Review by Roch Parisien
Fuelled by Coco Montoya's searing but economical string-slashing,
drummer Joe Yuele, and bassist Rick Cortes, John Mayall has managed
to keep a stable core of Bluesbreakers together in recent years.
Mayall rarely does the same album twice, and Wake Up Call finds him
eturning to a basic, physical sound after 1990's more progressive/highly
produced A Sense of Place. The harp whiz has rarely flirted with the
pop charts over the decades, a track record that will likely handicap
the title track - a potential hit featuring guest vocalist Mavis Staples
and some take-charge riffing from former mate Mick Taylor. For pure
guitar joy though, Montoya turns the trick all on his own with
barnburners "Loaded Dice" and "Nature's Disappearing."


01 Mail Order Mystic (Smither) 4:40
02 Maydell (Haynes, Neel) 3:56
03 I Could Cry (Wells) 5:09
04 Wake-Up Call (Egan, Lewis) 4:12
05 Loaded Dice (Nicholson, Wilson) 4:27
06 Undercover Agent for the Blues (White, White) 5:21
07 Light the Fuse (Mayall) 4:14
08 Anything I Can Say (Croker) 3:43
09 Nature's Disappearing (Mayall) 4:52
10 I'm a Sucker for Love (Mayall) 4:05
11 Not at Home (Mayall) 4:07
12 Ain't That Lovin' You Baby (Reed) 4:12