Rob Roy Parnell is somewhat of an unknown factor on the contemporary blues scene. The talented harp blaster is a fine songwriter and engaging vocalist, his sound a mix of Texas-styled electric blues with elements of roots-rock, R&B, and boogie-woogie thrown in to make the party a little rowdier. The brother of country musician Lee Roy Parnell, Rob Roy released his critically-acclaimed debut album, Jacksboro Highway, in 2000, and then waited eight years to release a proper follow-up in Let's Start Something. Still, when an album is as right as this one, it's worth the wait....
Rob Roy Parnell's Let's Start Something
With a rockin' horn section complimented by Parnell's red-hot harp playing, and a bit of six-string pickin' to lively things up, "I Know Better" swings like nobody's business. Parnell's arrangement borders on Chicago blues territory, but his smoky vocals and the song's honky-tonk piano bring the material firmly back to Texas.
With a lick or two of tasty slide delivered by brother Lee Roy, and enchanting backing vocals courtesy of the talented Ms. Jonell Mosser, "Long Distance Love" sits comfortably in that spot where the blues and country music intersect. Parnell's dusky vocals and Kevin McKendree's keyboard bashing are a perfect match to Lee Roy's scorching slidework.
"That's All She Wrote" is a funky strut down Blues Boulevard, Parnell's soulful vocals walking a tightrope above some gospel-tinged keyboards and bursts of bass-heavy baritone backing vocals. Guitarist and Texas music legend Stephen Bruton drops by to lend a hand here, kicking in some sharp lead notes to accompany Parnell's wailing harmonica.
Dipping Into The Percy Mayfield Songbook
The rollicking "If Mama Ain't Happy" is a houserocker with McKendree's Jerry Lee-styled piano-pounding thrown up front, blasts of Mosser's backing vox, and wrecking-ball strikes of harp and guitar. Parnell's "Rose Petals" is a 1950s-styled rockabilly tearjerker that has a bluesy feel, a big band sound, plenty o' twang, and James Pennebaker's white-hot six-string bending.
Parnell dips into the seemingly endless well of great Percy Mayfield songs for "Loose Lips," the R&B rave-up re-worked as a sultry slow blues with a slight calypso rhythm and choruses created entirely of raucous blues harp blowin'. The reckless "That's What The Blues Is All About" is a spry little sucker with an unrelenting rhythm, cascading barrelhouse piano, teetering harmonica, and Parnell's impressive vocal gymnastics.
The Reverend's Bottom Line
Much like Delbert McClinton or Rusty Weir, Rob Roy Parnell delivers no-frills Texas roadhouse blues. Let's Start Something is filled with wiry guitar licks, deliciously wicked piano pounding, and solid rhythms that weld roots-rock with electric-blues. Parnell is a fine songwriter with a keen ear for melody, but it is his soulful vocals and strong harpwork that raise Let's Start Something from the level of merely entertaining to the upper reaches of "something special." (Blue Rocket Records)
