Johnny Rawls, Tad Robinson, Deitra Farr - From The Soul (2014)

From The Soul is a club format created by the Top Dogs band with the intention to introduce US artists working in the soul blues tradition to Swedish audiences. The idea was to arrange a series of tours, each featuring a new performer backed up by Top Dogs. When considering which artist to ask, we wanted to focus on the vocal performance and a strong stage presence, the working principle being that blues, first and foremost, is about a singer telling a story. We also wanted to emphasize the soul element, to make the band horn-driven rather then guitar-based.

Here is a selection of live recordings from our efforts for your listening pleasure. We hope you will enjoy these great performances by entertainer extraordinaire Johnny "Soul Survivor" Rawls, Tad Robinson - one of the most innovative artists currently working in the field - and, lastly, the epitome of the big-voice blues singer, the great Deitra Farr. /Excerpt from the liner notes

Top Dogs: Sverker Blomberg (guitar), Erik Pettersson (Hammond organ, piano), Patrik Norrman (bass), Thomas Lingman (drums)

The Forlorn Blues Horns: Mighty Bo Gustafsson (tenor sax), Mikael Renliden (trumpet), Ingalill Hцgman (tenor sax), Magnus Appelholm (trumpet)