Billy Gibbons

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SUPERSONIC BLUES MACHINE Stream New Track From “Californisoul”, Featuring All-Star Cast, Out October 20th

Posted by tarjavirmakari on September 12, 2017
Posted in: Int. News. Tagged: , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

SupersonicBluesMachine

SUPERSONIC BLUES MACHINE have released a new track “L.O.V.E.” from their upcoming album “Californisoul”, featuring Billy Gibbons, Steve Lukather, Eric Gales, Robben Ford and Walter Trout. Out on CD, double vinyl, download and streaming October 20, 2017, via Mascot Label Group.

Listen to L.O.V.E. here:

Download it for free here: https://www.unlock.fm/9uf

“CALIFORNISOUL! That’s exactly what it is. It’s the missing soundtrack to a summertime drive from Los Angeles to San Francisco in 1971!” ~ Fabrizio Grossi

It’s the sound that SUPERSONIC BLUES MACHINE has spent much of 2017 sharing with audiences from Texas, Holland, India, St. Petersburg, Russia, starting with their headlining slot in front of thousands at the Notodden Blues Festival (Europe’s premier blues festival) in Norway, and they are back with an exciting new studio release that picks up right where the band left off on their well-received debut record, West of Flushing, South of Frisco.

Recorded at Fab’s Lab in North Hollywood, California, Californisoul is all about the songs, and while Grossi wrote most of the lyrics, the music was created and fleshed out in the studio by the band, and they have conjured up a modern day soulful, blues rock classic.

Californisoul is all about great songs. This album shines in the depth and soul of the songs and songwriting – no cookie cutter filler to be found. “Cry” is a soul searching, simmering piece of poetry and Lance Lopez preaches it in the most righteous way. “I Am Done Missing You” is another number that reaches down deep with a message that will resonate with both spurned lovers and those who have left their bad habits and ways in the past.

Californisoul is a study and celebration of the human condition, and “This Is Love” could be the lovechild of Bob Marley and War with some stinging guitar action spread on top. We’re living in times in which it’s hard to keep on keeping on, and it’s easy to fall prey to habits, vices, and distractions – “Elevate” takes a close look at the “high” life, and how one must raise above the temptations and tribulations if the music is to be made. Elevate your soul, ineed. Blues, rock, reggae, soul, it’s all here in a joyous abundance and a celebration of life. That’s the nature of Californisoul.

SUPERSONIC BLUES MACHINE is Lance Lopez (guitars/vocals/songwriter), Fabrizio Grossi (bass, producer, songwriter), and Kenny Aronoff (drums). As they’ve proven on their first album and round of shows, it’s not a party unless you invite some friends, and for Californisoul, they’ve brought along some heavy hitters.

Fabrizio Grossi talks about a soundtrack for an imaginary road trip up the California coastline in the heady, halcyon days of the early 70s, and that really captures the vibe and mojo that is Californisoul. The songs Grossi has written for this album are as top notch as they are diverse. This machine covers a lot of ground. As the ever tighter core of Lopez, Grossi, and Aronoff comes together with the elite of the modern day blues rock community, this is much closer to Woodstock and Watkins Glen than it is to a cut and paste A-list vanity session. This is about friendship, the brotherhood of the blues, and bringing the blues up to this moment in time.

Lance Lopez is once again at the front and centre on every song, and with every year finds him digging deeper into his tool kit – his guitar work is as hot and gritty as anything ever cooked up down in Texas, and his singing evokes memories of the great soul, blues, and rock vocalists. You’ll hear the influence and heritage of Bobby “Blue” Bland, the funk of Sly Stone, and the world weary rumination of the late, great Gregg Allman, but Lopez never really sounds like anything but himself. That he’s equally accommodating, gracious, and energizing when he’s tossing verses and solos back and forth with his guests is icing on the cake!

Kenny Aronoff is truly one of the most in-demand drummers on the planet, and his stick work on Californisoul is one of the ingredients that make the record so special. Aronoff has also brought along his substantial arranging and compositional skills to great effect. He sounds more like a Charlie or Ringo than your run-of-the-mill session cat, and his sheer musicality is a huge force on this record. Whether he’s playing with Supersonic Blues Machine, John Fogerty, BoDeans, Sir Paul McCartney, John Mellencamp, The Smashing Pumpkins or any of the other remarkable acts that have chosen to employ Aronoff, he brings the same world class performance every time he gets behind the kit.

