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Corey Stevens
 Albertville
Ruf Records (RUF 1125)
Review Date: March 2007
www.rufrecords.de
www.coreystevens.com
by Ray Stiles

The new Corey Stevens arrived recently and without looking at the CD liner notes or the accompanying press material I simply plopped the CD in my computer’s CD ROM and loaded it on my iPod. I listened to the CD the next morning and recognized something interesting. I said to my self, “this sounds like Albert King.” Then it dawned on me, the album’s name was Albertville. That should have been a give away there.

Now I live in Minnesota so I am familiar with the small town of Albertville, located on Highway 94 heading up towards St. Cloud from the Twin Cities. And I knew Corey has a strong connection with Minnesota, touring here often to a very loyal fan base as well has having his management and booking companies located here. In fact, I first met him and saw him perform here nearly a decade ago after Blue Drops of Rain came out. I think, if I remember right, that was at one of those crowded Cabooze Bar nights where people were packed in wall to wall.

So it does turn out that this album is a tribute to Albert King and all but one of the songs are tunes either written or recorded by Albert King. And as Corey states, King was one of his early musical inspirations and idols so it was appropriate for him to do this album and dedicate it to King. It came about while Stevens on tour in Minnesota a while back and passed through the small town of Albertville where the seed was first planted on doing this album.

Nice coincidence. And lucky for us that road trip took Corey through Albertville. There is a tastefulness on guitar here that I don’t get to hear as often as I would like by guys who can play the heck out of a guitar. Corey, drawing on the inspiration of King, shows a reserved pace on guitar (sometimes underplaying) that was an enjoyable experience to listen to. And the accompanying support on some tracks, of keys and horns, added a very nice touch that we don’t often get to hear from him.

Corey is always fun to watch and listen to playing live and this new album is a very nice addition to his discography. Recommended.

 

 

Corey Stevens
Albertville
Ruf Records

Corey Stevens

Albert King is one of the three great Kings of the blues, and if he's not one of the most influential blues guitarists, his powerful string-bending attack is certainly one of the most imitated. Such highly respected guitarists as Jimi Hendrix, Otis Rush, Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and Carl Weathersby all based at least part of their guitar style heavily on King's muscular approach.

Corey Stevens has long been compared to Stevie Ray Vaughan, but in fact he, like Vaughan, was influenced by Albert King and had even covered "Crosscut Saw" and "I'll Play The Blues For You” on his first album. It's appropriate that he pay tribute to one of his musical inspirations with Albertville, his first release on Ruf Records.

Stevens' previous releases have proved that he is a gifted composer as well as guitarist and singer who has branched out far beyond the early SRV comparisons, but Albertville is a change for Stevens, who usually writes his own material for his albums. This time around, he features nine songs either written or covered by King, but does slip in one original composition, "Another Pretty Face," a clever song that fits in perfectly with the cover tunes.

While there are faithful versions of several of King's classic songs that will be familiar to even casual fans ("Breaking Up Somebody's Home," "Cold Women With Warm Hearts," "I Get Evil," and "Got To Be Some Changes Made"), Stevens wisely chooses some of King's more obscure songs as well. These tracks, while not as well known as others, are an excellent representation of King's overall style, and include "A Real Good Sign," a standout with its punchy horns, "That's What The Blues Is All About," and the funky "Little Brother (Make A Way)."

Stevens plays these songs in King's style, but is more reverential than derivative. He never overdoes it, opting for a crisper, cleaner style. Vocally, he's always resembled Vaughan somewhat, but has gradually developed his own distinctive voice over time and does a great job on this disc. The band, which includes former AWB and Clapton drummer Steve Ferrone, is top-notch.

Corey Stevens continues to amaze and impress with the depth and breadth of his talent on every release. Albertville is a wonderful tribute to one of the blues' biggest stars, by an artist who has learned his lessons well.

