As has been the case in so many years, 2024 has brought me so much excellent, interesting, entertaining, sometimes thought provoking and often very original new music and my sincere thanks go to everyone who sent in albums for me to play on the award-winning Digital Blues.
In 2024 I received more than 300 albums and choosing my favourite fifteen was very difficult – I could, with little extra effort, made it my terrific twenty-five or my favourite fifty! But I wanted to stick with the previous format so fifteen it is and here they are, in strict alphabetical order! So the position of an album on the page does not reflect a chart position!
I know that my choices will not meet with universal approval, indeed there may be many who simply ask ‘Who?’
There will be others who will ask ‘where’s the blues’? There always are!
But I think you will find that these fifteen albums reflect the wide and eclectic variety of music which I try to bring you each week on Digital Blues and I will be pleased if you come across some stuff you have not heard before.
You can hear tracks from these fifteen albums plus 14 more that I really enjoyed in the editions of Digital Blues which first aired in the weeks commencing 29th December, 2024 and 5th January 2025, podcasts of which are available on RSS.com at https://rss.com/podcasts/digital-blues-podcast/1818567/ and https://rss.com/podcasts/digital-blues-podcast/1822064/ and on Mixcloud at https://www.mixcloud.com/DigitalBlues/week-commencing-29th-december-2024-review-of-2024-part-2/ and https://www.mixcloud.com/DigitalBlues/week-commencing-5th-january-2025-review-of-2024-part-2/
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2024 has really been Bywater Call's year with hugely successful tours of Europe, the USA as well as back home in Canada. And along the way they have won masses of new fans thrilled by the electrifying vocals of Meghan Parnell and the wonderfully big sound of the powerhouse secen piece ban, as at home rocking the joint as providing a sensitive backdrop to Meghan's wonderful voice as she seduces the listener with an emotional and sensual ballad. |
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Dom Martin has had a year laden with success adding 'Album of the Year' at the 2024 UK Blues Awards to previous years' awards with 'Buried In The Hail'. Late in the year, Dom released a double CD containing all live renditions of familiar songs, both in a band setting and acoustic. The year has seen him travelling all over Europe winning many enthusiastic plaudits at festivals and venues and attracting more and more fans. |
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The true troubadour, Eric Bibb has long been a respected and favourite fixture on the blues, roots, folk and Americana scenes. 2024 saw him release two albums, the first recorded live in Stockholm and then the glorious and masterful 'In The Real World'. Surrounded by talented musicians drawn from many genres, and recorded at Peter Gabriel's studio, he created an album which he describes as having 'a wholeness that deeply moves me'. |
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Erril Linton has, for far too long, been a way below the horizon artist for the vast majority of people. With 'Break the Seal', he brought his mix of highly original and authentic blues and West Indian music to a much wider audience and garnered airplay on major national radio as well as the many UK based blues radio shows. He has also taken his music further afield having played a number of major European fesstivals and venues. |
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German guitarist Jochen Volpert specialises in albums full of very varied and creative instrumentals with this being his fifth in the series. He has been playing the guitar for over 40 years during which time both live and studio projects have shaped his personal playing technique and his creative skills. His playing crosses many genres as is again demonstrated on this excellent album which, in CD format, features a glorios bonus vocal track from his partner Carola Thieme. |
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Singer, songwriter and pianist Katarina Pejak is well known for her eclectic approach to blues and related genres. Originally from Serbia, she is a classically trained pianist who found her true musical calling in her late teens when she started playing blues. In 2011 she began her studies at Berklee College of Music in the USA where she was admitted on a scholarship. This excellent album, her fourth studio one, was recorded in Poitiers, France where Katarina currently lives. |
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I have said it once and I'll say it again, this is one of the best live albums I have heard. Recorded at what is cited by many as the top blues festival in Europe, the Open Air Blues Festival Brezoi in Romania, there is a real feeling of 'being there' as Kaz takes us on an emotional rollercoaster ride with a set list featuring 12 wonderfully varied songs, nine originals and three much loved covers over the album's almost 73 minute running time. Can't wait for volume 2! |
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I have been a lover of Australia's Mark Easton's music for many years having first come across him in his Limousine early in the 21st century. After the stunning 'Dark Blue' album in 2023, an album featuring blues in fused with haunting and very original Asian instruments and influences, this album sees Mark take blues classics which he 'Eastonises' giving them a new life, a new feel, a truly alternative feel whilst preserving the blues origins. More please Mark! |
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I have long been an admirer and lover of Mark Harrison's work and was so happy to receive his new album. As ever, mark combines clever, topical, and, sometimes, incisive lyrics with musical composition that always adds to and suits the, song featuring a range of instruments reflecting Mark's cross genre appeal and talent. A great listen. |
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It seems strange to be describing this as a debut album given the longevity and variety of the careers of virtuoso slide guitarist-singer-songwriter Michal Messer and highly talented multi-instrumentalist Chaz Jankel, but this album is their first together. Combine magnificent musicianship, including Michael's superb slide guitar playing, with telling and thought provoking lyrics and you have an absolute treat of an album. |
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Take a guitarist/singer, a hurdy gurdy player and a drummer from the volcanic Auvergne region of France, season with a generous bouquet garni comprising various gusts from Louisiana's music scene and even a primary school choir and you have an album that warrants far greater attention than it received. Combining intriguing, varied and original covers with tracks penned by band leader Tia Gouttebel and you have the tastiest gumbo imaginable. |
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Sue Decker is a new name to me. A talented Canadian singer, songwriter and slide guitarist, she released her second album in March 2024. Recorded in Nashville, it transcends genres, effortlessly combining instantlt catchy and melodic music with thought provoking and relevant lyrics. One reviewer suggested that Decker was proof 'that Ry Cooder and Lucinda Williams once hooked up!' |
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Four times Traditional Blues Female Artist at the BMAs, a Grammy nominee for 2025, three awards in the 2024 Blues Blast Awards - the accolades keep on coming! 'One Guitar Woman' is Sue Foley's 14th album and her first solo acoustic one. A 'tribute to the female pioneers of guitar' it encompasses a wide variety of genres and playing styles, all played on one guitar! A real gem! |
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2024 was definitely the Cinelli Brother's year. Second place at the IBC in Memphis (many said they should have been the winners), extensive touring both in the UK and Europe and a foray into touring in the USA and, of course, the release of the eagerly awaited new album. Well worth the wait! Recorded in Woodstock NY, the album just proves what everybody knows - just how very talented these four multi-instrumentalists are! |
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If like me, you love the blues that emanate from the North Mississippi hill country and particularly that of RL Burnside, then you will love this album by this UK based trio who have, for me, captured the very essence of the music producing a wonderfully 'dirty' and earthy sound that more than does justice to material covered. With songs from RL Burnside, some well known, some less so, this is a real treat and one that really gets the feet moving. |