Guests on the album include Billy Gibbons, who returns with pen and guitar (“Broken Heart”), Steve Lukather (Toto) throws down some stunning licks (“Hard Times”), Eric Gales is back in the fold (“Elevate”), Robben Ford brings his bag of soulfully sophisticated chops (“Somebody’s Fool”), Walter Trout brings some silky slow blues (“What’s Wrong”), and the party is rounded out with Alessandro Alessandroni Jr. on keyboards, Serge Simic (co-writer and background vocals on “Love” and “Hard Times”), and Andrea and Francis Benitez Grossi (background vocals). You may come for the stars, but you’ll stay for the whole show.

Fabrizio Grossi adds, “Lots of people have been saying to me ‘why does Supersonic Blues Machine always bring guests around? You guys can stand your own ground’, and there are three answers to that : 1) we’re all super friends and we’re having a blast, 2) most of them don’t give lessons and for us it’s only way to learn their secret “ways”, and three because the inspiration and the challenge they bring to the table!”

Supersonic Blues Machine is truly a family as well as a band, and these guests don’t mail it in, they stay for dinner. The community aspect is very real, and one of the band’s great treasures.

SUPERSONIC BLUES MACHINE soundly beats the sophomore jinx to hit a grand slam with CALIFORNISOUL.

Praise for West of Flushing, South of Frisco:
“Modern blues doesn’t get much better than this” 9/10 The Blues
“Formidable…a modern day super-session which manages to hang on to the heart and soul” Classic Rock
“Guitar’s hottest supergroup” Guitarist
“A sleek, stretched Cadillac of a Blues band” Fireworks
“Fantastic” Powerplay

“West of Flushing, South of Frisco is a total treat for the those of us who crave great hard driving blues based rock and ear frying guitar playing. The core of Supersonic Blues Machine of Lopez, Grossi, and Aronoff have nothing to prove. They could easily have carried the entire project themselves. The guest stars are just icing on an already very tasty cake.” – Blues Rock Review

“…the band’s debut album West of Flushing, South of Frisco, offers the sound of joyous, unbridled music-making that falls a bit heavier on the rock side of the blues-rock equation. Unlike a lot of these kinds of affairs, Grossi wrote or co-wrote most of the songs, and he produced the album with a steady hand, providing West of Flushing, South of Frisco with a dynamic sound that accents the band’s bad-ass instrumental prowess.” – That Devil Music

“Throw together three long established musicians with a passion for blues along with a parade of extremely talented guest musicians; what do you get? A nasty, down and dirty blues album that reminds you of every fantastic dive bar you’ve ever visited to cry in your whiskey about that long lost girlfriend. That’s what!” – Classic Rock Revisited

“Supersonic Blues Machine’s West of Flushing, South of Frisco is that rarest of beasts, a cameo packed blues rock album on which the core band and the tunes actually supersede the weight of the heavies who stop by to lend their support. And now, let me raise the stakes even higher – every cameo is worthy of being on the guests’s own albums, nobody here brought anything except their A-game.This just might be the blues rock album to beat in 2016.” – Rock Guitar Daily

Tracklisting:
1 I Am Done Missing You
2 Somebody’s Fool (featuring Robben Ford)
3 Love
4 Broken Heart (featuring Billy Gibbons)
5 Bad Boys
6 Elevate (featuring Eric Gales)
7 The One
8 Hard Times (featuring Steve Lukather)
9 Cry
10 The Stranger
11 What’s Wrong (featuring Walter Trout)
12 Thank You
13 This Is Love

More information at http://supersonicblues.com/

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Review: BILLY GIBBONS AND THE BFG’S “Perfectamundo” (2015)

Posted by tarjavirmakari on February 21, 2016
Posted in: Int. News, Reviews. Tagged: , , , . Leave a comment

Review by Teresa Hopkins

BillyGibbons-cover2Artist: BILLY GIBBONS AND THE BFG’S
Album: “Perfectamundo”
Label:  Concord Records
Release Date:  November 6, 2015

Tracklist:

01.  Got Love If You Want It
02.  Treat Her Right
03.  You’re What’s Happenin’, Baby
04.  Sal Y Pimiento
05.  Pickin’ Up Chicks on Dowling Street
06.  Hombre Sin Nombre
07.  Quiero Mas Dinero
08.  Baby Please Don’t Go
09.  Piedras Negras
10.  Perfectamundo
11.  Q-Vo

If the road you’re on gets you from Point A to Point B just fine, it seems logical to live by the adage of “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”.  But there’s no challenge in that, is there?  Life’s journey, metaphorically or musically, gives us limitless opportunities to get out of a familiar comfort zone and explore, expand, and grow.

