Grammy-nominated doo-wop era rock ‘n’ roller DION (Dion DiMucci) —of The Wanderer and Runaround Sue fame— has been making people dance with his music since the late 1950s. Although he’s famed around the world for his rock ‘n’ roll, few admirers of his early work are unaware that he has collaborated on several albums with contemporary rock musicians. And the indefatigable artist has released several albums of country and blues standards over the decades.
For example, Blues with Friends, Dion’s June 2020 release, was made possible by Keeping the Blues Alive Records (KTBA), a label founded by Joe Bonamassa & Roy Weisman (that provides blues musicians with a platform to present their craft.) We described the songs on this album as: filled with propositioning beat, expostulating guitars… moody, mean and efficient.
And Dion’s 2021 release “Stomping Ground” (produced by Wayne Hood with Dion) and with song’s written by Dion and his longtime songwriting partner Mike Aquilina featured collaborations with Peter Frampton, Billy Gibbons, Rickie Lee Jones, Bruce Springsteen, Joe Bonamassa, Mark Knopfler, Eric Clapton and others. We described the sound on this as: voluptuous slices of rock with huge butterfat vocals and the type of musical rhythm that slinks around rather than scampers…
And the rockin’ old-timer ain’t finished yet, and not by a long chalk! His upcoming album of all original penned tracks, titled “Girl Friends” showcases powerful female collaborators. The first single “An American Hero” with Carlene Carter dropped in October and the December release of “Soul Force,” which features the mighty Susan Tedeschi, highlights his sustained and renewed creative energy.
gritstone blues, brimming with resolve and persistent sass…
Raw Ramp Music Magazine
Dion explains, “I’ve noticed that men play a different tune when there are women in the room — and it’s a different kind of jam when women are in the mix. I don’t know why this is so, but it is. Maybe we men, at some primitive level, are competing for their attention. As I said, I don’t know why or how. I do know it makes better music and we’re all better for it.”
“I wanted the best music possible. So, I wrote up a batch of duets for me and my ‘girl friends,’ the women who inhabit my headphones — the women who make me turn up the volume when they drop into my radio. I invited them to join me, one by one, and here they are, wailing on the guitar and into the microphone. You’ll hear the feminine genius in every groove of this record, and you won’t forget any of it.”
We noted that, with the exceptions of Christine Ohlman, Valerie Tyson, and Shemekia Copeland, the other Girl Friends on this album seem to be guitar players… let’s hope that other tracks feature vocals as well as their nimble fingerworking!
“Soul Force” with Susan Tedeschi is gritstone blues, brimming with resolve and persistent sass. Susan uses a gentle guitar seltzer to resurrect the rough-sand lyrical line. It’s kinda Steve Millerish in attitude, with with much wisdom and erudition pulsating through each musical vein.
Words: © Neil Mach
Photo Credit © David Godlis