Open Road by The Eames Brothers Band

Musically, it's bare-bones, with ragtime-style picking framed by Michael Owens' gentle percussion and Ralph Eames' understated bass line.

"Waitin' by the Roadside" gives aching solitude a jazzy makeover, while 'West Wind" has a slight Latin feel.

The title track is an especially tasty cut. Guest keyboardist Ray Paczkowski conjures swirling sounds from his organ; Owens' percussion is fluid and in the pocket. Seth Eames serves up my favorite kind of lick: snaky and in a minor key.

"Another Round" features wonderful slide work and lyrics about boozin' and ramblin'. This is a blues band after all. "Another round, another town, another lonely sun gone down," Eames gruffly croons.

Interestingly, the mood seems to get lighter as the album progresses. Like clouds parting after a prolonged rainstorm, later tracks arouse elation. "Worried Blues," despite its title, is one such example; "Goin' Home" - which features feisty organ from regular keyboardist Ron Rost - is another. "Earth Blues" is a slow, Chicago-style number that is likewise uplifting.

The album winds down with "Indian Summer Blues," which is as sultry as its name suggests. The tune would make exellent listening on those hot 'n' sticky evenings that are no doubt around the corner.

Open Road is a fantastic collection of original blues by a truly talented group."

Casey Rae

News Flash!!!

"Open Road" makes Seven Days Vermont top 10 alblums of 2006! - December 29, 2006

From Seven Days, December 27th, 2006...

"This year Vermont musicians were as busy as ever, playing non-stop gigs and releasing quality records. In fact, so many discs came out, we didn’t have time to review them all. Apologies to those we missed.

In 2006, several local groups extended their reach well beyond the Green Mountains. Grace Potter & the Nocturnals toured extensively and celebrated the national re-release of Nothing But the Water. Truckstop rockers Chuch took their diesel-fueled tunes to the West Coast and back; they’ll soon release a DVD documenting their adventures. Quirky jam foursome RAQ spent more time on the road than they did at home, making a triumphant return to Higher Ground in December. Don’t forget to exhale, people.

But back to the CDs. The ’06 crop was incredibly varied, with genres ranging from death metal to bluegrass. One thing we noticed is that the production quality of these releases was better than ever. Some of this is no doubt due to new technology that makes home recording easy and affordable. But let’s not forget the pro studio engineers who did such a fine job tweaking knobs and faders. Buy yourselves a new sonic doohickey or something.

It’s never easy to choose a “best of” from so many worthy releases, but we’ve tried. Here, then, are our top 10 Vermont CDs from 2006. The ranking is arbitrary, so no lording position over your peers!"

* James Kochalka Superstar, Spread Your Evil Wings & Fly

* 35th Parallel, Crossing Painted Islands

* The Aztext, Haven’t You Heard?

* Eames Brothers Band, Open Road

* Various Artists, Cry of Atlantis: The North Country Scene ’58-’67

* Deep Soda, Jongles: Collected & Destroyed Vol. 1

* Kris Gruen, Lullaby School

* Resonator, Lost Language

* Carrigan, Young Men Never Die

* Guagua, Pan Frito

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