Johnnie Bassett - The Gentleman Is Back - Sly Dog Records 2009

A quick aside along those lines, I was the subject of an interview a few months back, and I told the interviewer that for every artist I knew of, or every bit of Blues trivia in my brain, there was at least ten times that much out there waiting to be discovered. Enter Johnnie Bassett and his new release The Gentleman Is Back.

Bassett is a long time Detroit Blues fixture, originally from Florida, and comes correct with a gem of a Jump Blues disc that can get 'em on their feet, and sit 'em back down in succession.

The disc starts off with "A Woman's Got Ways." The track is a fantastic opener, with Bassett singing with a feeling, bringing every experience he's had with the fairer sex into the studio with him. The guitar playing is sharp, and provides a great preview of the fret work you can expect throughout the album. The Motor City Horns sound excellent on the track, and provide the perfect fit.

The catchy Jump Blues of "Keep Your Hands Off My Baby" sees Bassett trading vocals with piano player and leader of The Brothers Groove, Chris Codish. I was very pleased with the writing on the song, and consider the tune to be one of my favorites on The Gentleman Is Back.

Speaking of great songwriting, "Feeling Lucky," "Meat On Them Bones," and "I Can't See What I Saw In You" come in as a few more examples of the great song selection on The Gentleman Is Back. The latter of which features some beautiful, drifting pedal steel guitar by guest James Morris. The combination of the steel and the songwriting is reminiscent of Classic Country tunes, which is fitting given Bassett's past playing for a Country & Western outfit during his time in the Army.

Bassett lays down just the right amount of double entendre on "Nice Guys Finish Last," taking a song in a completly different direction than what I thought when I first glanced at the title. It's a nice compliment to Bassett's swagger. The song may very well have been the love child of Leonard King's "Your Real Gitcheegumee," a fun, slightly dirty song that Bassett and company lay down a few songs later. Bassett also gets soulful on the disc, with his version of "Georgia."

Codish's work on the organ provide a depth to tunes like "Meat On Them Bones" and "I'm Lost." If you read the liner notes by Bob Porter, you can discover that "there is telepathy between them that comes only from the deep understanding of how the other operates." I couldn't have said it any better myself.

Then there's "I'm Lost," a song in which I couldn't help but hear a little "The Thrill Is Gone." Bassett cites B.B. King as an influence, and it seems that he either subliminally or intentionally pays tribute to the King on the tune.

The Gentleman Is Back closes it's 11 song selection with the Jazzy "I Love the Way You Look," which has some stellar horn rifffs; and "My Old Flame," a slow burner that features Codish on piano, and Skeeto Valdez stirring the snare beautifully.

Standout Tracks: "Keep Your Hands Off My Baby," "Meat On Them Bones," and "My Old Flame"

Preview and purchase songs from the album The Gentleman Is Back by Johnnie Bassett.