Sean Chambers - The Rock House Sessions (2013)

Opening with a Texas strut, World On Fire, Chambers steps up with strong vocals and a lot of guitar swagger. Bob Britt on guitar, Reese Wynans on keys, Tommy MacDonald on bass, TJ Klay on harp and especially Tom Hambridge on drums add a lot to the heat. On Since I've Been Down, a fast paced rocker, Wynans really carries the weight on organ and with Hambridge on drums sets up some of the most scorching guitar work on the release. Healing Ground, a bit more of a Detroit rocker, opens up a nice space for Klay on harp prior to Chambers taking his stiff arming guitar solo. On ballad Meant To Be, Chambers slows it down creating what is certainly an easy airplay track with a strong hook and solid instrumentation. On rock classic Come To Poppa, Chambers adds pop with biting vocals, wah wah guitar riffs, backing vocals from Etta Britt and backing horns from Steve Herman (trumpet) and Jim Hoke (sax). On Your Love Is My Disease, a funky rocker, Chambers rakes the strings of his guitar in rhythm creating a bit of tension before letting the dog off the hook. Stinging guitar riffs on this track along with a solid rhythm and melody make it one of the releases best. Gary Moore track Holding On is of course a ballad and with backing vocals from Britt has a R&B sound with a twist of ZZ Top (Trippin). Another track with a bit of Texas swagger is Just For The Thrill. Elmore James licks, Wynans on keys, Hambridge on drums and Klay on harp are great support for Chambers on lead vocal. Money In A Minute has the bite of an angry dog proving a strong blues rocker with gritty vocals, crisp guitar riffs and hot harp work from Klay. On BB King tinged, R&B style blues track It Hurts To See You Go, Chambers holds the listener in the palm of his hand. This is absolutely my favorite track on the release and Chambers not only delivers on vocals but really digs deep for the right riffs to send this truck over the cliff. Really nice! OK...How do you end a super blues rocker album...I'll tell you! You play a Ten Years After track and that's exactly what Chambers does with a great version of Choo Choo Mama. Now it likely isn't a secret that the early TYA stuff is among my favorite blues rock bands of all time. Chambers uses a tight arrangement not far different from the original sans substituting harp for some of Lee's flaming guitar riffs but this song is a cooker and you hate to have it end. This is a cool release and one that you should definitely check out! ~Bman