John O¹Leary
Band
Sins
JOLCD001
***
Review by Nick Dalton
Maverick Magazine June 2005 iSSUE 35
Rootsy blues with a modern sheen served
up by talented harmonica man
Harp player John O¹Leary has wailed
with the best of them, not least Savoy Brown but here takes the lead
in a collection of intelligent, rootsy blues-tinged numbers. But this
far more than just a harmonica record. Firstly, O¹Leary is a not
inconsiderable vocalist. And secondly he¹s teamed up with one of
Britain¹s brightest blues and country guitarists, Jules Fothergill,
who¹s been making a reputation for himself with London country roots
rockers Roadhouse. Here he not only plays, he produces, not to
mention designing the cover and taking the moody photos.
He also
writes, too. The assured, growling Blue Water, a team-up with
O¹Leary, also features the Joplin-like vocals of Roadhouse¹s Lorna
Reilly. And Waiting For You, also featuring Reilly, is far from blues
and sounds more like Roadhouse than Roadhouse.
On Black Cat
Bone O¹Leary¹s vocals initially take the lead but then give way to
Fothergill¹s solo guitar and then Dominique Vantomme¹s rich
keyboards before his own harp takes over.
O¹Leary¹s Move Away
allows Fothergill to demonstrate his growing virtuosity as a slide
player while also featuring second guitarist Tim
O¹Sullivan.
Impressive in the way that Stan Webb allowed Chicken
Shack to forge new ground and to hell with the blues purists. ND