Jon Cleary – GoGo Juice

Since he was 17, Kent, England native Jon Cleary has been soaking up New Orleans culture. Thirty-six years later, Cleary exudes the sound and spirit of the Crescent City, the music bubbling out of him, a fountain of second line funk and Fess-flavored carnival music with a fist fulla Dr. John hoodoo stirred in as well. Cleary’s style reveals he’s a student of Crescent City piano men including Tuts Washington, Fats Domino and James Booker. There’s a considerable Allen Toussaint influence apparent as well.

Cleary paid homage to Toussaint on his last record, 2012’s Occapella. He insists it’s not a tribute, saying he was only “having fun” with Toussaint’s work, covering relatively obscure Toussaint tunes, except for “Southern Nights,” which Cleary considered too bubbly and wanted to make his version darker.

Toussaint shows up again on this release, but as an arranger, doing  the horn charts for 7 of the 9 cuts on the record.
“Pump It Up” travels from Jamaica to New Orleans, meandering from a laconic, loping r&b shuffle to lively Ska, accented with timbales. Cleary leads the proceedings in a hoarse soul shout blending Ray Charles and Dr. John, backed with some backing vocal help from a member of his current trio, Absolute Monster Gentlemen bassist Cornell Williams. The other  Monster Gents, guitarist Derwin “Big D” Perkins and drummer Jeffery “Jellybean” Alexander contribute vocals on additioal tracks.

For “Boneyard,” Clary and company put out some bone-rattling second line, horn-heavy fonk courtesy of the Dirty Dozen horns, with a Bo Diddley backseat propelling this spirited rant about living life to its fullest: “Before I make it to the boneyard I’m gonna have my fun,” Cleary proclaims, hollerin’ “I ain’t ready” over the top of the strutting street parade back from the graveyard and celebrating life.

Cleary says “Getcha GoGo Juice” is “completely composed of lines I’ve heard people say in New Orleans.” His N’awleans street patois is thick enough to need a translator except for the chorus, “I woooden do dat, me,” laid over a simmering layer of swampy NOLA fonk in the Dr. John tradition, a cauldron of bubbling, burbling gris-gris.

Cleary often performs New Orleans r&b standards in his sets, there are no covers here. They’re all originals, but “Love on One Condition” reeks of the Toussaint touch, the beat so laid back its almost reggae, stuttering, horn-studded, strut-inducing funk that sneaks up on you and lays you out with a punch bad to the backbone.

Even though it’s a studio recording, GoGo Juice captures the spirit and excitement of Cleary live, a pulsating, percussive performance that leaves you stuffed with a cornucopia of Big Easy goodies, good for curing what ails you, from head to toe.

Grant Britt