Larry McCray & The Bluegills

Larry McCray & The Bluegills - Meet Me at the Lake - 1996 - Atomic Theory Records

Q (2/97, p.98) - 3 Stars (out of 5) - "...Bluegills keyboard player Charley Walmsley and his vocalist wife Lori write the gritty, literate songs and McCray takes to stout love moans like `No Letter' and `In A Funk In A Phone Booth' with full-throated appreciation....Downhome, from the heart, it's like a postcard to reassure the R&B faithful..."

Listen to Larry's "Ambition" album

TRACKS / COMPOSERS

1 Too Much Rooster - Lori Walmsley 4:32
2 More Walk, Less Talk - Charlie Walmsley/Lori Walmsley 2:46
3 In a Funk in a Phone Booth - Charlie Walmsley 6:39
4 Hell to Pay - Charlie Walmsley 4:55
5 Look Around - Charlie Walmsley 4:45
6 No Letter - Lori Walmsley 4:08
7 Havoc - Lori Walmsley 4:01
8 Never Let It Happen Again - Charlie Walmsley 5:36
9 The Moon Is Full - Albert Collins 7:11
10 Spend It - Lori Walmsley 1:26

MUSICIANS

Larry McCray - Guitar, Vocals

The Bluegills

Jim Gilmour - Rhythm & Lead Guitar
Lori Walmsley - Rhythm Guitar, Vocals
Kelly Gilmore - Bass, Vocals
Charlie Walmsley - Organ, Piano
Rob Clendening - Drums
Kim Gilmore Stegman - Vocals

SHORT BIO

If contemporary blues has a longterm future as we boldly venture into the 21st century, it's very likely that guitarist Larry McCray will play a recurring role in its ongoing development. His first two albums, Ambition and Delta Hurricane, signal both a strong commitment to the tradition and the vision to usher the genre in exciting new directions. McCray's first influence on guitar was none other than his sister, Clara, who toured regionally around Arkansas with her own combo, the Rockets. Clara never got to record her Freddie King-styled blues for posterity -- but her little brother has at least partially made up for that omission. Larry followed Clara up to Saginaw, MI, in 1972. She turned him on to the joys of the three Kings (B.B., Freddie, and Albert), Albert Collins, and Magic Sam, and Larry added superheated rock licks (à la Jimi Hendrix and the Allman Brothers) to his arsenal as he began playing the local circuit with his brothers Carl on bass and Steve on drums. Working on General Motors' assembly line occupied a great deal of Larry McCray's time after he finished high school. But he eventually found enough free hours to put together Ambition, his 1991 debut album for Pointblank, in a Detroit friend's basement studio. The stunning set was a convincing hybrid of blues, rock, and soul, McCray combining the interrelated idioms in sizzling fashion. Suddenly, the stocky young guitarist was touring with label-mate Albert Collins. His 1993 Pointblank encore, Delta Hurricane, was a slicker affair produced by veteran British blues maven Mike Vernon that McCray much prefers to his homemade debut. He followed Delta Hurricane with Climbin' Up in 1995 and Meet Me At the Lake in 1996. Born to Play the Blues appeared in 1998. Believe It was followed in early 2001. © Bill Dahl © 2011 Rovi Corporation. All Rights Reserved http://www.allmusic.com/artist/larry-mccray-p451/biography

BIO (WIKIPEDIA)

McCray, the second youngest of nine siblings, grew up living on a farm. McCray learned guitar from his sister, Clara. "She used to play real low-down and dirty", McCray recalled years later. His family moved to Saginaw, Michigan in 1972, and McCray took the influence of his sibling, and such as the three Kings (B.B., Freddie and Albert) to playing the local club circuit, with his brothers Carl on bass guitar and Steve on drums. After high school, McCray worked on General Motors' assembly line, before recording Ambition, his 1991 debut album for Point Blank Records, in a Detroit friend's basement recording studio. He was soon touring with his label-mate, Albert Collins. His 1993 follow-up, Delta Hurricane, was produced by the veteran British blues devotee, Mike Vernon. In 1999, McCray recorded a cover version of Bob Dylan's "All Along the Watchtower" for the tribute album, Tangled Up in Blues. In 2000, McCray founded his own independent record label, Magnolia Records, and Believe It was its first release that same year. Magnolia released McCray's first live album, Live on Interstate 75, in mid 2006, and this was followed in 2007 with Larry McCray. His recent tour commenced in Chicago on December 11, 2009.