SUGAR BLUE

Threshold

[Beeble]

Known mostly as the musician who contributed the wailing harmonica riff on the Rolling Stones’ “Miss You,” Sugar Blue has maintained a vibrant career path ever since, offering consistent homage to such esteemed predecessors as Big Walter Horton, Carey Bell, James Cotton and Junior Wells. While Threshold continues to echo that bluesy legacy, it also finds him diversifying his palette with blues, R&B and funk. Blue’s harp doesn’t necessarily dominate the proceedings, which isn’t to say he doesn’t make his presence felt. His playing dazzles with rapid-fire dexterity on the furious cover of Junior Wells’ “Messin’ With the Kid,” the emotional sweep of “Cotton Tree” and the controlled frenzy that marks “Noel News.”  A bonus interview tacked on at the end proves an unnecessary addendum to an album that otherwise lets the music do the talking. –Lee Zimmerman