Peter "Blewzzman" Lauro CD Review
[+ Show ]
Bobby "BlackHat" Walters
"You Changed Your Mind Again"
G.E.M.S. Recording and Production
BY PET...Bobby "BlackHat" Walters
"You Changed Your Mind Again"
G.E.M.S. Recording and Production
BY PETER "BLEWZZMAN" LAURO, © April 2008
Now before I even get started here, let me say a word to all of the married men that may read this review. Although you may find this hard to believe, when BOBBY "BLACKHAT" WALTERS wrote "YOU CHANGED YOUR MIND AGAIN", it wasn't only "your" wife he was writing about. Mrs. Blewzzman, as well as all of our wives, will attest to that. Can I get an "Amen" on that?
One of the things I love most about what I do here is the fact that I am constantly getting introduced to new musicians from all over the world. Musicians, who perhaps, I possibly may never have had the pleasure of listening to their wonderful music. Those incredibly good local or regional players who - due to the business being so tough - may never get well known outside of their own environment. BOBBY "BLACKHAT" WALTERS is one of those musicians.
Having served over twenty-six years in the Coast Guard - to which I tip my hat and say "Thank You Bobby" - BOBBY "BLACKHAT" WALTERS is now ready to make his mark on the blues scene, and for us fanatics - that's a good thing. On his first CD, "YOU CHANGED YOUR MIND AGAIN", BOBBY, on harp and vocals, is joined by LARRY BERWALD & MARK HOPKINS on guitar, VON JOSE` ROBERTS on bass, MARTY GERMAIN on drums, TOMMY FISHER on keyboards and JACKIE SCOTT on vocals.
On the title track,"YOU CHANGED YOUR MIND AGAIN", BOBBY offers his male listeners some very good advice by warning us all that "It's a woman's prerogative to have a change of mind, and that all a man can do is hang on for the ride". I'm hangin' Bobby. This is a hot shuffle featuring outstanding vocals and some sharp harp from BOBBY, all while being backed up with great rhythm from VON & MARTY. A very good first impression.
BOBBY seems to be fond of a particular pair, as he tells his lady "PUT ON YOUR RED SHOES". How quickly he forgets. After she does put on the red shoes, she'll probably change her mind and switch to the green ones and then change her mind again and switch to the yellow ones. More smooth stuff from BOBBY, good guitar work and some sexy vocals by JACKIE highlight this one.
Ya just gotta love a musician who can turn nursery rhymes into a song that makes you want to get up and dance. That's exactly what BOBBY does on the "NURSERY RHYME SHUFFLE". I've never, ever heard E...I...E...I...O sound so damn G...O...O...D. Get ready to boogie on this one - the band certainly did.
"I HEAR MAMA'S VOICE" is unquestionably the bluest track of all. The scorching guitar riffs, the smoking harp and the melancholy sounding vocals all come perfectly together on what I'm calling the discs best track.
Other tracks on "YOU CHANGED YOUR MIND AGAIN", which consists of mostly original stuff, are: "HELP ME", "NO ROOM FOR YOU", "PLEASE GIVE ME A CLUE", "OUT LATE WITH THE DEVIL" and "GRIM REAPER".
If you like stepping outside the box and venture listening to someone new, check out BOBBY "BLACKHAT" WALTERS. I'm betting my reputation that you'll be glad you did. You can visit him - and purchase a CD - by going to www.bobbyblackhat.com. And please, make sure ya tell him the Blewzzman sent ya.
USJFCOM employee to showcase talent in Memphis
[+ Show ]
A USJFCOM civilian employee, Robert “Bobby Blackhat” Walters, will showcase his musical talent in th...A USJFCOM civilian employee, Robert “Bobby Blackhat” Walters, will showcase his musical talent in the 24th International Blues Challenge in Memphis, Tenn., which begins Jan. 31. MCC(SW/AW) Chris Hoffpauir has the story.
Narrated by MCC(SW/AW) Chris Hoffpauir, USJFCOM Public Affairs
Featuring: Robert "Bobby Blackhat" Walters, USJFCOM Strategy and Policy Directorate.
Hoffpauir:
Robert Walters is a civilian employee of U.S. Joint Forces Command by day, but on his own time he’s Bobby Blackhat – blues harmonica player, vocalist, and songwriter.
Walters:
I told my wife that when I was going to have my mid-life crisis I was going to buy a red Corvette. And then I kind of got to going with this and said “well, maybe I’ll just become a bluesman.”
She said “that’s OK. That’s a lot cheaper than a Corvette!”
Hoffpauir:
Walters and musical partner, guitarist Larry Berwald, won the solo/duo category at the Natchel’ Blues Network Battle of the Bands competition in Virginia Beach, Va., in October, earning them entry into the 24th International Blues Challenge in Memphis, Tenn., which begins Jan. 31.
The International Blues Challenge is a contest that gives unsigned blues talent from around the world a chance for exposure.
Walters is a relative newcomer to live performance, though his interest in music goes back to 1972.
