GRANA LOUISE

Gettin’ Kinda Rough!

Delmark

By Linda Cain

If this CD hadn’t already been named Gettin’ Kinda Rough, another appropriate title would have been Bold and Beautiful.  Those words perfectly describe both Grana’ and the music on this CD.  In fact, on one of the tunes, “Learning How To Cheat on You” by Denise LaSalle, Grana’ name-checks the daytime drama, The Bold and The Beautiful. “You can learn a lot from those soap operas,” she says as the tune closes out. You can also learn a lot from listening to Grana’ sing the blues and tell stories on this CD.

Grana’ (rhymes with Rene’), isn’t your typical Chicago blues woman. Originally from Columbus, Ohio, Grana’ is a music history buff with a theatrical background. In 1992, she won a talent contest that landed her on stage at the Apollo Theater, notorious for its audiences that “boo” acts off the stage. Grana’, however, earned a standing ovation. 

Unlike many blues artists who came to the Windy City from the South, Grana’ blew in from up North. After conquering the Minneapolis and St. Paul blues and jazz scene, she followed an avid fan’s advice to move to the world capital of the blues to advance her career, which she did in 1998.  She instantly began performing at Blue Chicago and other top clubs and landed a spot at the Chicago Blues Festival in 2000. In 2009, she won the Windy City Blues Society’s Challenge and represented her hometown in Memphis for the Blues Foundation’s International Blues Challenge.   In 2003, she produced her own CD, Generations, released on her Crystal Blue label.  She also contributed vocals for a couple of compilation CDs on the Delmark and the Blue Chicago imprints. This is her debut solo CD for Delmark.

Gettin’ Kinda Rough is part studio and part live. It’s not hard to tell which part is which, since the live cuts are not high quality recordings. Nonetheless, the exciting live segment is taken from one of Grana’s shows at the club Blue Chicago, where she holds a weekly residency. The five songs captured there demonstrate the excitement, drama and humor that Grana’ and her ace band, Troublemaker, can generate in front of an audience. These tracks make for entertaining listening as you get to hear Grana’ really strut her stuff

            As for the Bold…

It’s stamped right there on the CD’s front and back --“WARNING: Contains sexually explicit lyrics” -- which, of course, only makes you want to tear open the CD and listen that much quicker.  There are a number of songs about sex and cheating, which is nothing new for the blues. But the song that likely warranted the warning is a Grana’ original, “Big Dick M’isipi,” which probably made the personnel at Delmark’s Riverside Studio blush just a bit, with its not-so-subtle double entendres concerning phallic symbols.

Along those lines, Grana’ covers the Etta James classic “Wet Match” done up in a drivin’ funky Chicago style by her tight ensemble. Grana’s delivery convinces you of her disappointment with a soggy lover (which is why she had to go to Big Dick M’isipi).  Then there’s “Bang Bang Ba-Bang Bang Bang Bang!”, another Grana’ penned-tune full of sexual innuendo and humor, set to a James Brown style groove.

            The big-voiced singer sounds regal and lusty as she commandingly belts out “Queen Bee”, in tribute to its originator, the Queen of the Blues, Koko Taylor. You know there’s some stingin’ and honey-makin’ going on in Grana’s hive.

“Back Door Blues” is one of the live tracks on which Grana’ milks this Eddie “Cleanhead” Vinson song for all it’s worth, teasing the audience and drawing out the drama. “We’re going down in the alley,” she tells the crowd, adding “so if we’ve got some folks that embarrass easy, you’d better leave right now!”  As she brings the song to an end, singing “That man had a wife/And I almost lost my life!”, Grana’ hits a high note,  holds it, and holds it and holds it while the crowd cheers her on.

Not only are there songs about sex, but the CD opens and closes with classic songs about violence. Even though you’ve heard it all before, Grana’s rendition of “Stagger Lee” draws you into this murderous saga with her clever flair for storytelling while singing. Similarly the final live cut, a cover of Hendrix’s “Hey Joe,” is given a touch of spaghetti western melodrama; as the story and music build, the crowd roars its approval. And let’s face it, she’s a better singer than ol’ Jimi was.

As for the Beautiful…

Listen to Tom Holland’s rich, traditional guitar work on the studio cuts, giving Grana’s music a touch of old school class. Guitarist Carlos Showers displays his flair for dramatic, explosive playing on the live cuts. They are the perfect accompanists to a singer as versatile and powerful as Grana’.

While Grana’ can belt out the blues with power and grit, she carries a lot more in her vocal bag of tricks. Her subtle nuances and clever vocal stylings reveal her jazz background. You can hear this most clearly on the well-produced studio tracks. And then there’s her wardrobe. Check out the photos in the CD booklet of her stunning feathered headdress along with the spangled flapper style outfit.  She always dresses to impress and knows how to command the stage for her live shows. As a recording artist, Grana’ adeptly translates that power to disc and grabs the listener’s attention with her big, beautiful voice and personality to match.

Like her vaudeville era predecessors, Ma Rainey and Bessie Smith, Grana’ is the whole package – a true blue blues woman who  respects tradition and her forbearers, yet brings a contemporary and original twist on that tradition, not to mention humor, theatrics, and a bit of winking naughtiness.  If you can’t go see Grana’ perform live in Chicago, or catch her on tour in Europe, South America or the Far East, the next best thing is to get this highly entertaining CD.

###