BLUES N'AT

Shot O’ Soul is a band I’ve wanted to see for quite some time. Unfortunately, the planets never seemed to align when they would have a show near my area. Then, Lady Luck smiled on me. Shot O’ Soul opened the Tommy Castro show at South Park a few weeks ago. Sadly, we made it in time to only hear the end of Shot O’ Soul’s set. But there was good news! I did score their latest CD, “Blues on a Budget”. Let me tell you, it was worth the wait. The CD kicks off with “One of These Days”, a rollicking, done-me-wrong kind of song. Shot O’ Soul has two lead singers. This jumping tune features the big voice of Jeanie “Girl” Shook.  This song really sets the tone for most of the CD. The next song is Shot O’ Soul’s theme song, “Shot O’ Soul”. Jimi “Cisco” Franciscus mans the mike on this one and keeps the party going. The band really starts to get their grove on with this one. I always appreciate a band that has brass, as in horns. I love the job that Lee Baumann does with the sax throughout this CD. With the next song, we slide into a pair of “Comfortable Shoes”. This song slows things down a bit but not too much. “Blues on a Budget”, my new theme song, follows. With the economy the way it is today, songwriter-guitarist, Walter K (Kendzerski) really hits the nail on the head with this one. The following song, “Door Shakin’” is a leg-shaking instrumental that will get you going on the dance floor. After that, Shot O’ Soul shifts into low gear with the slower, more bluesy “Agree to Disagree”. This song proves that they’re more than just a good-time party band. SOS can get down with the blues, too. They slip back on their comfortable, dancing shoes for “Too Much of a Good Thing”. That’s not the case with Shot O’ Soul because I can never get too much of their brand of blues. The final song it a Christmas song, Shot O’ Soul-style, “You Won’t Get no Christmas Card from Me”. Shot O’ Soul’s bassist, Denny Bank and percussionist Andrew Baumann hold it all together by nailing down the beat that keeps this CD going. To paraphrase the band, no blues collection is complete “without a Shot O’ Soul”.  Do yourself a favor and get yourself a Shot O’ Soul.