Review by Stephen Cook
Keeping up with his "Iceman" moniker, Albert Collins delivers with his fourth Alligator release Don't Lose Your Cool. The title cut was one of his first instrumental hits back in the late '50s and here it's given a gritty, organ-driven workout à la one of his heroes and onetime collaborators, Jimmy McGriff. Forging on in this impressively diverse set, Collins revels in the humorous, spoken commentary of Oscar Brown, Jr.'s "But I Was Cool" (reminiscent of Collins' spoken interludes on the John Zorn piece "Spillane"), updates the jump-blues antics of Big Walter Price's "Get to Gettin'," and closes the set out with a faithful take on Guitar Slim's "Quicksand." He also adds a few of his own impressive cuts here, including the funky, syncopated New Orleans groove "Melt Down" and the Stax 'n' blues cut "Ego Trip." Throughout, of course, Collins comes up with plenty of his grating, barbed wire guitar licks and rough-hewn vocals. Riding atop his crack, seven-piece Ice Breakers band (including a fine horn section), Collins certainly keeps things burnin' on this set, while still living up to all the icy allusions with some of the most cool and urbane modern blues on record.
Keeping up with his "Iceman" moniker, Albert Collins delivers with his fourth Alligator release Don't Lose Your Cool. The title cut was one of his first instrumental hits back in the late '50s and here it's given a gritty, organ-driven workout à la one of his heroes and onetime collaborators, Jimmy McGriff. Forging on in this impressively diverse set, Collins revels in the humorous, spoken commentary of Oscar Brown, Jr.'s "But I Was Cool" (reminiscent of Collins' spoken interludes on the John Zorn piece "Spillane"), updates the jump-blues antics of Big Walter Price's "Get to Gettin'," and closes the set out with a faithful take on Guitar Slim's "Quicksand." He also adds a few of his own impressive cuts here, including the funky, syncopated New Orleans groove "Melt Down" and the Stax 'n' blues cut "Ego Trip." Throughout, of course, Collins comes up with plenty of his grating, barbed wire guitar licks and rough-hewn vocals. Riding atop his crack, seven-piece Ice Breakers band (including a fine horn section), Collins certainly keeps things burnin' on this set, while still living up to all the icy allusions with some of the most cool and urbane modern blues on record.
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Reseña de Stephen Cook
Siguiendo con su apodo de "Iceman", Albert Collins cumple con su cuarto lanzamiento de Alligator, Don't Lose Your Cool. La canción que da título al disco fue uno de sus primeros éxitos instrumentales a finales de los años 50 y aquí se le da un tratamiento arenoso y de órgano al estilo de uno de sus héroes y antiguos colaboradores, Jimmy McGriff. En este conjunto impresionantemente diverso, Collins se deleita con el comentario humorístico y hablado de "But I Was Cool" de Oscar Brown, Jr. (que recuerda a los interludios hablados de Collins en la pieza de John Zorn "Spillane"), actualiza las payasadas de jump-blues de "Get to Gettin'" de Big Walter Price, y cierra el conjunto con una versión fiel de "Quicksand" de Guitar Slim. También añade algunos cortes propios impresionantes aquí, incluyendo el funky, el groove sincopado de Nueva Orleans "Melt Down" y el corte Stax 'n' blues "Ego Trip". En todo momento, por supuesto, Collins ofrece un montón de sus chirriantes y punzantes guitarras y sus ásperas voces. Al frente de su banda de siete músicos (incluyendo una excelente sección de vientos), Collins mantiene el fuego en este disco, mientras que sigue cumpliendo con todas las alusiones de hielo con algunos de los blues modernos más frescos y urbanos en el disco.
Siguiendo con su apodo de "Iceman", Albert Collins cumple con su cuarto lanzamiento de Alligator, Don't Lose Your Cool. La canción que da título al disco fue uno de sus primeros éxitos instrumentales a finales de los años 50 y aquí se le da un tratamiento arenoso y de órgano al estilo de uno de sus héroes y antiguos colaboradores, Jimmy McGriff. En este conjunto impresionantemente diverso, Collins se deleita con el comentario humorístico y hablado de "But I Was Cool" de Oscar Brown, Jr. (que recuerda a los interludios hablados de Collins en la pieza de John Zorn "Spillane"), actualiza las payasadas de jump-blues de "Get to Gettin'" de Big Walter Price, y cierra el conjunto con una versión fiel de "Quicksand" de Guitar Slim. También añade algunos cortes propios impresionantes aquí, incluyendo el funky, el groove sincopado de Nueva Orleans "Melt Down" y el corte Stax 'n' blues "Ego Trip". En todo momento, por supuesto, Collins ofrece un montón de sus chirriantes y punzantes guitarras y sus ásperas voces. Al frente de su banda de siete músicos (incluyendo una excelente sección de vientos), Collins mantiene el fuego en este disco, mientras que sigue cumpliendo con todas las alusiones de hielo con algunos de los blues modernos más frescos y urbanos en el disco.
Tracklist:
1 - Get To Gettin' - 3:12
2 - My Mind Is Trying To Leave Me - 7:42
3 - Broke - 4:12
4 - Don't Lose Your Cool - 4:39
5 - When A Guitar Plays The Blues - 5:12
6 - ...But I Was Cool! - 3:09
7 - Melt Down - 4:03
8 - Ego Trip - 4:32
9 - Quicksand - 3:28
Credits:
Bass – Johnny Gayden
Co-producer – Bruce Iglauer, Dick Shurman
Cover – McCamant A&D, Inc.
Drums, Vocals – Casey Jones (2)
Engineer, Mixed By – Fred Breitberg
Guitar – Larry Burton
Guitar, Vocals, Co-producer – Albert Collins
Keyboards – Chris Foreman (2)
Photography By – Michael Weinstein
Tenor Saxophone – A.C. Reed
Tenor Saxophone, Alto Saxophone – Abb Locke, Dino Spells
Notes:
Recorded and Mixed at Red Label Recording, Winnetka, Illinois.
The band-members are credited as the Ice Breakers.
Portions of the liner notes are based on an article written by Don McLeese for the Chicago Reader
Label: Alligator Records – ALCD 4730
Released: 1987
Genre: Blues
Style: Texas Blues
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