Cascade Blues Music Reviews Blues Police Blues Police Music Review Index

Music Review Reprint from the
September, 2001 BluesNotes
By Greg Johnson

• My Babe

• You Talk Too Mean

• The Wolf

• Goin' Away, Baby

• Harold's Request

• St. James Infirmary

• Smilin' On A Windy Day

• Hey, Hey, Baby

• Speckle Head Rag

• It Ain't Right

• The Sprawl

    Whether they have been accompanying Northwest Blues icons like Sheila Wilcoxson or Kelly Joe Phelps, or performing together in their long-time incarnation as The Blues Police, Dave Mathis and Steve Cameron have been enlightening audiences with their feel-good, easy-going acoustical Blues music for a number of years.  And, this self-titled release is long overdue, but certainly worth the wait.

    Packed full of the songs we've all come to expect and love from the duo, the CD offers brilliant renditions of such classics as Big Bill Broonzy's, "Hey Hey Baby," Little Walter's, "My Babe", and a haunting reading of "St. James Infirmary". But, it's the originals that stand out here more than anything, especially instrumentals like "Harold's Request" or "Speckle Head Rag", which puts Steve and Dave face-to-face in an open free-for-all where you can just picture the smiles on their faces as they give a first-class work-out to one another's talents.  It's a challenge they freely accept whenever they play together and one that leaves their fans satisfied every time. It'll leave a smile on your face as well.

© 2001 Cascade Blues Association