Jumpin' Johnny Sansone - Watermelon Patch (1998)

Johnny Sansone is a bit of a jack of all trades: writing, singing, and playing masterful accordion, harmonica, and guitar. All of these tunes are originals, a similarly wide-ranging mix of Louisiana roots-rock, zydeco, and traditional blues. He enlisted some top-drawer New Orleans musicians for Watermelon Patch, including saxophonists from the Iguanas, organist Joe Krown (Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown), and pianist Jon Cleary (B.B. King, Bonnie Raitt, Taj Mahal); meanwhile, the rhythm section of bassist Dave Ranson and drummer Kenneth Blevins drove John Hiatt's Slow Turning album. Most of this release was cut live, in only one day. "Think of Me" is a rapid-fire, accordion-fueled zydeco tune with a nice guitar solo from Rick Olivarez. The title cut features some bluesy harp. "Look at Us Now" and "Loveline" showcase some nice horn playing, especially the accents from trumpet man Duke Heitger. Sansone pulls out the chromatic harp on "Pig's Feet & Tailmeat," "Stinkbait" and "Quagmire," the latter centered on a Latin-flavored jungle drum beat. "Stink Bait" is a tough, slow instrumental. "Civilized City" is pure twelve-bar Chicago blues, and "Comin' for Sure" is another zydeco-flavored track, but this time Olivarez takes to the slide guitar. Sansone is originally from New Jersey and didn't settle in New Orleans until 1989, but you'd never know it from listening to Watermelon Patch. He clearly has found his geographical and musical home.