 for
2010
Roots
Music Report Top 50 Blues
-
Jan 29, 2010
Little Joe has reached
the #1 spot on the Roots Music Report for the week
of January 29th. !!!!
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 Jan.
29, 2010 - Roots Music Report is the number
one independent music chart in the world.
RMR compiles radio airplay data from radio
stations around the globe that play all forms
of roots music, so that each week you can
see which independent artists are being played
the most by what stations.
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Believe I'll Make A Change
Little
Joe McLerran
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Little Joe McLerran
Believe I'll Make A Change
Root Blues Reborn Records
 Spring
2010 - When you say roots, you've about covered this one.
This is old school, done extremely well by a band that knows
the music and loves it heart and soul. This one is reminiscent
of the jug band era and is frankly one of the finest pieces
to cross my desk in a while. Being a small operation, we
don't get tremendous coverage. Joe McLerran is a rare gem, worth
far more than whatever price they might ask. Hearkening back
to a simpler day, Believe I'll Make A Change is easy on the
ear…Blues in its purest form. The playing is meticulous,
the vocals are strong and the overall effect is about as close
to time travel as we're about to come in this day and age. If
you like your blues with a traditional flavor this disc is a
must have for your collection. Whether it be the beautiful covers
or the original pieces that manage to capture the spirit of
the time extremely well, this disc is a keeper. McLerran and
company are the real deal and comes highly recommended. This
is a sound that takes the listener back to the 20s, not only
capturing the sound but the spirit of the era…the real
deal from the opening notes to the close. I've
heard nothing finer in some time. - Bill Wilson
/ Billtown
Blue Notes, Spring 2010, pg 10.
Jan. 2010 - Listening to the
opening field holler inspired fragment “Ratty,”
followed by some Delta to Chicago slide guitar,
this CD was this person’s introduction to the music of
Little Joe McLerran, and it certainly caught my attention.
McLerran was the 2009 winner of the International Blues Challenge
in Memphis in the solo-duo category, and his
latest recording is on Roots Born Reborn, “Believe I’ll
Make a Change.” McLerran was originally from the Boulder
area and started playing in a band at the age of 9 playing
Beatles, Bob Marley and old-time blues from Big
Bill, Skip James and Mississippi John Hurt. When the family
moved to Tulsa, his music grew resulting in several
recordings as well as winning the IBC. The present recording
includes several solo performances as well as
several with his band. I appreciate his splendid musicianship
as well as his creative use of older material and his
band that subtly embellishes his lead.
Just like the title track is a nice adaptation of an old Casey
Bill Weldon number, “Down at the Village Store”
is
a lively, mellow Washboard Sam shuffle, with Dexter Payne’s
reed adding a bass line, while Jack Wolfe’s restrained
and subdued organ adds to the performance’s swing. Special
kudos must be given to drummer Ron
McRorey, who uses brushes on the last number.
“Cocktails For Two,” is a solid Piedmont -blues
styled original with McLerran’s Blind Boy Fuller-ish
guitar runs
complemented by Payne’s harmonica. The low-key reworking
of Leroy Carr’s “Blues Before Sunrise,” is
striking
again because of the down-home trio and his relaxed, moving,
vocal. A bit of old-time blues is provided by the
interpretation of the Delmore Brothers’ “Blue Railroad
Train,” indicating his wide ears for strong material
as well
as a being an additional showcase for his adept fingerstyle
guitar.
“Duck Yas,” Payne’s slap-tongue sax and bluesy
clarinet adds a bit of traditional jazz to this delightful
piece of
hokum blues, while the traditional gospel number “Jesus
Make Up My Dyin’ Bed” is taken at a lively tempo
set by
McRorey, with McLerran playing some nice, precise slide runs.
It is followed by a lovely small group rendition of
Blind Willie McTell’s “B&O Blues,” with
Payne’s harp in the musical mix. The band is a bit more
energized on a
rocking rendition of Homesick James’ “Baby Please
Set a Date,” and again it is striking how with how much
restraint
he plays with avoiding the sometimes-hyperactive renditions
of say a George Thorogood. After an unusual
original blues ballad about a Memphis policeman on the beat,
and a Big Bill inspired “She’s Got Something,”
where he celebrates his “sweet wife,” Little Joe
closes with another field holler. It is a fitting close to
a
gem of a recording.
