By Peter "Blewzzman" Lauro © February
2011
It's great to be
hearing Donald Ray Johnson again. I loved the last CD he sent
me so much that I awarded "Pure Pleasure" the
2008 BLEWZZY AWARD. Now he's back with another contender - "It's
Time". The many musical contributors are: Donald Ray Johnson on
vocals, background vocals and drums; George Phillips, Bill Eaglesham and
Brent Wright on bass; Ralph Moncivais on tenor & alto sax solos; Ron
Casat, Mike Little and Earl McCauley on keyboards; Alistair Elliot on
trumpet; Mike Clark on sax; Dave Reed on trombone; Kent McCray on drums; Mike
Huston, Brent Wright, Gaspard Ossekian, Russell Broom, Bill Johnson and
Yuji Ihara on guitar; and Chris Aries on background
vocals.
The disc opens with a
smokin' shuffle called "These Blues", one of Donald's originals.
It's not just hot, it's a three alarmer. Backed up by prominent
rhythm coming from Kent, Bill E. and Ron on the drums, bass and organ - not one,
not two, but three guitarists provide some rhythm of their
own. Fueling the fire are great guitar and sax leads
by Gaspard and Ralph. We're off to a real good start
here.
"It's Time"
is not only the title track but it's also a statement I'm going to say a
little more about later. This original features Donald doing what he
does best - expertly singing his heart out with emotion filled vocals. On
this one, Russell is responsible for the great guitar
leads.
Paying tribute to
his close friend of forty years, Donald does a great job on a song made
popular by the late Phillip Walker - "Working Girl
Blues". Great guitar and organ leads by Bill J. and
Ron.
Many politicians have
said it, but when you hear the heartfelt way in which Donald sings
it, it seems a lot easier to believe that a "Change Is Gonna
Come". Of course they're all speaking materially while
Donald's speaking spiritually. Having hymnal qualities, this type of song
is perfect for Donald's style and voice. The background vocals and
alto sax solo fit just right.
"Watching
You" is another hot one. It features Yuji Ihara at disc's best on
guitar solos and Kent McCray teaming up with George Phillips on bass
for the disc's best rhythm. That, along with the full
horn section helping out, make this the disc's best track
musically.
With the
band softly providing him with smooth background music, Donald shines on
this one. His version of a "Rainy Night In
Georgia" may actually be better than the original. His voice is
so powerful, so soulful, so smooth, so emotional and so very
articulate. Oh my God, can this man sing! This review will be long
done and I'll still be hitting replay on this one. Great stuff
Donald.
Other tracks on
"It's Time" include: "Heavy Love", "Girl Friend Blues", "Ain't No
Fun To Me", and "Louisiana Country
Girl".
I don't
know the reason why Donald Ray Johnson named this CD "It's Time", and
from the tracks lyrics, there doesn't seem to be any relation to what I'm
about to say. However, the way I see it, it's time this Grammy
Award winning artist gets some recognition in the blues community.
It's time to start seeing him on the bill at blues festivals
and it's time to start seeing his name on some Blues Music Award
ballots.
To discover what I've
already discovered about this great bluesman you need to go to www.donaldray.com. Read his bio, buy his CD
and tell him the Blewzzman didn't send you there, he chased you
there.
