By: David Schultz

The North Mississippi Allstars - guitarist Luther Dickinson, drummer Cody Dickinson and bassist Chris Chew – have willingly assumed the onus of being keepers of the flame for Mississippi’s blues and folk music. It’s a burden they carry with pride. The Allstars have drifted into country-styled blues during their affiliation with John Hiatt and dabbled in gospel blues with The Word but have rarely strayed far from their Mississippi roots. With Hernando, their fifth studio album, the Allstars attempt to break free from their Hill Country origins and tap into the American blues that has served as the foundation for classic rock.

The threesome doesn’t quite shake free of their signature sound and it’s unlikely they ever will. Hernando has a harder feel to it than their last effort, the relatively sunny Electric Blue Watermelon. If anything, it comes closest to the harder moments of 51 Phantom. Even though they are trying to go in a slightly different direction, Hernando still bears the distinctly North Mississippi Allstars sound with “Shake,” “Come Go With Me” and “Take Yo Time, Rodney” continuing their penchant for working different variations of R.L. Burnside-influenced themes into their work. Hernando may list toward the heavier side of American blues but the Allstars ease in that direction without causing a significant rift with their past.

In moving beyond the Hill Country, they’ve come up with some exceptional songs. Chris Chew lights up “I’d Love To Be A Hippy,” an easy-going, standard blues tune that ideologically updates Muddy Waters’ “Champagne & Reefer,” revealing himself to be an exceptionally talented blues vocalist. “Blow Out” comes right out of the Buddy Holly/Chuck Berry school of timeless rock and Cody Dickinson’s “Mizzip” scoots along on of the Allstars’ patented up-tempo boogie-beats.

The growling “Keep The Devil Down” and “Soldier” contain the same righteous gospel zeal that marks their contributions to The Word. Even if the vocal sections of “Soldier” are somewhat flat, the instrumental portions of the six minute track soar: Luther’s guitar solos with Cody working some intricate drums behind him while Chew walks strutting bass lines are pure Allstars magic. It’s a hallmark of their live shows and Hernando leaves you wanting more of the trio’s fine interplay.

A number of the songs aren’t perfectly suited for Luther’s vocal style. Instead of conveying a confident swagger, his voice descends into one-dimensional exhortations on the more deliberate tunes. Fortunately, no one listens to the Allstars to hear someone sing; they come to hear them play. Blues-inflected rock falls right into Chew and Cody Dickinson’s wheelhouse and the exceptional rhythms underscoring Hernando emerge with repeated listens. As casual fans of the Black Crowes are about to find out, Luther Dickinson is one of the more unheralded axemen practicing the craft. His guitar work, which is judiciously though not sparingly scattered throughout Hernando, flat out sizzles. In letting his inner Hendrix or Keith Richards loose, Dickinson brings different shades of meaning with each solo.

No surprise, Hernando reveals the North Mississippi Allstars to be exemplary students of the American blues. Where their past efforts owe debts of honor to the Delta bluesmen of the past, Hernando serves as a tip of the hat to the blues purveyed by John Lee Hooker, Buddy Guy and Muddy Waters. If classic rock radio dedicated airplay to bands that still practice the craft their station keeps alive, Hernando would have the Allstars in heavy rotation.

Labels: North Mississippi Allstars