--- Graham Clarke
http://www.bluenight.com/BluesBytes/ph0307.html

 


ALBERTVILLE available in stores February 20th 2007

CD Review: Albertville - Corey Stevens  (March 03, 2007)
Music, Video and Concert Reviews
 Modern Guitars Magazine Column by Brian D. Holland

Albertville, by Illinois born and bred guitarist Corey Stevens, is an interesting CD for numerous reasons. Though the title is a dead giveaway of what to expect, I wouldn’t brush Stevens off as being just another white boy forging Albert King licks. Besides the fact that it’s a CD of Albert King covers (and songs Albert King often covered) done strictly on purpose, there’s something different about the manner in which Corey Stevens goes about playing in the style of the great blues icon.

The album’s opener, ‘A Real Good Sign’, is a catchy and beguiling tune. It’s a perfect choice for those who haven’t yet had the pleasure to hear the music of Corey Stevens and his four previous CDs. However, though he has covered King’s music in the past, keep in mind that much of Corey’s previous material is more contemporary in style than this tribute CD. His technique here is a lot of Albert, in tone, licks, and phrasing. And I mean that in a good way. Over the past quarter of a century, blues and blues-rock fans have been exposed to more than enough Albert forgers and copiers. Sometimes this is okay, in my opinion, just as long as they add their own thing to it. After all, there’s no sense in a guitarist hiding his most profound influences and never letting them shine. That said, it’s the actual ‘clones’ who have a tendency to annoy listeners, the ones who don’t add much of their own style into the mix.

Corey seems to break all the rules here. If you forget, or don’t realize, that Albertville is a tribute CD to Albert King, he can appear a clone at times. However, he does it in an original manner that many players don’t have the patience for. Corey’s playing does the late bluesman justice with respect and restraint. In other words, he doesn’t embellish himself in the areas of volume, tone, and substance. His playing style is very practical, in a mode that even King himself would enjoy. In fact, I wouldn’t mind hearing Corey play like this all of the time. Adding to the ambiance is his gruff and mannish vocal resonance in songs like King’s ‘There’s Got To Be Some Changes Made’, and ‘I Get Evil’. He sometimes evokes vibes of Stevie Ray and Eric Clapton, and I mean that in a good way as well. It’s like a breath of fresh air. His cover of Jerry Strickland’s ‘That’s What The Blues Is All About’ is all that and more. The driving, rhythmic song must be heard to be appreciated. His own composition, ‘Another Pretty Face’, sits beside these classic blues songs nicely.

For fans of Corey Stevens and Albert King, and for those who don’t mind hearing that unforgettable guitar style replicated once again through the fingers of a young player, and also for those like myself who welcome it, Albertville is a refreshing tribute and an excellent Corey Stevens offering.

 

Leap In The Dark

Music Review: Corey Stevens Albertville

I have to admit that even after who knows how many
years of listening to pop music I still haven't
overcome a prejudice. Put a single white guy on the
cover of a disc with a guitar and call it blues and all I
can think is – great another guitar hero, just what the
world needs.

Patently unfair and completely without any sort of
basis in fact, it means a disc with that type of cover is
going to have to do something special right from the
first song in order to catch my attention. So when
Corey Stevens' latest disc Albertville showed up and had a picture of a guy leaning on his guitar on the cover
well let's just say I had concerns.

Reading his biography made me feel a litter better. He's been playing on the road for the
last ten years, including a stint touring with the ultimate in Classic Rock bands Z.Z
Top (one of the few times I'll go along with the strange way you Americans have of
saying that letter – Zed Zed Top just wouldn't cut it) and Lynard Skynyrd.

This means he's knocked around a bit and won't have many illusions left, so if he's still
playing it's' because he really loves the music. The other thing that captured my eye was
his decision a couple years back to record an album of acoustic blues as a break from the
electric blues/rock stuff he'd been playing for the prior ten years. To me that showed he
was also a guy who was willing to take risks musically, which meant there was a good
chance it wouldn't be the same old boring songs as an excuse for guitar solo stuff
you hear you so often.

