2022 – Little Village
By Phillip Smith; May 14, 2022
Original source : phillycheezeblues.blogspot.com
I Ain’t Playin’, the latest
release from Texas blues artist Diunna Greenleaf is a must-hear. This three-time Blues Music Award
winner, dishes out thirteen wonderful tracks, incorporating blues, soul, funk,
and southern gospel. Her amazing vocals
are backed by a stellar lineup of musicians which include producer Kid Andersen
on guitar, Jerry Jemmott on bass, Jim Pugh on keys, and Derrick
“D’mar’ Martin on drums.
The album busts loose on a
strong Stax-influenced start with “Never Trust a Man”. A funky bassline, groovy beat, and stellar horn
section provide the perfect pocket for Greenleaf’s fiery voice. Steeped in seventies soul, “Running Like the
Red Cross” gets down as Pugh deals out a generous dose of swirling keys to
accompany the song’s lush melody. “If it
Wasn’t for the Blues” is delightfully funky in an Isaac Hayes kind of
way. With guest Igor Prado on
lead guitar, this is the song I can listen to many times over and enjoy it each
and every time. All it takes is five
seconds for Jemmott’s infectious bassline riff on “Answer to the Hard
Working Woman” to reel me in for an invigorating musical explosion. I love how Martin’s precision beat, Greenleaf’s
vocals, and those fabulous horns get increasingly thicker until the final
note. The blues sounds so good when Diunna
sings “Damned if I Do”, and with accompaniment by Andersen, she sounds
even sweeter.
Ain’t Playin’ is such a
dynamic album. Everything about it works
and it sounds amazing.
—
* I * I finally had the
pleasure of seeing Kid Andersen play a couple of weeks ago in Memphis. He was playing guitar for Elvin Bishop at the
Memphis in May Beale Street Music Festival.
It was indeed a thrill to watch them perform together.
For more information about Diunna Greenleaf, visit this
website : https://diunna.com/
This terrific album is
available in the PhillyCheeze Amazon Store.
*As an Amazon Associate,
I earn from qualifying purchases.
