Wine. If you got the blues in you, tho, they’ve got to come out, and “Friends Of The Blues 2” is a perfect companion to its predecessor! Until next time…Sheryl and Don Crow, The Nashville Blues And Roots Alliance.
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