Going to sound like my dad here, but I’ll challenge anyone not to tap your toes listening to the new upbeat, old-timey New Orleans Sessions from Canadian duo Blue Moon Marquee.
The duo, which features A.W. Cardinal on vocals and guitar and Jasmine Colette on vocals and upright bass, captures a unique feel they’ve dubbed “Gypsy Blues” and delivers the listener to a different time and place. The duo’s influences include early blues, jazz, ragtime and swing music, among others.
I’ve reviewed this band before. My first taste of this unique team from British Columbia was Bare Knuckles & Brawn in 2019. I was immediately taken in by the unique sound featuring the gravelly Tom Waitsian vocals of Cardinal complemented by the sultry sounds of Collette’s more polished jazz singing. Scream, Holler & Howl in 2022, nominated for a Juno Award (Canadian Grammy Award), was also great stuff. In 2023, the band won four Maple Blues Awards.
New Orleans Sessions, recorded in two day-long studio sessions a year apart, matches the duo’s earlier releases with an eclectic bag of blues, jazz, and swing. The opening song, Memphis Minnie’s classic “Black Rat Swing,” is sung masterfully by Colette. Among several originals, Cardinal’s gruff vocals are perfect for the slow burning “What I Wouldn’t Do” and the gritty “Red Dust Rising.” Cardinal’s vocals predominate on the album, and I’d like to hear more of Collette’s sassy voice. That said, Blue Moon Marquee has found a winning formula all their own, and I wouldn’t want to mess too much with the ingredients. New Orleans Sessions is a fine album.
Joining Cardinal and Colette in the studio were B.C. Coogan on piano, Danny Abrams on baritone sax, Jon Atkinson on harmonica, and Nicholas Solnick and Brett Gallo on drums.
About the author: Bill Wilcox is a roots music enthusiast recently relocated from the Washington, DC area to Philadelphia, PA and back again.