T.C. Carr and The Catch - Black Shoes (1998)

As seen in Blues Access magazine.... Harmonica player/singer T.C. Carr and the Catch got the spirit of the South going on. Black Shoes (TC) opens with a blue boogie -- and ode to past blues masters -- that's got a little of that Skynyrd edge, and Carr's pack-a-day vocals are taut and tough when he's shouting it out. Black Shoes covers a lot of ground: here a beautiful, soulful ballad with plaintive horns drifting out into the Gulf Coast night and there a good old four-to-the-floor harp stomp. These Florida boys do blues-rock the right way, their Gator-tough rock instincts giving the music a jolt without knocking it from the soulful mission of delivering stirring music that is more than the sum of its parts. Guitarist Lenny Austin wrote many of the tunes, while others are old swamp rock and soul chestnuts. Carr gives the drummer (Dennis McCarthy) some on a few cuts, while bassist Mondo Bizarro leads the way on Jesse Ed Davis' goofy "Bacon Fat." A fine female vocal chorus (Velma Pinnace, Myra Cherry and Janie Richards) adds a touch of silk to several songs. Very strong stuff. Rates 5 stars