Bennie Smith - Shook Up (2001)

There are few things that can brighten my day like opening my post office box and finding inside a package of CDs from Fedora Records. Regardless of the artists included in the box, I know that it's going to contain high quality, traditional blues from obscure but deserving blues artists from around the country. This latest batch, with CDs from Bennie Smith, Iceman Robinson and Ollie Watkins is no exception. You say you never heard of any of these artists? Don't worry about that, because it's all tough, raw blues that will please every serious fan. The first disc, Shook Up, comes from St. Louis session veteran Bennie Smith. I really like this CD. Smith has a genuine, affecting style, both vocally and on guitar. He proves his skill in the latter area on the jumpin' instrumental "Buddah-Ba," as he works in a lot of riffs from other songs. This number alone makes Smith the newest entrant on my list of guitar heroes. But then he completely blows my mind on an extended version of Ray Charles' "Drown In My Own Tears," beginning with a few chords from the National Anthem (kind of like Hendrix jammin' with Charles!) before launching into an intense slow blues. There's also a great sax solo from Harry Simon. "Fancy" is another good guitar instrumental; this tune has kind of a "sophisticated rawness," if you understand what I mean. In looking ahead at the song list, I noticed that Smith does a cover of Gatemouth Brown's classic "Okie Dokie Stomp." This is one of my all-time favorite blues guitar workouts, and Smith doesn't disappoint. It's very different from the original, done as more of a shuffle with a hypnotic rhythmic drum beat, with Smith's guitar playing being more staccato. Shook Up is now on my Top Ten list for the year, and I don't foresee it losing that position in the next seven months.(Bill Mitchell)