Album Review: Duke Robillard – Roll With Me

Singer-guitarist Duke Robillard has had a long, illustrious and creatively fruitful career. Co-founder of Roomful of Blues in 1967, he remained with that group for a decade, cutting a pair of albums. Subsequently working with other artists and as a solo artist, he stayed busy through the following decades. In 1990 he took over on guitar from Jimmie Vaughan in the Fabulous Thunderbirds. A prolific recording artist, Robillard has released more than three dozen albums, dazzling listeners with his work in jazz, swing, blues and sometimes all three at once.

Robillard’s latest is a semi-archival release: Roll With Me is the product of session that took place some 20 years ago; for years he referred to the long-shelved project as The Lost Duke Sessions. Now in 2024 Robillard has dusted off those tapes, adding bits here and there as necessary to polish them up.

Other than a modern production aesthetic, everything about Roll With Me sounds and feels like classic jump blues and swing from the 1940s and ‘50s. “Blue Coat Man” has a chunky and exuberant horn section. A reading of Fats Domino’s “Are You Going My Way” sports the requisite New Orleans feel, with yakety sax and rollicking piano. A cover of Joe Turner’s “I Know You Love Me” mines a similar vein, with an even tastier piano part; the song conjures visions of a horn section swaying to and fro as they churn out a hypnotic melodic line.

The highly-charged “Boogie Uproar” is Robillard’s tribute to Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, and a fine one it is. Muddy Waters’ “Look What You Done” layers a new lead vocal by Robillard’s band vocalist Chris Cote atop the instrumental track; Sugar Ray Norcia lays down a solid harp solo.

Howlin’ Wolf’s “Built for Comfort” gets a full arrangement, with sinewy guitar licks sparring with beefy horns and a raspy Robillard vocal. “My Plea” is a Robillard original in a Fats Domino style, its composition dating from Duke’s years with Roomful. The saucy, uptempo “You Got Money” is another track finished with a new and spirited Cote lead vocal. Doc Pomus’ oft-covered “Boogie Woogie Country Girl” is approached with a faithful arrangement.

Another Duke Robillard original, “Give Me Back My Money” is straight Chicago-style blues, with a languid pace that allows him plenty of space to stretch out and solo. The set closes with a remake of “Don’t You Want to Roll With Me.” The Robillard composition was Roomful of Blues’ debut single back in 1975, years before the group would release a full album. Robillard’s remake changes the key and pumps up the horn volume; with a lead vocal that subtly recalls Louis Prima, it’s a fine way to wrap up a solid set of songs.