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rec. Oct 10-12, 1994
The Al Jones Blues Band is considered the most authentic non-American blues band by American magazine Living Blues. Paying tribute to heroes like Otis Rush and B.B. King, guitarist and singer Al Jones has frequently been touring Europe for nearly fifteen years developing his own identity in the blues field, Chicago style. With his band he was supporting act for Johnny Winter and has been joined on stage by such celebrities as Tommy Tucker, Sonny Rhodes, Willie Mabon, Champion Jack Dupree, Louisiana Red or Eddie C. Campbell. A successful live act at many blues clubs and festivals (e.g. Northsea Jazz Festival in The Hague), the Al Jones Blues Band is also known for numerous TV and radio performances and for three previous albums which are no longer available.
Al Jones and his dedicated accompanists are steadily looking out for new material in order to transform it into the proven language of electric urban blues. On "Watch This!" they not only present their own gripping versions of classics closely associated with the blues greats, but also convincingly adapt some unexpected tunes to the Chicago mainstream, among them "Come On Home" by hard bop legend Horace Silver and soul shouter James Brown's "Please Please Please". Al's own "Don't Change Your Mind" adds a slightly funky touch to the band's concept, while in other songs you can even catch an echo of Fleetwood Mac's early days. The highlight of the event however is Al's constantly thrilling guitar playing that is undoubtedly original while at the same time deep into tradition.
ENJA Records: Electric blues, Chicago style.
JAZZ THING: A slow burner.
BLUEPRINT: Evident maturity.
1999 release: "Sharper Than A Tack" (BLU-1034 2)
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