Roomful of Blues

This is one of the first volumes in Rounder Records' Rounder Heritage series, which will celebrate the company's 30-year history with a line of 30 releases that dip into the label's deep catalog of blues, folk, and bluegrass recordings. The Blues'll Make You Happy, Too! compiles 14 tracks from various Roomful of Blues albums released over the past 20 years; the collection focuses on the 1990s but includes tracks from as long ago as 1980, just after the departure of guitarist/leader Duke Robillard and his replacement by Ronnie Earl. At this point, the band took on more horns, and its style was subtly redefined. Although production values have changed since that period, the band's overall sound hasn't -- the Roomful's winning combination of blues, soul, R&B and swing remains pretty much the same throughout the program. Singer Sugar Ray Norcia's original jump blues composition from 1996 (the excellent "If You Know It") could have been written 30 years ago, and when the band covers Memphis Slim (with "The Comeback," featuring Mac Odom on vocal) or Duke Ellington (a fine, slinky interpretation of "Jeep's Blues," recorded in 1980), it's with the immediacy and energy of a band delivering its latest composition. This album is an excellent overview of an ensemble that has been making top-notch blues-based music for over 30 years and that shows no signs of slowing down. Highly recommended. ~ Rick Anderson , All Music Guide