Shirley Jackson & Her Good Rockin' Daddys

Artist Information

Biography

Shirley Jackson & Her Good Rockin’ Daddys continue to fuel the dance floor and festival stages with a mix of horn-powered east coast blues. The seven piece Good Rockin’ Daddys hail to a sound inspired by the early years of Rock & Roll when horn sections were an integral part of the sound of swing and a rockin’ good time.

A summer tour which included two main stage shows the Calgary International Blues Festival laid the ground work for their third cd release, ‘When The Money’s All Gone’; a collection thirteen tracks and seven which are Jackson originals ranging from bluesy ballads to raunchy guitar features and soulful horns.

Shirley Jackson is a Toronto Maple Blues Recipient for Horn player of the year, (2003) The Good Rockin’ Daddys have released two ECMA nominated recordings, ‘Careful What You Ask For’ 2002 and ‘Comfort Food’ 2008, Nomination for a Music Nova Scotia Award for Blues Album in 2008.
The have performed many major blues festivals across Canada and showcased at a election Campaign party in Los Angeles, Ca in 2005.
The Band:
Shirley Jackson-vocals & tenor sax
Dawn Hatfield- baritone sax, ukulele, hand flute (Juno and ECMA recipient)
Dave Harrison- trumpet & flugelhorn
Rob MacIntosh- tenor sax.
Marc Doucet- guitar
Jef James Wirchenko- acoustic bass
Marks Lockhart- drums

The positive chemistry between the musicians comes through in their performance and their music and is as genuine as the musicians themselves. ‘When The Money’s All Gone’ is a true representation of the band’s live performance.
Whatever the line-up, Shirley Jackson been leading the Good Rockin’ Daddys into a sound that is reminiscent of the times of the honking and screaming saxophones of swinging dance clubs but stylized by her own song writing and arranging.

Instrumentation

Shirley Jackson - Guitar, Tenor Sax
Dawn Hatfield - Baritone Sax
Dave Harrison - Trumpet
Marc Doucet - Guitar.
Rob MacIntosh - Tenor Sax
Jef Wirchenko - Bass
Marks Lockhart - Drums

Discography

Shirley Jackson & Her Godd Rockin' Daddys
'When The Money's All Gone- 2013

Shirley Jackson & Her Good Rockin' Daddys
'Comfort Food' - 2007

Various Artists Compilation
'Blues, Brews, & Barbeques Festival' - 2005
Compiled by the Kitchener Blues Festival
song appearing on compilation
'Don't Come Around Here'

Ladies In Blue- 10th Anniversary Compilation: 2009
Don't Come Around Here, Can You Hear Me?

Various Artists Compilation
'Blues From The East Coast' - 2005
For the Red Cross Tsunami Relief Fund
song appearing on compilation
'Three Things Worth Doin''

Shirley Jackson & Her Good Rockin' Daddys
'Careful What Your Ask For' - 2001

Singles appearing on radio:
Stop, Look & Listen- When the Money's All Gone- 2013
When The Money's All Gone- When the Money's All Gone -2013
Don't Cry- When The Money's All Gone- 2013
River Of Dust- When The Money's All Gone-2013
The Best I Ever Had- When The Money's All Gone- 2013
King's Stomp- When The Money's All Gone- 2013

You Can Have My Husband- Comfort Food -2007
'Tailgator Jump' - Comfort Food, 2007
'One Way Thinking' - Comfort Food, 2007
'Comfort Food' - Comfort Food, 2007
'You Can Have My Husband' - Comfort Food, 2007
Mellow Saxophone' - Comfort Food, 2007
'Can You Hear Me' - Comfort Food, 2007
'Don't Come Around Here' - Careful What You Ask For, 2001
'Fish On A Hook' - Careful What You Ask For, 2001
'Careful What You Ask For' - Careful What You Ask For, 2001
'I Want you To Be My Baby' - Careful What You Ask For, 2001
'Ooh Poppa Do' - Careful What You Ask For, 2001
'I Believe' - Careful What You Ask For, 2001

Official Website

http://www.shirleyjackson.ca

Links

• Facebook
• MySpace
• CD Baby
• Shirley Jackson Website
• Soundcloud
• Airplay Direct
• Reverbnation

