In the News

CD review: "Live Like Hell"

By Tim Holek , Blues On Stage
Review date: October 2000

CD Review
The Tony D Band
"Live Like Hell"
Diesel Management Productions (99-001)

Tony D and his band put on fire hot live performances full of spontaneous energy. However; can this intensity be captured on a live disc? The answer is yes and Live Like Hell is the proof. Producers Tony D and Danny Greenspoon capture all the excitement as it happened on February 3, 1999 at the Café Campus in Montreal, Quebec. It's a 65 minute ride full of extended solos throughout 10 tracks featuring the heavy, raw blues guitar of Tony D.

This Ottawa, Ontario based Canadian bluesman is huge in Europe and his own country yet virtually unknown in the States. As a child, he emigrated from Italy with his family. He has honed his craft in Ottawa's blues bars since the early `80's and has toured constantly.

The disc roars out of first gear with the in-your-face, knock you on your butt Texas blues guitar groove called "Hold It". Another instrumental, Albert Collins "Collins Mix", follows with Tony's smoldering guitar backed effectively by Zeek Gross (sax) and Cam Scott (organ). Gross and Scott both let loose with pure dynamite solos.

The 4 songs written by Tony D excel in contemporary blues and blend in nicely with the covers. "Honipot" is 50s style rock and roll that surely had the dance floor packed. The band is so fired up on this one, Tony struggles to keep his soft vocals from being drowned out. He is a more confident player than vocalist but on "The Right Kind of Crazy", D's vocals are loud and clear. This tune culminates with a jam that shows off Tony's talented band. Next, Tony lays down some blazing slide guitar on "Blues For Anna" leaving you to wonder whether there is anything this man can't play?!

Fellow Canadian Sue Foley joins in on guitar and takes over the vocals on Angela Strehli's "A Lost Cause". Sue belts out the lyrics from deep within while trading guitar licks with Tony for over 9 minutes. Then its time to swing with the Tony D written instrumental "No Doubt".

Tony rises to the challenge of recording the classic "As The Years Go Passing By." It's the longest track on the CD (13 minutes) and it's a masterpiece. However when Tony plays softly on this tune, he sounds far too much like SRV. Zeek's sax solo is the highlight of this song. It's soulful and heartfelt and immediately conjures an image of a dark, smoky blues room.

This is a band that loves to jam the blues and Live Like Hell is full of impromptu jams. The solos from this equally talented band are done tastefully and are arranged tightly to fit naturally into the tunes. Throughout the CD the band is solid with Zeek Gross exceptional on tenor sax. Fans of blistering blues guitar supported by a horn-drenched powerhouse band will be lining up to get a copy of this CD.