REVIEWS 3

The Stumble @ Ripley Blues Club April 2008

Another band I hadn't seen before, The Stumble were a very different experience, a six piece RnB band with a warm and full sound they had the front of the hall dancing all night. It was also nice to see a good turnout tonight, it makes all the difference to the atmosphere (or is that the Theakstons?). I was particularly impressed with the interplay between the two guitarists and the way they took turns about at playing slide (oh yes, he's the best slide player, oh no, he is....) and they both created quite different sounds and emotions. The overall richness of their Chicago blues sound was aided by the addition of some soulful sax playing and we also heard this in surround sound, when the sax man walked through the crowd and back onto the stage without missing a beat (seems to be getting popular this walkabout business!). The rhythm section were spot on and the excellent singer and front man gave it the full soul treatment. A very slick and professional show from a band who obviously enjoy their job and pass that enjoyment on to their audience. Well worth another look I think! All in all, another great night out. Colin Tait

WORTHENBURY BLUES AND ROOTS FESTIVAL JUNE 2008

Back on the main stage, The Stumble grabbed everybody by the throat and didn?t let go until the end of their set. They were tremendous, fully justifying the claim made by their increasingly large coterie of fans that they are now unsurpassed by any blues band in the UK. ?It?s A Lie?, ?You Upset Me, Baby? and Bus Stop? prompted a mass invasion of the dance area. The slow blues, ?All Over Again?, magnificently sung by Paul Melville, offered a brief respite before the tempo was raised again with ?The World Is Tough? and ?Back To Louisiana?. As Boyd Tonner and Dave Heath painted an immaculate backdrop on drums and bass guitar respectively, guitarist Colin Black and sax player Simon Anthony excelled on centre stage and priceless rhythm guitarist Jonny Spencer showed yet again on ?Gimme Back My Wig? his mastery of slide guitar playing. The whole set was simply top class.Lionel Ross

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