Audio

• Stop, Look and Listen
  Listen  
• When The Money's All Gone
  Listen  
• The Best I Ever Had
  Listen  
• Don't Cry
  Listen  
• King's Stomp
  Listen  

Lyrics

• Stop, Look & Listen
• When The Money's All Gone
• The Best I Ever Had
• Don't Cry

Video

Careful What You Ask For

Photo Gallery

Press

• Ramping Up For A Rockin' Good Show [+ Show ]
  

  Prepare for a rip roarin’ good time with The Pictou County Blues Society at the White Tail Pub and G...Prepare for a rip roarin’ good time with The Pictou County Blues Society at the White Tail Pub and Grill.
  The Blues Society is ramping up again after the holiday season with its monthly shows, this month featuring Shirley Jackson & Her Good Rockin’ Daddys.
  Jackson plays tenor saxophone in the band which features six other members – one being her son on the bass. They have been grooving together for the past 18 years.
  Shirley Jackson & Her Good Rockin’ Daddys have released their third album and are planning a promotional tour in the spring.
  “All of our other CDs have been nominated for East Coast Music Awards, so we are hoping this one will be on the list as well,” says Jackson from her home in the Halifax area.
  Jackson teaches band classes at a junior high school in Halifax and is taking a six-month leave to spread the word on the band’s new album.
  The members of the band also take part in a Blues in the Schools program where they enter into schools in the Halifax area and teach students about their particular musical stylings.
  “We are always looking to get into more schools too,” says Jackson.
  “It’s starting to look like a busy summer with festivals lined up,” says Jackson. “It’s looking great.”
  Shirley Jackson & Her Good Rockin’ Daddys performed at the White Tail a long time ago, and Jackson recalls it clearly.
  “We were at the White Tail Pub when news came in that Princess Diana had died,” she says.
  So they are very much looking forward to returning.
  The new album, When the Money’s All Gone, differs slightly from the other two in that there are no guest artists on this album. What you hear is what you get.
  “It was wonderful to have all of those guest artists, but this time we just wanted the band because this is what you will hear,” she says.
  And don’t pigeon hole them because their style of music doesn’t fit neatly into a nice little box.
  “It’s kind of hard to label. Some people say we are like a West Coast jump swing while others consider us shuffle blues with a bit of R&B and horns mixed in.”
  All of the material was written by Jackson and was influenced by what she listens to.
  “It’s great dance music,” says Jackson.
  Shirley Jackson & Her Good Rockin’ Daddys are playing the White Tail on January 26 at
  9 p.m. The night before, the band is putting on an early show in conjunction with Halifax Feast Dinner Theatre.
  “The Pictou County Blues Society always puts on a fabulous show and Tearmann House is the beneficiary so we hope to see lots of people out,” says Jackson.
  What you will hear is “a professional band with a great sound.” At least that’s what audience members have remarked.
  “It’s always nice to get emails from people who have seen us perform,” says Jackson.
  “There was a couple that saw us recently in Halifax and they wrote us an email to say how wonderful it was to see such a professional band with such a great sound. So be prepared to listen to some great music, dance and have fun.”
  Contact information regarding the Blues in the Schools program can be found on the band’s website at www.shirleyjackson.ca.
  “It’s important people do support live music,” she says, “especially in this day and age where it’s so difficult to sustain a live venue. It’s important because it’s part of our East Coast culture and we have to hang onto our culture.”
  

• CD Review-When the Money's All Gone [+ Show ]
  

  Music Review: Shirley Jackson & her Good Rockin' Daddys - When The Money's All Gone Fri, Nov 2,...
  Music Review: Shirley Jackson & her Good Rockin' Daddys - When The Money's All Gone
  
  Fri, Nov 2, 2012.
  
  
  
  I'm a real sucker for horns, which means Shirley Jackson's got me right in her sights. The Nova Scotia singer and tenor player leads her Good Rockin' Daddies through a bunch of vintage blues and early rock n' roll numbers, fired by a four-piece horn unit. Jackson's blues are the jump variety for the most part, which means dancing and moving, and lots of fun numbers. And when she gets into the rocker side, it's the late 50's blend, a little more arranged than rockabilly, but the same attitude. In fact, she reminds me a lot of Wanda Jackson, vocally, and in attitude.
  
