Rabson continues to forge her own unique path in the blues world with
Not Alone, an album that features the guitar work and vocals of another low-key blues legend,
Bob Margolin. It's not exactly an album of duets --
Rabson sings most of the leads and her piano playing is featured throughout -- but it's not entirely a solo effort, either, since
Margolin only performs solo on a couple of tracks. What is clear is that both players are having a ball and their energy and good humor are infectious. The album is a delight from start to finish. Except for
Margolin's "Let It Go" -- a bluesy rhumba marked by
Rabson's rippling piano arpeggios and lyrics delivered in a wry drawl that bring to mind the philosophical ruminations of
Mose Allison -- the tunes here are mostly familiar covers.
Rabson reinvents the material with her surprising arrangements and on-the-money vocals. "Let's Go Get Stoned," the
Ashford & Simpson tune made popular by
Ray Charles, gets a downtempo treatment that celebrates excess with a gospel-flavored arrangement.
Rabson delivers the
Rev. Thomas Dorsey standard "I'm Going to Live the Life I Sing About in My Song" with a wry approach that manages to sound both spiritual and carnal, especially when she sings: "I can't say one thing and then do another, be a saint by day and a devil under covers." A boogie-woogie cover of
Louis Jordan's "Caledonia" features
Margolin's smooth, laid-back guitar work supporting
Rabson's excellent piano work, while her ragtime reading of Hudson Whitaker's almost obscene "Let's Get Drunk and Truck" is a pure delight. ~ j. poet