Oklahoma/ Keb' Mo', Americana

By Narendra Kusnur 

Album: Oklahoma
Artiste: Keb' Mo'
Genre: Americana, blues
Label: Concord Records
Rating: *****

On February 8, singer-guitarist Keb’ Mo’ will make his second appearance at the Mahindra Blues Festival, having last performed in 2016. He was also in the news a few weeks ago for picking up the Grammy for Best Americana Album for his record Oklahoma.

Though Mo’ released the Christmas album Moonlight, Mistletoe & You later, we chose Oklahoma for review as it didn’t get much attention when released, and made headlines only after the Grammy announcement. On this, the musician displays excellent songwriting skills, and his vocal texture has the right blend of masculinity and sweetness.

The term ‘Americana’, which became popular just a decade ago, is rather loose, but indicates an amalgam of various American styles like country, blues, bluegrass, boogie and the Tulsa sound. And here, Mo’ does that mixing with amazing effect, and yet maintains his trademark sound.

Expectedly, the opening track ‘I Remember You’ is rooted in electric blues, as Mo’ sings, “My name is Junior, from Memphis, Tennessee; my dad was a hustler, a stranger to me”. The title track gets into Americana mode, starting with a blues shuffle, before getting into country fiddles and Robert Randolph’s pedal steel guitar.

Each track is a gem, but special mention must be made of the ballad ‘The Way I’, where Mo’s voice is at its most soulful, ‘Put A Woman In Charge’, featuring Johnny Cash’s daughter Roseanna, and ‘Beautiful Music’, a melodic love song with his wife Robbie Brooks Moore where they sing, “We make beautiful music together, you’re my song that keeps playing forever, together.”

Mo’s rendition of ‘This Is My Home’ is outstanding, whereas the great Taj Mahal joins in on ‘Don't Throw It Away’. The uptempo ‘Ridin On A Train’ has a nice boogie swing, and ‘I Should’ve’ has an infectious harmonica backdrop. The blues sound is back on the sing-along tune ‘Cold Outside’, peppered by a crisp guitar solo.

All this makes for a gem of an album, and Mo’s Grammy is really well-deserved. Hopefully, more listeners will get a chance to hear it.