Peter Parcek – Most of the Time
Chiseled out of a modern-day blues aesthetic & from vintage juke joint dust, Peter Parcek never fails to bring lungs filled with air to his blues. The production has clarity, solid sound & Parcek’s vocals are reinforced by the excellent leads, fashioned mostly by artists from the past like Roy Buchanan, Stevie Ray Vaughan & with generous pinches of John Mayall & Duster Bennett.
But at this point in his career, Peter has developed a signature sound that, while it isn’t wild & blistering, knows how to punctuate exactly where it should. 15 cuts grace Most of the Time (Drops August 14/Lightnin Records/78:12). All except as noted were produced by Peter with Patrick DiCenso, with track 14 produced by Ted Drozdowski & Ducky Carlisle. Track 9 produced by Marco Giovino (drums).
The lead tunes are duly fueled with blues suavity. “Twistified” & “How Many Times” are excellently arranged exercises in blues with varied instrumentation adding to its bite. Nothing is overloaded or overplayed. Bob Dylan’s “Most of the Time” is excellent. It’s the kind of song average songwriters would never come up with. Parcek creates his own rendition with lots of appeal. Followed by John Hiatt’s “Mississippi Phone Booth” — achingly smooth notes & Peter’s skillful vocals. Of note is the excellent Tim Carman drum/percussion fills in support of the creative bluesy patterns.
There’s a delicacy to everything played. “Stranger Blues” is another bluesy ballad, but Peter’s voice is the catalyst – not raw, or too gangly, smoked & whiskied out. Just warm & experienced. The guitar leads accentuate the way B.B. King often duetted with Lucille (his guitar). Instead of guitar flash, it’s guitar expressionism.
The trick to keep the old blues genre interesting. Perform classics or cover songs that have a level of lyrical cleverness that the lead guitar, piano, or harmonica can feed off. Peter has expertise in this area (“Poor Boy” & “Three Feet In Back of My Head”) – even Robert Johnson would appreciate these. Seems Peter’s pigmentation is a product of his soul. There are lots of covers of other classic writers’ material here, but all appropriately mixed to create a blues journal. Peter’s originals have radiation in the notes.
There are worthy instrumentals included in the set that are hot trips into bluesology.
Highlights – “Twistified,” “How Many Times,” “Most of the Time,” “Mississippi Phone Booth,” “Stranger Blues,” “Poor Boy,” “Three Feet In Back of My Head,” “61 Highway,” & “Grandma’s Hands.”
Musicians – Peter Parcek (guitars/vocals), Marc Hickox (electric bass), Tom West (Hammond B-3/Fender Rhodes) with Duke Robillard & Luther Dickinson (guitars), Kevin Barry (lap steel/acoustic guitars), Mickey Raphael & Marcos Anthero Silva (harmonicas), Dominic John Davis (acoustic & electric bass), Mark Earley (horns & arrangements), Danielle Miraglia (vocals), Steve Scully (drums/loops) & Daniel Keller (violin).
Cover image by Michael Kurgansky. CD @ Amazon & https://www.peterparcekband.com/most-of-the-time.html
Enjoy some of our previous coverage here: Song Premiere: Peter Parcek “How Many Times”