Review: Giles Robson & John Primer – Ten Chicago Blues Classics
Giles Robson & John Primer – Ten Chicago Blues Classics
Format: CD – Digital / Label: A Giles Robson & Blues House Productions Release
Release: 2024
Text: Pascal Wilhelm
On this record, Jersey-based singer and harmonica player Giles Robson and John Primer (vocals, guitar) present ten Chicago blues classics in a duo format (My Babe, Rollin’ Stone, Long Distance Call and Got My Mojo Working, amongst others). Giles Robson needs no introduction; he is a multi-award winning and internationally recognized artist. His albums are highly acclaimed, and he performs with various artists in over 15 countries each year.
John Primer is a Chicago blues icon who played alongside Junior Wells and Sammy Lawhorn, Willie Dixon, Muddy Waters, and Magic Slim & The Teardrops. John Primer’s personal accolades, including Lifetime Achievement Awards, reflect his countless contributions to the history of the blues (“You can’t paint the blues without the primer”).
How did the two of you meet I asked Giles: “John and I met when I organised a UK Chicago Blues Legends tour featuring John, Billy Branch and young blood Chicago talent Jamiah Rogers in January 2022 on which I played harmonica and did a couple of opening slots with my own show. John started to rave to the other musicians, to me and to the audiences about how much he enjoyed my singing and playing which I will never forget as a profound moment in my life. He told an audience on the last show of that tour that “When Giles & I play the blues we put hot sauce on it so you can feel it”.
The album is captivating from the beginning to the end, there is just so much to listen too. What is commendable is that they do instrumental versions of Got My Mojo Working and Last Night and succeed in keeping the performance interesting despite the absence of vocals. “I realised that with the duo format we were going to get a highly detailed sound that would showcase the approach and intricacies (intricacies that would potentially not be so clear in a full band recording) of John’s playing of the classics – classics he would routinely learn and perform in the legendary Theresa’s Lounge night after night with all the great legends he performed with, or when he was in the great bands of Willie Dixon, Muddy Waters and Magic Slim or when he recorded.”
How did the recording process go? “So we sat across from each other, face to face and went through them one by one – a quick run through of the song before recording it. With each song John would tell me an interesting tale about the song’s original artist, or his experience playing the song. With Rollin’ Stone, for example, he told me that “This is the sort of thing we used to mess around with down in Mississippi when I was a kid all the time”. Right at the end of Rollin’ Stone you can hear John chuckle in pleasure at the performance of the take.”
On this record you can hear what separates the men from the boys: the ability to keep a steady beat and groove while having no bass and drums. Giles explains: “John is like a one-man orchestra and his rhythmical playing generates an incredible consistent transfixing energy from the beginning to the end of each song – which is rare. He told me that he was always told to concentrate on the rhythm rather than the soloing by his great friend and mentor, the guitarist Sammy Lawhorn, if he wanted to get noticed. And I witnessed that the magic spell he created with his rhythmical playing had a huge effect on the audiences at our duo shows. It just subtly seeped into the audience and they exploded at the end of each song.
But don’t rule out what Robson is doing on this album. The duo set-up allows the listener to learn about his playing and singing as well and discover why this man is considered a virtuoso, a master of the form.
“Recording this session with John was one of the most memorable and magical experiences of my musical career. A dream come true.”
Tracks:
01. Blow Wind Blow – Muddy Waters
02. My Babe – Little Walter
03. Rollin’ Stone – Muddy Waters
04. Juke (Instrumental) – Little Walter
05. Let Me Explain – Sonny Boy Williamson (no. 2)
06. Long Distance Call – Muddy Waters
07. Dealin’ With The Devil – Sonny Boy Williamson (No 1)
08. Got My Mojo Workin’ (Instrumental) – Muddy Waters
09. Bad Boy – Eddie Taylor
10. Last Night (Instrumental) – Little Walter
Website:
https://gilesrobson.com/
https://www.johnprimerblues.com/