The Blues Band are better than ever in concert & on their new album

Posted on 25th November 2019

The Blues Band, and permutations of its constituent parts have come to Diss quite a few times but I don’t recall them ever playing quite so well. The reason may be The Rooster Crowed, their new album, of which we got to hear a sizeable chunk. It seems to have given them a new lease of life.

As is the way with this multi-talented group of musicians, singing duties were shared between the whole band.  Paul Jones dabbled in a little social commentary with Too Much Completion, Gary Fletcher sharing some Hearsay, while Tom McGuinness explained How Things Change. Otherwise, with Sam Kelly on drums excused vocal duties, it was left to his dad, Dave Kelly, to take on the lion’s share of the singing, and he was in particularly fine voice throughout.

We still got a great selection of classic tunes from the likes of Ray Charles, Howlin’ Wolf and Jimmy Reed, while a splendid version of Blind Boy Fuller’s Weeping Willow Blues proved to be a particular highlight. What was most heartening, however, is that the Band is still writing and recording brand new songs. Skin Game Blues and Peace, Don’t you Worry are two new additions that are surely destined to become set standards.

By David Vass