Search - North Mississippi Allstars :: 51 Phantom

Brett H. (BlooZRocker)
Reviewed on 9/3/2008...

Some more great slipperly slide guitar blues music to pick up if you're already on-board with the raw blooziness their "Shake Hands With Shorty" album.

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Fall in love with the North Mississippi Allstars

Dusty | birmingham, alabama | 04/26/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Listening to the North Mississippi Allstars in a smokey bars in Memphis, Tennessee; Birmingham, Alabama; and Tupelo, Mississippi has sent me over the edge into NMAS-fanclub territory. These guys blow the roof off of any venue they pack out. They're all awesome musicians, and they have the ability to rock the hell out of everybody in the room. It's a shame that "51 phantom" and "shake hands" don't adequately capture that live magic, but what album ever does? I think I kind of like the Allstars better that way --- GOOD albums --- AWESOME live band. So I will continue to buy their albums. But I tell you this --- BUY their albums. But do yourself a favor and SEE THEM LIVE BEFORE THEY GET TOO BIG!"

Fitting in the Footsteps They Follow

thebigoh | Up Above the World | 03/31/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"From the opening rumble of the bottom-heavy blues boogie of the title cut through swamp rock, rocked-up gospel, one achingly beautiful ballad and some cutting edge blues/psychedelic fusion, this is a remarkable recording. "Phantom 51" is the kind of record the young Rolling Stones wish they could have made(had they not mistaken Chuck Berry for a significant contributor to the ongoing transformation of blues and R&B into modern rock 'n' roll, maybe they would have). The All-Stars come from Memphis and their obvious influences are treated with great respect. Unlike their debut disc, "Shake Hands With Shorty", upon which they took classic blues by their favorite artists and imploded them and reinvented them with remarkable vision and skill, this collection consists primarily of original songs. Some purists will insist that the debut was superior, I beg to differ. Each is equally excellent in its own right. The title track thumps and kicks and bumps along, talking ominously about "white lightning flashin' 'cross the Mississippi sky" as a tale of a bootlegger hurtling along Highway 51 from Memphis to New Orleans unfolds. Another cut, "Storm", is a metaphorical lament that eases into a hard-folk groove with great lyrics and terrific, restrained guitar lines. Two covers, Junior Kimbrough's "Lord Have Mercy" and the Staples' "Freedom Highway" offer an interesting contraposition of how this band sees itself and where it is going. That is, by taking another traditional blues number and pumping it up and then veering off into gospel-tinged 1960s-style socially conscious soul/funk, the All-Stars are serving notice that they are not just great musicians, but intelligent artists with staggering potential. The afore-mentioned ballad, "Leavin'", with it's Allmanesque guitar hook and soulful vocals, lends yet another clue as to how this band will grow and change. Intellectual versatility and faith in their inestimable musicianship indicate that this band will become very, very important. Oh, and I haven't even mentioned their pedigree. Guitarist/vocalist Luther Dickinson and his dummer/vocalist/brother Cody (superb bassist/vocalist Chris Chew completes the trio)are the progeny of Memphis music legend Jim Dickinson, who produced this disc and is seen in a photograph in the liner notes above the printed phrase "World Boogie is Coming." He may be right. This band could get real big real soon."