Cascade Blues Music Reviews Time Wounds All Heels Lee Blake Music Review Index

Music Review Reprint from the
November, 2000 BluesNotes
By Rick Hall

    Party Time!!!  Lee Blake has been one of the fixtures on Portland's Blues scene for the past two decades.  His dedication to playing the music he loves is self-evident.  He just "flat out" loves to perform!  Blake has a rough and tumble, growling voice that lends authenticity to his performances.  A lot of Blues singers would give just about anything to be able to sing the Blues with that raspy, raw, original feel that Lee imparts.

     The Snake Charmers' debut recording, "Time Wounds All Heels", is the better part of an hour of "Party Blues" consisting of live performances recorded in January of this year at Portland's Candlelight Bar & Grill and The Back Alley in Vancouver, Washington.  All 11 songs are covers of legendary Blues and Rock artists (from Eddie "Guitar Slim" Jones to Jimi Hendrix), sung in Lee's own distinctive and seasoned style.  Blake's well-disciplined, economic guitar playing, along with Michael Kearsey's thumping bass and Michael Beach's solid drumming, make this recording simply "fun and entertaining" and that's what it's all about, isn't it?

© 2002 Cascade Blues Association