Review Text
HURRICANE SEASON,the new CD from RJ and The Imperatives, features 10 brand new songs with music and lyrics by RJ Shapiro. The CD will be released to AAA stations all over the US on September 5th. Listen for it on your favorite station. This collection includes some ripping guitar work from Eric Wells (lead guitar) as well as guest artists, Paul Good and Paul Candilore (who also plays amazing dobro and mandolin on the disc); the Hammond organ and piano parts are exceptionally literate and soulful (Dave Wright is the excellent player); and the rhythm section (John Re, bass and John Broderick, drums) truly cooks! There is also a very soulful horn section (Myanna, tenor sax; Glenn Shambroom, baritone sax; and Mark Paquin, trombone) on several tracks. RJ Shapiro wrote all of the music and lyrics, and sings lead on all the tunes. He also produced the disc, with Huck Bennert handling the engineering at WellSpring Sound, in Acton MA. The CD is dedicated to Eunice Hartman, without whom all of this would have been impossible! This is the second CD from this line-up of the Imperatives (the first disc, I SHOULD HAVE SEEN IT COMING) is also availble on cdbaby.com. Veterans of many, many years of the Rock and Roll wars, RJ and The Imperatives experience shows in the variety and scope of the grooves contained in this collection. The band came together in 2001 to work on the original music of RJ SHAPIRO (vocals, guitars), the well known singer/songwriter/archivist/musicologist (and unemployed person)(By 'archivist' we mean that RJ has a stupidly large record and CD collection of nearly every kind of music. By 'musicologist', we mean that he is perfectly willing to pontificate and lecture at enormous length on any of this music). RJ has previously been in many, many bands, including the late, lamented KEEPER, and the famously fun DON'T QUIT YOUR DAY JOB. DAVID WRIGHT (piano, Hammond organ and vocals) Dave has been a well-known country artist (DAVE WRIGHT AND THE COUNTY FLYERS, THE JOHN PENNY BAND)in New England, before giving it up for the Rock and Roll. ERIC WELLS (lead guitar, vocals) was, for many years, a mainstay in ZACHARIAH, the very popular southern rock band. Eric has also done time as a lead guitarist with BRMC, Busy Little Kitchen and created the original line-up of TH and The Wreckage with Tom Hambridge. JOHN RE (bass, vocals) has been playing with RJ since 1970 (when we were 2). He was in DON'T QUIT YOUR DAY JOB, and about 50 other bands of various descriptions (and levels of talent). JOHN BRODERICK (drums) has played with nearly everyone in the Boston area over the last 30 years, including Tom Sholz of Boston, the well known multi-instumentalist Glenn Shambroom, and many, many others. He was also in DQYDJ with RJ and John.