Having firmly cemented his status as a guitar legend over the last 46 years in a band with its original lineup still intact, Billy Gibbons has certainly earned his place in music history.  Infusing the sounds of his heroes with his own signature sound as one-third of the band ZZ TOP, he lit the fire under countless numbers of us to want to follow suit and to rediscover for ourselves all those who influenced him.  And  behind the trademark beard and sunglasses, there has always been much more to Billy’s love affair with music than playing the three-chord electrified blues for which we know him best.

Growing up in Houston, Texas in the ’50s and ’60s, he couldn’t help but be wowed by Howlin’ Wolf, Muddy Waters, Jimmy Reed, and Lightnin’ Hopkins, but his exposure to music wasn’t limited to rock and blues.  A great variety of musical genres, including gospel, country-western, and West African styles made quite an impression as well, and his affinity for percussion led to an opportunity to study with mambo king Tito Puente.  No doubt all of that helped shape Billy’s style.  The music that delighted him in his youth has evidently stayed with him, waiting to be further explored and expressed.

In 2014, Gibbons was invited to perform at the Havana Jazz Festival.  He was unable to attend the event, but nonetheless inspired:  the idea of going off on a bit of a tangent must have seemed irresistibly fun.  He hand-picked a group of fellow musicians who came to be the BFG’s (his initials) and, combining some of his favorite genres, predominantly those with an Afro-Cuban flair, they put together the music for “Perfectamundo”.

Co-produced with Joe Hardy, they recorded the album in the cities of Houston and Austin, Texas; Los Angeles, California; and Pontevedra, Spain.

Says Billy:  “The real challenge, of course, was working with sounds that haven’t shown up on a ZZ TOP record before:  timbales, bongo, maracas, conga.  Early on in these sessions that started unfolding in the studios…Joe Hardy, G-Mane Moon and I decided, ‘How can we Cubanize what feels natural?’ And that, of course, invited the consideration of covering some songs that are quite familiar…”

On “Perfectamundo”,  the blues are liberally seasoned with sounds and nuances from the Caribbean, Central America, and beyond.  Opening the album with a wonderful down-and-dirty tone, Gibbons covers ‘Got Love If You Want It’, an old Slim Harpo tune, then eases back as the percussion takes a front seat for most of the remainder.  The feel reminds me so much of Muddy Waters’ 1955 hit ‘She’s Into Something’ that I like it right away.

Gibbons and the BFG’s make ‘Treat Her Right’ (a tune that Roy Head made popular back in 1965) sound like their own.  The fuzz-box bass and the salsa beat gets things moving and certainly give it more polish and modernization, and the piano really adds to the richness of the music.

An acoustic slide intro with a delta flair on ‘You’re What’s Happenin’ Baby’ fools me at first.  The bass kicks in and it’s a 180, joined by a B3 and more cowbell, baby!  Fluid and sensual, this tune has me—even with Billy using auto-tune on the vocals—up until the techno and the rapping comes in.  A little spice, used selectively, adds emphasis to the spoken word, but it’s overused here, and cheapens what could have been a sexy, classy song.

The idea for ‘Sal & Pimiento’ came from a business card from a new Cuban restaurant with the same name (meaning “salt and pepper”).  This one showcases how well the Latin and Afro beats combine with Billy’s trademark blues licks and sound.

‘Picking Up Chicks on Dowling Street’ features the maracas and mucho cencerro y timbales, with Billy’s guitar taking more of an accompaniment role as the B3 is in for the solo.  ‘Hombre sin Nombre’ (“Man Without A Name”) reminds me a little of ZZ TOP’s ‘Sleeping Bag’ from “Afterburner”, but less synth-y.  ‘Quiero Mas Dinero’ (“I want more money”) would be great without the rapping, in my opinion, but again, back to that earlier comment about die-hards having open minds…and anyway, Billy Gibbons was never one to shy away from trying something new and out-there.  This song is more like several little songs in one, switching styles within, and the last few measures are my favorites.

