Anthony Geraci

Anthony Geraci – Tears In My Eyes
Blue Heart Records

By Peter “Blewzzman” Lauro © April 2024

Prelude
Sometimes you think you know a lot about something, or someone, then the Internet slaps you on the back of the head and says, “Take that, dummy”. Case in point – Anthony Geraci. Wanting to verify something I read elsewhere, I took a long and deep look into his discography, and in addition to finding what I was looking for, I found a whole lot more. Sure, I knew of him back in his days with Sugar Ray Norcia and some of New England’s many other maestros, but it is what I didn’t know that blew me away. On top of all that, I’m repeatedly impressed with his ‘throwback” posts on social media. Although he may not have recorded with them, seeing all the giants of various genres that he’s performed with over five decades is staggering. It appears that Anthony’s dues are paid in full and it’s now his time to shine.

Review
On his latest release, titled Tears In My Eyes, Anthony Geraci – on piano, Hammond organ, and vocals – is joined by: Sugar Ray Norcia on vocals; Barrett Anderson on guitar and vocals; Paul Loranger on bass; Marty Richards and Kurt Kalker on drums; Drew Davies and Mario Perrett on saxophone; and Anne Harris on violin. The project contains eleven Anthony Geraci originals.

With Sugar Ray on the vocals, the opening track – “Broken Mirror, Broken Mirror” – recreates some of that old Bluetones magic. I’m talking about the kind of stuff that would garner the band as many as ten Blues Music Award Nominations for one release. Speaking of which, with Sugar’s soulful vocals, Anthony’s bluesy piano highlights, killer lead and slide guitar work from Barrett, and the tight rhythm groove that Paul and Marty are laying down, this traditional blues number could very well get a ‘song of the year’ nod.

Having just seen the band last week, as I’m listening to the very up-tempo “Owl’s Nest”, a vision of Paul slappin’ the hell out of his stand-up bass immediately came to mind. He and Marty are all over the monstrous rhythm on this one. Along with that, a smokin’ sax lead by Drew, and several very jazzy piano highlights from the boss man, all make this instrumental one for the movers and shakers. Because I needed a lot more than its three minutes, this one got too many replays to count. Killer stuff!

Another of the disc’s five instrumentals is titled “Blues For Willie J.” It’s a tribute to Anthony’s bandmate in The Proven Ones, the late and great Willie J. Campbell. Putting on what could be a concerto type performance, you can just feel the emotion coming through Anthony’s piano. With that thought in mind, not even knowing if he ever knew Willie, the same could be said for Barrett, who is at disc’s best on some very serious blues guitar. Wow!

Another of my favorites is a melancholic number called “Judge Oh Judge”. It features Sugar Ray emotionally, and quite sincerely, pleading his innocence to a murder charge. With Anthony keeping his hands to his right as much as he does, slow piano blues doesn’t get too much better than this. On top of that, on the only track that he appears on, the ninety second sax lead by Mario could be referred to as ‘blues saxophone 101′.

After seeing last week’s show and complimenting Anthony on the vocal skills he’s acquired, I’m surprised that “Ooeee” is the only track of the bunch that he sings on. That said, this is a fun filled, frolicking number you might expect to hear coming out of a joint somewhere in the French Quarter.

The disc closes with a very relaxing instrumental titled “Lonely Country Road Blues”, and if you let that title paint you a picture you just might figure out what the song sounds like. BTW, the ensemble on this one is actually Anthony’s current touring band of himself, Barrett Anderson on guitar and vocals, Paul Loranger on bass and Kurt Kalker on drums. Check them out where you can.

Other songs on this excellent project include: the rockin’ title track “Tears In My Eyes”; two other instrumentals titled “Oh No” and “Memphis Mist”; “Witchy Ways”; and “Now What”.

Should you like to find out more about Anthony Geraci, just go to – www.anthonygeraciblue.com. Remember, wherever you go and whomever you speak with, please tell them their friend the Blewzzman sent you.