THE PAULINE YORK BAND
Muddy Water (Billy Goat Records)
Reviewed by Eric Steiner

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Muddy Water is the Pauline York Band's follow-up to their 2002 Blind Pig debut, Blackberry Wine, and it offers about hour of powerful guitar blues from a young blueswoman whose blues star is ascendant in the greater Chicagoland area. Listen to the way she rips through Sleepy John Estes' "Leaving Trunk," particularly for the way her incendiary leads wind around Doug Lee's harmonica, and she follows that forceful opener with 12 additional originals and covers on Muddy Water. Taking a break from his Flip Tops, Nick Moss blows some mean harp on the slow burn of "Muddy Water," an original song that showcases Pauline York's strong blues songwriting prowess. New Orleans funk informs and inspires "Home to Lafayette" and stepping up to a song like Son Seals' "Your Love is Like a Cancer" must be daunting for any guitarslinger, but Pauline York is more than up to the challenge. www.paulineyorkband.com's got song samples and merch, including her bumpersticker - "Less Lipstick, More Blues (Don't Ask Us to Play Mustang Sally)." If they added that song to their live set list, I'm sure Pauline and company would tear that old standard up, too!

Track List:

Leaving Trunk * Home to Lafayette * Someone Like You * Muddy Water * Sing It * Thirteen Minutes * Satisfied * You Love is Like a Cancer * Keep Loving Me Baby * Someone Else * Security * Early in the Morning * Cherry Pie

© 2005 - Eric Steiner