Louisiana Soul Revival
Louisiana Soul Revival featuring Doug Duffey

We say: Soul funk blues from north Louisiana

Mention the music of Louisiana and thoughts immediately turn to New Orleans or the Cajun country of the state's southern bayous. This is different, coming from the Mississippi Delta of the northern part of the state. As might be expected, the music here shows a strong electric blues influence along with soul, funk and southern gospel—some might call it a "gumbo" but maybe that would be to reiterate the weary Louisiana cliché just one time too many.

Doug Duffey, who fronts the LSR, is classically trained but you would hardly know it. The music here is down-home and funky, featuring songs composed by Duffey and arranged by his guitarist sidekick Dan Sumner. Duffey has considerable experience in funk having written songs in the past for the likes of Funkadelic, Rare Earth and George Clinton. Some of the numbers featured here—the opener "Funky Bidneh" and "B Wat R Ya"—were composed during that era.

Honking brass features heavily throughout, as does a tight rhythm section and Sumner's bluesy guitar. It's all a little retro in feel, harking back to the heyday of funk and southern soul of the 70s, but that's not such a bad thing. True, there is nothing particularly groundbreaking or original about Louisiana Soul Revival but this is good-time music from the "if-it-ain't-broke-don't-fix-it" school and none the worse for that.