Bang That Bell Explained

Bang That Bell
Type:studio
Artist:Melvin Taylor
Cover:Bang That Bell.jpg
Released:1999
Studio:Ardent
Genre:Blues
Label:Evidence Music[1]
Producer:John Snyder
Prev Title:Dirty Pool
Prev Year:1997
Next Title:Rendezvous with the Blues
Next Year:2002

Bang That Bell is an album by the American musician Melvin Taylor, released in 2000.[2] [3] He is credited with the Slack Band.[4] Taylor supported the album with a North American tour.[5]

Production

Produced by John Snyder, the album was recorded at Ardent Studios, in Memphis.[6] Though mostly blues, it is marked by more prominent jazz, funk, and rock influences.[7] [8] Eric Gales played guitar on the album; Sugar Blue played harmonica.[6] [9] "Trick Bag" is a cover of the Earl King song.[10] "If You're Goin' to the City" was written by Mose Allison.[11] "Even Trolls Love Rock & Roll" is a cover of the Tony Joe White tune; "A Quitter Never Wins" is by Tinsley Ellis.[12]

Critical reception

JazzTimes noted that "for sheer guitar heroics and fretboard flash, it’s hard to beat Melvin Taylor."[10] The Daily Herald opined: "With its cartoonish cover artwork and more party-oriented songs, it sounds specifically tailored to a rock audience impressed by more bland guitar technicians like Kenny Wayne Shepherd."[13] The Star Tribune determined that Taylor's "funk is fiery and fertile, his rock is about punch and substance rather than idle flash, and his jazz detours are potent and legit."[14]

The Toronto Star wrote that "a galloping four-piece group primes Taylor continuously, Norris Johnston making keyboards wail hard, and the boss ... is quick, uses the axe's full range and specializes in hard-bent notes."[15] The Detroit Free Press determined that "Bang That Bell sees him inching closer to Robert Cray territory, where blues meets soul for some serious storytelling."[16] The Dispatch–Argus opined that the Slack Band "are as tight as any band around."[17]

AllMusic wrote that "Taylor is undoubtedly blues-oriented, but his music is also fueled by bursts of jazz, R&B, funk, and distorted wah-wah-inflected rock."

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Melvin Taylor & the Slack Band Biography, Songs, & Albums. AllMusic.
  2. News: Hunter, Jr. . Al . No Slack in Taylor's Guitar Virtuosity . Philadelphia Daily News . May 19, 2000 . Features Yo! . 68.
  3. Book: Hanson, Karen. Today's Chicago Blues. October 28, 2007. Lake Claremont Press.
  4. Book: Komara, Edward M.. Encyclopedia of the Blues: K-Z, index. October 28, 2006. Taylor & Francis US.
  5. News: Melvin Taylor to bring the blues to Muncie Civic Theatre . The Star Press . June 23, 2000 . D1.
  6. News: Ellis . Bill . Your Feet Will Have a Memphis Tap with These National Releases . The Commercial Appeal . April 1, 2000 . F8.
  7. Book: Dicaire, David. More Blues Singers: Biographies of 50 Artists from the Later 20th Century. December 19, 2001. McFarland.
  8. News: Christiano . Nick . A Young Blues Man On the Rise . The Philadelphia Inquirer . May 19, 2000 . W30.
  9. News: Andrews . Marke . Blues . Vancouver Sun . June 17, 2000 . E21.
  10. Melvin Taylor and the Slack Band: Bang That Bell. Bill. Milkowski. JazzTimes.
  11. News: Beebe . Mike . Blues . The Buffalo News . April 21, 2000 . G16.
  12. News: These 2 New Releases Offer Something Different . Telegraph Herald . AP . June 8, 2000 . B14.
  13. News: Guarino . Mark . Taylor tailoring . Daily Herald . April 7, 2000 . Time Out! . 4.
  14. News: Surowicz . Tom . Blues . Star Tribune . September 22, 2000 . Free Time . 10.
  15. News: Chapman . Geoff . Guitarist no ordinary slack artist . Toronto Star . May 6, 2000 . M9.
  16. News: Lawson . Terry . Blues . Detroit Free Press . June 4, 2000 . G5.
  17. News: Kell . Ellis . 'Bang That Bell', Melvin Taylor and the Slack Band . The Dispatch–Argus . April 2, 2000 . Life.