This is the band on the road. Recorded live at The Temperance in Leamington Spa, Well Boss captures an intense and magical performance in an intimate club. Known for innovative songwriting, the band now focuses on a set of stripped-back, classic blues numbers, top and tailed by two of their own instrumental compositions. The energy in the room is tangible, with pin-sharp and free-flowing soloing spurred on by an up-close audience. It was a night to be remembered.
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“★★★★” Mojo Magazine. “Jimmy Regal and the Royals is one hell of a blues band and First and Last Stop is one hell of a blues album.” Steve Harrison, Blues Matters. “Williams is an inventive guitarist and his duetting with Watkins is something quite joyful.” RnR Magazine. “It’s not hard to hear why this outfit is carving a reputation on the live circuit.” Hi Fi News. |
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"This is just robust music in the hands of masters. Fans of original and nuanced blues and R&B will garner hours of enjoyment here." Blues Blast Magazine. "(Gotta Make) A New Flame feels like a walk down the Crescent Cities Bourbon Street, while the driving funk of Micky Two Suits is typical of a band with the controls set to joyous." Classic Rock magazine. |
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•2024• Jimmy Regal and the Royals 2 min. 41 sec
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The songs:
Mean Old World features the best blues harmonica you’ll hear this decade, or possibly any other. This is pure artistry, a player on top of his game showing what can be achieved with directness, imagination and subtlety. It’s a tribute to the great Little Walter, and audiences up and down the country have been breaking out in spontaneous applause after Joff’s solo.
The title track, Well Boss, is a new instrumental and its first outing on a record. Every Jimmy Regal album includes an instrumental, here Joff Watkins delivers Chicago-inspired fiery riffs to a heavy swing backing. With CJ’s harmonies supporting a crescendo in the breakdown before the end. The track has become the rousing opening number at gigs, a real statement of intent.
The band’s version of 44 Blues is influenced by Howlin’ Wolf’s 50s recording, though the song goes back to the 1920s and Roosevelt Sykes. The rhythm is seriously funked-up by Sammy and CJ’s guitar is put through a fuzz box to further deepen the groove.
Keep it to Yourself, by harmonica great Sonny Boy Williamson II, is played through the vocal mic rather than Joff’s Fender Bassman amp in keeping with the more acoustic nature of the original. CJ takes on a country blues style, but on electric guitar, to keep the bass, rhythm and lead lines going all at once.
After the opening riff of Billy Boy Arnold’s I Wish You Wood, Sammy picks up the syncopation on the toms and things really get going. This is a crowd favourite, the dynamics simmer down for CJ’s solo before the band
unleashes a tremendous energy. There’s a link with another song on this collection – Chicago session guitarist Jody Williams played on the original recording as well as Wolf’s 44 Blues.
The band have been playing another Little Walter song, Watch Yourself, since its inception and it used to be the set opener. A version was included on the band’s debut album back in 2017 and this has all the joyful resonances of a gig in a hot, packed blues club.
St James Infirmary is the set’s slow number. CJ’s influence for this version is New Orleans guitarist Snooks Eaglin, who he had the privilege to get a glimpse of in the Crescent City back in 2008. Sammy joins in on half moon rim shots to build the tension before the soaring harmonica breaks out.
Joff saw the UK’s own Howlin’ Wilf and the VJs play back in the 80s, and their song Got a Thing For You is in tribute. It’s got that pushy British rhythm and blues edge, and the guitar liberally uses the Wilko Johnson method of keeping the bass note chugging along and stabbing chords over the top.
The band round off the set with another of its instrumentals, this time taken from the acclaimed Late Night Chicken album. Regal Alley is a thunderous slice of music. Joff uses pedal to get the bass sound – akin to roll of the sousaphone in modern New Orleans brass bands – while CJ plays the main riff with double octaves as used on the Johnny Burnette Trio’s Train Kept-a-Rollin’. Sammy gets his turn to shine, the crowd cheering and whistling his snare-rolling drum breaks.
Jimmy Regal and the Royals is an innovative band that explores deep rhythms and musical forms – it has recorded with horns, djembe and kora and is always thinking about how to extend what it does. This album is a focus on the band’s origins and the simple joy of playing blues in clubs. It will always keep in touch with this music.
Credits:Joff Watkins on harmonica and vocals, CJ Williams on guitar and Sammy Samuels on drums. Recorded by Adrian Gains at The Temperance. Mixed and mastered by Lenny Bignell at The Shack. Cover designed by Jon Heal. Back cover photo by Phil Honley. For further information: contact: Corin Williams, corinwilliams@tiscali.co.uk
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Discography:
- Jimmy Regal and the Royals, 2017
- Late Night Chicken, 2020 (Lunaria Records)
- Ain’t Done Yet EP, 2021 (Lunaria Records)
- First and Last Stop, 2023 (Lunaria Records)
- Live at Elephant and Castle, 2024
*Upcoming – watch out for a new all-original studio album planned for early 2026 on Lunaria Records.
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