Mike Morgan with The Crawl & Jim Suhler

Mike Morgan with The Crawl & Jim Suhler - Lowdown And Evil (A Collection Of Black Top Recordings) - 1997 - Me&My Blues (Holland)

Mike Morgan's music has been described as "hard driving Texas blues, a touch of horn-fat Southern soul, and a splash of old-fashioned roots rock". "Lowdown And Evil" is a great 15 track compilation of blues/R&B/soul tracks from the Black Top albums: - V.A "Blues-A-Rama Vol. 7 Live At Tipitina", The Crawl's "Full Moon Over Dallas", Mike Morgan & The Crawl's "Ain't Worried No More", "Looky Here", "Raw And Ready" and "Mighty Fine Dancin", and Mike Morgan with Jim Suhler's "Let The Dogs Run". [ All tracks @ 320 Kbps: File size = 149 Mb ]. Guitar World Magazine called Morgan a "genuine blues guitar hero!", while Blues Access Magazine raved "Mike Morgan and the Crawl crank up an irrepressible of fresh gritty blues and romping Stax/Volt-era soul". Mike is the sales manager at a motorcycle dealership in Mesquite, TX. and since 2006, has drastically cut back his touring schedule. He plays tours irregularly, and mostly plays local gigs with the rhythm support of drummer Kevin Schermerhorn, and bass guitarist Drew Allain. Buy Mike Morgan & the Crawl's terrific "Full Moon over Dallas" and promote great blues/R&B

TRACKS / COMPOSERS

1 I Don't Want You Hangin' Around (Live) - L.McBee 5:13
2 She's Taking Me to Heaven - L.McBee 3:50
3 You're on My Mind - M.Morgan 4:00
4 Lowdown and Evil - M.Morgan 4:19
5 Frankie's Blues - Frankie Lee Sims 3:08
6 Where'd You Get Your Sugar From? - Chester Burnett 5:11
7 Looky Here - M.Morgan 3:27
8 I Just Want to Get to Know You - M.Morgan 3:35
9 I'm Worried - Morgan & McBee 3:22
10 You Ain't Like You Used to Be - Morgan & McBee 3:59
11 Blue Cat Blues - M.Morgan 4:30
12 I Gotta Leave - M.Morgan 3:39
13 I Ain't Worried No More - M.Morgan 5:52
14 Kiss Me Baby (Live) - Morgan & McBee 5:41
15 Should've Done Better - M.Morgan 4:25

MUSICIANS

Mike Morgan - Guitar
Jim Suhler - Guitar, Vocals
Tater Britches - Guitar
Rhandy Simmons, Frankie J.Mayer, Carlton Powell - Bass
John L.Bradley - Electric Bass, Upright Bass
Richard Grigsby - Electric Bass
Nick Connolly - Piano, Organ
Riley Osbourne, Ron Levy - Piano
Marc Wilson - Drums, Percussion
Uncle John Turner - Drums
Mark "Kaz" Kazanoff - Saxophone
Ernest Youngblood Jr. - Tenor Saxophone
Chris Whynaught - Tenor Sax Solos, Vocals
Steve Howard - Trumpet
John Osborne - Trombone
L.McBee - Harmonica, Vocals

