Mickey Thomas may forever be associated with Jefferson Starship, the 1980s-era hitmakers that cranked out such chart-topping guilty pleasures as “Jane” and “We Built This City,” but his musical roots go back much further than that. Thomas began his career singing gospel music, moving on to Southern rock when he hooked up with the Elvin Bishop Band. During his tenure with Bishop, Thomas could apply his talents to a smorgasbord of American music.
Guitarist and producer Tim Tucker put together the Bluesmasters in 2007 with pianist Sean Benjamin. The guys were just having fun, cranking out old blues classics, when somebody had the bright idea to bring in Thomas to sing with the band. By this time, Benjamin had left, but he comes back around to pound the keys on a couple of tunes, and for Thomas, his performances on The Bluesmasters featuring Mickey Thomas are a return to the blues, soul, and R&B music that he grew up with in Georgia, and sang with Bishop nearly 25 years ago.
The Bluesmasters featuring Mickey Thomas
It doesn’t take long for Thomas to establish his blues chops here, as proven by the band’s smoky, slow-burning take on the Big Joe Turner boogie-blues gem “Cherry Red.” With past-and-future-Bluesmasters pianist Sean Benjamin providing some mighty fine honky-tonk keyboard tinkling, harmonica ace Doug Lynn’s blows out the dust Little Walter style, with a blustery lead accompanying Thomas’ swaggering vocals.
The Bluesmasters’ raucous cover of the Muddy Waters’ classic “Rock Me Baby” is pure gold. As Thomas belts out his vocals in the best Chicago blues tradition, he’s joined by Lynn’s raging harp play, Tucker’s rolling fretwork, and veteran drummer Aynsley Dunbar’s blunderbuss percussion. This is houserockin’ music at its very best, and Thomas clearly relishes the role, mugging the lyrics with reckless aplomb and no little glee.
Fooled Around And Fell In Love
Three songs in and Thomas can’t help but fall back on the ol’ standby, the enduring “Fooled Around And Fell In Love.” Originally sung by Thomas and providing Elvin Bishop with his highest-charting hit – #3 on the Billboard magazine Hot 100 – “Fooled Around And Fell In Love” is the ‘Terminator’ of 1970s Southern rock, still laying waste to everything in its path, a movie and TV soundtrack fave a quarter-century later. On The Bluesmasters featuring Mickey Thomas, the song is bluesed up a bit, mostly by Tucker’s subtle guitarplay. Thomas has been singing the tune most of his adult life, so it’s no surprise that he knocks it out here; the addition of female vocalists Stephanie Calvert and Darlene Gardner is a welcome addition to the song, their angelic voices proving a sublime counterpoint to Thomas’ masculine growl.
It takes a big man to walk in Etta James’ shoes, but Thomas does exactly that with an inspired reading of the James’ romantic classic “I’d Rather Go Blind.” Realizing, perhaps, that he couldn’t go toe-to-toe with James’ original heartbreaking take of the song, Thomas instead applies a bit of gospel fervor to his vocals, wrapping the song’s bittersweet pain with a potent dose of Southern soul. The result is short, sweet, and quite enchanting.
Muddy Waters & Robert Johnson
The Muddy Waters songbook is a familiar play for any blues-rock band, and the Bluesmasters dip into that deep blues well with a rocking cover of Waters’ “Can’t Get No Grindin’.” Thomas’ vocals are somewhat overshadowed here by the song’s rollicking soundtrack, and the accompanying vocals of the legendary Magic Slim (who also lays down a little red-hot geetar for the fans). Much more interesting, in my estimation, is the strutting cover of Delta legend Robert Johnson’s “Walking Blues.” With Tucker and guest John Wedemeyer laying down some tasty rattletrap guitar riffing as the foundation, harpist Lynn provides the heart and soul of the song with his blustering harmonica notes. Thomas’ vocals are appropriately dusky, and dusty, too, befitting the Delta blues standard.
Although it may seem a misstep at first, a cover of Phil Collins’ “Get Your Business Straight,” the Bluesmasters nevertheless dirty up the MOR hit with fiery malevolence. First they bring back the almighty Magic Slim to provide funky lead vocals and some hot guitar licks. Throw in some feminine backing vocals, scorched-earth fretburning, and a canyon-deep rhythmic groove, and you’d never know that this was Collins’ song in the first place. The Bluesmasters featuring Mickey Thomas closes with Tucker’s original R&B tearjerker “Long Time.” Tucker’s mournful guitarwork underlines Thomas’ soulful vocals, while a steady beat is accompanied by Ric Ulsky’s subtle, but strong keyboards.
The Reverend’s Bottom Line
There are a lot of ways that The Bluesmasters featuring Mickey Thomas may have gone astray, but thanks to the enthusiasm and obvious reverence that everybody involved has for the blues, the results are entertaining and enjoyable. Thomas’ vocals speak for themselves, and he’s at his best when channeling his gospel/Southern rock roots and not trying to out-growl Howlin’ Wolf. While his vocals never lapse into self-parody – the blues-rock genre is littered with gravel-throated howlers – at times, as on the James’ cover, they’re truly transcendent.
Tucker is a solid guitarist and bandleader, and his slidework on Johnson’s “Walkin’ Blues” should make any blues fan sit up and take note. He’s put together a fine band as well, starting with the talents of drummer Aynsley Dunbar, who has worked with everybody from John Mayall and Jeff Beck to Frank Zappa and Journey, and managed to bring a distinctive percussion style to each. The real find here is harpslinger Doug Lynn, a skilled instrumentalist that brings to mind the best of Charlie Musselwhite’s early work. Altogether, the sum is greater than the parts, and The Bluesmasters featuring Mickey Thomas is a good – although not yet great – collection of blues-rock performances that will leave you hungry for more. (Direct Music, released March 23, 2010)
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