The Wheel Man

Watermelon Slim and the Workers Bill "Watermelon Slim" Homans sings like a baying basset, drawing the tongue-in-cheek misery of tunes like "Hard Times" and "Check Writing Woman" out in long, dry-mouthed syllables. But it's the slide guitar on this, his third album, that really howls, whether he's playing smoot...	No Paid Holidays Watermelon Slim is a relatively new luminary of the blues, rapidly building a career behind four albums and constant touring. In 2008 Slim was nominated for six awards, a feat matched only by the likes of B.B. King, Buddy Guy, and Robert Cray. Slim has twelve nominations in the l...	On the Jimmy Reed Highway "Big boss man is still the man today," growls Omar Dykes on one of just two non-Jimmy Reed covers from a rare release without his Howlers band. That handily sums up this roaring and impassioned tribute to one of the most vital, influential, yet often unheralded figures in blues. ...	Up Close & Personal	10 Days Out (Blues from the Backroads)/ (CD/DVD) This "back-to-the-roots" road-trip documentary CD/DVD from blues-rocking guitarist Kenny Wayne Shepherd can be viewed in two ways--it's either the culmination of a long-held desire to promote and play with some unheralded blues veterans before they pass away (as six had already d...
From the Reach Singer, songwriter and Louisiana slide guitar phenom Sonny Landreth's first studio album in five years unites his band with a who's who of musical guests for a set of all-original roots rock tinged with the blues and New Orleans soul. Featured guitarists and vocalists include Eri...	Mess of Blues	Skin Deep It’s erroneous to characterize this 2008 Buddy Guy release, his first in three years, as a comeback, since he’s never been gone. But between a spotlight stealing performance in Martin Scorsese’s Rolling Stones concert flick Shine a Light in the same year an...	Old School Go ahead and call it a comeback. Despite her advancing years and frail health following a 2003 hospitalization, Old School shows that the Queen of Chicago Blues has no intentions of abdicating her throne just yet. Koko Taylor isn't terribly prolific--this is only her third album ...	Big Shoes to Fill

The Wheel Man
Never heard of him. Now I am hooked. Outstanding blues artist..... Pick this up if you want the real thing!

A gem
We discovered Watermelon Slim serendipitously at a live performance. (Slim's a former newspaper reporter -- I wonder if he'd laugh at a 6-syllable word used to describe him.) He's become one of my household's favorite blues artists. We love _Wheel Man_ for Slim's outstanding storytelling as well as his phenomenal playing and singing. Slim can evoke a scene vivid enough for film with just a few words in his signature drawl. While Slim's slide guitar work is some of the best out there in any genre, "Jimmy Bell" -- just Slim singing and playing harmonica -- is one of this album's stars. A fantastic collection of songs from an artist who deserves far more recognition.

Disappointed
I listen to a fair amount of blues and was excited about this album based on the positive reviews. I don't like it, however. He sings with a lisp and the lyrics often seem off-kilter with the band. Perhaps this is just his style, but I'm not digging it. He does sound his best when singing the tunes minus the band.

Fantastic
The disc came earlier than I anticipated and was in perfect shape. For the price, it was a lot more than I expected. I'll definitely buy from them again.

Slim Slams Another "Home Run"
Watermelon Slim's 2nd album for the Canadian label, NorthernBlues Music is called "The Wheel Man", and is every bit as fresh and juicy as his hugely successful intitial 2006 self-titled "Watermelon Slim & The Workers" album. Slim's version of the Blues is just a little different, and therein lies the "breath of fresh air" that has him and the boys fast becoming "Blues festival favorites" all over the country this Summer. You can tell that Slim is having fun with the music, and that fun easily infects the crowd. If you haven't heard Watermelon Slim & The Workers, buy this album; as a matter of fact, buy BOTH of his albums. If you have heard his first album, I shouldn't need to tell you that this is more of the same refreshing stuff.