Kenny “Blues Boss” Wayne’s new disc “Can’t Stop Now” is as well seasoned, well travelled, and well spoken as the man himself, having been recorded in St. Louis, MO, Toronto, ON, Seattle, WA, Vancouver, BC, and Whitehorse, Yukon Territory! Kenny also has a foot firmly planted in both Blues music’s bright future and it’s glorious past, (that foot is also attached to a pair of hands that play the piano like no one else, check out the opening track “Boogie Woogie Mama").

On first listen to this album I was struck with the soulful Big Easy R&B flavour that washes over many of the tracks like steam from a simmering pot of extra spicy 5th ward jambalaya, Kenny did after all spend much of his childhood in his Mother’s hometown of New Orleans. His astute interpretation of Fat’s Domino’s “Pack Your Suitcase” and his heartfelt  original “Ragin’ Storm” do the Crescent City proud.

Family connections also make an appearance on “My Little Peach” where Kenny’s son Cory, lays a funky rap seamlessly into the heart of the song. When I asked Kenny about the variety of grooves on the disc he told me “ I’m trying to remind the R & B lovers of their Blues Roots and to remind the Blues people of how sweet R&B can be and to bridge the gap a little between them”. Kenny’s long time fans know he rarely misses a chance to pay generous tribute to the keyboard legends that have influenced him. Kenny had the privilege of playing with the late piano master Johnnie Johnson on several occasions and pays homage to him with both a wonderful version  “Tanqueray” and an original “Johnnie J. Was Good” recorded in St. Louis with Johnnie’s widow in the studio beaming in approval.

“I Can’t Stop Now I’m Having My Fun” Kenny sings on the track “Let’s Have Some Fun”. Let’s hope Kenny “Blues Boss” Wayne never stops doing what he does so very well. His music makes this mean old world that we live in a much better place to be.

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