Carey Bell, Lazy Lester, Raful Neal and Snooky Pryor
Superharps II (Telarc)
The follow-up to last year’s Grammy-nominated harmonica summit doesn’t have quite the star power of James Cotton or Charlie Musselwhite. Still, all four veterans have a certain gnarled charisma and, singing in the more-heart-than-talent style of harp heroes Sonny Boy Williamson and Junior Wells, they warble through standard blues and cut loose on the solos. Bell has the best feel for placing a riff within a song, marching joyfully through Muddy Waters’ “Walking Thru the Park”; Lester’s trills capture the spooky sadness of Frank Patt’s “Blood Stains on the Wall.” In addition, Neal is a master of economy, punctuating the verses of “I Miss You Baby” with curvy snippets; and Pryor streamrolls over guitarist Kid Bangham in the rocking “Let Your Hair Down.” But the mid-tempo finale “Harp to Harp,” a polite series of “after yous,” is a letdown.