Patti Parks ~~ Come Sing With Me Featuring Johnny Rawls
Apologies for the long delay between posts, faithful reader, as the holiday season wrapped its tinsel covered arms around me and clung to me like a crazy girlfriend. Between radio shows, personal appearances, and generally spreading joy, I found myself with precious little time to sit down and write.
Hopefully, it won’t happen again anytime soon.
Let’s take a look at a sweet little disc from VizzTone that came to me just before the end of the year. VizzTone is a very cool label that is artist driven and they often take chances on lesser-known talent.
That’s not to say that the talent is in any way less, in fact, I have discovered many an artist that has gone from unknown to favorite status just because I got the chance to hear their work. Such is the case of Patti Parks, a lovely singer whose previous work has escaped my notice, but her latest album, Come Sing With Me, is strong out of the gate and stays that way through ten solid numbers.
Parks has assembled a terrific lineup of artists to help her out including Johnny Rawls on a few numbers (he even wrote one song and co-wrote another); Anthony Geraci on piano; VizzTone head honcho Richard Rosenblatt on harmonica; songwriter Gary Nirelli on organ, piano, and drums; Aaron Flynt on guitar and slide guitar; Tony Cammilleri on bass; Hugh Arthur on drums; Kenny Thomasula on Congas and percussion; Kenny Parker on tenor sax; John Maguda and Rick Keller on trumpet.
Backing vocals are provided by Kimera Lattimore, Zuri Appleby; Robin Grandin, and Anthony Casuccio.
The album starts off with I’m In Love With You Baby, penned by Johnny Rawls and Guy Nirelli. Rawls also lends his soulful voice to the proceedings. Guitar and organ make a great opening before being joined by the horns. When Parks begins to sing, she takes the spotlight and she and Rawls make a powerful tandem. I’ve already played this one on John’s Porch and it will be making another appearance soon.
The follow up song is DJ’s Boogie (I Like To Boogie), and true to its title it is some serious eight to the bar fun, That’s Geraci on the piano and he is self-assured and rocks the house. Don’t discount this title and for us boogie lovers, it’s going to become a staple. Pure fun…
Next up is a slow burn of a song, One Foot Out The Door, written by Derrick Procell and Terry Abrahamson. It’s the end of a relationship and it’s all over but the lawyering. Okay, maybe lawyers aren’t involved, but Parks’ pain is palpable, and she squeezes out every drop of emotion. Powerful song…
Sing Around The World is a jaunty number and moves a little into the pop category, after the heavier blues of the preceding number and the over the top boogie of the song before that. Listen for the organ in the background, that’s Nirelli and he makes those keys come to life.
After that diversion, Parks is back with the more bluesy I’m Sorry. The organ still works the background, but it’s the guitar that sings and the horns that punctuate the song. Parks’ vocals are like a blowtorch cutting through the night. In the space of five songs, she has become someone who will stay on my radar.
A slice of Chicago blues, Hamburger Man, follows. I would love to catch her doing this one live, because I know it would be a crowd pleaser. It’s got a pulsating rhythm, and the lyrics are saucy and fun. Rosenblatt shows off his chops on the harp and he hasn’t lost a thing.
Parks slows things down for the next song, Why. She’s questioning everything about her relationship, especially since this man is not the man she needs. She wants her respect and deserves it. There’s some good guitar work on the break and I could easily see this one getting some airplay. It’s a heartbreaker…
For A Lotta Man, Parks takes a humorous approach that gives hope to all of us who, no matter how much we starve ourselves, just remain big. Parks wants, no she actually needs, a lotta man and that’s fine by me.
Johnny Rawls wrote the next song, How Much Longer. It’s soulful and walks the fine line between blues and rhythm and blues. The horns add a lot to the song and Parks and Rawls’ vocals shine. The sax is seductive and rocks at the same time. Another very good song…
The album closes out with one last Guy Nirelli written song, Good Day For The Blues. There’s some nice honkytonk piano and the lyrics are solid. It’s a great way to end things, definitely on a high note, and Parks proves she belongs in the pantheon of blues artists that are keeping them fresh and exciting.
Patti Parks is a strong singer, there’s no doubt about that and she has surrounded herself with some top talent. It remains to be seen where she will go from here, but she has built a solid foundation with Come Sing With Me and I am looking forward to her future work.
Check out her website for more information and to see where she might be touring. I think with the right exposure she could become a well-known performer, and you’ll be happy you were there at the beginning.
Thanks VizzTone for you dedication to finding these great artists and giving them the platform to really show what they can do!