A tasty hybrid of rock & roll, jive, and blues,
James' eponymous recording -- a collection of standards from the late '40s-early '50s recorded live from the floor -- takes a swingin' jump approach with horns and organ given equal billing to smooth, hollow-body guitar tones. Highlights: the finger-snapping, fedora-over-one-eye cool of "Evening" and a bopping, knockout version of "Train Kept A-Rollin'." ~ Roch Parisien