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Laurie Nitschke, DJ Kyneton Victoria, Australia Sept 1999 (link coming) The L.A. blues scene gives up another gem on smoky guitar solos and more. Jeff Taylor's "Hurtin' Game" is just that, loaded full of low down stories all written by the guitar man himself. He takes you through the whole blues deal with ease and a backing band to match. He can take his place along side the blues boys like Jimmy Thackery & Robben Ford. This is a good starting point in the sound of the blues from L.A. in the late end of the 90's. I'm told there's more to come soon. Eddie Russell, DJ
MuzikMan Productions
Modern electric soul-blues jump out brightly from Jeff Taylor's new Hurtin' Game CD, a well-produced piece with fat sounds and eleven cool original tunes. Taylor's guitar is the emotional centerpiece of this release, a crying sound with a nice crossover from blues to jazz and soul. Opener "Cast Your Spell" works a semi-Santana latin feel in a soul package, lead guitar lines mixed loud and proud. Next up, "Things Could Get Worse" is a pumping slow-dancer with huge bass lines by Lou Castro on the five-string, great low-end definition helps the mix a lot here. Taylor's writing style is aggressive, taking tired blues licks and injecting them with sparkling new energy with creative hooks and jumps - on "You've Got It All," non-standard changes retain a fully-blues approach while giving the song a fresh sound from the interesting placement of the intro feel and clever turnaround chords. Best Cut: "Got To Have Somebody," a soul-driven horn section capping more great, jazzy changes. Trumpeters Rick Baptist and Claude Williams team up with saxmen Jim Thompson and Bob Sheppard to push some truly boss horn lines through the mix. Big-city style horn sweeps and stabs give true depth and class to this one. The title cut is a moody mid-tempo minor blues with a vocal line akin to the creepy blues hit "Fever," Jeffrey Barr's wonderful organ work swelling huge chords under Taylor's always-warm guitar fills. Songwriting overall on this release is top-shelf stuff, and makes for a consistent quality to this record that is welcoming and satisfying. A dedication to the memory of Jeffrey Barr on the cover of this release seems to indicate that he passed on after the completion of the disc, a great loss, he's a wonderful keyboard player and adds tremendously to this record. Delta Snake Daily Blues
Jeff Taylor, “Hurtin’ Game” (With These Hands) The overall feeling on Jeff Taylor’s first CD, "Hurtn' Game", is outstanding. The whole band shows strong talent and Jeff Taylor is a diverse and truly gifted performer in song, vocals, and guitar work. Nothing holds this artist back. What he has to show and give his audience is a man with genuine talent... Blues Review
Jeff Taylor - Hurtin' Game (With These Hands) Taylor plays a deft enough guitar to come up with a pleasant album of original songs in a wide variety of blues styles. Bands solid, too. L.A. Times
This is smooth, well-crafted blues as concocted by a bunch of pros from L.A. who play up here occasionally. (Santa Barbara/Ventura area) The licks are all in the right places and the production is first-rate. Taylor's solos are economical and on target, and his vocals are convincing on the usual topics of whiskey and women, leavin' and lovin'. Solid on all counts. GRADE: A- Entertainment Daily
Jeff Taylor - Hurtin' Game (With These Hands) Sometimes you stumble across music in the weirdest ways. I’m not talking about finding an artist in your local neighborhood dive who just knocks your socks off, hell, that can happen any night of the week. No, I’m talking quirky. Jeff Taylor found his way to my ears through his mailman, Joe. Joe is a friend who knows I write about music, and Taylor is one of his customers. Anyway, to make a long story short, Joe became the messenger with more than just mail - he caused this disc to find it’s way into my headphones, and now I’m relaying the results. Taylor is a young blues guitarist who has been gigging around the southland at places like Smokin’ Johnies, B.B. Kings and the House Of Blues. I haven’t caught him live yet, but if this independently produced disc is any indication, I will soon make the trek. Hurtin’ Game is unusual in that it is filled with originals, something that you don’t find on many blues discs, much less a self-released debut. They are a solid batch of songs, with enough variety of keep things interesting: a little jump, an acoustic piece, a kickin’ horn section here and there. But it is Taylor’s guitar and vocals that drive it home. His singing is unaffectedly straightforward, without trying to be raspy or whiskey-soaked. It’s a natural voice, and it brings the songs home in a way that will keep you humming. His guitar slinging is similar, staying away from flashy, but impressive nonetheless, with some nice slide work thrown in. The keyboards of Jeffrey Barr also stand out, mostly on Hammond B-3. It’s a subtly smokin’ little disc that creeps up on you rather than blowing you away. But it is definitely a keeper. I think I just might lay off the postal jokes for a while. Thanks, Joe. SMcclaning@aol.com Last but not least, another INDY folks, JEFF TAYLOR HURTIN' GAME is the CD. Kinda like a Robben Ford who can sing. Another in the tasty arena of blues guitar. HURTIN' GAME is the meat on this table. All been there folks. Nice thang bout this CD is that EVERY song is an original. No old, dirty dogs here folks. He is doin' his own thang. I liked THINGS COULD GET WORSE, IMHO the best written tune on CD. Always a sucker for a HARD LUCK &WHISKEY tune folks. That's what da blues is about:) Some nice harp work from JUKE LOGAN & some real nice horn work. TASTY is da word for this baby. This CD like a well dressed, classy woman. Stylin' & profiling, JEFF TAYLOR you da man !!! Bluespower. Over & out :)
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