Name: The Hard Way
Brand: Alligator Records
SKU: 52788
Price: 11.15 USD
Availability: InStock

The Hard Way

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Performer Notes

Personnel: William Clarke (vocals, harmonica); Greg Verginio, Jeff Ross, Alex Schultz (guitar); Jonny Viau (tenor saxophone); Troy Jennings (baritone saxophone); Fred Kaplan, Steve F'dor (piano); Tyler Pederson, Rick Reed (acoustic bass); Bob Newham, Eddie Clark (drums).
Audio Mixer: William Clarke .
Liner Note Authors: Dick Shurman; Dick Shuman; William Clarke .
Photographer: Jeff Dunas.
Los Angeles harp vet Clarke essays a swinging set of tunes that combines a loose, jazzy feel with a handful of rock-solid, Chicago-style stompers. The result is an intriguing hybrid that contains allusions to several different subgenres. Indeed, Clarke's avowed intention on THE HARD WAY is to tip his hat to the tenor sax-led organ trios that were an early influence on his musical mind. That style itself-an amalgam of jazz and blues-blurred dividing lines, and Clarke's arrangements of such tunes as Muddy Waters' "Evil" and the jazz chestnut "Moten Swing" further that cross-pollination with engaging results.
Clarke takes it a step further, though, by bringing in the saxes of Jon Viau and Troy Jennings. Their instrumental voices move the music toward a swinging, jazzy feel, realizing the jazz influence that's often hinted at by such West Coast harpmen as James Harman. Clarke himself is the common thread that links all these elements. His thick, dirty tone provides a direct contrast to the sharp execution and eloquent lyricism of the lines he blows on these tunes