Laurence Dollimore
AFTER 26 years, 11 albums and countless blistering shows, the Juke Joints have succeeded in stretching their limits with undoubtedly their best and most diverse album yet, Heart on Fire.
When Juke Joints leadsinger/drummer Peter Kempe visited the 2008 Chicago Blues Festival, he was so impressed with Eddy “The Chief” Clearwater’s performance, he simply had to have a word with him after his show.
This resulted in an invitation to their Kwadendamme Blues Festival in 2009. Eddy fired on all cylinders and The Juke Joints excelled as his backing band. It led to more shows around Europe and the determination to record together.
The contact with Eddy Clearwater opened up the doors to the legendary Stax studio and in June 2010 they made the long-awaited trip to the home of the blues, Chicago.
They recorded what surely must be their magnum opus, with a collection of songs that includes plenty of the high energy rhythm ‘n’ blues, shuffles and boogies that have earned them so much praise.
Stand out tracks include Stax Sound, which has that inimitable Stax soul groove that Peter Kempe experienced when visiting the legendary Stax studio. Guitarist Michel Staat shows his wizardry in the enthralling slow blues Bad Bad Feeling and Strollin’ Down Lincoln Av. is a jazzy instrumental, highlighting Sonnyboy van den Broek’s awesome talents on the harp.
The highly diverse album is to be released worldwide and should win The Juke Joints global recognition as one of the most energetic rock rollin’ blues bands around. You can catch the band at Rock on the Rock in Gibraltar on February 3 and at the Louie Louie bar in Estepona February 4.
