HOGTOWN ALLSTARS REVIEWS UK’s Rockin Magpie Review The Hogtown Allstars are a Canadian Supergroup that between them they have more than 20+ Maple Blues Awards, five JUNO Awards, two Lifetime Achievement Awards, and countless International blues and jazz music awards; There’s something ‘special’ about this album; maybe the way its sequenced or just the 10 fabulous songs therein; or more likely the way the band come together the way only people with enough ‘lifetime experiences’ can, to create a series of moods that make each track sound like it was written especially for the listener …. which is quite some feat!! Tom Knapp, USA Fittingly, the Allstars may afford the impression of greasy pork ribs, though the former no doubt are better for you than the latter. Weirdly, you’d swear that sometimes they almost literally cause your mouth to water. On Hog Wild you’re not exactly going to be exposed to anything you haven’t been exposed to before, at least if blues and r&b are frequent servings in your listening diet, but you’ll be treated to something akin to expert chefs delivering it out of a kitchen on a raucous New Orleans street. It’s not quite a single dish. For example, the band offers up a superior treatment of a Jackson original, a strongly conceived and performed Mississippi-flavored blues titled “Biscuits & Beans.” The title song feels like an old-fashioned Chicago blues-party workout. Mostly, though, this is a couple of varieties of classic r&b/soul of the sort that was at its most widely popular a few decades ago, when you could hear it (or so perhaps wistful memory misinforms me) at almost any moment as you flipped the top-40 radio dial or monitored the jukebox. It has never gone entirely out of fashion. That’s because it’s so hard for so many to resist, most of all when it’s encased in danceable melodies, irresistible vocals and more-than-able bands in full command of the appropriate instruments to dish out the rhythms. None of that is absent here. Jackson, who has composed eight of the 10 cuts, is a golden-toned writer whose songs, if recognizable in style and outlook, yet come across as distinctive. It doesn’t hurt, either, that he seems to have learned to sing from Chicago’s Howlin Terry Parsons – Maple Blues Magazine Canada The Hogtown Allstars is not just a group of musicians all having a high level of performance in their field, in effect a musical All Star team. They are all well established artists in their own right, with a musical pedigree that some players could only dream of having. Each player in this band is an award winner that represents the finest in his chosen instrument. Consisting of some of the finest blues players in the world, a collaborative venture that was started in 2013, the Hogtown boys are ready to take it to the next level. Their debut CD, Hog Wild, is a collection of beautifully crafted tunes, including 8 originals and 2 covers, released through Stony Plain Records. The Hogtown Allstars have a winner on their hands. Let’s face it, when you take the best of the best, the expectations are high! The Hogtown Allstars certainly do not disappoint. Hog Wild is a treat for the ears, from start to finish. Can’t wait to see what they come up with next! (Terry Parsons) | 