Little Joe McLerran understands that
the mere possession of formidable musical technique does not
translate
into strong blues performances and he understands the value
of restraint, both vocally and instrumentally, in
putting together strong musical performances. He is also familiar
and respectful of the blues tradition, yet places
his own stamp on that tradition resulting in this gem
of a recording. Recommended.
-Ron Weinstock
Jazz & Blues Review
Jan. 2010
Issue 323
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Review:
Little Joe McLerran, Will Tucker, David
Gerald, Levee Town
Published
on Sunday 7 March 2010 in Reviews
LITTLE JOE McLERRAN
“Believe I’ll Make A Change”
(Roots Blues Reborn: RBR06006)
From Tulsa, Oklahoma, comes singer and guitarist Little Joe
McLerran – this, his fourth cd, is a very enjoyable collection
of traditional and old-time blues, some in the Piedmont style
– with him accompanied by a fine band throughout the 13
tracks on offer.
It’s all beautifully played and will appeal to all true
blues lovers, with his pleasant, warm voice and nice guitar
work the main appeal – the rest of the players being Dexter
Payne (reeds and harmonica), Robbie Mack (bass and vocals),
Ron McRorey (drums), Jack Wolfe (keyboards), and harmonica contributions
from David Bernston and Jimmy Junior Markham.
Standouts are his own “Cocktails For Two”, with nice
acoustic harmonica from Dexter Payne; a nice rolling “Blues
Before Sunrise” from pre-war blues legend Leroy Carr, and
nice slide work on the traditional “Jesus Make Up My Dyin’
Bed – with the featured harmonica this time from David
Bernston.
Elsewhere Blind Willie McTell’s “B&O Blues”
is really nice, with a rollicking slide workout on Elmore James
classic, “Baby Please Set A Date”, and his own “Sargent
Sunday” is a jazzy tune with a nice lazy feel.Highly
recommended for those who like their blues pure and from way
back!
Source: BluesInTheNorthwest.com
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Jan. 14, 2010
Jim White
Pittsburgh-Post Gazette
Pittsburgh, PA -
When young bluesmen hit the scene, the results can often be mixed.
The blues sounds like such a simple music, easy to duplicate.
In the hands of the best it sounds so natural and effortless.
But it's an illusion. At the risk of sounding
overly dramatic, the blues at its best is a mystery set to music.
The lyrics can be superfical or powerful, and the music simple
or complex. The result is always an appeal to heart, mind and
soul that's hard to define.
Which is all a roundabout way of saying
that when you find a new, young bluesman whose music easily
carries the spirit of the blues,
it's a very pleasant and rewarding experience. Little Joe McLerran,
at 25, is one of those young bluesmen. And his blues of choice
is not one of the easiest to master -- the
Piedmont fingerpicking style is one of
the most complex and elegant.
But it's not just that McLerran
shows his mastery of that on his new CD,
"Believe I'll Make a Change"
(Root Blues Reborn)...>>more
from the review...with
sample track and video
Jim
White
Pittsburgh-PostGazette
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Little
Joe's New CD reviewed in
Belgium
"The
true lovers of Piedmont Blues
should blindly buy this gem..."
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Here is a loose Dutch
or French translation from www.rootsville.be (Belgium)
The origin of Colorado,
26 years old (or young) blues artist Little Joe McLerran has
made his last throw a gem!
The winner of the International Blues Challenge in 2009 founded
with his brother, his first band when he was 9 (nine!) Year.
To the surprise of bystanders when he played all of the songs
from Big Bill Broonzy, Skip James and Mississippi John Hurt!
At age 15 he changed his (artist) name "Son Piedmont",
a subtle reference to the Piedmont Blues, the music was such
a furore in the years 20 and 30 of the past century in the south-eastern
United States. A few years later he was invited to perform at
the Oklahoma Blues Festival. An honor for a 17 year old!
Even the mix of his first album Joe lost his brother Jesse,
who all the time on drums had been accompanied, in an accident.