Billy’s take on the old Lightnin’ Hopkins song ‘Baby Please Don’t Go’ stays more true to what we’re familiar with, both on the original song and with Billy’s usual style, but it’s busy with exotic percussion that gives it a nice modern feel.  ‘Piedras Negras’ (“black stones”) would be great in a soundtrack to a movie, right at the end as the credits roll.  I think of outlaws on the run, stopping long enough on the dusty ride for a ladle or two of water and a quick check of the knapsacks to make sure the loot is all still there, sharing a hearty laugh, and hopping back up on their sweaty horses and riding off into the sunset.

I never tire of hearing Billy play…but the title track, ‘Perfectamundo’, didn’t do much for me.  It sounded very contrived rather than inspired.

Considering the lyrical content, I’d imagine it would go over well with a video on VH1, though.  The album closes out with ‘Q’Vo’, laid-back and heavy on the B3.  I like this one:  no frills, just a nice, smooth Chicago blues groove.

When an artist whom we’ve come to know as having mastered a particular genre decides he or she wants to venture out musically on a path less traveled, deviating from the norm is often a Catch-22:  it’ll bring in new fans, but not all the die-hards are gonna dig it.  As much as it can be risky to dabble (or swim) in another genre, it’s also sometimes hard for fans to wrap their minds around it.  You have to sort of stand back and hear the music for what it is—the integrity of the music itself, the musicianship, the strength of the songs—and let that be the main focus, rather than dwelling on the issue of an artist doing something different.  Fact is, most of us are in a very comfortable rut and come to expect the same old song and dance from an artist we like; isn’t that why we like them?  But many artists have pulled it off well.  I do admire Billy Gibbons’ decision to go in a slightly different direction with the BFG’s.  He’s endured a bit of criticism before for going way modern with ZZ TOP’s sound at times, but it’s never daunted him.  And that’s cool.

It sounds like Billy and the guys had a real good time putting this album together.  That’s what it’s all about:  making music and having fun.  I personally could have done without the rapping and some of the techno enhancements, as I think they took away from the wonderfully pure and passionate feel that the percussion gave to the music.  It seemed more emphasis was on modernization than in celebrating the musical genre itself, and at times this somewhat clouded that distinction.  They could have gone old-school with it, and I think I’d have liked it a lot more.  But If you’ve been one to shake a tail feather to Billy’s magic with ZZ TOP and you like a modern twist, you’ll enjoy “Perfectamundo”.

Rating:  7.5/10

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Band Members:
Billy Gibbons:  guitar, bass, B3, piano, vocals
Alx “Guitarzza” Garza:  vocals, bass guitar
Mike Flanigin:  B3
Martine “G.G.” GuiGui:  piano, B3
Greg Morrow:  drums

Additional Musicians:
Joe Hardy:  guitar, keys, bass guitar, vocals

http://www.billygibbons.com
http://www.facebook.com/BillyFGibbonsOfficial
http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/perfectamundo/id1037106092

Billy Gibbons’ Pre-ZZ TOP Band THE MOVING SIDEWALKS To Play New York; The Complete Collection Released

Posted by tarjavirmakari on January 5, 2013
Posted in: Int. News. Tagged: , , , . Leave a comment

Source: Bravewords.com

Before achieving multi platinum success with that “little ol’ band from Texas” ZZ TOP, a young Billy Gibbons lead a hard charging psychedelic blues rock outfit called THE MOVING SIDEWALKS featuring Dan Mitchell (drums), Don Summers (bass), and Tom Moore (keys).

