HARRY MANX
Dog My Cat (Northern Blues)
Reviewed by Eric Steiner

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Over the last year, Canada's Northern Blues label has been quietly releasing some pretty good blues from artists like Otis Taylor (White African) and Paul Reddick + The Sidemen (Rattlebag). If word gets out about these CDs, Northern Blues will not only flourish in Canada but all over the world of the blues. Harry Manx is another Northern Blues artist who's making the blues his own. Dog My Cat is a mixture of traditional Chicago blues and East Indian ragas and this combination is a delight. That wasn't a misprint: Harry's influences range from Muddy Waters' "I Can't Be Satisfied" and "Baby Please Don't Go" to the work of East India's Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, such as "Rag Bihag" or "Rag Jog." Manx and Ry Cooder shared a Best World Music Grammy for their 1994 live CD, Meeting By The River. Manx' original "Lay Down My Worries" and "Love Ain't No Game" show off his fine acoustic slide playing, and from start to finish, Dog My Cat introduces us to a fine acoustic blues talent. Look for his second Northern Blues CD, Wise and Otherwise, this year.

Track List:

Can't Be Satisfied * Bring That Thing * Good Morning Stranger * Rueben's Train * Lay Down My Worries * Rag Bihag (Dusk Rag) * Sunday Morning Ascension * Baby Please Don't Go * Brick and Stone * Song for William * Love Ain't No Game * Shame Shame Shame * Rag Jog

© 2002 - Eric Steiner