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One Night In America Charlie Musselwhite Telarc, 2002
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Reviewed by Pamela L. Dow
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Charlie Musselwhite's new CD, One Night In America, is a sincere and passionate reflection of the music he grew up with in Memphis during the 1940s and 50s. As explained in the liner notes, this recording was very personal for Musselwhite. The concept was to record specific tunes that represented the distinctive sounds heard both on the air waves and throughout the streets of Memphis. One Night In America, captures that period in time with incredible detail. Musselwhite's musical diversity is highlighted on each of the 12 tracks with a sound that's smooth as silk. His latest effort is a work of genius, blending together country and bluegrass styles with the blues sound for that period in time. Musselwhite touches upon the emotions of his personal journey, musically expressing those moments from earlier experiences in his life. One Night In America opens with "Trail of Tears," a catchy number that grows on you with each listen. Of the four original Musselwhite tunes penned on this latest release, "Blues Overtook Me" is the very best. A real boogie shuffle with some great guitar work by Robben Ford and solo work by Musselwhite that tells of his early introduction to the blues. Another original is "In Your Darkest Hour," a slow blues tune that reflects some low, depressing times. This track has powerful performances by Musselwhite on vocals and harmonica and T-Bone Wolk on bass, pulling you right into the blues. One of several stand out tracks is, "Cold Grey Light of Dawn," an Ivory Joe Hunter tune given its due by Musselwhite, as he tells the story of struggling with the bottle. "Big River" is a Johnny Cash tune and a tribute to the artist. The liner notes explain how this tune was played on the radio, reflecting a time while growing up in Memphis. Musselwhite's band on the album is comprised of some very talented musicians, G.E. Smith (former band leader of the Saturday Night Live band) on guitar, T-Bone Wolk on bass, Peter Re on organ, Per Hanson and Michael Jerome sharing drum duty and Christine Ohlman on vocals. There's also some great guest performances throughout the CD with Robben Ford on Guitar, country artists Marty Stuart on guitar and mandolin and Kelly Willis on vocals. Both Stuart and Willis let their country roots shine on tracks like "Rank Strangers To Me," and "In A Town This Size." Fans of Musselwhite's exceptional harmonica work won't be disappointed, his talents on harp are heard throughout this latest effort. Instead of a hard-driving approach, Musselwhite incorporates his harp sound to accent the country feel of the album. Concentrating more attention towards the lyrics themselves and the stories behind each track. From start to finish, One Night In America is a well produced album with incredible performances from everyone involved. Keep in mind that this album carries a major country sound, a style of country-western music that was played during that specific period in time. Considered a blues recording, this album does cover the blues format with a heavy dose of country music mixed in-between. You'll find a genuine effort by Musselwhite as he captures several different elements musically and creates a new dimension to the blues. He shares his Memphis roots with pure passion and total honesty, walking us down memory lane with all its heartache and pain. This recording will make you think and touch many emotions, certainly Charlie Musselwhite's very best effort to date. | July 2002
Pamela L. Dow is a full-time music journalist/freelance writer living in Western Massachusetts. Besides creative non-fiction and poetry, her work focuses on the blues genre, especially within the past three years. Her album and concert reviews, articles and profiles on blues artists both past and present are found at several music sites on the 'Net. She's a member of both the Association of Music Journalists and Photographers and The Blues Foundation. |
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