The CD Woodbury Band: Monday Night! Review

A rocking album, full of burning guitar, tasteful keyboards, soulful sax, and great tunes, Monday Night! is a solid debut for the CD Woodbury Band.  Full of rocking swing-revival, classic Texas shuffles, seasoned with hints of R&B and jazz, the album features a band that can downright play.

The album kicks off with “These Blues Keep Me Right Here,” a classic shuffle.  “Pawn Shop” is a slow blues featuring screaming guitar and tasteful piano.  “Burn the Bridge” is a funk-inspired tune with a tasty guitar ostinato and soulful B3.  “SauBall Blues” features some nice brush work from drummer Don Montana and an outstanding sax solo by Mike Marinig.  It is the best tune on the album.

While Woodbury’s guitar is impressive, Chris Kliemann’s tickling of the ivories warrants special attention.  His solos are tasteful, his comping excellent.  The band has yet another outstanding soloist in Mike Marinig, whose saxophone technique and vocabulary is impressive, and his musicianship excellent.  Marinig also doubles on lead vocals.  Marinig is a strong lead singer, with a gutsy voice and just the right amount of grime for a band paying homage to the roots of the blues.

The album is well worth a listen.  Not only is the playing and production quite good, but the style is unique.  Of course, the band draws heavily on more traditional blues influences, but their sound is not old-fashioned.  Quite the contrary, they are a new and unique addition to the blues tradition.

The Review: 8.5/10

Can’t Miss Tracks

– These Blues Keep Me Right Here
– Pawn Shop
– Burn the Bridge
– SauBall Blues

The Big Hit

– Burn the Bridge

Review by Nik Rodewald