The Reels

The Reels - Bare-Bone - 2000 - Blue Raven Records

"This is top class album by a power trio that deserve wider coverage. It shows what is out there if you can just be bothered to go out and look". - David Blue, NetRhythms.co.uk

"This Cali trio, fronted by singer-guitarist-harp fiend Lanny Ray...turns out loud, greasy blues with authority and panache"..."If you dug "Riding with the King," give the Reels a spin." - HITS Magazine.

A brilliant album from The Reels. "Bare-Bone" is an amazing collection of twelve blues rock somgs of the highest quality. There are ten original songs, and also covers of Chester Burnett's "Who's Been Talkin'", and Robert Johnson's "Walkin' Blues". These three guys are unbelievable musicians. The songwriting is superb. All the somgs are memorable. The vocals are top class, and the playing id stylish, tight, and clean. There is also a great jazz and soul touch to the album. Albums as good as this are rare, and "Bare-Bone" is VHR by A.O.O.F.C. Buy the band's great "Reelin" alnum. It's a crying shame that bands like The Reels are not better known. Support the "little guys", and buy the albums or go see them in concert.

TRACKS

1. Jet Black Ruby Red
2. Who's Been Talkin'
3. Me and My Baby
4. Movin' Up To Malibu
5. Baby Don't Worry
6. Soul Blue
7. I Want You
8. Everybody's Got The Blues
9. Early In The Evening
10.Walkin' Blues
11. Hold On
12. Baby, Baby

All songs composed by Lanny Ray and The Reels, except Track 2, by Chester Burnett, and Track 10, by Robert Johnson

BAND

Lanny Ray - Guitar, Harp, Vocals
Pat Anthony - Bass
Dylan Sardo - Drums

REVIEW

This opens with the high volume R&B of Jet Black Ruby Red and is as good a start to an album that you could wish for. Lanny Ray gives it his all on vocals and guitar with pounding drums from Dylan Sardo and thumping bass from Pat Anthony. An atmospheric cover of Howlin Wolf's Who's Been Talkin' follows and Me & My Baby shuffles along with more stunning guitar work from Ray. Movin' Up To Malibu is a slow, earthy blues paying much homage to Muddy Waters and the afore-mentioned Howlin' Wolf. The majority of the album is self-written and Baby Don't Worry is a fine example of the bands craft whereas Soul Blue is a slow electric blues to die for. Fuzz and distortion are the order of the day for I Want You and Ray is on howling form. I'm not surprised to be so taken with him as a guitarist when I see that he has played for Big Joe Turner, T-Bone Walker and Jimmy Reed. This guy has got class. Everybody's Got The Blues is slinky and just glides over you and Early In The Evening will bring you back to earth with its Stray Cats style execution. Robert Johnson's Walkin' Blues is the only other cover on the album and this is the second best (sorry boys) version that I've heard, closely beaten by Scotland's own Radiotones (check them out). The bass-led Hold On is a standard blues-rock song and maybe would have been better placed in the middle of the album rather than as the penultimate track and the final song is a strange one to finish with after all the high-powered electric blues. Baby, Baby is slow, acoustic and laid-back, not what I've become to believe what The Reels are all about. The guitar solo is excellent as you would expect and I suppose they are just showing their range so I should not be too critical. This is top class album by a power trio that deserve wider coverage. It shows what is out there if you can just be bothered to go out and look. © David Blue © 2003-2004 The Reels and PacificSol, LLC. All rights reserved

BIO

Fronting The Reels, Lanny Ray started playing guitar, writing and singing at age 12 in Houston, Texas. Dallas born, his earliest days were in Detroit, Michigan…By the age of 14 L.R. had organized his first group, "The Pictures" drafting his best friend Mike Edworthy to play bass and his brother Ritch to play drums. This group was L.R.'s first trio and first performances with his own band… The break up of the first group came two years later when his family moved to L.A. so his father could pursue his career. Several groups sprung up that L.R. started, too many to name. For some years those groups included his brothers Ritch & Tom and many friends… By age 17 he began recording and soon found himself playing more and more blues…in a short time he was playing guitar for Big JoeTurner and being managed by Pat Carlin…T-Bone Walker,Wilbert Harrison and Jimmy Reed all had Lanny Ray on guitar… Next we find L.R. on guitar & vocals, Ken Murray on bass & vocals and brother Ritch on drums& vocals. This heavy-handed blues trio was known as Fate; another group that was managed by Pat Carlin… Pat brought L.R. & James T back east to New England shortly after the death of brother Ritch…L.R. and James T. formed the James-Ray Group & rocked all through New England for several years… L.R. has recorded for James Brown, Chet Mc Cracken, Tombu ; toured with Albert Collins, Chuck Berry, played with Taj Mahal , Margie Evans (Jonny Otis Show), Hutch Hutchinson (of Bonnie Raitt's Band), Albert Lee, Nils Lofgren and John Mayall. Soko Richardson (Mayall's Drummer) left Mayall w/ L.R. to form Lanny Ray & The Strangers with brother Tom on keys & vocals, D.A. Bookman on sax & vocals, Lucinda Chatfield-sax & vocals and Bob Mair on bass. Lanny Ray & The Strangers was a tight working six piece band that also played and recorded around Los Angeles… The Albert Collins touring days were around the same time. Soko Richardson brought L.R. into the Albert Collins Band… L.R. then formed The Lanny Ray Group with L.R.-guitar & vocals, Peter (Smith) McGowan-bass & vocals and Nick D'Virgilio-drums. The band took it’s turn playing and recording around So. Cal… The second “Lanny Ray & The Strangers” took form with with the same line-up as the first but this time with Peter Mc Gowen-bass & vocals and Josh Eagan behind the drums… L.R. continued branching out playing clubs and various venues on guitar , vocals & harp while writing and playing with his band… In the late 90’s L.R. hooked up with Pat Anthony-bass & vocals and Dylan Sardo-drums & vocals to form one of So. California’s best trios-The Reels… once again, a trio that rocks the blues. This trio really had great chemistry from the beginning. The trio started playing more and more around So. California. L.R. wanted to get the band into the recording studio. He had material that he had written and this was the rhythm section he'd been looking for to record it. As a direct result of efforts by entrepreneur Angela Pierce, The Reels began to rehearse at Leeds in No. Hollywood, CA. These efforts would result in The Reels working with producer/engineer Charlie Bouis of Le Mobile and the recording of the critically acclaimed CD album BARE-BONE. BARE-BONE came into being by further collaboration between L.R., Angela Pierce and John Robinson for Blue Raven Records. The Reels then toured with George Thorogood & The Destroyers from No. Cal to So. Cal. They went on to do the California Easyrider Tour along with The Kentucky Headhunters…Last summer the world famous D.J., Rick Dees introduced Lanny Ray & The Reels as the best New-Blues trio on the west coast…Currently L.R. is recording and performing solo gigs ( this man can get the whole room on the dance floor; just him, his guitar and harp), gigs with The Reels and even the big band (Lanny Ray & The Strangers)…BARE-BONE is available world-wide wherever music is sold and getting air play around the world…and BARE-BONE caught the ear of Bill Wax at XM Satellite Radio… as well as the attention of The Big Dog , Pat St. John at Sirius Satellite Radio… Listen for The Reels on XM Satellite Radio, (Bluesville and Stone Blues, Exit 74) and Sirius Satellite Radio,(Blues29) … A new album is currently in the works...tentatively titled " "The Blues" … Stay Tuned … … © yanga.ru 2006