Digging way down in the dirt and coming up with a fresh take on traditional blues, and then some, has always been what Whiteboy Slim is all about. Now with his new release "I'm Still Here", he digs even deeper and offers us yet another side of his many talents via acoustic tracks, for the first time, on this CD.

Music captured Whiteboy Slim (Maurice Richard Libby) at a young age, sparked in part because of the love of music by Ray Charles and Louis Armstrong. In fact you can almost hear a bit of Louis Armstrong in his uniquely delivered vocals.

At a young age Whiteboy Slim loved to experiment with various musical instruments and even "winning awards with his first band". Still a teenager, he played in a blues band called Red Meat, along with his brother Michael and Guitar Extraodinaire Ray Montana. Ray "went on to back up Sawyer Brown, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Waylon Jennings, and Johnny Paycheck". Throughout his various experiences both as a studier of Music Composition at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, where he got to hang out with some of the greats such as, "jazz great Gary Burton, pianist Al Copley (co-founder of Roomful of Blues), and bassist Ron McClure", and his musical tour of duties, especially in the group Automatic Slim, Whiteboy Slim has managed to weave himself and his music into a comfortable place.

"I'm Still Here" was not one of those projects that happened overnight, in fact it was a musical journey of nearly two years in the making. It is also an Album that stays true to Whiteboy Slim's philosophy of combining Traditional and Experimental elements together.

"I'm Still Here" as with his previous release "Aka Whiteboy Slim", consists of 14 Tracks, of which 11 are Originals written solely by Whiteboy Slim. Also on "I'm Still Here" are 3 great Covers, "Death Letter" (Eddie J. "Son" House Jr.), "Hear Me Talkin' To Ya" (Louis Armstrong), and "Route 66" (Bobby Troup). Besides Whiteboy Slim on all guitars, vocals, and harmonicas, the other musicians on "I'm Still Here", included Jim Mitchell on all Basses, and Whiteboy Slim's brother Michael Libby, on Drums.

The first thing you will notice right off the bat with "I'm Still Here", is the realization that this Album has a great live feel to it. Whiteboy Slim explains, "The rhythm tracks on this one were recorded live off-the-floor, giving it a very live feel". Recording music in that way really gives you the feel that you are right there in the room with those guys. It is the style of recording I have really come to enjoy and wish more artists would adopt that style of recording more often.

"I'm Still Here" is fairly well rounded production with quite a few Tracks that I really enjoyed, especially the opening Track "Death Letter", which was done with just Whiteboy Slim singing and playing acoustic. A great start to this Album.

The next highlight for me was Track 4 "I Got The Blues", which I particularly enjoyed when Whiteboy Slim broke off and did a nice nearly 1 minute long guitar solo.

Nearing the end of the Album is a virtual treasure of a Track with "Route 66", done just right with just enough guitar twang and the get down gravelly vocals of Whiteboy Slim. Once again we have the Guitar stepping to the forefront showing us just how talented of player Whiteboy Slim is.

Throughout "I'm Still Here" one really gets a great raw blues feel, thanks in part to the way this Album was recorded, which really brought out the instruments used throughout. Adding the icing to the cake though, had to be the unique deep vocal bluesy delivery of Whiteboy Slim, which brought everything together for an extraordinary listening experience. That coupled with an excellent choice of Covers and very well written Originals made for an immensely enjoyable Traditional Style Blues Album.

We no doubt have our share of Artists out there today that really bring something special to the world of Blues, and Whiteboy Slim is certainly no exception to that fact.

For those that like their music, especially the Blues, served up Raw, Whiteboy Slim and "I'm Still Here", is just the ticket.

"I'm Still Here" is a great follow-up to his previous award winning Album, "Aka Whiteboy Slim", and shows us an Artist that enjoys continually riding the cusp of new musical discovery.

Review By John Vermilyea (Blues Underground Network)

Other Info And Reviews

The new CD Im Still Here is finally finished. It has been almost two years since the project began, but it is now being manufactured. It is the first Whiteboy Slim recording that contains acoustic tracks, but it also contains the eclectic electric stuff that everyone has come to expect from Whiteboy Slim. The rhythm tracks on this one were recorded live off-the-floor, giving it a very live feel. The instrumentation is stripped down to guitars, harp,and vocals, with no keys or horns this time round. It continues the balance of tradition and experimentation you have come to expect.

Listen To Music Here...

About Whiteboy Slim

Maurice Richard Libby Evolves

Maurice Richard Libby is a musician and visual artist. He takes a consistent approach to his work in both media, mixing and matching his tools on tried-and-tested structures. Musically, he draws on experience and a diverse set of influences, including jazz, funk, world music and hip-hop, to create a very personal, coherent and enduring blues sound.

Ray Charles and Louis Armstrong sparked Maurice's interest in music and in 'blue' sounds. He started to experiment with a number of instruments as a child and was soon winning awards with his first band.

Still in his teens, Maurice sang and played harmonica in the blues group Red Meat, which featured his brother Michael on Drums and Ray Montana, the Regina guitarist who went on to back up Sawyer Brown, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Waylon Jennings and Johnny Paycheck.

Pedigree

After moving to Toronto, Maurice took on the persona of Whiteboy Slim. His driving blues outfit, Automatic Slim, was a popular live attraction, filling classic venues like the El Mocambo, The Silver Dollar Saloon, and the Black Swan. Automatic Slim was the house band at four different clubs on different nights of the week, and was noted for having best grossing Wednesday night downstairs at the El Mocambo. Maurice shared the stage during this period with other key Canadian blues artists, such as the brilliant guitarist and harmonica player, Michael Picket, and the Kendall-Wall Blues band.

When personnel changes eventually shut down Automatic Slim, Maurice embarked on a solo career, playing jazz in Toronto clubs, then returning to Saskatchewan, where he plays his blues solo and in various group formations.

Maurice learned his craft in impressive company. While reading Jazz and Composition at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, he hung out with fellow students and teachers including jazz great Gary Burton, pianist Al Copley (co-founder of Roomful of Blues), and bassist Ron McClure (bassist with Charles Lloyd, Wynton Kelly, Quest, The 4th Way, Joe Henderson, Blood, Sweat & Tears, The Pointer Sisters, Sarah Vaughan, Thelonious Monk).

Philosophy

In life, as in their work, blues musicians are typically improvisers. In committing to their music, they must often struggle to reap the rewards that come more easily to their peers in more popular genres. So, how does Maurice Richard Libby see things?

"Everything is changing; the music business is in a mess, with pre-fabricated popstars who have little talent and less creativity flitting through our lives known more for their clothes or sex lives than they are for their music. The record companies are crying about downloaders, and even (big label) artists who sell large numbers of CDs live on what they could make working at a burger joint. But there is a bright side: it's cheap to record and the Internet lets you reach out to the whole world, so my philosophy is just to go out there and catch as big a wave as I can and ride it for as long as I can."

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