Put Jo-Ann Kelly on your stereo and it’s impossible to reconcile the care-worn voice you hear with the picture on the sleeve of this welcome release. Courted by Johnny Winter and Canned Heat, the elfin-faced Kelly steadfastly plotted a solo course until her death 18 years ago.
Much music has since emerged with her name on it but this 1976 album, never before digitised, is a worthy contender for best of breed. It’s been augmented by tracks from 1988’s Open, which differed in being a strictly solo affair, but the sum is a typical mid-70s setlist and, as such, makes a satisfying whole. The core band of Pete Emery, John Pilgrim and Mike Pigott are finely tuned, offering an impressive framework for that stunning voice. More reflective material such as Memphis Minnie’s Nothing In Rambling outshines the likes of the uptempo standard Walkin’ The Dog, while the fact that Lucinda Williams has covered the former suggests today’s musical climate would have welcomed Jo-Ann Kelly had she not been taken from us. This is a thoughtfully assembled reissue aimed at anyone with a bluesy bone in their body.
