Max Hightower likes a good rhythm section. Hightower is a harmonica ace who captures a primal sound that echoes decades of gruff, growling bluesmen that probably started with Howlin’ Wolf.
Hightower, who hails from South Carolina, says he’s been enthralled with the Blues since he heard a Muddy Waters cassette when he was 12. By the time he was a teenager, Hightower says he was jamming in smoky barrooms, learning the craft. He has shared the stage with blues legends like Hubert Sumlin, Willie Smith, Bob Margolin and Bobby Rush. In 2025, he released his first album, Nothin’ But the Truth, which I overlooked but have since come to appreciate as an excellent listen – particularly for a first album.
The Blues Chooses You continues Hightower’s musical journey, to our pleasure. He has some great songs, including the thumping “Train Smoke;” “Stone Cool,” which would sound at home on a Tom Waits record; the relaxed “Moonshine & Magnolias;” and the impassioned title tune.
Joining Hightower on the record are Joe Moss, on lead guitar, Rob Davis, on keyboards, Steadman Fleetwood Williams (Sr.), on bass, and Brandon Phelps, on drums. Like Nothin’ But the Truth, The Blues Chooses You is a great album that deserves a listen. Check it out!
About the author: Bill Wilcox is a roots music enthusiast recently relocated from the Washington, DC area to Philadelphia, PA and back again.