Markey Blue Ric Latina Project: “Jumpin’ The Broom” (2022) CD Review

Guitarist Ric Latina and vocalist Markey Blue have been delivering delicious blues music for more than a decade. The band’s fourth full-length album (and first as a married couple), Jumpin’ The Broom, features all original material written by Ric Latina and Jeannette Markey. Joining them on this release are Randy Coleman on bass, Shannon Wickline on keyboards, Dave Northrup on drums and percussion, and Chris West on horns and flute, along with a couple of guests.

The album opens with “Bad For Real,” which has a classic blues rhythm that is immediately appealing. “You lost your money to Lady Luck/Now your woman has left you alone/You’re crying in the night since she’s been gone/Roll that dice, spin that wheel/Boy, you got it bad, bad for real.” Of course, it should be either “Roll those dice” or “Roll that die,” but this is a cool number featuring a vocal performance full of attitude and spunk, along with some strong work on electric guitar. That’s followed by “Hanging On.” At the beginning of this one, Markey Blue sings, “I don’t need you/To tell me what I’m doing wrong.” Oh, who among us can’t relate to those lines? This track has a cool vibe, with a slower, more introspective bent. “Maybe I’m wrong/Maybe you’re right,” she admits, but we get the sense that she’s right, partly because everything about this song sounds right. Her vocal performance is so damn good, and there are catchy touches from the horns, plus a soulful and excellent guitar lead.

There is something about a blues song that plays with the idea of blue as a color that seems to work every time. In “When It’s Blue,” Markey Blue sings, “The grass ain’t always greener/When it’s blue,” taking an old saying and applying the blues to it. In this case, a part of me can’t help but think of bluegrass. This track features some good work on both keyboards and horns. Then “Little Betty” establishes a great rhythm right at the start, basically announcing this is going to be a fun one. And it certainly is, with a drum beat to get you dancing and moving. It also features a powerful and sexy vocal performance. “Oh, she gonna sell you anything you want/Whoa, she gonna tell you what the good girls won’t/Pretty red dress and her stockings on/Paint the night ‘til her love’s all gone.” This is one of my personal favorite tracks. It’s followed by “Be With Me,” which features some good stuff on horns. “Gonna take a whole lot of love if you want to be with me,” Markey Blue tells us here. It’s not long before she’s belting out some of the lines, and that’s when everything seems to be just exactly right. “I said slow, slow down now/Better slow down, baby, if you want to play with me.” Oh yes, that groove tells us we are in no rush. Join with that special someone on the dance floor and everything will proceed just as it should, no worries.

I love how “Lowdown Voodoo Woman” begins with that cool bass line, easing in, and then building from there. Even when Markey Blue first comes in on vocals, for a moment she delivers just a bit of humming, taking her time, setting the tone. Again, no rush. Her vocal work here is smooth and seductive. “You’re caught up in her spell now, baby,” she sings at one point. Oh yes, we are caught up in this song’s spell, which the guitar work also helps cast. This is another of the disc’s highlights. Then in “You Got The Blues,” Markey Blue sings, “Why don’t you ease, ease your worried mind/It ain’t so bad, ain’t so bad most of the time/You know it’s true, everybody’s singing the blues, oh yeah.” It is true. Everybody I know has had the blues since 2016. When are we going to emerge from this darkness? Things are warped out there, but there is still some great music being made, and we can’t get too absorbed by the insanity. Let that guitar guide us out of the darkness.

Guest Dana Robbins joins the group on saxophone on “Right Kind Of Woman,” another of this disc’s outstanding numbers. “I’m the right kind of woman/You’re just the wrong kind of man,” Markey Blue sings as the song starts. And we can’t help but believe her. “Don’t try to change my mind/Don’t try to lead me astray.” This is a seriously cool song, even before that wonderful lead on sax. And this track features a fantastic lead on guitar. The jam helps make this track another of the highlights. Then guest Mark T. Jordan joins the band on keyboards on “Crying Out Loud,” delivering some really good work. “Everything in this life is temporary, always bending/Even the air we breathe can be so cold and grey/It’s all right, it’s all right, it’s all right by me.” This line also stands out: “Just another story, no happy ending.” The album concludes with “Where  Are You,” which has a classic vibe and features some soulful vocals and keyboard work. There is just an overall appealing feel to this one. “Where are you tonight/Are you with someone, are you holding her tight/I tried to call you on the phone/Whoa, baby, you don’t answer, now I know that you’re gone/You don’t have to tell me that I ain’t the one.” There is an ache in her voice that is so effective. And that guitar work in the second half seems to both ache with her and attempt to soothe her. This is an excellent song.

CD Track List

1. Bad For Real
2. Hanging On
3. When It’s Blue
4. Little Betty
5. Be With Me
6. Lowdown Voodoo Woman
7. You Got The Blues
8. Right Kind Of Woman
9. Crying Out Loud
10. Where Are You

Jumpin’ The Broom was released on April 22, 2022.