  
  Jackson has a real flair for writing in these styles, grabbing the key feeling of what that music was all about: fun. The style was from a day when people simply wanted to have a social, good time when they saw a band, and that meant dancing, and some laughs too. She even finds a couple of obscure silly ones to cover. There's Yo-Yo Baby ("don't keep me on a string"), which has, of course, lots of bounce. Skiddy-Wo, and I have no idea what that's about but it sure sounds like a good time. But don't take her too lightly; Jackson can get the sad blues too, as on The Best I Ever Had, where she wishes she could get back with an old lover ("If I knew then what I know now").
  
  Through it all, the band cooks, with lots of solos. We get to hear all the different horn players take turns, with bits of trumpet, flugelhorn and baritone sax. They fill extended passages in the vocal numbers, and come to the fore on the instrumentals scattered throughout the disc. And Jackson has a not-so-secret weapon in the Daddies in guitar player Marc Doucet. His stinging leads and chopped rhythm playing shine throughout, particularly on the instrumental he wrote, King's Stomp. That's a great track where the band melds old to new, as the horns lead a 60's-flavoured soul number, but Doucet takes it modern in the breaks with his fireworks. This disc's a pleasure to hear from start to finish, but as you know, I'm a sucker for horns.
  

• ECMA Award Nominees 2013 for Blues Recording-'When The Money's All Gone' [+ Show ]
  

  Blues Recording of the Year / Enregistrement de l’année – Blues Charlie A'Court - Triumph & Di...
  Blues Recording of the Year / Enregistrement de l’année – Blues
  
  Charlie A'Court - Triumph & Disaster
  Chris Martin & The Trouble Shooters - A Whole 'Nother Thang
  LeeBoy - Better Man Blues
  Shirley Jackson & Her Good Rockin' Daddys - When The Money's All Gone
  Working Class - Restless

• Hot For Teacher [+ Show ]
  

  "It was all Patsy Cline and Hank Williams in my house," says vocalist and award-winning saxophonist,..."It was all Patsy Cline and Hank Williams in my house," says vocalist and award-winning saxophonist, Shirley Jackson of her Alberta upbringing, "but as we grow as musicians, we develop our own tastes." Seeking deeper moods, she moved to the Maritimes in 1988 and found a wealth of untapped talent. "The east coast is a real incubator for the blues. Maybe the rest of the world just hasn't discovered it yet."
  
  A junior high band teacher by day, Jackson leads Shirley Jackson & Her Good Rockin' Daddys, a seven-piece blues-swing big-band with a wall of horns. Named after an Etta James jive, The Good Rockin' Daddys release its third album, When the Money's All Gone, on Friday and Saturday night at Bearly's.
  
  "New and old, there is still a trend for this style of music," Jackson says. The album has several covers of contemporary blues and swing songs from American and Dutch bands. The rest of the tracks are "Jackson originals," shaped by the band's contributions. With some members marking 10 and 20 years as Rockin' Daddys, there's a familial feeling. Her son, bassist Jef Wirchenko, joined when he was 16.
  
  "Grow your own bass player," Jackson jokes. But a comfortable, well-rehearsed band means strong energy. At Echo Chamber Audio in Halifax last June, Jackson says, "We recorded all the bed tracks for the album live on the floor in one day," an experience that speaks to the band's practiced skill.
  
  "A Rockin' Daddy must have a love for music."
  

• Interview -East Coast Kitchen Party- With Shirley Jackson [+ Show ]
  

  Halifax, NS – October 16, 2012 – She’s played with some of the best in the business but when it came...Halifax, NS – October 16, 2012 – She’s played with some of the best in the business but when it came time to decide who to work with on her latest album, Shirley Jackson had a simple decision. She wanted her regular band mates, her Good Rockin’ Daddys with her this time. The production of “When The Money’s All Gone” went smoothly and it sounds that way on the album. In an excerpt from our interview, Shirley discusses the recording process with the band in the Soundcloud file below.
  http://soundcloud.com/east-coast-kitchen-party/shirley-jackson-final
  Shirley Jackson is a Toronto Maple Blues Recipient for Horn player of the year, (2003) The Good Rockin’ Daddys have released two ECMA nominated recordings, “Careful What You Ask for” 2002 and “Comfort Food” 2008.
  
