May Blitz (180-Gram Vinyl LP) by May Blitz

24 Apr

Written by Morrice Blackwell
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My first impression of May Blitz on the opening track "Smoking The Day Away," on their self-titled LP May Blitz, was that James Black (guitar, vocals) sounded just like Jack Bruce. The song is an unforgettable blend of both acoustic and electric guitars, and the outing lasts for over eight minutes. As their music continually changes and evolves throughout the LP, many different bands from that time may come to mind. Music like this seems to bring about those feelings and memories for me all the time.

If you were to place their music into a category, they would fall somewhere in between rock, blues and progressive. Every track has something different to offer, so to say that they played progressive-blues-rock with a psychedelic edge is the best description I could possibly give.

"I Don’t Know?" is an excellent blues-rock rave up with psychedelic elements that gave it a Hendrix feel with ample amounts of fuzz and wah-wah. It became apparent to me early on that they were a technically advanced trio that had no trouble displaying their many talents in every song. Tony Newman’s congas, bongos, and the vibraphone certainly put their music into an entirely different space than the average rock band and Reid Hudson had to be a better than average bass player to set the pace for all of these complexities found in each individual song. James Black was an outstanding lead singer and guitar player and without question the core from which the bands persona emanated from.

Side two opens with "Squeet," a funky blues number with a long intro before the vocals kick in. Because of the long instrumental stretches found in every song, when Black’s vocals would start on queue it sounded more pronounced and had more of an impact. I particularly enjoyed the long instrumental runs because each one had a variance of personality and feeling with a strong sense off purpose and meaning that propelled it.

As with many of the releases on Comet Records, this is a highly collectable piece of vinyl. The album comes in a gatefold sleeve complete with the original bizarre cartoon artwork that the band had on their albums. This is a classic recording, a real keeper for the ages. It is highly recommended for anyone that enjoys any or all of the genres I referred to in this review.

Additional Info

Artist / Group Name: May Blitz
CD Title: May Blitz (180-Gram Vinyl LP)
Genre: Blues
Year Released: 2003
Reissue Original Release: 1970
Record Label: Akarma Records
Tracks: Side One: Smoking The Day Away I Don’t Know? Dreaming Side Two: Squeet Tomorrow May Come Fire Queen Virgin Waters
Musicians: May Blitz(Composer, Producer), James Black (Lead Guitar, Lead Vocals, Producer), Reid Hudson (Bass, Guitar Vocals, Producer), Tony Newman (Bongos, Conga, Drums, Vocals (bckgr), Producer, Vibraphone;
Label Website: http://www.cometrecords.com
Rating: Four Stars