Happy hump day. We’re back with another edition of Get it or Forget it. Check it out!
Artist Name: Jake Aarons
Album Name: 4 Songs of Loss
Label: Lost Souls Records
Genre: Singer-Songwriter
Track Listing: 1. It’s all on You; 2. I Miss you More Now; 3. This is a sad Song; 4. When you Miss a Friend
Publicist: Self-promoted
Review: Sometimes you need sad songs to match your mood. In that case, the latest from Jake Aarons fits the bill perfectly. These four melancholy ballads. The songs are well crafted and bring out his grief and loss clearly. This young man has a lot to say about loss, and we hope that things get better for him. We would love to hear some positive, uplifting songs, as his voice and instrumentation are worthy of much more.
Recommendation: If you are sad, this one is for you.
Artist Name: Fiona Joy
Album Name: Story of Ghosts
Label: Blue Coast Records
Genre: New Age Instrumental
Track Listing: 1. Song for Dunnie; 2. Story of Angels; 3. Contemplating (solo); 4. Blue Dream (solo); 5. The Solo Tango; 6. The White Light; 7. Story of Ghosts; 8. Twilight; 9. Story of Insanity; 10. Before the Light
Publicist: The B Company
Review: Fiona Joy is a masterful pianist, playing and 1885 Steinway piano. These songs set the perfect mood for relaxation and mediation, and are comforting as well. Joy’s obvious piano skills are truly on display, and her compositions are so beautiful and moving. Definitely put this one on repeat if you need a relaxing musical soundtrack. It should provide hours of enjoyment.
Recommendation: This one belongs in your meditation library. We think it is well worth it.
Artist Name: Tom Hambridge
Album Name: The NOLA Sessions
Label: Self-released
Genre: Blues
Track Listing: 1. Blues Been Mighty Good to Me; 2. Bluz Crazy; 3. This End of the Road; 4. I Love Everything; 5. What you Leave Behind; 6. Little Things; 7. Whiskey Ghost; 8. Save Me; 9. A Couple Drops; 10. Masterpiece; 11. Me and Charlie; 12. Trying to Find It; 13. Faith
Publicist: Blind Raccoon
Review: Traditional blues are a staple of great music, and no one does it better than New Orleans musicians. That influence has definitely rubbed off on Tom Hambridge’s latest effort, which includes some of NOLA’s best, including the late Allen Toussaint, Eric Clapton’s slide guitarist Sonny Landreth, the Naughty Horns of the Alumni of Loyala University Jazz Band and the amazing B3 mastery of Ivan Neville. Not only that, but the album was mastered by Grammy winner Sean Magee at the famed Abbey Road Studios. This one belongs with the blues masters and is sure to appeal to all blues lovers. It is a winner from start to finish. We especially love “Trying to Find It” with its southern rock and country vibe, thanks no doubt to its co-writer, Jeffrey Steele.
Recommendation: Don’t even think about it. If you love the blues, you simply must Get this one.
Artist Name: Ben Bostick
Album Name: Hellfire
Label: Self-released
Genre: Country/Folk
Track Listing: 1. No Show Blues; 2. Hellfire; 3. No Good Fool; 4. Blow off Some Steam; 5. It Ain’t Cheap Being Poor; 6. Tornado; 7. The Other Side of Wrong; 8. Work Sleep Repeat; 9. How Much Lower can I Go; 10. Feeling Mean; 11. The Outsider
Publicist: KG Music Press
Review: We reviewed Ben Bostick’s debut album a year ago, which earned him a nomination for the LA Music Critic Awards for Best Folk Artist. He’s back with his sophomore album, and it is every bit as good as the first one, even better. He seems to be channeling Waylon Jennings on the first track, “No Show Blues,” and the classic country vibe is just as strong as his first effort. We love the entire album, but “No Show Blues,” “Blow off Some Steam,” “It Ain’t Cheap Being Poor,” “Work, Sleep, Repeat,” “Feeling Mean,” and “The Outsider” were our favorite tracks.
Recommendation: This one is a keeper. Get it.
Artist Name: Karen Lawrence and Blue by Nature
Album Name: Best of Live
Label: self-released
Genre: Blues
Track Listing: 1. Fun and Games; 2. I had it all Wrong; 3. Another day, Another Mile; 4. You got a way About You; 5. I’ll get Along Alright; 6. You’ve got me Workin’; 7. It’s Been so Long; 8. It’s all About You
Publicist: Doug Deutsch Publicity Services
Review: Traditional blues sung by Janis Joplin is what you get with Karen Lawrence and Blue by Nature. This lady can wail and her band is all business as they give her some amazing tracks to sing to. She is also heavily influenced by Chaka Khan and that R&B vibe permeates every note. This live album gives us a taste of what it must be like to see the band’s show, and we would love to have the opportunity to do just that. Accordingly to Wikipedia, Lawrence was previously a member of several bands, including the L.A. Jets, 1994, and Karen Lawrence and the Pinz. She composed the song “Prisoner (Theme song from ‘The Eyes of Laura Mars’),” which was sung by Barbra Streisand and went four times platinum. She also sang backup vocals on “Get it up” from Draw the Line by Aerosmith as well as a Jeff Beck album. We are so glad she’s back. There is not a weak track on this album, and we think you will listen to it over and over.
Recommendation: Run, don’t walk, and Get this one Today!
