John Nemeth – Memphis Grease
Grant Britt
Posted On April 21, 2014
You could have just as well called John Nemeth’s latest release Soul from Spudsville. No matter what the location, everything the Boise, Idaho native touches turns to soul. This one he calls Memphis Grease because it was recorded there in his new adopted homebase, slathered with boilin’ Memphis guitar and punched up with Stax style fatback horns, but the spirit and sound of 50’s r&b and soul is the backbone.
His take on Otis Rush’s “Three Times A Fool” sounds like an Al Green session with Nemeth hitting those celestial, soulful fonky highs that were Green’s signature.
One of Nemeth’s great strengths is his range, comfortably spanning octaves from a warm baritone to a soaring tenor, which gives cuts like “Sooner Or Later” a big wallop.
As good a singer as he is, his harmonica skills are equally as impressive. He punctuates his funky soul vocals on “Her Good Lovin’” with some wailin’ Chicago style harp backed by Bo-Key’s guitarist Joe Restivo ripping out stinging Steve Cropper licks.
Nemeth bastes his soul chops with a ladle full of Percy Sledge-style down home homilies on “If It Ain’t Broke.” He spends most of “Stop” in the stratosphere, flying falsetto.
“Elbows On The Wheel” pays homage to Nemeth’s truck driver past, playing along on harp with a Junior Wells tape while on his day job, dreaming of being Junior’s hoodoo man, hitting the clubs at night trying to make that dream come true.
But the showpiece on this release is Roy Orbison’s “Crying.” Orbison had no vocal equal, and Nemeth has enough sense not to challenge him. But what he does do is handle Orbison’s masterpiece with respect and an impressive performance that tickles the higher edges of Orbison’s opus. What really makes his version special is the fact that he hits that powerful outro full voice, not relying on falsetto, but sailing within hailing distance of Roy before sensibly dropping back down for a throbbing, powerful finish in the lower register. It’s a fitting homage and a beautiful rendition.
It’s nice to hear Nemeth do Memphis, but it certainly doesn’t define him. No matter where he goes,John Nemeth splatters soulful grease all over the place for a stain you don’t want to wash out.
~Grant Britt
John Nemeth
Memphis Grease
Blue Corn Records
