New York City-born bluesman Marc Stone has parlayed two decades of performing in his adopted hometown of New Orleans, in addition to countless hours of sharing Deep South musical gems on his weekly “Soul Serenade” show on WWOZ, into an impressive roots-music pedigree that’s on fine display on Poison & Medicine, his hot-off-the-press Louisiana Red Hot Records debut.
Evoking sounds spanning the Southern musical spectrum from gospel to R&B throughout its nine tracks—all originals save the Sterling Mangee/Jesse Stone composition “7th Ave. (Oh She Was Pretty)”—the album immediately grabs the listener’s ear with Stone’s haunting, Delta-blues guitar riff that introduces the album on the opener “I Tried,” which grooves along to a deep, devil-inside bassline courtesy Sam Price (Honey Island Swamp Band, Otra) and stellar drum-kit and hand-percussion rhythms by Garland Paul (Honey Island Swamp Band) expertly accented by Patrick Williams’ harmonica.
Like his first album, 2010’s Trickeration & Rascality (Threadhead Records), Stone’s sophomore studio effort shines in a constellation of contributions from local musicians, with standouts including the late, great Tim Green’s saxophone on three tracks as well as Mike Dillon’s delicate vibraphone flourishes lifting Stone’s solid slide-guitar action on “Whatever You Do.”
Highlights here include “When You’re Bad,” a catchy number coming across as some sort of glorious Elton John/Walter “Wolfman” Washington mash-up, “Come to Me” and its “Let It Bleed”-era Rolling Stones vibe, and lyricism such as “I left diamonds on the floor / And they were swept away from me the moment I stepped offshore” and “Down here we’re never poor” (on “Lost Love Lounge”).
Though it slips a bit when the sound ventures into popish territory and the words rely on well-worn blues clichés, Poison & Medicine possesses catchy hooks, compelling introspection and songs that are simply fun to sing along to, marking perhaps a watershed moment in the already locally adored and internationally in-demand 45-year-old Stone’s career.
