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January - February 2006 Newsletter
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It’s My Soul Ken Saydak Evidence Music, Inc. 13 tracks/55:34
Some years ago, Ken Saydak played regularly in downtown Rockford. You would hear him on electric keyboards accompanied by only a drummer. He always managed to rock the house by banging out plenty of boogie rhythms.
His latest release finds him exploring a wider scope of music with Blues as the foundation. One plus for the disc is that Saydak wrote eleven of the thirteen tracks. With song titles like “Half Assed Love” and “Love in the Dumpster,” you quickly realize that his compositions tell it like it is while displaying a solid sense of humor. Saydak handles all of the lead vocals while switching between piano and organ. Producer Fred James does double duty as he also handles the guitar parts throughout the disc.
The disc opens with the stompin’ track “My Soul,” with pounding piano from Saydak, honking sax from Dennis Taylor and a rousing backing vocal from Mary-Ann Brandon. The next cut is “Half Assed Love,” a slow blues that finds Saydak describing his relationship with the proverbial unfaithful woman. It includes an excellent piano solo that clearly demonstrates that the Chicago blues piano tradition lives on through him.
Other highlights include the rockin’ “Learned My Lessons” with another fine solo from saxman Taylor. Saydak’s lyrics explore taking responsibility for your actions, concluding that, “…When you’re the one that calls the tune, then you’re the one that has to pay.” “Hanging by a Thread” has a funky backbeat that is propelled by Ken on the organ with great vocal support once again from Brandon. Then Saydak switches to country soul on “Hard Work” which features a fine vocal from him.
One track that didn’t work for me was “Bonedance.” While solid musically, the lyrics were a bit too cute for me. It is followed by “Love in the Dumpster,” a title that seems to spell disaster but Saydak describes another failed love affair to its’ obvious ending over a strong rocking beat. There are a couple of other points where I felt that Saydak lyrics were a bit too clever, but those moments are definitely few and far between.
Mixing blues with rock and bits of country, Saydak has fashioned a very fine release that amply displays his many talents. Having a copy of this disc is a good way to pass the time until he starts making live appearances in the area again.
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