Hear the Dennis Gruenling talk about his CD’s Up All Night & I Just Keep Lovin’ plus some great songs from Up All Night.
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 055 - Dennis Gruenling - Up All Night / I Just Keep Lovin' Him (A Tribute to Little Walter) [33:52m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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Dennis said for as long as he can remember he has always loved music. In school he played trumpet, a little guitar, listened to rock, some classic rock, country western, anything. Looking back he now sees the common thread through all the music was when it touched on the blues he liked it. His uncle turned him on to plain old blues by way of the CD Harp Attack, which featured Junior Wells, James Cotton, Carey Bell, and Billy Branch. If that was not enough his uncle gave him a harmonica at about the same time. That’s all it took for him to be really hooked on the blues. This was around the early nineties. Dennis tried to buy all the blues records he could find. Around town he was starting to do blues shows with the local New Jersey bands. Dennis met Steve Guyger around this time who had once toured with the great Jimmy Rogers. Dennis started going up to Philadelphia to see Steve play. Steve was always encouraging and supportive of Dennis. By 1998 Dennis had his own band doing kind of a jump swing style of music. Their first CD came out the following year called Dennis Gruenling & Jump Time.

Dennis became friends with another harp player/singer named Sandy Mack. They both played some of the same songs in their bands and did some touring together. Dennis as well as Sandy wanted to do a more Chicago style blues at this point. They decided to work together on a CD that came out in 2000 called Up All Night. This weeks podcast will spotlight this exceptional CD. On the first listening you will immediately think this sounds like a fine Chicago blues band of the early fifties. The sound, feel, groove it’s all there. The only thing that is missing is the scratchy, popping sound of the old records. The one thing added is the high quality of a modern CD. Of the fifteen songs on Up All Night six are written by Dennis Gruenling, four by Sandy Mack (real name J. McCuiston) the remainder are older covers. I was impressed at their writing ability. The song “True Love” has a sound of a Sonny Boy Williamson II recording but it’s an original by Dennis. “You Got It” was styled after something you might hear performed by Jimmy Rogers. Sandy Mack’s vocals are always good but on “I Gotta Have Her”, a song he wrote, they really sparklel. Andy Riedel has kind of a B.B. King style of playing guitar on this song too. One song that is not a Chicago style song is Dennis’ song “Dirty Deal”. Dennis said this is more like something George “Harmonica” Smith would have done. Kind of a rhythm and blues style with a bit jazz in it. One of the real treats is getting to hear Dennis Gruenling do the song “Roller Coaster”. He had been told this was the hardest song Little Walter had ever done. Dennis was up for the task of recording “Roller Coaster”. He had already learned almost every song Little Walter had played. Most of the song is note for note what Little Walter did with the exception of a part in the middle where Dennis put in some of his own ideas. The song turned out great, really the whole CD turned out great as you will hear in the podcast.

In 2001 Dennis Gruenling & Jump Time put out their second CD titled That’s Right!

In 2008 Dennis put out a new CD I Just Keep Lovin’ Him, A Tribute to Little Walter. This has been met with great reviews. Like the one in Blues Revue (Aug/Sept 2008) where Eric Thom praises the job Dennis does on making the CD. The only other person that has done a tribute to Little Walter is George “Harmonica” Smith way back in 1968. Kim Wilson, Rick Estrin, Rusty Zinn, and Steve Guyger are all guests that really make this a special CD. Dennis was smart he did not do a lot of songs everyone already had by Little Walter. Even though you may have several CDs of Little Walter you will probably not have most of these songs. Some songs are from when Little Walter was a sideman doing songs by Muddy Waters or Jimmy Rogers. Then there are the songs from Little Walter solo career. Some of the more unique songs are “Corbella”, “My Little Machine”, and a Muddy Waters song “Lovin’ Man”. Since the podcast is about the Up All Night CD I won’t be playing any songs from I Just Keep Lovin’ Him. You may want to go by CD Baby’s Website where you can hear a two-minute clip of each song and even buy the CD.

Up All Night with Sandy Mack and I Just Keep Lovin’ Him, A Tribute to Little Walter are both Chicago style blues at it’s best. The only thing better than this is hearing Little Walter live. Oh, that reminds me, a few weeks ago I saw Dennis Gruenling at BB’s Jazz, Blues & Soups in St. Louis. You have to go see this guy live. He even had Steve Guyger (who toured with Jimmy Rogers’) with him. If you close your eyes you just might think you are hearing Little Walter and one of those great old Chicago blues band of long ago.

CD’s by Dennis Gruenling:
2008 - I Just Keep Lovin’ Him
2001 - That’s Right!
2000 - Up All Night – W/ Sandy Mack
1999 - Dennis Gruenling & Jump Time

Songs used in the podcast:
1. On Fire
2. Up All Nigh
3. Bluesin’
4. True Love
5. You Got It

Dennis Gruenling Website

Dennis Gruenling MySpace

Bluebeat Music best place to buy any of his CD’s

To Buy I Just Keep Lovin’ Him, A Tribute to Little Walter at CD Baby Website

I’d like to thank Dennis Gruenling for taking the time to do the interview and all his help in putting this show together.

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Blues Music and Interviews
A1Blues.Com
formerly A1 Artist Spotlight. Com
by A1 Mark