Finally there was the name of the disc,
Albertville, and the fact that it was a tribute
to one of my all time favorite blues playersCorey Stevens.jpg
Albert King that made it really catch my
attention. I had actually seen an
advertisement for it and been curious as to
how it sounded even before I received a
copy from Corey's new label Ruf Records of
Germany.

Hoping the title track, "A Real Good Sign" would be, I slipped it in and hadn't realized I'd
been holding my breath until I released it with the first sound of horns after three or four
bars. That's when I knew I was safe – it wasn't another guitar hero album, it was a Blues
album that I could settle back and enjoy without any worry about somebody's ego getting
in the way of the music.

That's what great about this album, and something that is becoming harder and harder
to find, is that you can just settle back and enjoy listening to somebody playing and loving
every second. Stevens seems to remember that's its called playing for a reason and enjoys
himself. It could be the six hundredth take for all we know but he is having so much fun
and playing every note that even if you were in the studio you wouldn't be able to tell.

What I liked about this tribute album was not only is there material written by King on
the disc, but also tracks that he was famous for playing and that Corey included one of his
own songs that showed King's influence on his playing style. Corey's track, "Another
Pretty Face", blends in perfectly with all the other material on the disc, not because it's
derivative or imitative, but because it is played and written in the same spirit as the other
music. Being influenced by does not mean copying, it means absorbing what the other
person did and incorporating into what you do.

Albertville is also a lot of fun to listen to because of Corey's willingness to play
with different styles and to not just spotlight his own talents. His use of the two horn players
for emphasis on songs, the Hammond organ pulsating in the background, and letting a
well played base line march to the front of the mix, all contribute to making the disc as a
whole a far more diverse and interesting presentation then similar solo projects.

Of course the choice of material doesn't hurt either, from a nicely slowed down version of
the Carl Perkins classic "Blue Suede Shoes", the fun of "I Get Evil" and the funkiness of
"Little Brother (Make Way)" Corey Stevens has put together a collection of music that
shows of his talents to their best. From his stripped down bare bones guitar playing with
never a wasted note to his raunchy voice, trying to picture him singing anything but this
type of material is next to impossible.

Before his death in 1992 Albert King had influenced a number of rock guitar players,
among them Jimi Hendrix. Almost forty years after his death what I remember most about
Jimi was not his pyrotechnics (literally and figuratively) but the blues he began
giving more focus to near the end of his life. Sure he was spectacularly fast
and flamboyant. But he could also play a sparser and neater style when called for by the song.

Like all decent performers he allowed himself to be a conduit through which the music
could pass untouched by his ego to the waiting listener. Even in the case when the
material was something he'd written Hendrix realized the song was more important then
he was. Guitar players are a-dime-a-dozen, but the men and women who can interpret a
song with respect are few and far between.

Corey Stevens shows himself on Albertville to be more then just a guitar player. He can
take a song and coax it to life with an interpretation that might be his own, but still
respects the original material. Listening to Albertville is listening to a collection of songs,
not guitar solo's masquerading as music. Corey Stevens may be a guitar player, but he's a
musician first, and he definitely proves it on his latest release.

Posted by Richard Marcus on February 22, 2007 04:20 AM
 http://blogs.epicindia.com/leapinthedark

 

This interview with Corey was by Jim Davenport and took place late last year. For the full interview visit Jim’s web site: http://classicrockrevival.cjb.net


JD: When I contacted you about doing this interview you said, you had just finished recording a new album, "ALBERTVILLE", and it had to be turned in by Friday. Can you tell us a bit about "ALBERTVILLE"?

CS: Albertville is my new album that will be in the stores in mid February on Ruf Records. It has one original called Another Pretty Face and 9 Albert King covers, two of which Albert wrote. I went for the more obscure deep tracks.

 

JD: What made you decide to do an album of Albert King tunes?

CS: I have more CDs by him than any other artist in my collection and I liked the material. Albert had a great sense of humor in picking the songs and consequently, so did I.



