Some artists simply can’t sit still. That restless creative drive has defined the career of Duke Robillard for more than five decades. A founding member of Roomful of Blues, Robillard would later step into the formidable shoes of Jimmie Vaughan as a member of The Fabulous Thunderbirds. As a session guitarist and producer, his résumé reads like a blues and roots music hall of fame: Bob Dylan, John Hammond, Ruth Brown, Billy Boy Arnold, Rosco Gordon, Jay McShann, Jimmy Witherspoon, Maria Muldaur, Pinetop Perkins, Joe Louis Walker, Johnny Adams, and many more.
With more than 35 solo albums to his name, alongside countless collaborations, it might seem hard to imagine Robillard having more to say. That assumption fades quickly with a proper spin of his latest release, Blast Off. It’s a party record from start to finish, fueled by high-energy jump blues, deep-groove soul, and rollicking tracks that swagger with purpose. The emphasis here is on feel and authenticity over studio polish, a reminder that Robillard’s compass has always pointed toward the source.
He’s joined by a crack ensemble: Chris Cote (guitar, vocals), Bruce Bears (keyboards), Marty Ballou (bass), and Mark Teixeira (drums). The horn section features Doug James and Mark Earley on saxophones, with Jeff “Doc” Chanonhouse adding trumpet on “You Rascal You,” and special guest Billy Novick contributing clarinet and sax. Together, they give the 12-track set a muscular, celebratory punch.
Duke Robillard. Courtesy of Mark Pucci.
The album includes three Robillard originals – two instrumentals and a particularly compelling piece that is both historic and fresh: the first recording of a blues composition he wrote at age 17. Recorded, mixed, and mastered at Lakewest Recording in West Greenwich, Rhode Island, Blast Off also marks Robillard’s debut on Nola Blue Records, a fitting home for an artist whose commitment to tradition remains vibrant and forward-looking.
Copper caught up with Duke to discuss the new record, and explore how decades of working alongside legends continue to shape a creative process that keeps fans listening – and coming back for more.
Ray Chelstowski: I noticed that the last time we spoke was almost four years ago, to the day. You must like to release new music in the winter!
Duke Robillard: It has nothing to do with me. Usually, it’s the label that decides, because they need to coordinate it with the releases of other artists on their roster. It just seems to have worked out that way. I think it was toward the middle of last year when we had it recorded, mixed and mastered.
RC: I wasn’t aware of Lakewest Recording where you recorded the new album. With all of the paneling in the studio, it reminds me of the Power Station in NYC.
DR: Jack Gauthier is the engineer there, he and I met like 40 years ago. He was taking guitar lessons from me and was working as an intern at another studio. When he happened to get this studio, I was his first client. It’s just been a comfortable place. Since then, I had built a studio in my own home, and I used it for quite a few years. But I went back to Lakewest, where we’ve made several albums. Not just for me but for others like Sugar Ray and the Bluetones.
RC: This record seems to capture all the sounds that have defined your music over the years.
DR: The approach was to have variety, to have all the different styles that I play and love; blues, R&B, jump, jazz and all of the elements of things that make up my music.
RC: It must have been a big shift handing the vocal duties over to Chris.
DR: Yes, it was. My voice has been deteriorating for the last 20 years or so and it got to the point where it just didn’t sound good. It was a lot of work to sing and not get the results that I wanted. So, I am down to just singing a few tunes a night. I can get away with that. When I first met Chris, he was a guest on my album Ear Worms. He sang just one song. It took just one take. So the next time we were recording I had him come down and sing several songs. Finally, it was just time for him to join the band.
RC: I particularly love the title track. As an instrumental, it has a very cinematic vibe, like a soundtrack from an old Western. How long have you been holding on to that chestnut?
DR: We came up with it when we were recording. When you go in to set up, it always begins with the rhythm section. The horns come in later. So we were just getting sounds and jamming, and we came up with rhythm track. We didn’t know what we were going to do with it because we were just warming up. But it was interesting. I took it home and fooled around with it and found it was very easy to make a melody for it. It was really a lot of fun. Actually, I hope to do an entire album in that sense, all instrumentals.
RC: The other instrumental that stands out is “Galactic Grease.” In the liner notes I read that it is an indirect nod to the late Steve Cropper. I have to imagine that your paths crossed over the years.
DR: We met a few times. I remember opening for Booker T at a festival in Tahoe. We had just finished our set and I went up to Steve and introduced myself, because he was a beacon for me. He said, “Oh, I know who you are!” We only met a few times. Once I was playing B.B. King’s club and he was playing with The Blues Brothers across the way. When he finished his show, he came over to see ours, and people shared with me about what he was saying as we were playing. It was thrilling to hear that Steve Cropper liked what I was doing.
RC: The horns sound so rich and real, especially Mark Earley. He has great tone. Do you chart their parts?
DR: He does have a lot of great tones and so of course does Doug James. They make such a great team because they sound completely different from each other.
If we are doing a song like the original recording it would only be a head arrangement, or one of the guys might do something. But when it came down to “Save The King,” the Count Basie song, I brought Billy Novick in to write a new arrangement. It echoed the original but had some things of its own.
RC: In terms of your own guitar parts, how much of it is already decided upon before you enter the studio?
DR: It all takes shape when I get in there. I’m very casual about it. Things got more complex in the 1970s and 1980s. Recording was done digitally and in the 1950s and 1960s most things were [done] “live.”
I don’t even like the band to know the songs until we’re in the studio. I like to [teach] them on the spot while the tape is rolling. Sometimes it’s not the best way to approach it, but it’s the truest way. Everyone is thinking and listening instead of knowing what they are going to play. It is more of a jazz attitude.
(Bob) Dylan has that exact same approach. Just building things up in the studio.
RC: Your take on the Tom Waits song “Lowdown” is terrific. Have you ever thought about doing a Waits tribute record?
DR: I’ve recorded another song of Tom’s called “Low Side of the Road” and I have thought of taking a couple of tunes and doing a whole album of his material. I did get a chance to tour with him and just love his whole concept.
RC: You include the song “Feel My Cares” which you wrote when you were 17 years old.
DR: I always liked that song. The actual title I stole from Robert Johnson. I thought it was a good song but I never developed it. When I first tried playing it again I couldn’t pull it off and knew that it would work for Chris. We ended up doing the whole thing live in one take.
RC: This is your debut on Nola Blue Records. Reviewing the label roster, this seems like a perfect home for you.
DR: It really does. [Label chief] Sallie Bengtson is so in tune with the real stuff. Her values are very similar to mine. She likes the music to be the real thing, not overdone. She also has a good business head. I thought, “finally someone who thinks like me!”
Courtesy of Mark Pucci.
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