Rooted in Texas soul and rhythm and blues and influenced by Austin’s 13th Floor Elevators, JIMI HENDRIX, and early California psychedelia, The Moving Sidewalks pushed the sonic envelope and hot rodded the 12 bar blues. They forged a sound as down home and expansive as the Lone Star State itself. In 1967 that sound took them to #1 on local radio with the Brit Invasion sensible garage rock classic, ’99th Floor’ and out on the road as support for Jimi Hendrix, THE DOORS, THE JEFF BECK GROUP with ROD STEWART and more. But The Moving Sidewalks came to a stop in the summer of ’69 when Tom Moore and Don Summers were drafted just before the release of their debut LP Flash, a heady brew of muscular and hallucinatory rock. Billy Gibbons and Dan Mitchell enlisted keyboardist Lanier Grieg and started another band, one that would soon be called ZZ Top. But for more than 45 years The Moving Sidewalks music and their friendship have endured. From hippie jam bands to garage bands you can hear their influence. Now Dan, Tom, Don, and Billy are taking the stage again to celebrate their legacy and the newly released Moving Sidewalks – The Complete Collection by reissue specialists Rockbeat Records.

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In support of The Complete Collection, Moving Sidewalks are playing B.B. King’s in New York City on Saturday, March 30th.

Moving Sidewalks – The Complete Collection, just released by reissue specialists Rockbeat Records, chronicles the journey of a young Billy Gibbons through the Houston music scene of the mid-to-late ‘60s on his way to forming the band that would become a rock & roll phenomenon. If you’ve ever yearned to peek beneath the fulsome facial hair of the famous frontman, either literally or figuratively, all you have to do is open up this enticing package. Not only does the photo-laden 54-page booklet offer up images of a clean-shaven, baby-faced Billy in his teens as a member of THE COACHMEN and then the Moving Sidewalks, the two CDs encompass the entirety of both bands’ output.

It becomes obvious pretty quickly that the common thread between this period of Gibbons’ career and his work with ZZ Top is the blues. There’s a distinct blues influence running through the collection, especially when Gibbons is given a bit of extra room to dig into his axe and explore his passion for the licks of Texas legends like LIGHTNIN’ HOPKINS, FREDDIE KING, and T-BONE WALKER, as on ‘Joe Blues’. But the twin psychedelic pillars of inspiration that played a part in Gibbons’ musical evolution were The Jimi Hendrix Experience and fellow Texans The 13th Floor Elevators. The influence of both can be easily discerned in the Moving Sidewalks’ short-but-sweet discography, the latter most obviously on ‘Pluto Sept. 31st’, a close cousin of Hendrix’ ‘Fire’

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Disc 1 of The Complete Collection contains the Sidewalks’ first and only LP, Flash, which was recorded in 1968 but not released until 1969, by which point the band had already broken up. It’s a heady blend of ELEVATORS-esque, fuzztone-soaked, organ-fueled garage rock (‘Flashback’, ‘You Make Me Shake’), Hendrix-flavored, bluesy psychedelia (‘Scoun Da Be’, ‘Crimson Witch’), and off-the-wall sound collages worthy of FRANK ZAPPA’S MOTHERS OF INVENTION (album-closing tandem tracks ‘Eclipse’ and ‘Reclipse’). Gibbons’ searing, soaring guitar heroics tie it all together admirably. It’s just a shame that the band wasn’t around to reap the benefits of their efforts at the time of the album’s unveiling.

Even more impressive, though, is the second disc, consisting of non-LP singles and unreleased material by both The Coachmen and the Moving Sidewalks. The star of this CD (and of the entire package) is ’99th Floor’, the Sidewalks’ 1967 debut single; it’s a stirring, sizzling slice of garage psych that easily stands alongside the likes of the Elevators’ ‘You’re Gonna Miss Me’. The song was something of a regional sensation at the time, kicking off the band’s ultimately ill-starred career with a bang and helping them to nab opening slots for Texas shows by everyone from Mitch Ryder to Hendrix himself. But since the Sidewalks’ career ended up so truncated, the track is an under-appreciated cult-classic item today. And while the other pre-album recordings may not be quite the equal of the aforementioned tune, but they’re certainly in the same ballpark.

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Equally striking in an entirely different way is the band’s deconstruction of THE BEATLES’ ‘I Want To Hold Your Hand’. The Moving Sidewalks slow the song down and turn it into a stomping, storming, psychedelic monster, quite akin to the early output of pioneering New York outfit Vanilla Fudge. Add in a handful of previously unreleased demos by The Coachmen, including a few early attempts at ’99th Floor’ that show the teen Gibbons and company to have been more than a bit precocious, and you’ve got a pretty damn impressive showing for a band whose entire recording career only encompassed about a year and a half.