JD: Other than Albert, who are some other legendary blues artists that inspired you?

CS: I really liked Albert Collins for his vibrato and energy. Larry “Texas Flood” Davis was great and I loved his soulfulness. As a kid in high school, I really admired Duane Allman and Mick Taylor for their overall finesse and their slide playing. I can’t deny the obvious Stevie Ray Vaughan influence. He was so raw and yet so perfect. You can’t play blues and be too perfect, but he did. And, last, but not least, the blues Clapton played in the seventies pretty much steered me in the right direction. I still perform Early Morning Blues and still don’t think I have heard the original.

 

JD: Tell us about your upcoming CD release party for "Albertville", and "Blues For Food".

CS: It is a combination CD release party and food drive for the local food bank. We will have the band with the big bad B-3 plus we will do a few acoustic numbers.



JD: I'm sure the fans would like to know more about your infamous Tiki Bar. Is this where new Corey Stevens songs are born or just a place for you to kick back and relax in?

CS: I have a house built in 1923 overlooking Hollywood. It has a flat roof that I made into a bar that got named The Tiki Bar because it has an island theme with masks, a puffer fish and other kitschy stuff. It has been used for photo shoots, parties, songwriting, golf practice, yoga, you name it, but it is primarily where I go to listen to music especially jazz. I have gone through phases where I take music breaks and the Tiki Bar is where I fall back in love with music. Maybe it is just Miles Davis or Kenny Burrell or an old Allman Brothers song from high school that gets me fired up again. I think the one thing that most young musicians should do is listen to a lot of music. Now that I have the time luxury to listen to music a lot I do and it has really helped my musicianship. At least half of playing music is listening to yourself and the others on stage.

 

JD: "Blue Drops Of Rain", is a great CD. When I first heard the song "Blue Drops Of Rain", on the radio (WDML FM 106.9), I thought it was a new Eric Clapton song. How strong of an influence was Clapton to you?

CS: Thanks. Pretty big. I saw him in 1975 with a great band and it left a big impression. I didn’t start out to be a solo artist like Clapton. I evolved into that. I just wanted to play guitar and write songs and eventually I became a lead singer and the pieces sort of fell in place

 


JD: I love good acoustic-blues and your CD "Alone At Last", is just that. Tell us a bit about "Alone At Last", and what made you decide to release an acoustic CD at this point in your career.

CS: I did it because I wanted to. That simple. And it is great to have the wherewithal to do things opposed to being told what to do based on trends. “Alone At Last” evolved from playing some solo shows billed as “An Intimate Evening with Corey Stevens – Solo and Unplugged.” I spent a lot of time rearranging songs, writing new songs and preparing for the solo concerts and that became the preproduction for the album. Actually, now that I think about it, going to radio interviews with the acoustic guitar was phase 1. From radio to the live shows, I got a lot of support and approval that pushed me to take it all the way. It really was scary to perform without the band in the early days because it is just the voice and the guitar without the chaos, but I really liked the honesty.

                                                    Click here for more ALBERTVILLE  Reviews

 

Corey Stevens - Bring On The Blues
Fuel 2000 Records

By: Michael Allison (Associate Writer)
2003-05-21

Artist: Corey Stevens
Title: Bring On The Blues
Label: Fuel 2000 Records (www.fuel2000.com)
Genre: Blues

Corey Stevens can bring on the blues like very few. In fact, he sounds a lot like Clapton on a few tunes on this album, and does a damn fine job doing so. Lonesome Road Blues is a prime example of that. In fact, there are many tunes on this album that give Corey Stevens a sound all his own. As the album plays on, you find that there are many faces to the sound of Corey Stevens. Most of these sounds and styles are creatively laced together so beautifully that you get a picture of Stevens that shows more than just a single dimension.

I must say that this entire album was a complete joy to listen to. It's not often that I get the chance to listen to a musician/artists who can suck in his listeners like the way Corey Stevens has done. There's not much more to say, except buy the album. It's certainly worth it, especially for anyone who loves the blues in the style that Clapton does.