  The album is filled with crackling guitar work of Marc Doucet that comes out clear in Stop, Look & Listen in the Soundcloud file below.
  The Good Rockin’ Daddys consists of:
  Dawn Hatfield on baritone saxophone. Dawn Hatfield is a Juno and ECMA recipient from her time with The Johnny Favorite Swing Orchestra.
  Rob MacIntosh on tenor saxophone.
  Dave Harrison on trumpet and flugelhorn.
  Jef Wirchenko on bass.
  Marc Doucet, guitar, a power- house performer with style.
  Marks Lockhart- "Rhythm machine on drums.
  Different occasions allow for Barry Cooke on piano/organ.
  The positive chemistry between the musicians comes through in their performance and their music and is as genuine as the musicians themselves. “When The Money’s All Gone” is about as true as it gets to a live performance.
  
  

• Jackson and Daddys to rock Wild Bill's [+ Show ]
  

  It’s going to be like old home week when Shirley Jackson and her Good Rockin’ Daddys roll into Alber...It’s going to be like old home week when Shirley Jackson and her Good Rockin’ Daddys roll into Alberta.
  
  Jackson, who grew up in Sundre and started on her music career in the central Alberta region, plays Wild Bill’s, Sunday (July 29).
  
  She and her Good Rockin’ Daddys are flying in from the Maritimes for a mini-Alberta tour that will see them play Banff, the Calgary Blues Festival, Sundre Art Centre, the Hideout in Red Deer and Calgary’s National Music Centre before heading east for the festival season.
  
  The band that will tour Alberta is: Jackson (vocals, tenor sax), Dawn Hatfield (baritone sax), Ron Hines (upright bass), Marc Doucet (guitar) and Marks Lockhart (drums). Usually, Jackson’s son, Jef Wirchenko, does bass duties, and a couple of other regulars, Dave Harrison and Rob McIntosh, but the three were unavailable.
  
  The story of GRD goes back to 1995, when a group of players who wanted to make some blues, dance and swing music got together. Throughout the years there have been many active members of the Good Rockin’ Daddys and all have contributed vital elements.
  
  Jackson was part of a musically-inclined family in Sundre (a family band at age 10); her mother sang, while sisters and brothers played guitar and banjo. “We were surrounded by music,” she said. Before moving to the Maritimes 25 years ago, she played in a few bands in her teens and late 20s.
  
  But life and a relationship gone bad prompted a move east. She enrolled in Dalhousie University’s music program, as a percussionist, then majored in percussion and sax. At the same time, she said, “I decided to get an education degree.”
  
  The combination has worked out well because, while Jackson and GRD regularly gig close to home, it’s during the summer months, when she isn’t working as a music teacher inspiring children, that the band hits the road for gigs and festivals.
  
  While in the Maritimes, Halifax is home base now, Jackson decided another change was in order and she moved to California to teach at a private school – 9/11 though, found her longing to be home and she moved back to Nova Scotia.
  
  Since then, the band released two East Coast Music Award nominated works – Careful What You Ask For (2001) and Comfort Food (2007). Most recently, the band released When The Money’s All Gone (2012).
  
  Jackson said GRD sets are mostly originals, written by Jackson herself, and some “obscure” covers.
  
  “I love writing music and I’ve been doing it all along,” she said. “And then, when you have an absolutely wonderful band, things work out. I write the lyrics, horn lines and do most of the arranging, but then it all goes to the band for polishing.”
  
  Keeping music in the family with son Jeff was something of a happy happenstance, said Jackson. At one point, “I needed a bass player because my regular couldn’t make a gig. I was on the phone, calling people and Jeff was in the background. He said, ‘mom, I can do it’. So he gave it a shot and we’ve playing together for 16 years now. He’s great on the upright bass and is a wonderful arranger.”
  
  As to genre, Jackson and GRD span a range of material, but she herself describes the music as “horn-powered, blues, jump and swing, with a lot of energy. It’s something like Colin James, Roomful of Blues…”
  
  Jackson has honed her craft on stage with GRD as well as The Dutch Mason Blues Band, Joe Murphy & The Waterstreet Blues Band, A.J. & The Redhots, Theresa Malenfant, Frank Mackay & The Lincolns, Glamour Puss Blues Band, The Twisters, and the annual Ladies in Blue concert in Halifax.
  
