Waiting on the Sun reviewed by Harmonica Joe

Waiting on the Sun
Studebaker John
www.studebakerjohn.com
12 tracks

Studebaker John's new CD release, "Waiting for the Sun", is over eighty minutes of unique music pleasure . That is a pretty strong statement I must say. This project is a collection of twelve tunes written by Studebaker John . This Cd is a great mix of traditional blues, boogie woogie, rock and also Latin based tunes.

Studebaker John has been recording music since the 1970's. He has released eleven recordings over that time that I am aware of. He has not wavered from writing and producing awesome blues while taking the music to a new level. All of his lyrics tell a story with feelings of his true self.

Besides Studebaker on vocals, harmonica, slide and acoustic guitars and the string synthesizer, this project also has a great band. He is joined by bassist, Bob Halaj and drummer Paul Ashford. These two join him in travel on a regular basis. Also joining the mix is Bartek Szopinski, a young Polish keyboard player, who is in John's European touring band.

If you are looking for short catchy tunes on this CD, don't! Only by listening to John's lyrics will you get to the depth of this project. John presents to us twelve tunes that are all different and that stand on their own. These tunes seem to give us an insight into where John has been and is going and who he is. I guess that this may not be my place to go but it may be true. These songs have some great lyrics.

"Natural Born Boogie" is a showcase of Studebaker John's harp playing abillities. Having been playing the harmonica since the age of seven, he has had many years to hone his skills. He has done this well. With lyrics like, "reelin' and rockin the natural born boogie till the break of dawn is all right with me", this is one of the lighter tunes on this CD. Studebaker does one heck of a harmonica workout on this track!

"Follow Your Soul" is just what it says. "Right or wrong, follow your soul" and "live with my mistakes and carry on" are powerfullyrics with meaning. This is more of Studebaker's ability to put his feeling and thought to music. This tune is very Latin based and over eleven minutes of great guitar solos, keyboards and lyrics. This track could be my favorite but it is hard to say that.

"Waiting on the Sun" is not just another Studebaker John CD.It is an unique Studebaker John project. I have listened to this CD about 15 times and every time that I do, I hear something new and enjoy it more. Take a listen for yourself!

If you get a chance to see Studebaker John's show live, do so. Just as with his CD's his performance is not a copycat of his last show. Enjoy!