The Rundown
Lyrics/Songwriting:
Production Quality:
Musicianship:
Originality:
Over All:

 

 

 

"Bring On The Blues" - Corey Stevens (Fuel 2000 Records) In his first recording since 1999, Corey Stevens is back with more hot 'n spicy blues guitar and down home vocal delivery. Stevens revisits the roots of the blues tradition on this disk, yet keeps his own flavor and focus of carrying that tradition a little further on up the road. This new CD also features the cut "Getaway," which paired Stevens up with his good friends and Fuel 2000 label mates - Canned Heat. Entertainment Weekly notes that Corey Stevens "burns like barbecue over a bed of Kingsford" - and that analogy just makes us hungry for more! Get yourself some of this real fine blues real soon.

 

 

 

CD Review
Corey Stevens
Bring On The Blues
Fuel 2000 Records #302 061 312 2
 by Tom Tourville
Review date: July 2003

blues picture One of the Upper Midwest=s favorite blues artists, Corey Stevens, is back, and back in a big way with his all new Fuel 2000 release of "Bring On The Blues".

The year was 1994, when this unheard of artist hit the blues charts and the Midwest music scene with an amazing impact on the strong release of his first CD, "Blue Drops Of Rain".

Since that release, he has built a career on giving top level live shows, while delivering memorable CD releases.

"Bring On The Blues" is his first new release since 1999. It's been way too long for this most talented man.

His new label is Fuel 2000, and it appears they are a much welcomed addition to the blues music field. In addition to this release, they have just come out with the superb Canned Heat release of "Friends In A Can" (Fuel 2000 #302 061 306 2). Two top notch back to back releases.

This time around on "Bring Back The Blues", Stevens shows his more rootsier side. While there is plenty of Stevens=s bourbon drenched vocals and firey guitar work to go around, this effort is more stripped back and shows the man in his purest form.

Going back to what worked the first time around, he used old band mates Will McGregor-bass and Dave Salinas-drums on his new release. In addition, one unbelievable cut brings him together with Canned Heat along with Hammond B-3 wiz, Mike Finnigan.

The CD opens with "Open Road Blues", an up tempo blues shuffle that establishes Stevens outstanding vocal style and subtly adds in his expert guitar work.

Next up is "Hang On", a slower blues grooved based song that shows off the "New Stevens" in excellent form.

For those fans that want the full blues rock approach, Stevens hasn't forgotten you with the inclusion of the amped up "Triple Jack (Pissed)". It's classic Stevens, killer vocals, and in your face guitar chaps, that will leave the listener asking for more.

It's refreshing to hear Stevens put away the strat and strip down to the rootsiest song release he has ever done, with "My Love For You Has Died". It's right out of the Delta and shows a side of Stevens we've never seen or heard before. A welcome addition to his blues personality.

Unquestionably, the stoutest cut on this CD is Stevens's collaboration with Fuel 2000 label mates, Canned Heat. It's the last of the eleven strong cuts on this CD, "Getaway".

The instrumentation that Canned Heat adds to Corey's vocals and guitar, along with the stout B-3 work of Finnigan, makes for a memorable outing. It has the chance to put Stevens back on the charts, its that strong.

Entertainment Weekly recently stated about Stevens, "He's a performer that burns like barbecue over a bed of Kingsford". While that is true, he is also a blues artist with soul, style, and a healthy respect for what is the blues. Welcome back Corey!!

 

 

CD Review
Corey Stevens
Bring On The Blues
Fuel 2000
 by Tony Engelhart
Review date: September 2003

blues picture Don't let the cowboy getup fool you. While Corey Stevens plays a style of blues that interjects a country flavor, he's a blues player first and foremost. Early on, Stevens was compared to Stevie Ray Vaughn for his Texas style fret work and rightfully so. He began his recording career as Corey Stevens and the Texas Flood which only added to the resemblance of Stevens to Stevie. However, despite the comparisons, Corey Stevens is blazing his own trail and his latest, Bring On The Blues, is a testament to this.