  “It’s quite the road we’ve travelled,” she said. “Year-round, we play pretty close to home so we can fit jobs in and tend to family, but in summer we get on the road and I’m really excited about some of these shows, especially in Sundre. I’ll be seeing people there I haven’t seen since high school.
  
  “I have two bands going (also the SideCats), and we’re quite busy all year. I’m living in a place I love and music is all around
  

• Cut The Rug at Poppa Mojo's with Nova Scotia's Good Rockin' Mama. [+ Show ]
  

  CUT THE RUG AT PAPA MOJO'S WITH NOVA SCOTIA'S GOOD ROCKIN' MAMA Maple Blues Award-winning sax pla...CUT THE RUG AT PAPA MOJO'S WITH
  NOVA SCOTIA'S
  GOOD ROCKIN' MAMA
  Maple Blues Award-winning sax player Shirley Jackson has no trouble getting people to move their feet. Now she's looking for people to introduce Nova Scotians to a new way to cut the rug – the Carolina Shag.
  Where better to look than the source?
  With a research grant from Nova Scotia's Tourism and Culture Department tucked in their horn cases, blues ambassadors Jackson and her trumpet player, Dave Harrison, will step off the plane and into Papa Mojo's Roadhouse in Durham, N.C., on Jan. 9. At 9:30 p.m., they will hit the stage, backed by some of the area's best jump/blues talent.
  Back home, Jackson fronts the seven-piece, jump/blues/swing band Shirley Jackson and Her Good Rockin' Daddys, their music harking back to the days when the horn was king of rock and blues. In the fine tradition of Beach music and reminiscent of Big Joe and the Dynaflows, the band's style is a perfect fit with the Carolina Shag.
  Jackson and Harrison will continue their research in North Myrtle Beach, S.C., taking in the Mid-winter SOS Dance Event. There they hope to connect with dancers and event organizers with an eye to organizing a Carolina Shag event in Halifax, Nova Scotia, this coming fall and generating more interest in similar live music/dance events.
  With several CDs nominated for Canada's East Coast Music Awards, the band was floored by the dance when visitors from the Carolinas strutted their stuff in a Halifax blues bar. Then, Jackson learned of the huge following the Carolina Shag has, that her music was getting airplay on Carolina radio stations, and that Shag fanatics dance to the style of music that she performs. All roads seemed to lead to the Carolinas to join forces with local musicians, dancers and event co-ordinators to implement a cross-border cultural exchange.
  Shirley Jackson & Her Good Rockin' Daddys recognize the support of the Province of Nova Scotia through the Department of Tourism, Culture & Heritage. We are pleased to work in partnership with the Culture Division to develop and promote our cultural resources for all Nova Scotians."
  
  

• Comfort Food CD Release [+ Show ]
  

  “I really, really like this record. It’s very stylized and swinging and has some really interesting ...“I really, really like this record. It’s very stylized and swinging and has some really interesting arrangements throughout as well as some killer playing. The horns are truly blissful and it’s neo-big band and very slick indeed. Great stuff!!! “-Eric Thom; Exclaim Magazine

• LA HORA DEL BLUES [+ Show ]
  

  BUENO. You already know Shirley Jackson as saxo player in the previous reviewed cd. Now she presents...BUENO. You already know Shirley Jackson as saxo player in the previous reviewed cd. Now she presents her first album recorded under her own name, perfectly backed by her usual band. Jackson tastefully combines Texas blues tradition with jump and swing music. The result is an excellent hot album. Gifted with an expressive powerful voice, Shirley blows like a real honker too, and besides she is surrounded by a bunch of great musicians who give the best of themselves to enhance this amazing very effective blues woman. Shirley Jackson has won a good number of musical awards and she is well known around west coast blues circles. She has also shared stage with great musicians such as Johnny Nitro, Steve Freund or Johnny Sansone among others. A great dose of energy and joy are guaranteed if you get a copy of this highly recommended cd that gives songs like ‘Good Rockin’ Daddy’ or ‘Ti Ni Nee Ni Un’, all them performed with Jackson’s own splendid amazing arrangements. GREAT.

