 By
East Side Slim
Delta Highway – The Devil Had A Woman
Delta Highway & Oh Lonesome Me Music, 2007
Memphis-based
blues band Delta Highway is a fairly new unit, only
coalescing as a band after 2003. This band’s
music is pure living blues for modern times; it’s
not rock-blues, soul-blues or any other hyphen-blues.
The band features guitar, harp, organ/keys, bass
and drums - no frills, just fine soulful ensemble
blues playing. The band was originally formed by,
and is centered on Brandon Santini (harp and vocals)
and Justin Sulek (guitar). Both men were originally
from the piedmont region of North Carolina, and
came to Memphis in 2003 in order to absorb the blues
sounds and history of the Mississippi delta region.
Traditional sounds form the core of the Delta Highway’s
sound, but the band doesn’t let their love
of traditional blues forms stagnate them or tie
their hands. They take the best of what makes the
blues such a vital art form and merge it with their
own sensibilities and ideas.
Santini is a fine young singer, possessing soulful,
deep-toned vocals with a slight drawl which acts
to enhance that soulfulness. At times his tone reminds
me of Steve Guyger, at other times a grittier version
of Noah Hunt (who you may know from his work with
Kenny Wayne Sheppard) and at other times his phrasing
is reminiscent of Paul Reddick’s. Brandon’s
amplified harp tone is heavy, thick and warm - I
hear influences ranging from Gary Primich to Mark
Sallings to Jason Ricci, even some John Popper (but
don’t let that scare you away if you’re
not a Popper fan.) There’s a good chance that
Santini will become a rising star in the world of
blues harp players. Delta Highway’s rhythm
section (at the time of this recording) consisted
of bassist Paul Chase and drummer Steady Keven Eddy
(Keven has played with both Mojo Buford and Blind
Mississippi Morris). If I’m not mistaken,
both men used to work with Jason Ricci, during Ricci’s
Memphis/Mississippi days – prior to the formation
of his New Blood band. Guitarist Justin Sulek is
another young player you should keep your eyes on.
He knows when to sit back and play to the songs,
knows when to step up front, displays a nice tonal
palette, and can really play that greasy, swampy
North Mississippi/Memphis style well. Also, he know
how to, and seem to enjoy, playing along with a
harp player. Not all guitarists master this trick.
The band reminds me a lot of Paul Reddick’s
band in his 1990s ‘Sidemen’ days, but
with a growly drawl channeling Memphis grit and
Mississippi Hill Country feel. Brandon has a style
of vocal and harmonica phrasing that reminds me
very much of Reddick’s work (this should be
considered a compliment), although his vocal tone
is different that Paul’s vocal tone. Personally,
I think this band has tremendous potential. In fact,
I’m not the only one who is thinking that
way – Delta Highway was nominated for the
2009 Blues Music Award in the Best New Debut Artist
category. That is high praise, indeed.
The Songs: (all songs by Santini or Santini/Sulek
except bonus track)
1.
23 Hours:
--This is a great song, a mid-tempo shuffler with
a backwoods feel. If you are familiar with work
of the late, great Gary Primich (we miss you, man),
then you will have a good idea of what I mean. Brandon
plays unamplified harp here (meaning straight into
a mic, not through an amplifier first), displaying
a nice feel for tonal effects. If you really want
to determine whether or not a harp player is truly
talented, listen to him/her playing unamplified;
there’s no where to hide. I should also mention
that Justin plays a good and greasy solo here that’s
worth the price of admission itself.
2.
Devil Had A Woman:
--This song rides a groovy, funky beat, and reminds
me a lot of some of Paul Reddick’s bluesier
tunes. Brandon is really working hard on harp, there
is some tough piano supplied by Victor Wainwright,
and Justin slides around the guitar in slinky, sinister
ways. I really dig Brandon’s vocal phrasing
and the tone of his voice, not only here but throughout
the CD.
3.