Walters:
In Cleveland, Ohio, I’d gone to see War at a theater there and Lee Oscar was the harmonica player, and I really just fell in love with the sound – the way he was playing.
We had a music store not far from the university, saw these harmonicas and said OK, I’ll buy a harmonica. Bought a couple – didn’t know what they did, what the keys were, I just bought ‘em. And from about that time on I always had ‘em around, but I didn't know how to play 'em. I could probably play Home on the Range, and that was about as fancy as I got.
Hoffpauir:
Before Walters began his work as a bluesman, he served his country as a career Coast Guard officer. Walters was a “mustang” – an officer who rose from the enlisted ranks. He was a chief hospital corpsman before he received his commission through officer candidate school and retired as a commander in 2003.
He played for his own entertainment for 30 years, until a friend convinced him to take the plunge into performing at an open mic night in 2002.
Walters:
A friend of mine was in a band here, a local band, and he invited my wife and I out to hear the band. They had a harmonica player, and this guy was really good. During one of the breaks I just kind of started chatting with him, saying “I love the harmonica and I wish I could play, and I’ve had one all these years.”
He said “well, if you’ve had one all these years you probably can play.”
He said “why don’t you bring it out sometime and let me hear what you can do and I’ll give you some tips.” So I did that.
About a week later I got together with him and we went out and he listened to me play. He said “you sound OK. You just need to start thinking about it in terms of actually playing it, as opposed to playing at it and just start playing it.”
Then the other friend in the band said “why don’t you come out to an open mic,” which is essentially just an open forum where people come in and they just kind of jam. He said “bring your harmonicas along and see what happens.”
So we get to this place and he’s up there on stage – he’s having a good time and he’s just singing – and all of a sudden he says “I’m going to bring my friend up here.”
He literally drug me up on the stage, stuck me in front of a microphone while the band is playing. And I had absolutely no clue what I was doing. I mean none.
I had never been on a stage to play a harmonica like that. I had no clue, anything about blues riffs or anything else. I was just on stage and he stuck this microphone in front of me, and so I said “OK.” I just kind of tooted – I mean literally found a spot and went ‘toot-toot,’ you know, just enough to be heard but not enough to be heard.
Everything was going great and I thought I was getting along, and he said “OK Bob take it away!” and threw me this solo. I’m like “oh-no.” I was literally like a deer in the headlights – I just froze right there.
The band kept giving me a little “come on, come on, come on,” so I just tooted a little more, you know, and got through 12 bars of that and they said “alright” and everybody clapped, and I sat down, just like whoa, I’ll never do that again.
But then the bug hit me. At that point I was hooked.
Hoffpauir:
Since then Walters has been a fixture in the local blues scene. As part of the Black Rose Blues Band he’s opened for a variety of acts, including blues legends B.B. King, Taj Mahal, and Steady Rollin’ Bob Margolin.
Walters:
Once I left the Black Rose Blues Band I pretty much went into a freelance mode. I play with a lot of other bands. I sit in with bands all the time. I play with enough people, and I know just about all the blues musicians in the area, so I can generally put out a call and get together a pretty good band on short notice.
On any given day, as long as you don’t get to far a field, I can bring together a group of good musicians and we can do two or three sets and never rehearse a day – just walk up on stage and play. Because these guys know it all, know what they’re doing – they know the basics. And we stick to the basics so we play.
These folks have so much passion and so much feel for the music. In blues, with the exception of bands that stay together, you really don’t hear a song played exactly the same way twice if you really have a good band with a good groove. A note for note repetition of a song is one thing, but really when the feeling hits you, you never know what’s going to go. And that’s what I like about it.
Hoffpauir:
In addition to winning the battle of the bands competition, Walters released his first self-produced CD, You Changed Your Mind Again, in October. In addition to selling the CDs at his performances, it’s available on several popular Internet music download sites.
Walters:
We did the recording in a home studio here. Going into a studio can be a rather expensive proposition. A friend of mine built a studio in her home and she invited us to come over and use it for this project.
We were experimenting all the way through, so if I had to do it again I would do some things differently, but overall I was real happy with the quality we got under the circumstances.
We had some great guys who came in and we just kind of plugged our way through it and got it done in about four or five hours, and then about another four days – five days of trying to mix it all together. That was a fun project. I’m trying to come up with another set of songs for another CD.
Hoffpauir:
He entered four songs from the CD in the 2007 International Songwriting Competition. One of his songs made it to the second round of judging in the 2006 contest.
Walters:
In January we head off to Memphis. I’m not going there with any illusions of grandeur or anything. I’m going there for a great experience, to learn and network and listen.
Who knows, maybe somebody will want to buy one of my songs and put it on their album, which would be a real blast.
That was one of the primary reasons for cutting the CD, was just a way to promote the music and get it out there. I’ve had a couple of folks that have heard it and have asked about possibly doing a couple of songs, so that’s good. We’ll see where it leads.
Hoffpauir:
For more information on U.S. Joint Forces Command, visit us on the Web at www.jfcom.mil.
For U.S. Joint Forces Command, I’m Chief Petty Officer Chris Hoffpauir.
