By 1966, Chicago blues legend and harmonica wizard Junior Wells was in the midst of re-inventing himself for a new audience that preferred R&B, soul, and rock 'n' roll over the raw blues that he'd created in the 1950s. The release, a year earlier, of Hoodoo Man Blues, showed that Wells was re-energized by his appeal to a white audience, many of whom had been introduced to the blues by outfits like the Paul Butterfield Blues Band before seeking out the source of Butterfield and crew's mojo.
Live In Boston 1966 captures a previously-unreleased performance recorded just a few months after the release of Hoodoo Man Blues. Wells is reunited with the Aces – guitarist Louis Myers, bassist Dave Myers, and drummer Fred Below – the band with which he originally made a name for himself with a series of red-hot recordings during the early 1950s. The album includes eleven livewire performances that crackle with electricity, accompanied by Wells' joking, entertaining between-song patter.
Junior Wells' Live In Boston 1966
With a brief intro, Wells rolls into "Feelin' Good," a driving blues tune with a shuffling locomotive rhythm and well-timed guitar licks. While Wells' vocals are somewhat slurred during the actual singing part, they're clear enough that you can make out the story that he expertly weaves throughout the song. Wells takes the lonesome country blues of Sleepy John Estes' "Worried Life Blues" into an entirely different universe, injecting a mournful energy into the song with his weeping vocals and a measured blast of harp, guitarist Louis Myers adding an elegantly-toned backing soundtrack above the nuanced rhythms.
One of the great things about Live In Boston 1966 is the opportunity to experience Wells' underrated improvisational skills, the artist able to take flight on a whim, as with his cover of Amos Blakemore's "Junior's Whoop," a lively showcase for Wells' harp playing acumen and Myers' six-string skills. While Wells plays it straight to begin with, he takes off on a tangent with a manic harp run, the band shuffling along energetically behind, Louis Myers taking his own side trip with some inspired fretwork that displays both the man's great tone, but his fluid blues/jazz playing style.
Messin' With The Kid
Wells takes Jimmy Roger's classic "That's All Right," slows it down to a smoldering blues bonfire, and then blows it up with a soulful vocal drawl, Myers' gorgeous guitarwork, and a slow, swaggering rhythm courtesy bassist Dave Myers and drummer Below. Myers' mid-song guitar solo simply kills with its emotional vibrancy, Wells yielding the spotlight for a moment to the talented guitarist. Wells' signature tune "Messin' With The Kid" is delivered with its typical aplomb, the band juking loudly behind Myers' roundabout guitar riff, Wells tearing off an electric vocal performance.
The band does an 'ace' job (sorry) on Freddie King's trademark instrumental "Hideaway," starting the song off as a Chicago blues shuffle before strutting into King's familiar marching guitar line, filling in the spaces with rambunctious drumbeats, a fine walking bass line, and wild guitar licks. Wells throws in a few squalls of harp near the end as the song devolves into a funky jam session. "Got My Mojo Working," a song Wells learned as a young man tutored by the great Muddy Waters, is provided the most upbeat and rollicking performance of these tracks, the band kicking into overdrive with an extended jam, as Wells lays down a dynamic vocal take and blasts of manic harp. The result is a loose-limbed and anarchic performance that sounds great!
The Reverend's Bottom Line
An unreleased gem of a live performance, Live In Boston 1966 provides the blues fan with a vintage recording of the legendary Junior Wells backed by a top-notch R&B outfit in the Aces, both the artist and the band kicking out the jams with vitality and energy. Wells' between-song conversations with the audience provide a welcome intimacy, and display the harpslinger's charismatic personality. While the sound here is somewhat dodgy, given its age, it also helps recreate the blues club ambiance...it really sounds like you're sitting in the audience.
This is as good as blues music gets, and if you're not down with it, I can only assume that you've achieved room temperature. For those of us still bubbling under the 98.6 degree mark, Live In Boston 1966 is guaranteed to get your blood boiling and your feet tapping uncontrollably. (Delmark Records, released September 21, 2010)
Guide Disclosure: A review copy of this CD, DVD, or book was provided by the record label, publisher, or publicist. For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.