Feelin’ Bad:
--The boys are slowing things down here. The tune
is set on a nice organ bed (I do love that organ
sound...it raises the hair on my neck). The slow
tempo allows Justin to stretch out nicely on guitar
and allows Brandon to do the same on harp, as well
as allowing him to display his soulful vocal (and
harp) phrasing to full extent.
4.
We Got A Thang Goin’ On:
--This is another funky, gritty blues tune, featuring
the organ prominently. It also features Brandon’s
fiery harp work. The only word that really works
here is wailing. Don’t worry, there’s
plenty of guitar, too. The boys didn’t forget
about all you guitar-heads out there.
5.
Got To Be On My Way:
--This is a fiery, up-tempo number, the kind of
roadhouse blues you think of when you say Texas
blues, especially of the D/FW variety, music from
cats like Anson Funderburgh, Mike Morgan and Jimmie
Vaughan (he didn’t always live in Austin you
know…)
6.
Funky Little Baby:
--This cut sounds very familiar, but I can’t
quite place it - maybe similar to one of Steve Guyger’s
more funky tunes? Anyway, this song is a funky little
tune, one which I like a lot. It’s retro but
modern, funky yet tough, just very, very cool.
7.
Shake It Just A Little Bit:
--This is an old-fashioned up-tempo shufflin’
romp. Loads of wailing harp, warbling, pumping organ
and plenty of razor sharp fret work. This would
be the perfect tune to end a live set on –
leave the people wanting more!
8.
Somebody’s Gotta Go:
--This tune has a real sinister vibe, nice and slinky
due to an unusual but very cool rhythm pattern supplied
by the drummer. The organ is featured here once
again. You don’t hear much harp until about
half-way through the track, but the wait is worth
it – Brandon is playing so hard that it’s
tough to believe the reeds could take it. Justin
gets his turn a little later on to do the same thing
to his guitar – blisters on his fingers!
9.
I Want You To Know:
--This cut has Texas via Chicago feel, or is it
simply that funky/gritty Memphis sound? You know
what? It just doesn’t matter, as this is a
good one. This is another track in the vein of some
of Gary Primich’s work. It’s all blues,
nothing but the blues, set to strip-tease groove.
10.
Goin’ Home:
--This is a fun track, kind of a modified back-porch
rockin’ blues. Justin really lays some fine
guitar work out there, Brandon chugs away on harp
and Steady Eddy drives it all home with his slappin’
percussion. This one is a winner, for sure.
Bonus Hidden Track: Don’t Let My Baby
Ride - (RL Burnside)
--This unlisted/uncredited tune is found at the
4:30 mark of track 10, and runs for about 6 minutes.
The cut is Delta Highway’s funky update on
RL Burnside’s version of ‘Don’t
Let My Baby Ride’. It’s true to Burnside’s
version, showing that the band knows and respects
its roots. Nice!
The Verdict:
The verdict is…guilty – guilty of playing
some of the finest blues in the Mid-South region.
Fans of gritty, greasy, harp-based blues should
absolutely love this CD. The boys play in the ensemble
style so important to all the best blues, and Brandon
Santini’s harp work shines throughout. He
is the primary songwriter for the band, with Justin
Sulek credited on half the tracks. It’s obvious
after listening to this CD that these 2 young men
truly love and feel the blues, and I think it’s
great to find 2 more young men, 2 more young BLUESmen,
playing and sharing their personal vision of this
amazing musical form with the rest of us. This really
is a fine album, folks – I’m giving
it a rating of 4.00 on the STLBluesometer. FYI:
the Delta Highway band plays B.B.’s Jazz,
Blues & Soups (in St. Louis) several times a
year; catch them if you can – you won’t
be disappointed.
For
more information concerning the band Delta Highway,
visit the following websites:
Official Band Site - www.deltahighwayblues.com
MySpace - www.myspace.com/deltahighway
Lee Howland
- aka "East
Side Slim"
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