Vanessa Collier - Meeting My Shadow (2017)

→ Thanks to L.C.

The lady with the saxophone

A few years ago, recalling one of his past performances, a blues giant told : “There’s a young lady came onstage with me, I forget where it was, but she’s playing an alto saxophone, and man, she was amazing !” The bluesman is Buddy Guy, the young lady is Philadelphia-based vocalist, saxophonist and songwriter Vanessa Collier, and the performance was on the Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise (LRBC) #29 in 2017.

With Willie Nelson

Born in Dallas, Texas, but grown up in Maryland, Collier discovered saxophone around the age of 9. After high school, where she played basketball for four years in the school team, she earned a scholarship to attend the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston where she had the opportunity to play with visiting artists such as Annie Lennox and Willie Nelson, while being taught to overcome her natural shyness when performing live.

On tour with J.L. Walker

During her last year at Berklee, before even graduating (dual degrees in Performance, and Music Production & Engineering), she joined the Joe Louis Walker band, and followed him during almost two years on his US and international tour. “With him I found blues again. I wanted to root my career in it”, she confessed later.

Collier issued her debut album, “Heart Soul & Saxophone”, in 2014. “Meeting My Shadow” followed in 2017. In the next half decade, she was nominated for eight Blues Music Awards and won two in 2019, one in 2020 and a fourth one in 2022 !

Collier's blend of funk, soul, rock, R'n'B, blues and pinches of jazz, her playing a wide range of instruments from flute to organ, her soul-drenched vocals, witty songwriting and searing saxophone are the trademarks of her powerful and downright personal style.

Charles Hodge

On this second album, she plays eight original compositions, and three covers of U2's "When Love Comes to Town" (written by Adam Clayton, David Evans, Laurence Mullen and Paul David Hewson), Deadric Malone's "You're Gonna Make Me Cry" (1), and Sister Rosetta Tharpe's "Up Above My Head, I Hear Music in the Air".

She is surrounded by an impressive casting of talented musicians (read below), in particular Charles Hodge on keyboards, and Laura Chavez, former guitarist of the late Candye Kane (1961-2016).

The interesting thing is that this is not a saxophone album in the sense that the songs are not built at the exclusive service of the instrument, but on the contrary Collier's saxes are at the service of the music she writes (or covers) and sings. Her solos, smooth, frisky or sometimes appealingly unpredictable, are not overwhelmingly and unnecessarily invasive. They come naturally when and where they're supposed to come, and in reasonable quantity. This allows them to stand out much better.

Dueling with Laura Chavez

In addition to Collier's passionate vocals, this efficient and intelligent musical conception gives the album its attractiveness.
Track by track express review.
→ “Poisoned The Well” : wah wah plugged keyboard intro for a slow funky blues number.
→ “Dig A Little Deeper” : exciting swinging R'n'B featuring excellent sax, one of the stand-out tracks of the album.
→ “When It Don't Come Easy” : an authentic blues enhanced by Collier's “shuitar”, a strange percussion instrument made out of a guitar (2), and Josh Roberts' fine slide guitar.
→ “Two Parts Sugar, One Part Lime” : a straight lively rock'n'roll stand-out with fine piano by Hodges and sax from the lady.
→ “When Love Comes To Town” : a rocking blues piece with Chavez on resonator guitar and superb work of Roberts on slide.
→ “You're Gonna Make Me Cry” : slow slow slow, soul soul soul, nice guitar from Chavez, gutsy vocals by Collier, and no sax !
→ “Whiskey And Women” : lively pounding blues, flawless guitar from Chavez again. A highlight of Collier's concerts.
→ “Meet Me Where I'm At” : retro barrel-house blues with a fine Hodges on piano, rhythmic breaks, horns and sax solo.
→ “Cry Out” : funky R'n'B with rebellious lyrics.
→ “Up Above My Head, I Hear Music In The Air” : a rocking and rolling country-flavored version of Sister Rosetta Tharpe's gospel.
→ “Devil's On The Downslide” : another slow gospel-fueled soul title with churchy organ from Hodges.

In fact, on this album varied in style, Collier sounds like she's found her real passion, as much thrilled if not more by singing the songs she wrote for the most part than by playing her saxophones. ■

(1) Deadric Malone : pseudo of Houston native Don Robey (1903-1975), owner of the Duke/Peacock family labels, producer, songwriter and altogether businessman, famous for increasing his income by imposing his name as co-author of songs of which he often didn't write a single word or note !