It took a while before Joe came on top of. Eventually the CD
released as a tribute to his brother in 2004. That same year
he performed again at the Oklahoma Blues Festival and it was
there that he met the legendary Homesick James, the man who
named him after the concert Little Joe McLerran anxious, his
final start .....
The album opens with the somewhat peculiar 16" (sic) going
Ratty Section that perfectly blends into the glorious title
song Believe I'll Make a Change. The end of the plate is similar:
Little Joe McLerran who uses only his voice and with a spoon
to empty a bag seems to be wrong while his voice slipping further
and further ... But those two numbers is the interstate enjoy
absolute outliers are blown ... Blues Before Sunrise and Baby
Please Set a Date (that guitar!), which manages the McLerran
is sublime atmosphere of the prewar blues back to the screen.
The whole CD also bathed
in the same atmosphere of the old masters, whether in his own
written songs or covers on going from Leroy Carr, Blind Willie
McTell, or processed traditionals .....
Beautiful people know that a handful toesteekt: Jimmy Junior
Markham one that comes into play in a while Baby Please Set
a Date ...!
Attention, an easily accessible album is this! It takes several
spins before its full beauty but exposes the patient listener
will be rewarded with a beauty of a CD!
The true lovers of Piedmont Blues should
blindly buy this gem...
www.rootsville.be
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January
5, 2010 - Tuesday
Little Joe McLerran CD review.....
Category: Music
Little
Joe McLerran
Believe
I'll Make A Change
RATTY
SECTION--BELIEVE I'LL MAKE A CHANGE--DOWN AT THE VILLAGE STORE--COCKTAILS
FOR TWO--BLUES BEFORE SUNRISE--BLUE RAILROAD TRAIN--DUCKS YAS--JESUS
MAKE UP MY DYIN' BED--THE B & O BLUES--BABY PLEASE SET A
DATE--SARGENT SUNDAY--SHE'S GOT SOMETHIN'--MOTHER'S CALLIN'
There's nothing "little"
about Joe McLerran's sound. The Boulder, CO, native, at the ripe
old age of twenty-five, has been a winner at the IBC, taking home
the Solo/Duo top prize in 2009. He parlayed that success into
the release of his current CD, "Believe
I'll Make A Change," on
the Root Blues Reborn label. It's a sweet
exercise in the Piedmont style of blues, and its intricate use
of fingerpicking leads and runs.
Joe and his younger brother
Jesse formed their first band when Joe was nine, playing for tips
in nearby malls. After the family moved to Tulsa, OK, six years
later, they christened themselves "Son Piedmont and Washboard
Jesse," playing in local restaurants. They had built up quite
a local reputation and were in the process of recording an album
until Jesse's sudden accidental death. Joe released "Pearly
Gates" in 2004 in posthumous tribute.
Joe's latest release catches
him in both solo and band settings, backed by Dexter Payne, David
Bernston, and Jimmy Markham on harp, Robbie Mack on bass, Jack
Wolfe on keys, and Ron McRorey on drums. They provide the perfect
complement for Joe's thirteen cuts of old-time blues, gospel,
and field hollers that comprise this set. Check out his good-time
take on the traditional "Ducks Yas," with celver use
of baritone sax from Dexter Payne. The minor-key "Sargent
Sunday" is Joe's ode to the "men in blue" who protect
and serve. Besides Joe's lively lead work, his tribute to his
wife Casey features some fine piano work from Jack Wolfe, and
is titled "She's Got Somethin'!"
Train songs are a big part
of the history and ambience of Piedmont blues. Joe brings two
of 'em to life with a country-blues take on the Delmore Brothers'
"Blue Railroad Train," and a more traditional read of
Blind Willie McTell's "B & O Blues."
Our favorites were the slyly-sexy
"Cocktails For Two," written by Joe for Eden Brent,
and the raucous, slide-heavy "Baby Please Set A Date."
These cuts showcase his clever way with a lyric, and his uncanny
guitar chops.
Little
Joe McLerran has mastered a genre' of blues that is usually not
attained until one is more than twice his age. Given the recent
passing of John Cephas, it can be argued that Joe is the best
Piedmont-style player on the scene today.
Get a copy of "Believe
I'll Make A Change" and decide for yourself!! Until next
time....Sheryl and Don Crow Blog
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