Birthright

by

James Blood Ulmer

Edit

I've had the opportunity to see James Blood Ulmer a few times over the last few years. I've become a big fan of his distinct originality on the guitar. He plays with freewheeling abandon and gutteral instinct. Of course, in becoming aware of his music, I picked up copies of the two blues records, Memphis Blood and No Escape From the Blues, as well as some of the older stuff like Odyssey and Freelancing (on vinyl). I love all of those albums. The two blues discs are some of my favorites of current recordings in the genre.

But little prepared me for Birthright, which might just be James Blood Ulmer's masterpiece. It's just James Blood Ulmer here completely solo. The record almost feels ancient. Like a Son House or Robert Johnson recording but in the modern day. Parts of it are haunted as Ulmer digs and slashs on the guitar, his voice trembling with a natural vibrato. Truly Spectacular. Other songs like Geechee Joe and a reworking of his song, Where Did All The Girls Come From, are quite beautiful and imbued with grace. At times the music almost seems like folk art. Ulmer doesn't sound schooled in the blues -- there's not a traditional blues lick to be found. The music sounds like an exorcism -- a natural release of song and sound. Birthright is actually a perfect title because it's exactly what an album like this is. What Ulmer's doing can't be faked. It's his and he owns it.

I highly recommend this to people in search of the real thing -- of real music, of real expression, of real soul. James Blood Ulmer - Birthright is a modern gem and one of the most compelling CDs I've heard all year.

James "Blood" Ulmer is a great guitar player, but only a decent Blues artist. He is mainly known for jazz guitar and experimental music. "Geechee Joe" and "Where Did All The Girls Come From" are very enjoyable, and Ulmer certainly has his own style of singing. The only artist whose vocals are anything like those of Ulmer is John Lee Hooker. "Sittin' On Top Of The World" is very well done. This is modern Blues, to be sure, and doesn't resemble Patton or Robert Johnson in the slightest way. Still, if you are looking for something unique, and are a musician yourself, you might appreciate this record more than I do. Ulmer performs "Sittin' On Top Of The World" on the "Lightnin' In A Bottle" dvd and does an excellent job, by the way.