• Summertime Jazz & Blues Festival [+ Show ]
  

  The band that got the crowd up and boogeying was Shirley Jackson & Her Good Rockin' Daddys. She's a...The band that got the crowd up and boogeying was Shirley Jackson & Her Good Rockin' Daddys. She's a real double threat with her tenor sax and alto voice that's just right for their cookin' Texas blues.
  
  

• Halifax Chronicle Herald [+ Show ]
  

  What better way to get the jump on the February blues- with the extension of the Maple Blues Awards ...What better way to get the jump on the February blues- with the extension of the Maple Blues Awards gala as Shirley Jackson & Her Good Rockin' Daddys storm the stage. Halifax gives the blues it's dues................it will be hopping with the sounds of Shirley Jackson & Her Good Rockin' Daddys. ............a good time to catch some sax-fueled R&B.

• Halifax Daily News [+ Show ]
  

  Out of the bullpen comes sax- blowin' Shirley Jackson & Her Good Rockin' Daddys (great name). Jackso...Out of the bullpen comes sax- blowin' Shirley Jackson & Her Good Rockin' Daddys (great name). Jackson is a versatile player; equally at ease laying down a shuffle beat behind the drum kit or handling vocal chores out front. Some of the most charismatic players on stage. This may be the only mother and son combo on the circuit. One way of keeping track of the kids, even if they’re hanging out in a smoky blues bar.
  
  

• Regarding the Toronto Maple Blues Awards, 2003 [+ Show ]
  

  I think one of the finest moments of my Monday night was getting the opportunity to meet you. I got ...I think one of the finest moments of my Monday night was getting the opportunity to meet you. I got the impression that just being there was a rush for you. But when your name was called as the winner, the look on your face was priceless as you walked up to the podium. Congratulations on your night Shirley and I look forward to seeing you again.

• Blewzzman CD Review [+ Show ]
  

  Are you planning on taking a blues excursion this year? Thinking about possible regions to visit on ...Are you planning on taking a blues excursion this year? Thinking about possible regions to visit on the trip? Sure ya gotta consider Memphis, New Orleans and the rest of the Delta area. Texas and Los Angeles are two more red hot blues spots. Then of course ya got Chicago and the Detroit scene. Maybe you should even consider crossing the boarder. No, not that boarder, the other one. Some of the hottest blues in the past few years has been coming to us from the North, and SHIRLEY JACKSON & HER GOOD ROCKIN' DADDY'S - another excellent blues band from Canada - are obviously musically equipped to see to it that it keeps on coming.
  
  On "CAREFUL WHAT YOU ASK FOR", her new CD which features 8 original tracks, SHIRLEY JACKSON has quite an entourage of talented musicians whom she refers to as her GOOD ROCKIN' DADDY'S. Joining SHIRLEY who sings, plays tenor sax and acoustic guitar are: BRAD CONRAD, DAN DUFOR, JOHN LYMAN and DAVE MacISSAC, all on various guitars; BARRY COOKE, on keyboards; GARRY POTTS, on drums; MORROW SCOTT-BROWN and JEFF WIRCHENKO, on bass; JOE MURPHY and PHIL POTVIN, on harmonica; DAWN HATFIELD, on baritone sax; LAYNE FRANCIS, tenor sax.
  
  The CD opens with the title track, an original called, "CAREFUL WHAT YOU ASK FOR", which features some real hot harmonica and piano playing. This number puts the band into a groove that they stay in right through the next few cover tracks - "I WANT YOU TO BE MY BABY", "TE NI NEE NI NU" and "SO GOOD TO MY BABY" - all of which feature outstanding sax and piano playing.
  
  Two other excellent originals, DON'T COME AROUND HERE" - a real shaker, and "IT'S RAINING" - a very nice ballad, both featured some excellent guitar and sax work. A third original, a very retro sounding "MILLION DOLLAR HEART" features a great bass sound and some excellent steel pedal guitar.
  
  "CAREFUL WHAT YOU ASK FOR" is an all around excellent CD. Besides being impressed with the complete production and arrangements of this CD, there were several individual musicians who seemed to impress me with their excellence. Those being both Harp players, PHIL POTVIN and JOE MURPHY; The piano player BARRY COOKE; DAWN HATFIELD on the baritone sax; And on the tenor sax, SHIRLEY JACKSON who clearly shows her worthiness of winning the Toronto Maple Blues Award for Best Horn Player of the Year - 2003.
  
