Review: Sean McDonald ‘Have Mercy!’
By Jim Hynes
A meteor just went into orbit. Out of nowhere comes the confident, intense, and sophisticated blues of Augusta, GA’s 24-year-old Sean “Mack” McDonald. It’s rare for a youth to possess this intuitive feel and knowledge of the blues canon. Far too often, these guitar-slinging youngsters are derivative flashes in the pan. Yet, we can trust the Little Village label to weed out the wheat from the chaff. That’s not to say McDonald’s material is not derivative. There’s at least one tune here that you’ve heard countless times, yet he brings an intense freshness reminiscent of the late Sean Costello (who also grew up in Georgia). McDonald also delivers four originals in this debut, the aptly titled Have Mercy! He boasts the maturity of those twice his age.
McDonald is a songwriter/ vocalist/guitarist with a smooth tenor and a wide range. His guitar picking is single notes, much like the attack of Chris Vachon of Roomful of Blues, or, for those purists, T-Bone Walker. And, like those veterans, McDonald has a natural feel for the jump blues and Texas swing as well as a flair for gospel. He’s not one for extensive solos; he does it economically, knowing how to get in and get out, a skill that usually only comes with experience. Another differentiator is his encyclopedic knowledge of the deep, classic forms. McDonald covers the Dixie Hummingbirds, the jazz-blues of Bill Jennings, and the classic soul and R&B writers such as Ike Turner, Deadric Malone, and Henry Glover, while nodding to the three Kings along his way.
It certainly helps to be surrounded by the core musicians of Little Village. The ubiquitous Kid Andersen co-produces, Jim Pugh is at the keyboards, and June Core is behind the drum set. Joining them are bassist D’Quantae “Q” Johnson (Snoop Dog, Raphael Saadiq) and saxophonists Eric Spaulding (tenor) and Jack Sanford (baritone). Kid Andersen adds guitar on “Rocking in the Same Old Boat” along with trombonist Mike Rinta. The Morgan Brothers (formerly the Sons of the Soul Revivors) and Marcel Smith add backing vocals to the gospel tunes, and Lisa Leuschner Andersen adds harmonies on “Fakin’ It.”. With that cast in tow, you guessed it. The album was recorded at Andersen’s Greaseland Studios.
Let’s take his originals first. “Fakin’ it” carries a stomping ‘50s R&B groove with strong turns from the two saxophonists. When McDonald steps in with his guitar break, not a single note is wasted. His mid-tempo “Killing Me” with its honking saxes also sounds vintage, lying somewhere on the spectrum between B.B. King and Ray Charles (with the “unchain my heart” refrain). Again, Mack’s crisp, bright guitar does plenty of the talking within the classic riffs. The instrumental “Shuffleboard” is down-and-dirty jump blues, with the horns in a call-and-response mode to Mack’s guitar, and Pugh giving his Hammond B3 a lusty workout. “Angel Baby” is another vintage-sounding jump blues, replete with vocals this time, as Spaulding blows the tenor as if it’s his last gig. Mack’s natural feel for these forms is, as Andersen points out in the liners, completely second nature to him.
Yet Mack arguably makes a stronger mark on the covers. His cover of the chestnut “Don’t Let the Devil Ride” with The Morgans and Smith assisting on the vocals is as strong as any version ever laid down. Mack’s guitar is strictly in the pocket, fitting the tune perfectly, and the call-and-response choruses are spot on, with Mack clearly feeling the spirit. The vocal banter continues in Ike Turner’s 1959 hit, “That’s All I Need,” and on the opener “My Soul,” a more contemporary tune, issued by Rudy Moore in 2000 but given the vintage sheen by Mack and the band, notably Pugh on barrelhouse piano. Henry Glover’s 1952 ballad “Let’s Call It a Day,” which closes the album, Mack proves he can handle the vocals quite competently alone while letting his guitar speak eloquently too. The pivotal track may well be “Rocking in the Same Old Boat,” penned by Deadric Malone and delivered by Bobby “Blue” Bland in 1968. Most would not have the gumption to cover Bland. The fearless McDonald delivers the tune, as he does throughout, with aplomb befitting a veteran.
McDonald joins this legion of new voices, call it the new “Blues Wave” if you’d like,, that has taken the genre to another level recently. They are DK Harrell, Candice Ivory, Solomon Hicks, Jontavious Willis, Harrell Davenport, Dylan Triplett, Marquise Knox, Kingfish, and a few others. Keep your ears out also for Kyle Rowland, another new emerging talent, also on Little Village. The future of the blues seems better now than it has in a couple of decades.
Listen to ‘Have Mercy!’ Here
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