Luv in the Afternoon

Luv in the Afternoon is an album by the American band Jeannie Cheatham & Jimmy Cheatham and the Sweet Baby Blues Band, released in 1990. It was awarded "Blues Album of the Year" by the critics at DownBeat.

Production

Luv in the Afternoon was produced primarily by Carl E. Jefferson; after some conflict between Jefferson and the band, the album was completed by assistant producer Nick Phillips. The songs were arranged by Jimmy Cheatham, who also played trombone. Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown played guitar on three of the tracks. Snooky Young contributed on trumpet; Curtis Peagler contributed on saxophone. Red Callender played tuba. "Raunchy Rita" is about a housekeeper at a Seattle hotel that the Cheathams visited regularly. "Trav'lin' Light" is a version of the Johnny Mercer song. "Don't You Feel My Leg" is a cover of the Danny Barker composition.

Critical reception

The Los Angeles Times said that "Jeannie Cheatham's earthy vocals and swinging piano drive the music." The Ottawa Citizen stated that "Jeannie's vocals and piano playing plus Jimmy's trombone work and arrangements are the backbone of a shouting, funky band with a sound and feeling to please old-timers and '90s audiences alike." The Philadelphia Inquirer called the music "revivalist jazz based with fervor and love on the mother lode of the blues." The Commercial Appeal concluded that the Cheathams' "brand of big band blues combines the celebratory, collective flavor identified with New Orleans jazz and the fervor of Kansas City swing." The News and Observer noted that Jeannie "can play the subtle seductress or the red-hot mama with equal panache."