Mark Cameron
Nasty Business
Blue Heart Records
Publicity: Blind Raccoon
Peter “Blewzzman” Lauro © July 2023
By no means do I want to make Mark Cameron sound old, because he truly isn’t – especially by blues standards. That said, with the release of Nasty Business, Mark has now had releases in five different decades. Equally impressive is in addition to having had five previous releases in other genres, and this being his fifth in the blues, Nasty Business is Mark Cameron’s tenth release. That’s some quite respectable longevity in what most musicians know is indeed a ‘nasty business’.
For this project, the nucleus of the band is: Mark Cameron on guitar and vocals; Sheri Cameron on saxophone, percussion and vocals; Rick Miller on harmonica and vocals; and Dan Schroeder on drums. Additional guest performers include: Nick Salisbury on bass; Tommy Barberella on keyboards; Tonia Hughes, Sara Renner and Teresa James on vocals; Zack Loxier on trumpet and trombone; Ian Schroeder on baritone sax; and Greg Schutte on drums.
The gritty opening track is titled “Sorry” and it addresses thing’s that Mark regrets ever getting involved in. With respect to a job he said he’d work at the rest of his life; a shiny new car he bought that came with four thousand years of payments but is falling apart after one whole week; and a supposedly long-term relationship where the word long never actually came into play; Mark’s answer is “Sorry, but I’ve changed my mind”. Musically, along with a little extra help from Ian on the baritone sax, Dan and Nick are in a roaring rhythm groove on the bass and drums; Rick’s smokin’ the harmonica leads; and Mark is nailing the lead and slide guitar runs. Perfect way to kick things off.
On this track, Mark not only believes that the blues is a language, but he proves it as well. That said, while unsuccessfully attempting to reach out to his woman, the only way Mark knows how to get his message through is to leave out the middleman – words – and to use the “Language Of the Blues”. Examples of that are when he states: “When I say… and then he cuts loose with a few stinging guitar notes… I know that’s what you heard”…. “Or something like”… and then Rick wails out a blues harmonica riff… “now we don’t need no damn words”…. he truly believes he made his point – through the blues. Now I know what I’m doing wrong, I need to learn an instrument to get through to the Blewzzlady. Musically, along with the excellent guitar and harp highlights, this swinging track features Nick and Greg in a strong rhythm groove on the bass and drums, getting lot of horn help from Sheri’s sax and Zack’s trumpet and trombone. Additionally, although unlike Mark they do have to use words, the ladies all sound fabulous on the backing vocals.
“That’s A Fact” is a tale of a broken relationship that does, in fact, have Mark experiencing severe heartaches and pain. The deep, dark vibe the band is laying down is the perfect backdrop for the songs painfully presented melancholy lyrics. The combination of Mark’s emotions, and the stinging background and harmony vocals, combine to make this one of the disc’s best sung songs.
So, we already know the song was made into a western movie, now think about Jimmy Dean narrating an episode of Murder She Wrote. If you’ve come up with something like ‘Big Bad John’ shaking down seedy suspects, then you’ve got an idea as to how this one sounds. With a soundtrack behind him that would suit most mystery movies to a tee, Mark cleverly and fictitiously dramatizes the tale of what goes on at “Nick’s Place” – a joint located up at the ‘Pole’.
Mark and Teresa are quite the sultry couple on a duet titled “Combination”. The song tells the story of a man and woman both wanting their relationship to regain the magnetism that originally brought them together. It seems that they’ve gotten so out of touch with each other that they’re turning all the wrong dials. On the other hand, with the emotion and sincerity they both exude, there’s no doubting this one will have a happy ending as they leave no doubt in my mind that they’ll eventually find the right combination to each other’s heart. From the easy-going rhythm and percussion; to the smooth guitar runs; its lyrics; and the sexy vibe it emits; everything about this song is absolutely masterful.
There are many numbers of reasons why someone might think “Life Is Good”. However, not many of those people may understand it if you said “Life is good when you got the blues”. As a matter of fact, anyone outside of the blues community might think you’re nuts. That’s okay, all that matters is that we understand exactly what Mark means when he says it. Musically, the track is a very well done acoustic duo with Mark shining on the vocals and guitar, and Rick shining on harmonica. Nice job guys.
Other tracks on what, in my opinion, may be one of Mark’s best releases include: The title track, “Nasty Business”; “What’s For Supper”; “Everything”; and “Voodoo”.
Should you like to find out more about Mark Cameron, just go to – www.markcameronmusic.net. Remember, wherever you go and whomever you speak with, please tell them their friend, the Blewzzman, sent you.
“The Blues Is My Passion And Therapy”
Peter “Blewzzman” Lauro
Blues Editor @ www.Mary4Music.com
2011 “Keeping The Blues Alive” Award Recipient
