| Tommy Castro - 4 Albums - can't keep a good man down, triple trouble, soul shaker & painkiller Tommy Castro - Can't Keep A Good Man Down 1997 Pegged as a sort of Bay Area Stevie Ray Vaughan, guitarist Tommy Castro's got the riffs, but his sound's less raw than that of the Texas guitar slinger. There's a bit of soul in there, as well; if Robert Cray were less blues and more rock & roll, he might sound a bit like this. Castro's obviously positioning himself for crossover success, but with material as solid as what's on Can't Keep a Good Man Down, that's in no way a bad thing. His guitar lines are slick without sounding contrived, and there's real sweetness in songs like "I Want to Show You" that make them more than your standard blues-rock semiballad. While Castro hasn't received the level of attention accorded to, say, Jonny Lang or Kenny Wayne Shepherd, it's certainly not for lack of talent. In his lower-key way, he's just as good. --Genevieve Williams ------------- 1. Can't Keep A Good Man Down (4:00) 2. You Knew The Job Was Dangerous (3:38) 3. Suitcase Full Of Blues (4:12) 4. You Gotta Do What You Gotta Do (3:28) 5. I Want To Show You (4:03) 6. My Time After A While (5:24) 7. Take The Highway Down (4:30) 8. High On The Hog (4:43) 9. You Only Go Around Once (3:44) 10. Nobody Loves Me Like My Baby (3:09) 11. Hycodan (4:31) 12. Can't You See What You're Doing (4:41) ------------- Year : 1997 Bitrate : 128K/s 44100Hz Joint Stereo Total Playing Time: 50:08 Total Size : 45.9 MB d o w n l o a d -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tommy Castro - Triple Trouble 2003 (w jimmy hall & Lloyd Jones) All-star jams can go two ways. They either turn out a muddled mess, or inspire everyone involved to new heights of musical synergy. Fortunately for blues, R&B, and soul fans, Triple Trouble belongs firmly in the latter category. It helps that Castro, Jones (guitar), and Hall (sax, harmonica) have different strengths, which complement one another nicely. It also helps having the renowned Double Trouble on board; one couldn't ask for a tighter, tastier backup band. Together, this group ranges all over the musical map, from traditionally-inflected blues ("Raised in the Country") to James Brown-style funk ("Cold Funk"). With Telarc Records' clean, crisp production every note comes out clear, showcasing these three artists to their best advantage. They might not be superstars, but they've got their mojo workin'. --Genevieve Williams ------------- 1. Sometimes (2:17) 2. If That Ain't Love (4:38) 3. Be Careful With A Fool (6:45) 4. Love Will (4:23) 5. Help (4:04) 6. Whole Lotta Soul (6:48) 7. Good, Good Lovin' (2:43) 8. Raised In The Country (6:07) 9. Mammer Jammer (5:33) 10. Midnight To Day (4:46) 11. Cold Funk (4:16) ------------- Year : 2003 Bitrate : 128K/s 44100Hz Joint Stereo Total Playing Time: 52:24 Total Size : 48.0 MB d o w n l o a d -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tommy Castro - Soul Shaker 2005 The title of this album tells you most of what you need to know about San Francisco blues rocker Tommy Castro. His first disc of original material in four years finds him back with the Blind Pig label and expanding his crackling R&B-drenched blues into a more rock-oriented sound. On Soul Shaker, Castro downplays the sizzling guitar that dominated his previous releases and focuses instead on songs and arrangements. The horns that pepper--and often power--tracks such as the frisky "What You Gonna Do Now?" push the soul element even further to the forefront. But it's Castro's gutsy, gritty vocals--something like a mix of Delbert McClinton and John Mellencamp--and his energetic approach that ignite these tunes. Castro borrows Little Feat's New Orleans stomp for the swampy, slide-driven title track, shifts into Bob Seger territory on the thumping rocker "The Holdin' On," and even delivers a flute-powered song, "The Crossanova"--a lively instrumental cowritten by reed player Keith Crossan that wouldn't be out of place on an old Herbie Mann disc. "Take Me Off the Road" burns with ZZ Top hip-shakin' boogie. This may not be what established Castro fans expected, but by widening his scope and beefing up his sound the soul shaker has delivered his most satisfying and eclectic set in a decade-long career. --Hal Horowitz ------------- 1. Just Like Me (4:14) 2. Let's Give Love A Try (3:44) 3. Anytime Soon (4:27) 4. What You Gonna' Do Now? (4:30) 5. Next Right Thing (4:52) 6. Soul Shaker (3:54) 7. No One Left To Lie To (3:50) 8. Wake Up Call (4:16) 9. Holdin' On (4:43) 10. Take Me Off The Road (3:53) 11. Crossanova (2:41) 12. Big Love (3:33) ------------- Year : 2005 Bitrate : 128K/s 44100Hz Joint Stereo Total Playing Time: 48:41 Total Size : 44.6 MB d o w n l o a d -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tommy Castro - Painkiller 2007 Is Tommy Castro a soul man in a blues rocker's body, or vice versa? He doesn't seem to care--and neither should we, when the results of that dichotomy are as frisky and enjoyable as Painkiller. A better-than-average singer and guitarist, Castro has been hampered in the past by inconsistent material and the sense that he hadn't quite come to grips with his love of the Stax and Chess catalogs. Bringing in other songwriters has vastly improved the material on this collection, with eight original tunes co-written by Castro and veteran tunesmiths such as Gary Nicholson, Stephen Bruton, Bonnie Hayes, and Jimmy Hall. Castro sounds loose and comfortable hammering into riff-rockers such as "Love Don't Care" and Stones-styled material on the order of "I Roll When I Rock," both augmented by a horn section that adds dollops of R&B to the proceedings. Coco Montoya duets and adds typically sizzling guitar on a rollicking cover of Albert Collins's "A Good Fool Is Hard to Find," and Angela Strehli ups the heat for a soul-drenched take on Freddie King's "If You Believe (In What You Do)." Castro shifts into Tyrone Davis mode on "It's That Time Again," credited as an original but almost a rewrite of Davis's signature "Can I Change My Mind." The Al Green/Hi sound of "Lonesome and Then Some" brings out the best in Castro's Delbert McClinton-inflected vocals, and burns when he tears into a taut lead-guitar line. Call him a soul-drenched blues rocker if you must, but on Painkiller Tommy Castro successfully finds the sweet spot between his various influences and balances them like the pro he is. --Hal Horowitz ------------- 1. Love Don't Care (3:47) 2. I'm Not Broken (3:45) 3. Painkiller (3:49) 4. Big Sister's Radio (4:14) 5. A Good Fool Is Hard To Find (4:40) 6. Err On The Side Of Love (3:45) 7. I Roll When I Rock (3:36) 8. If You Believe ( In What You Do) (4:43) 9. It's That Time Again (4:13) 10. Goin' Down South (3:40) 11. Lonesome And Then Some (4:44) 12. It Ain't Easy Bein' Me (3:05) ------------- Year : 2007 Bitrate : 128K/s 44100Hz Joint Stereo Total Playing Time: 48:06 Total Size : 44.1 MB d o w n l o a d |
