Andy T – Nick Nixon Band

Numbers Man

Blind Pig Records

14 tracks/54:28

By Mark Thompson

Singer Nick Nixon has been a fixture on the Nashville music scene for more than fifty years, singing lead for King James & the Sceptres as well as the New Imperials, a soul aggregation with a long history. Nixon also was a friend to Jimi Hendrix and Billy Cox when they arrived in Nashville in the early ‘60s. More recently he recorded several blues albums for the Black Magic label, recordings that helped establish Nixon in the European market.

A chance meeting seven years ago was a revelation for guitarist Andy “T” Talamantez, who left a successful career in the aerospace industry in California to play the blues. He performed and toured with the late Smokey Wilson, then spent five years as a member of Guitar Shorty’s ensemble. Once he heard Nixon’s voice, the die was cast for a band with the capability of playing a wide range of music grounded in the blues. The duo was able to find like-minded musicians with the instrumental skills to head in any direction the leaders choose to go. The rhythm section is anchored by Jim Klingler on drums and Sam Persons on bass while Larry Van Loon handles the piano and Hammond B-3 organ.

The band’s previous two releases on the Delta Groove records label garnered plenty of praise from the critics as well as numerous award nominations. Those discs were produced by another outstanding guitar player, Anson Funderburgh, who is well-versed in the various shades of blue that the band creates. His guiding touch is evident throughout a disc brimming with the kind of energy and vitality that is becoming all too rare these days.

They hit the ground running with “Shut The Front Door” with Funderburgh trading licks with Andy T while Nixon belts out the tale of broken hearts with his rich, gospel-trained voice, spurred on by the presence of the Texas Horns – Kaz Kazanov on tenor sax, Al Gomez on trumpet, and John Mills on baritone sax.  Things quickly shift to the place where Texas and Louisiana musical heritages collide for a joyous romp on “Devil’s Wife,” truly a woman with evil on her mind. Christian Dozzler on accordion leads the way deeper into the swamp on “Tall Drink Of Water,” where Andy T rips off one his many outstanding solos. The accordion returns on “What Went Wrong” with Nixon pleading for understanding from his lover.

Nixon wrote “Sundown Blues,” a Texas-style shuffle with Van Loon on organ and Dozzler on piano while guest Kim Wilson uses his harp to give the track a real down-home feel.  On the classic “Blue Monday,” Nixon conjures up the ghosts of legendary blues singers like Jimmy Witherspoon as Talamantez provides another exclamation point on his guitar. He burns through the opening passage’s horn-driven arrangement to Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown’s “Gate’s Salty Blues”.  The instrumental “Hightailin’” is a showcase for the guitarist and Van Loon on the Hammond organ.

The title track is another highlight as Nixon spins an inside look at the man behind the neighborhood lottery system that was a fixture in many big cities, offering a ray of hope with little real chance of cashing in.  “Be Somebody Some Day” features Nixon’s boisterous vocal backed by Funderburgh’s always tasteful guitar picking and a taut baritone solo from Mills. Van Loon on the organ and the Texas Horns inject plenty of strut into “Deep Blue Sea”. The swinging, up-tempo “Tell Me What’s The Reason” comes straight out of the T-Bone Walker playbook while “Pretty Girls Everywhere” is a rock ‘n’ roll delight with Van Loon’s fingers rolling across the piano keys.

The final number, “The World We Live In,” is a minor key slow blues with Talamantez and Nixon backed by Denise Fraser on drums, Rick Reed on bass, Steve Fodor on piano, and the great Kevin McKendree on Hammond organ. Nixon offers an emotional plea for love and understanding in our troubled times. It is a stark contrast to the tone of the rest of the album, a recording that manages to exceed the already high standards the band has set for itself.

 Make no mistake – the Andy T & Nick Nixon Band deserves to be acknowledged as belonging in the top rank of working blues bands today. They are sure to get a new batch of award nominations for this superb offering that definitely rates in the “too good to miss” category.

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