BLUES MAGAZINE - France - Frankie Bluesy Pfeiffer - April 2006
Indisputably our man is a very serious contender, in the field of the great male voices. As the first track announces, and gives a hit of what awaits you. “That's The Way I Feel”, launched like a race car on a Formula 1 grid, the voice tears off, pushes the boundaries, but is always under control even in the most difficult curves.
A change of pace for is “Anybody there”, a J. Hiatt song where the voice of Paul makes your sensations coming straight from the heart, from deep inside you. The album continues to alternates between slow rockers and blues, for intimate evenings, and even the torrid tales, like his superb interpretation of “Damn Your Eyes”.
The musicians are at such a well-oiled team it puts them in pole position. The team leader and chief mechanic in the excellent Roger Cotton, who ensures that keyboards and the guitars are in harmony, so the project runs like a well oiled racing car. On first line of that Formula One Blues album I put “I Adore You” and “Ain't Nothin' Doin' “.
Frankie Bluesy Pfeiffer
(BLUES MAGAZINE)
Ain’t Nothin’ Doin’ – Note Records – NCD 1001-2
Note : 4 CD
Indiscutablement, notre homme n’enregistre pas pour plaisanter, mais pour s’imposer dans la cour des grandes voix masculines. Dès le premier morceau dont le titre annonce ce qui vous attend, That’s The Way I Feel, lancée comme un bolide sur un anneau de Formule 1, la voix s’arrache, pousse les régimes, assure jusque dans les plus serrés des dérapages. Changement de réglages pour Is Anybody There, une reprise de J. Hiatt où la voix de Paul vous fait dresser les poils : magistral. La suite de l’album alterne morceaux swingant et blues lents pour soirées intimistes, voire torrides, comme cette superbe interprétation de Damn Your Eyes. Les musiciens sont à la hauteur du bonhomme et donnent à l’ensemble une amplitude que peuvent jalouser nombre de grosses prods. Coup de chapeau personnel à un excellent Roger Cotton, qui assure les claviers et les guitares. Et s’il ne fallait retenir qu’un titre ? Impossible, tant l’ensemble est bien huilé, sans une impureté dans la mécanique, mais je placerais en première ligne de cet album racé Formule 1 la rageuse interprétation de I Adore You, et en pole position le titre signé du duo Cox-Cotton, Ain’t Nothin’ Doin’.
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David Blue - www.netrhythms.co.uk - Sept 2005
Paul Cox - Ain't Nothin' Doin' (Note Records)
After reviewing Paul Cox's latest release I thought that I'd take a dip back into his back catalogue and came out with this. He opens with That's The Way I feel which is R&B of the highest standard. There's plenty of energy and you can hear that great R&B voice already. Is Anybody There slows the pace down dramatically but this allows Cox to show the different levels to his voice and he puts in a strong performance on this John Hiatt song. He's very strong vocally again on the soulful Where Can I Find Love and This Love Is Mine is another slow one but this time with a much more gritty vocal; strong and soulful with excellent saxophone from Derek Nash. The title track is all action R&B with the horns on top form and Damn Your Eyes is, as are the others, well written, well played and sung by a band that is at the top of its game.
Pouring Water On A Drowning Man is top class R&B and is Paul Cox at his best. Such A Fool is smouldering and classy whereas I Adore You is funky and powerful and Silence And Tears is slow and relaxing – Cox can do them all. The penultimate track, I'm Gonna Win, is chunky R&B with Cox's punchy vocal outstanding. With I Can Take You To Heaven, Cox gives us a slow paced finish but this Joe Cocker style R&B enables him to finish the way he started - on a high.
David Blue
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