The classically trained guitarist pulls no punched on his forth album and Stevens debut for Fuel 2000 is in your face from track one. The heavy rockin' and guitar driven track "Lonesome Road Blues" opens the disc with a bang. While Stevie Ray was clearly a major inspiration on Corey, he is careful not to plagiarize the legendary axe man. "Triple Jack" has a 1970's Lynyrd Skynyrd "Saturday Night Special" quality whereas "My Love For You Has Died" goes back to the Delta with Stevens on acoustic dobro. Corey's riffs are sharp and clean as he takes the listener on a ride with the straight ahead shuffle "My Blues Are Turning Red".

There is no filler on Bring On The Blues as Corey Stevens experiments with many diverse genres of music and neatly ties them into his own unique style.

 

 

Corey Stevens - Bring on the Blues

Corey Stevens
Bring on the Blues

By Mike O'Cull

 

 

 
 
Downstate native Corey Stevens checks back in to the international blues scene with the release of his third CD Bring On The Blues (Fuel 2000). Stevens has traveled a long road from Centralia, IL to his current Hollywood home and his reputation is growing among blues fans here and abroad. He is one of the many guitarists in the post-SRV world to mimic Vaughn’s familiar ‘hat-and-a-strat’ image and rock-influenced blues sound. Stevens, however, delves more deeply into the rock side of his roots than most of the others and many of his songs have more of a southern rock feel than the typical Chicago shuffle. He is not afraid of breaking out of the 12 bar or singing a ballad and this gives him a leg up on the many others trying to forge their own identity in blues-related music.

Stevens is obviously a skilled guitarist and turns in good performances on many of the songs included here. Where he is a little lacking is in the vocal department. He is sort of a one-dimensional singer and doesn’t convey the same fire as SRV or Hendrix. He might want to consider taking a page out of the Kenny Wayne Sheppard book and act as the bandleader but delegate the vocal role to a more capable candidate. Stevens is not a terrible singer, but he has a sort of laid-back style that is more singer/songwriter than bluesman.

Other than that criticism, Bring On The Blues is pretty listenable. The guitar sounds are cool throughout and the band grooves steadily, if a bit predictably. The songs themselves are decent, although the disc lacks a definitive cut. There is no “Couldn’t Stand The Weather” or “Voodoo Chile” to leave listeners slack-jawed and wasted. Stevens is about halfway to having a distinct persona as an artist. He certainly packs the guitar skills needed to do the job. One great song and a better singer just might take him the rest of the way.

 

  USA – COREY STEVENS “Bring on the Blues”

Fuel 2000 Records 302 061 312 2, 11 tracks, 55:19 mins.

Corey Stevens in his cowboy shirt & hat, moustache & beard, looks far more of a Nashville singer songwriter than a blues player. What in fact the guy sounds like is as much pop/rock than anything else, comparisons vary from Petty, Harrison, Clapton, Bedroom Bob, Norton Buffalo and at times he’s  laying between Z.Z. Top & Leslie West. >From what I’ve just said it may well come of no surprise to you that Corey is a versatile cooking kind of guitarist. He started off with Classical guitar which he studied heavily for four years he then got interested in rock & blues. After moving from Southern Illinois a small stop off in Florida saw him settling in California where he became a third grade school teacher. It gave him the opportunity to concentrate on song writing, which resulted later in a few years later seeing his debut album getting into the Billboard top 15. Another hit single from his second outing enabled him to gain a support slot for Paul Rodgers, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Z.Z Top. He is featured on Canned Heat’s new CD “Friends in the Can”, and will be touring with them on their upcoming European tour. Talking of the Heat’s new album, I was sent it along with Corey’s seeing as it’s on the same label and I like Corey’s better.

If you are looking for mainstream pop/rock/blues Corey Stevens cooks some of the best!

Billy Hutchinson.

 

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