Guitar great Duke Robillard—a founding member of Roomful of Blues and a former Fabulous Thunderbirds guitarist—has announced a new album, Duke Robillard & His Dames of Rhythm....
Guitar great Duke Robillard—a founding member of Roomful of Blues and a former Fabulous Thunderbirds guitarist—has announced a new album, Duke Robillard & His Dames of Rhythm. The disc will be released October 13 via M.C. Records[1].
The album is an eclectic collection of jazz/swing tunes from the Twenties and Thirties. Best of all, Robillard invited some swinging and sultry ladies to the party, including Maria Muldaur, Catherine Russell, Kelley Hunt, Sunny Crownover, Elizabeth McGovern (yes, that Elizabeth McGovern—the one from Downton Abbey) and Madeleine Peyroux.
"This recording marks a serious bucket list dream come true for me," says Robillard, whose distinctive and elastic lead lines have been paired with Bob Dylan, Herb Ellis, Big Joe Turner, Kim Wilson, Jay Geils and John Hammond, to name just a few.
"When M.C. Records owner Mark Carpentiari and I started talking about doing an album, we tossed around quite a few concepts and finally decided on a plan that put me with my rhythm section and a fabulous horn section, with me playing acoustic archtop guitar. The concept was to have several guest female vocalists joining me on a collection of tunes from the Twenties and Thirties.
"I've always loved this period in music and wanted to dig deep into Tin Pan Alley and the American songbook for tunes that weren't too overdone in recent years. Also I wanted the material to be simple, swinging and bluesy."
Speaking of which, be sure to check out Robillard's "swinging and bluesy" rendition of "Walkin' Stick" below. It's one of the few tracks on the album that features Robillard on vocals.
You can find the album's complete track listing—plus Robillard's upcoming tour dates—below. For more information, visit dukerobillard.com[2].
Duke Robillard & His Dames of Rhythm Track List
1. "From Monday On," Featuring Sunny Crownover
2. "Got