MIKE MORGAN BIO

Dallas-raised guitarist, singer, and songwriter Mike Morgan formed his blues and blues-rock band in the late '80s, amid that city's still thriving nightclub scene. Morgan, who got his first guitar in elementary school, was inspired to play better guitar after hearing Stevie Ray Vaughan's debut album, Texas Flood, in 1985. He grew up in suburban Dallas listening to the radio and being inspired initially by people like Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett. Morgan had been playing rock guitar prior to this, but after 1985 he jumped with both feet into playing blues and blues-rock. Although he was motivated and influenced by the late legendary Vaughan, Morgan also cites T-Bone Walker, Magic Sam, and fellow Dallas area musician Anson Funderburgh as influences on his music. After moving to Dallas in 1986, Morgan met vocalist Darrell Nulisch and formed his group the Crawl -- named after a Lonnie Brooks composition -- shortly thereafter. Nulisch took Morgan under his wing and schooled him further with his deep, wide-ranging collection of blues recordings, and the band began to play in venues beyond Dallas/Fort Worth. They performed originals and classic blues, and Nulisch later left the band in 1989. Morgan found a singing replacement with the Kansas City-raised Lee McBee, who also played expert harmonica. The new band made inroads on the blues festival circuit in the early '90s, and one year after the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, fellow Dallas area guitarist Anson Funderburgh took a Black Top Records executive to hear Morgan and the Crawl. Black Top immediately signed Morgan to the New Orleans-based label, and the band found national and international audiences with a slew of releases. Morgan and the Crawl released their debut, Raw & Ready, in 1990, and they followed up with five other albums of spry originals and classic covers, including Mighty Fine Dancin', Full Moon Over Dallas, Ain't Worried No More, Looky Here!, and The Road. In 1994, working with fellow Dallas guitarist Jim Suhler, he released Let the Dogs Run. Later, he released I Like the Way You Work It, also for Black Top. Morgan and the Crawl carved out their reputation in the early '90s with thematically fresh original songs and incendiary live concerts. Morgan continues to tour internationally, and his late-'90s and early-2000s output includes several other fine albums. McBee left the band at the end of 1999 to pursue his own band back home in Kansas. Morgan began singing himself, as well as playing guitar, feeling that he had been well schooled by a procession of lead vocalists who included Nulisch, Keith Dunn, and Chris Whynaught. Texas Man was released in 2000 on the Maryland-based Severn Records label and the follow-up, Live in Dallas, was issued in 2004. Morgan's 2006 release, Stronger Every Day, includes contributions from vocalist/harmonica player McBee as well as guitarist Randy McAllister. © Richard Skelly © 2011 Rovi Corporation. All Rights Reserved http://www.allmusic.com/artist/mike-morgan-p469/biography

MIKE MORGAN (WIKIPEDIA)

Mike Morgan (born November 30, 1959, Dallas, Texas) is an American Texas and electric blues musician. He has released thirteen albums to date, on various record labels including Rounder, Black Top and Severn Records. The majority of his releases have featured his long standing backing band, The Crawl. Morgan has played alongside Darrell Nulisch, Lee McBee, Gary Primich, James Gaetano, and Randy McAllister. Morgan was born in Dallas, but grew up in Hillsboro, Texas. He received his first guitar at an early age, and initially concentrated on playing rock music. In 1985 he converted to blues and blues-rock, before relocating back to Dallas in 1986. There he met Darrell Nulisch, who both were founding members of The Crawl. The group was named for a Lonnie Brooks song. Mike Morgan and the Crawl earned a reputation playing around Dallas and the Fort Worth area, before Nulisch left them in 1989, to be replaced by the singer and harmonica player, Lee McBee. Following a performance at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, their debut 1990 album, Raw & Ready, saw them undertake national and international tours. Further albums including Full Moon Over Dallas, and Ain't Worried No More ensued, before Morgan recorded without his backing group on Let The Dogs Run (1994) with Jim Suhler. In 1994 Mike Morgan and the Crawl appeared on the bill at the Notodden Blues Festival. Later group releases included their Black Top swansong, I Like the Way You Work It, but at the end of the 1990s McBee left the band. Buoyed by the experience of playing behind Nulisch, Keith Dunn, and Chris Whynaught, 2000's Texas Man saw Morgan's vocalist debut. Live in Dallas (2004) followed before Morgan's latest effort, Stronger Every Day, released in March 2008, included further accompaniment from McBee and Randy McAllister. Recent activity has seen a reduction in touring, and Morgan working as a sales manager in a Mesquite, Texas, motorcycle dealership.