Whiteboy James And The Blues Express
"Extreme Makeover"
Ripcat Records
By Peter "Blewzzman" Lauro © October 2011

Whiteboy James and his cohorts - The Blues Express - are at it once again. With the cast from their debut CD, "Last Time Was The Last Time", still intact - Whiteboy James on vocals and harp, Scott Abeyta on guitar, Blake Watson on bass, and Max Bangwell on drums - and based on the songs you'll be hearing on "Extreme Makeover", it's obvious the guys are still up to all their old antics.

By his own admission, it takes a "Big Butted Woman" to satisfy Whiteboy's needs. As a matter of fact, the bigger their butts, the more he goes nuts. Hmmmmm....Why do the five hotties surrounding him on the CD cover have me doubting that? Smokin' harp and guitar leads backed by rock solid rhythm....as I said - same old antics.

"Excuse Me For Scribbl'n" is about as fast and furious as it gets. While Whiteboy's singing about the things he didn't learn in school, Scott, Blake and Max are virtually putting on a musical seminar on what they have learned....not necessarily in school.

Although soft shuffles are not what Whiteboy James And The Blues Express would call their money songs, they're real cool and smooth as hell on this one. As a matter of fact, if I didn't think they'd beat me up for saying it, I might even call this song "one jazzy number". The band shows some remarkable versatility by actually sounding excellent....while actually being calm. Whiteboy's as good soft as he is hard....errrrr - vocally - that is, Scott's as good slow as he is fast, Max is as good when that train of his is just coasting versus barreling and "The Big Man" - as the song refers to a player of the big bass - is as good caressing that baby as he is at slapping it. A great change of pace song by a great bunch of musicians.

When Whiteboy says that "Trouble" is his middle name you can bet your bottom dollar he means it. As a matter of fact, while most of the disc's ten original songs paint a promiscuous picture with their wanton lyrics, that statement may be his only sincere one.

At one point in their musical careers, I'm sure that just about every drummer has attempted to sound like a train barreling down the tracks while just about every harmonica player has attempted to sound like the runaway train's whistle. Yet, on "Big Blue Train", these guys make it sound so fresh. If there was ever a song that was too fast to dance to, this could very well be it. Phew!

Other tracks on "Extreme Makeover" include: "Stay Out Late At Night", "Mean Mistreat'n Woman", "Zerg, Shotgun, And You", "Gold Brick Bar", "Night Train Wine", "Slowdown And Let Me Love You" and "I'm Ready".

There's a picture of the band on the back cover of the disc that, in my mind, tells a story of the guys as I imagine they truly are. It shows them all decked out in their slick suits and shoes, happily sitting around a table while sucking down shots and genuinely enjoying each others company. That's how they look....that's how they sound.

You can check out Whiteboy James And The Blues Express either at the bands website - www.whiteboyjames.com or the record labels website - www.ripcatrecords.com. Either way, they'll be happy to hear from you. They'll also be happy to hear who sent you, so please tell them it was the Blewzzman.