The Michael Packer Blues Band Sweet Rhythm CD is #185 and climbing on the Emusic contemporary blues charts for the month of June, 2007 distributed by CDbaby!
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this is everything you hoped a live album will be but very rarely is.it's a close up, sweaty portrait of the blues from the frontline.recorded at the sweet rhythm club in greenwich village, new york.it begins with a request to the audience to 'keep the volume of conversation to a minimum' the mind boggles as to what topic could be more interestimg then listening to michael packer's blues. the michael packer band is very much a working band, it may be packer's name on the marquee but this is a collective of equals.it may never reach the mass audience of some but it is a performance from the hearts of musicians who know how to play the blues live. right from david maxwell's piano solo during the bands version of sonny thompson's 'i'm torn down' your'e dragged into a magical world. this album is a mix of classic covers, 'killing floor', 'somebody have mercy', traditional songs like 'knock myself out' and 'as the years go passing by' and one original 'born in nyc". in the city that never sleeps packer's sensual,steamy blues are the perfect soundtrack to the wee small hours
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If Michael Packer's earthy singing takes a backseat to his musicians, it's testimony to the Staten Island's guitarist's ability to assemble a band. A cast of aces, David Maxwell (piano), Jimmy Vivino (guitar0, Felix Cabrera (harp) and Lou Marini (sax) joins the band for the self released Live @ Sweet Rhythm. Apart from solos all around, Knock Myself Out' contains a dynamite sax/slide guitar duel and Packer's Big Apple based adaptation of 'Born in Chicago' rips. The playlist is mostly limited to standards but it is still entertaining including 'Somebody Have Mercy', 'The Thrill Has Gone' and 'I'm Tore Down. Things get really cooking towards the album's end with Marini and Maxwell hammering out 'Killing Floor'and when 'As the Years Go Passing By' showcases a haunting harmonica lead-in and Cabrera's sensitive vocal.
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