Review: Angela Strehli

Blue Highway
M.C. Records - www.m-crecords.com
www.angelastrehli.com

Austin singer-songbird Angela Strehli has joined the stable of Long Island blues label MC Records with excellent Texas boogie-blues and ballads. Strehli was a vital part of the trio of "Austex" bluesmamas that included Louann Barton and Marcia Ball. They helped to create the scene that resulted in Stevie Ray Vaughn, Antones Records and Austin's fame as a music city. Those ladies had high octane, good timing, two timing and hard living deep in their souls.

Angela opens her new one with all 8 firing in a tribute to club owner, scene creator Clifford Antone that chronicles his ups and downs in "Austin's Home of the Blues." Shifting into low and blue, Ms. Ball and Maria Muldaur augment the vocals on "Blue Highway" with a slow shuffle dedicated to a lifetime of blues.

This CD is a joyous celebration of life's uncertainties and pains as well as of life, lust and good times. Angela's 60 years have given her a warm leather and whiskey vocal sound that is wrapped around the knowledge of how to deliver the emotion in a song. Blue Highway is augmented by a bucket of Austin session stars including John Lee Sander's piano, Paul Thorn's vocals and Tom Duarte's acoustic 6.

Most of the cuts were written by Angela, although she covers Ernie Ka-doe's "Hello My Lover" and Ann Peebles' "Slipped, Tripped and Fell In Love." Strehli does a cooking gospel version of "Lord, Don't Move the Mountain," while "Headed South" makes you want to see the land where manzanillas grow and tequila flows. The disk rolls out with a cut that Strehli recorded during her appearance with SRV at Carnegie Hall in 1985, Albert King's "C.O.D.", which is delivered strong and fierce.

For a helping of Texas BBQ boogie and shuffle, Angela's keeping the smoker stoked, defending the Alamo and laying it down nice and hot. On TGB ratings scale, Blue Highway steers between Earth and Venus.

Review submitted by Dr. Blues.