The maze of new and recent discs by this veteran Chicago piano man can be daunting, but rest assured that this is one of his best to date. Many of the songs are
Perkins standbys -- "Kidney Stew," "Caldonia," and of course, "Pinetop's Boogie Woogie" -- but the backing here is so stellar (sidemen include harpists
James Cotton and
Kim Wilson, guitarists
Matt Murphy,
Jimmy Rogers,
Hubert Sumlin, and
Duke Robillard, and several driving rhythm sections) -- that the project rises above most of
Perkins's output.