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Adam Schultz
Soulful Distancing
Blue Heart Records |
Blues Bytes readers were introduced to Adam
Schultz in the recent review of Clarence Spady's
latest album,
Surrender. In that very fine release Spady
was in part passing the torch to this young
guitarist from New York, and this newest album,
Soulful Distancing (Blue Heart Records),
continues where Surrender left off. Still in
his teens, Schultz is showing promise to be an
excellent soulful bluesy guitarist with this album
consisting of 11 strong cuts.
Schultz doesn't sing, so he brings in a variety of
singers for this session, not to mention some of the
finer backing musicians around the New York City
area. Spady does the yeoman's share,
handling vocals on six tunes while Michael Angelo
appears on four cuts and Russian-born Ekat Pereyra
on one. Four of the songs here are Schultz
originals. He doesn't try to dominate the session,
instead being content to fit in with his always
on-spot guitar playing.
Spady steps to the microphone for the first two
numbers, both mid-tempo blues songs --- Johnny
"Guitar" Watson's funky "A Real Mother For Ya" and
Louis Jordan's Early In The Morning." Up next is the
pleasant Schultz original jazzy blues, "Good
Conversation," that was on the Spady disc but this
time Angelo does the vocal work. He's got a smoother
voice than Spady and he's well-suited for this
soulful tune. Schultz comes in with a tasteful
guitar solo.
One of the more interesting cuts is another Schultz
original, the funky soul number "Harlem Tonight."
I'll describe it as sophisticated jazzy soul, if you
catch my drift. Keyboards are a highlight here with
both Robert O'Connell (organ) and Scott Brown
(piano) getting solo time. The difference between
the two Schultz compositions so far show a maturity
as a songwriter far exceeding his age and experience
level. Another original jazzy, soulful number, "Have
Some Faith," brings Pereyra in for
her lone contribution, but now we'd all like to hear
more from her.
Schultz does some really strong ice-picking on
guitar on the Little Walter original, "Who (Who Told
You)." Many years ago I used to hear Nappy Brown
sing this number in his live shows. Nappy's version was
quite different from Walter's, and now this
new rendition gets even more jazzy and funky. Angelo
returns for a Schultz composition, "Cure For The
Blues," with the tempo picking up and both keyboard
players shining. Schultz also turns out a hot guitar
solo. Our last Schultz-penned song, the slow blues
"Toxic Medicine," has Angelo singing about the dangers
of obsessive love. O'Connell is fierce on the B3
while Tom Hamilton opens the number with a wonderful
tenor sax solo.
Spady comes back on vocals and guitar for a faithful
reading of the Tyrone Davis soul classic, "Can I
Change My Mind," not straying far from the origina,
but the sound grows towards the end with O'Connell's
B3 and the horn section taking it to new heights.
Powerful! Spady also sings on a version of the
standard blues, "Cut You Loose," but what really
stands out here is O'Connell's awe-inspiring B3
solo.
Closing the disc is a cover of Roosevelt Sykes' "44
Blues," with Spady's raspy vocals giving it just the
right Delta swagger. Schultz gets the guitar parts
right, too. It's a different vibe than the rest of
the album, but an effective way to wrap up the show.
I'm eager to see and hear what's next in Adam
Schultz's career because he's still so very young
but also very talented. Just one
of the many musicians from his generation working on
not only keeping the blues alive but also pumping
new energy into the genre. You will want to own
Soulful Distancing. While you're at it, pick up
a copy of Clarence Spady's Surrender. These
two discs go together so well.
--- Bill Mitchell
