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David Michael Low Bid on a Dream Review by Gary Hill The album cover here leads one to believe that David Michael might be a blues artist or folk or old school rocker. In some ways he’s all of those. Listening to his vocals, though, which are usually halfway between singing and talking, one decides that Michael pictures himself a crooner in the style of Frank Sinatra. His vocals really do seem quite similar to those of Ole Blue Eyes. I’ve never really gotten the whole Sinatra thing, so this kind of leaves me a bit uninspired. Those who like Sinatra, though, will find some familiar territory here. Musically, this most often falls somewhere between blues and jazz, but it wanders from that territory at times. This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2011 Volume 4 at lulu.com/strangesound.

Track by Track Review

Downtown Toledo Some cool acoustic guitar soloing leads this off and it leads out into a nice old school blues jam. The vocals remind me somehow of Buster Poindexter, though. The cut include some harmonica playing.

Blues Du Jour A slow moving number, this is more of a jazz ballad. Sure, blues is in the title, and there is definitely some blues in the mix here, but the arrangement pulls it more thoroughly into jazz. The vocals are more spoken than sung.

Used Parts The marriage between jazz and the blues is more complete on this number. It’s a real smoker and one of the strongest pieces on show here.

Lou Ann This time it’s almost country music, with some New Orleans styled blues built into the mix.

Low Bid On A Dream A slow jazz groove makes up this tasty number. It’s a nice change and one of the highlights of the set.

Sweet Potato Pie Well, how can a track called “Sweet Potato Pie” not be tasty? This is sort of a New Orleans rag-time jam that’s got lyrics that are likely to have you salivating.

Lady's Blues The title is appropriate here. The music is more pure blues with some cool honky tonk piano in the mix. The instrumental section on this piece has a lot of Dixieland jazz within.

Heart Let Up On Me The biggest change so far, this number has a singer songwriter folk rock approach. It’s a cool tune.

ickel Bag of Reefer and A Sixpack of Beer The title leaves little to the imagination. The music is a shuffling kind of jazzy blues jam.

Just An Old Tattoo A blues meets jazz and folk ballad, this is cool, but not a standout.

Ordinary Folk This has a lot of boogie in it, but it’s built in a slow jazzy blues shuffle. It’s one of the cuts that has more character than some of the others. I especially like the blues goes rockabilly guitar solo.

Love Dream A slow jazz ballad motif makes up the basis for this cut.

Love Takes A Drive Here’s another slow moving cut. This has folk and rock built in, but it’s also got some blues and jazz. It’s almost all spoken. It’s perhaps as much Dylan as Sinatra, but there’s some countrified guitar work. While this is alright, it’s one of the weaker pieces on show. It might have made sense to close things with a stronger tune. There is a cool little jazz guitar bit at the end.

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