  

• Blues On Stage CD Review [+ Show ]
  

  Canada is a huge country with a relatively sparse population (compared to the U.S., anyway). As a re...Canada is a huge country with a relatively sparse population (compared to the U.S., anyway). As a result we're a nation of many musical pockets. Touring is rather impractical when the next gig is hundreds of miles away, so it's absolutely essential for a band to put a CD together.
  That's not to say that a recording will automatically transform a regional act into international superstars. But in the case of Shirley Jackson & Her Good Rockin' Daddys, who hail from Halifax down on Canada's east coast, the release of "Careful What You Ask For" ought to significantly expand their local reputation as a first-rate ensemble, easily the equal of most on the scene.
  
  The Good Rockin' Daddys seem an unpretentious bunch; throughout the disc's fourteen tracks (eight of 'em Shirley originals), they offer offering solid if unspectacular support, always keeping solos short and to the point. Special mention goes to drummer Gary Potts, who utterly nails that behind-the-beat Texas shuffle sound, infinitely more difficult to achieve than it sounds. Guest harmonicists Joe Murphy and Phil Potvin add significantly to the project's success, both understanding the harp's place in the pantheon, offering rhythmic underpinning here, squalling blasts there, all nicely textured.
  
  As a writer Shirley displays both a fine lyric sensibility and a comfortable grasp of just about every style of blues extant, from jazzy jump to swamp-pop to western swing. (The disc's closer, a bittersweet ballad called "I Believe," is quite simply beautiful). Again there's nothing startling, nothing likely to alter one's worldview, but everything's done with good taste and confident competence, and she clearly knows how to construct a catchy chorus.
  
  The disc's lone problem is something of a backward one; Shirley's almost too much of a singer for some - not all, mind - of the material. On the swinging, jazzier numbers she's fine - check out how sultry she sounds on "Million Dollar Heart," how sassy her take is on "Ooh Poppa Do" - and she handles the two tracks that venture into western swing territory with aplomb. But on the more straightforward twelve-bar stuff her phrasing occasionally comes across as a little exaggerated, when a more direct, more declamatory style would work better. As a result some lines seem unduly stretched. Sometimes simple is best.
  
  That said, there's much to like here. Production is well nigh perfect, playing is fine (minor imperfections that might have been glossed over with a bigger budget actually add to the disc's success; there's an appealing, live-in-the-studio feel throughout), material is varied and well paced, remaining largely on the upbeat side. And that intangible quality, that the band is having fun, comes through loud and clear. Shirley merely needs to sort through her songs a little more, stick with material suited to her singing style, where a purr is appropriate rather than the growl she simply can't quite muster.
  
  All in all a fine effort by a talent who should become better known.
  
  

Setlist

*(Shirley Jackson)

Stop, Look & Listen*
When The Money's All Gone*
The Best I Ever Had*
River Of Dust*
Jack's Beanstalk*
Over A Lifetime*
Careful What You Ask For*
No Compromise*
Can You Hear Me*
Cardiac Arrest*
Comfort Food*
Million Dollar Heart*
Three Things Worth Doin’*
Don’t Come Around Here*
I Believed*
Losin’ Faith*
I Feel For You*
One Way Thinking*
King's Stomp
I'm On a Bender
Sad Nite Owl
Tuff
Steppin'
Purple Wall
Chicken Scratch
Cleo's Mood
Hot Cha
The Bump
Can't Stand Up
Going to California
Yo Yo Baby
Stubzilla
Funky Head
Soul Bender
Lowe Groove
Cool Dude
Mishnock Rock
Skankin'
Swinging With Lester
Rock-bye-basie
Tailgator Jump
Good Rockin” Daddy
Teenanenanu
You Can Have My Husband
I Want You To Be My Baby
Just Your Fool
Reelin’& Rockin’
It’s Rainin’
So Good To My Baby
Sugar Coated Love
Lose Your Good Thing
Steppin'
Ooh Poppa Do
Tell Me The Truth
Steppin’ Out
Hit It
Chicken Shack
Mambo
Don’t Lose Your Cool
Summertime
Tenor Madness
Skiddy Wo
He’s Trouble
Barking up the Wrong Tree
Soul Searching
Banana Oil

Basic Requirements

Calendar