Review: Big Harp George – No Shortcuts
Big Harp George combines West Coast swing blues, Chicago blues and sharp social commentary on his sixteen-track album ‘No Shortcuts’
Big Harp George – No Shortcuts
Format: CD / Streaming
Label: Blues Mountain Records
Release date: September 18, 2026
Text: Tom Wouters
No Shortcuts is the title of Big Harp George’s fourth album since 2020’s Living In The City. Big Harp George is a San Francisco Bay Area-based blues singer, songwriter and chromatic harmonica player, whose real name is George Bisharat.
Before becoming a professional musician, he was a law professor and Middle East analyst.
His songwriting combines blues with sharply humorous and socially engaged lyrics. Musically he surfs between West Coast Swing Blues and Chicago Blues with side steps to genres like dixieland music and country.
All those elements come together in the tremendous Ain’t My Circus, a soulfully played Chicago Blues song with strong lyrics and featuring guitarist (and sound technician) Kid Andersen.
The sound of Big Harp George’s band is impeccable with leading roles for the tremendous horn section (Aaron Lington, Doug Rowan and Mike Rinta) and backing vocals team (The Morgan Brothers and Marcel Smith).
After the first four West Coast Swing Blues songs, I Will Find You is a lyrically ominous spaghetti western song, Bury My Head (…in the sand) says it all and slow blues Struck Out Again hilariously tells the story of a disastrous, booze-fueled date gone wrong.
Big Harp George – Photo: Peggy DeRose
Be Adorable is dixieland jazz and Do You Remember? is a sarcastic sentimental tearjerker about the good old times.
In Last Trip To Itaipu he refers to a song from Living In The City (Heading To Itaipu), where the world’s largest hydroelectric power plant is located, on the border between Paraguay and Brazil.
The song features George’s best moment on the chromatic harp. Outstanding also is the song Death Rattle Of The Republic, an anthemic blues shuffle with lyrics that refer toward contemporary political and social concerns about the USA of today.
With No Shortcuts Big Harp George produced a very contemporary and versatile album that offers good value for money and lives up to its title (the album contains 16 songs with a playing time of over an hour!).
Tracks:
01. Come Out Swinging
02. Supplement Life
03. Yes Dear!
04. Sun Drifting
05. Ain’t My Circus
06. I Will Find You
07. Bury My Head
08. Struck Out Again
09. Be Adorable
10. Do You Remember?
11. Last Trip to Itaipu
12. What’s Wrong with Dying?
13. Mista Boins!
14. Rusty Spoon
15. Death Rattle of the Republic
16. One Day
Website: https://www.bigharpgeorge.com/
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Want to discover more from Big Harp George and related artists? Click on the titles below to read earlier articles on Bluestown Music.
Review: Big Harp George – Cut My Spirit Loose
An earlier album featuring West Coast swing blues, Dixieland influences and chromatic harmonica.
Review: Rick Estrin & The Nightcats – The Hits Keep Coming
West Coast blues, harmonica, humour and the distinctive guitar work of Kid Andersen.
Review: Kyle Rowland – Not Holding Back!
Harmonica-driven blues with contributions from Kid Andersen and other established blues musicians.