(2) Jano Rix of the Wood Brothers explains the “shuitar” : https://youtu.be/RbxMQ6Uve58

● The Line-up

Hodges

→ Vanessa Collier : alto, soprano & tenor saxophones, vocals, backing vocals, organ (#2), Wurlitzer piano (#3,11), shuitar (#3), and on #1 : flute, Rhodes and Wurlitzer pianos, clavinet, percussion;
→ Charles Hodges : clavinet (#3,9), organ (#3,9,10,11), piano (#4,8,10), Wurlitzer piano (#9);
→ Brenda Jackson : organ (#6);
→ Laura Chavez : guitar, resonator guitar;

→ Josh Roberts : slide guitar (#3,5);

Collier and Chavez

→ Mark Franklin : trumpet, flugelhorn, and horn arrangements on #2 & 8;
→ Daniel McKee, Lenny Bradford (#1) : bass;
→ TK Jackson : drums & percussion, organ (#5), backing vocals (#6,10);
→ Nicholas Stevens : drums (#1).

● Discography (with Audio Playlists)
→ Heart Soul & Saxophone, (2014, Phenix Fire Records) : https://youtu.be/-BdfQRZW6yU?list=OLAK5uy_kh5Uc8dacJaZOT2U3j0ZlmEbTS9FzYXs8
→ Meeting My Shadow (2017, Ruf Records) : https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLvxWibFr0wiKW3hKuEO-UKxS4FeqWEXIb
→ Blues Caravan 2017, with Big Daddy Wilson and Simon Cranstoun (2018, Ruf Records) : https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_lF4exdmDp1k0buS0aHoxx4iyE4lr5d0C8
→ Honey Up (2018, Phenix) : https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLu4OGZjA_4RD3icfeZe739BQyMjuAZUu3
→ Heart on the Line (2020, Phenix) : https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_NB_Btk5gPBSjggy6YXd4ZsghwBLdZRe
→ Live at Power Station, recorded in front of an audience at the Power Station studio (2022, Phenix) : https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_l7JcUaBr8owj2obeE0VjQag0-dzLUPiA0


Videos

With Mr Sipp, "Kingfish" Ingram & Buddy Guy

► The Long Island Blues Warehouse, NY, 2014 : https://youtu.be/d4TQuxajFwI?t=91
► St. Georges Blues Festival, Delaware City, DE, 2016 : https://youtu.be/aWb2oIe-VHU
► LRBC #29, 2017 :
→ With Buddy Guy, Christone "Kingfish" Ingram, Mr Sipp & Markus King : https://youtu.be/95n1IKiZyhY
→ “Whiskey and Women” with Tommy Castro : https://youtu.be/koKz3EuZ52Q
► Gloucester Blues Festival, MA, 2017 : https://youtu.be/WkXbzBlPCxs
► WMNF Live Music Showcase, 2017 : https://youtu.be/Lg3a_6W7wtA?t=54
► Blues Cruisin' Lunch, 2018 : https://youtu.be/HYgQ3Bc0_HQ
► 118 North, Wayne, PA, 2019 : https://youtu.be/dXn4nnhy7gE
► ChesLen Preserve, Coatesville, PA, 2019 : https://youtu.be/xkZngQ_ZUYY
► World Cafe Live, Philadelphia, PA, 2019 : https://youtu.be/qKclZCiwaNg
► Steel Stacks, Bethlehem, PA, 2019 : https://youtu.be/gZAcZh8tbK4
► The Bull Run Restaurant, Shirley, MA, 2019 : https://youtu.be/1Z92SS6_-DY
► Intrepid Artist International's 25th Anniversary celebration, Charlotte, NC, 2019 : https://youtu.be/_lgv6sQRXtU
► LRBC #34, 2020 : https://youtu.be/Tf04JeUxnI0
► With Laura Chavez, 9 Wallis Club, Beverly, MA, 2020 : https://youtu.be/1hLe-uHVo-U
► Daryl's House Club, Pawling, NY, 1921 : https://youtu.be/hUjPv2sf09Q
► Ardmore Music Hall, Ardmore, PA, 2021 : https://youtu.be/AnIBS2geJCM
► South Park Amphitheater, South Park, PA, 2022 : https://youtu.be/Hc8WjOgmU9s
► Colorado Springs, CO, 2022 : https://youtu.be/grP-77vR7lQ
► Jazz & Blues Festival, Rio Das Ostras, Brazil, 2023 : https://youtu.be/Ow_FTehIpWM?t=721
► Sam's Burger Joint Music Hall, San Antonio, TX, 2023 : https://youtu.be/_25hD11H0wI