The Chicago Kingsnakes

Blue Mosaic

MusicKing Records 

by Mike O’Cull

                The Chicago Kingsnakes have been playing the blues since 1983 and, in that time, have gone from being a local sensation to an internationally touring music machine that has released many records and played literally countless shows. The band was formed by James ‘Ang’ Anderson, a guitarist and vocalist of the first order who has played with Albert King, Buddy Guy, James Cotton, Junior Wells, Lefty Dizz and Koko Taylor. The other members of the group (Nelson Keaton on harmonica and vocals, Gus Gotsis on drums and vocals, Mike Bailey on bass and vocals, and guest bassist/vocalist on about half the tracks Ron Berry) have equally impressive backgrounds and have worked with notables like Cash McCall, Big Daddy Kinsey, Jimmy Witherspoon, and other well-known blues artists. Blue Mosaic is the bands’ newest recording and the title refers to the patchwork of musical influences the members cut their teeth on, from straight-up Chicago blues to the R&B of Al Green, Booker T & The MG’s, James Brown, and Curtis Mayfield. Those influences are proudly on display on Blue Mosaic, combined with the ‘Snakes’ own unique vision of the blues 

                Right off the bat, The Kingsnakes have two big things going for them on this album that a great many blues bands just don’t do enough of, at least to this reviewer. The first is original songwriting. Blue Mosaic is made of entirely original songs, 12 of them, to be exact. There are no covers, remakes, remixes, or anything else like that on this album. Nope, this is 100% original music and it really speaks to the creativity of the band. It’s nice to hear songs we haven’t heard before, quite honestly. Also, writing original songs in any roots music style is not as easy as it may seem and requires a great grasp of the elements of the style at hand and the skill to turn those elements on their ear one more time and come up with something new and interesting all over again. The second thing is background vocals. These ‘Snakes can sing harmony and it really brings the tunes here to life. So many blues records feature one powerhouse vocalist doing their thing while the band plays and, while that’s cool, it really catches the listener when those harmonies kick in and add a new and cool texture to the music. Songs like ‘Take Your Time”, “Blues Gone Uptown”, and “Stop, Drop, And Roll” demonstrate both of these elements to great effect and are standouts.

                The Chicago Kingsnakes, while a veteran outfit, are in a good position to take this music into the future. The members of the group have clearly learned the lessons of blues masters past and are taking those lessons, mixing them with their own inherent creative energy, and creating the new blues, the blues of tomorrow. Blues music needs to stay relevant and vital in the lives of the fans; other bands would do well to follow the approach used here and create their own material and sound. Blue Mosaic is already on my short list of favorite reviews of the year and is a whole lot of fun. I can’t wait to see the band run this stuff down live.  Meet me at their next show.

For more info visit: www.chicagokingsnakes.com