Review: Tony Holiday ‘Motel Mississippi’
By Mike O’Cull
Soul/blues singer and harmonica man Tony Holiday ties the past to the present and runs the voodoo down on his new solo album Motel Mississippi.
Available now on Forty Below Records, Motel Mississippi is a deep and spirited set that combines North Mississippi Hill Country, Delta Blues, and Memphis Soul influences with Holiday’s own unique musicality and vision. It all began as a collaborative effort amongst Holiday, guitarist/songwriter A.J. Fullerton and guitarist/producer Dave Gross.
Holiday and Gross co-produced the sessions at the Zebra Ranch in Coldwater, Mississippi, the studio of late Memphis music legend Jim Dickinson (The Rolling Stones, Big Star). Kevin Houston (Southern Avenue, North Mississippi Allstars, G. Love) engineered. The resulting record invokes the Old Masters and the New Way all at once, using guitars, harmonicas, and a Moog synth as coupling connectors.
Tony Holiday has been at the epicenter of the soul/blues resurgence that’s been going on in Memphis since relocating there from Salt Lake City in 2017. He’s a vocalist, songwriter, and harp player of uncommon talent and intention with a glowing reputation that grows with each new release.
Motel Mississippi is his second solo effort and he has also released two volumes of his Porch Sessions series, which found Holiday traveling the USA and Europe to capture blues musicians on their front porches, in front of juke joints, in the country, and on the doorsteps of rowdy night spots.
Holiday worked with an impeccable list of guest stars on both editions, including Grammy winners Charlie Musselwhite and Bobby Rush, former Muddy Waters guitarist John Primer, and the iconic Lurie Bell, as well as some of his modern roots music peers like Southern Avenue, Victor Wainwright, and John Németh. He’s a respected artist and performer with a long career still ahead of him.
The album begins with a swampy and haunting cover of Paul Wine Jones’ “Rob And Steal.” It’s a hypnotic, mid-tempo song full of love’s desperation and Holiday leads his crew through it in a subtle, dramatic way. Dave Gross contributes some out-of-this-world lead guitar work that features exotic scales, dissonant phrases, and unexpected half-steps and throws typical blues guitar conventions in the trash can. Roots music could certainly do with some new vocabulary and fewer cliches and Gross delivers exactly that.
“Get By” is built on a deliciously-shuffling drone of a groove and features Holiday making his harp presence known in both lead and backup roles. His rhythm section of drummer Lee Williams and bassist Terrance Grayson locks up the pocket in a major way and will propel this one into your daily listening playlist. Dave Gross again delivers another atypical, compelling guitar performance that’s engaging and entertaining.
The sultry, minor key swing of “Trouble” is genuine and emotive, coming across as a story about the difficulties of life. The mighty Victor Wainwright smokes out on his wah-inflected clavinet solo and makes an already-strong band crazy good. Holiday’s laidback singing style gives his lyrics more impact than a more boisterous approach would and fits well with Wainwright’s dynamic keyboard chops and Gross’ way-outside guitar lines.
Holiday picks up speed on train-beat-and-handclaps rocker “Just As Gone.” Jake Friel handles the harp work here like a champ and guitarists AJ Fullerton and Aubrey McCrady weave a tapestry of fretted and slide playing that supports Tony’s voice perfectly. Holiday and his studio band are completely in synchronization here and throughout these tracks in an intuitive way that surpasses conventional tightness and borders on telepathy. Listening to them put it down will stick your soul to the ceiling.
Though there are only eight songs on Motel Mississippi, Holiday and friends will leave you danced-out and ready for more. This is a brilliant set of non-cookie-cutter blues music that takes risks, gives rewards, and shows us all what is still possible. Play it all night long.
Order Motel Mississippi Here
“Rob & Steal”
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