LISA MILLS @ Victoria hotel in Menai Bridge on Thursday, July 23 2009

MISSISSIPPI-born Blues singer Lisa Mills returns to the Victoria hotel in Menai Bridge on Thursday, July 23, as part of her latest UK tour. With several previous appearances in the area and a show-stopping performance at Sesiwn Fawr last year, Lisa has firmly established herself as a local favourite with her sell-out shows full of passion, intensity and sheer exuberance. Admired by the likes of Robert Plant and Jeff Beck for her sultry voice, stunning presence, and solid guitar playing, Lisa captivates her audience and leaves them spellbound. Since a very young age, she has always known what she wanted to do with her life. Music is her passion. She grew up in and around Hattiesburg Mississippi, beginning her singing career in the church that her grandparents built. Her mother loved Elvis, and her father loved Hank Williams Sr. Mix that in with a few Brenda Lee records, Lisa had quite a diverse rue to develop her early musical education. Later influenced by such greats as Etta James, Billie Holiday and Bonnie Raitt, she has also been compared to Janis Joplin, and that likeness has afforded her some great opportunities including touring with Joplin’s band, Big Brother and The Holding Company, in both the United States and overseas. Listeners may hear the influence of some of her favourite artists and musicians in her music, but Lisa has, undeniably, a style that is as unique and haunting as she is. Although she performs great cover tunes, she has also written and performs some fantastic originals that are just as well received. Accompanied by one of the UK’s leading bass players, Ian Jennings from the Big Town Playboys, audiences are in for a tour de force of blues, gospel, soul and old fashioned R’n’B highlighted by an exceptional voice.

A singing angel? Oh, no. A singed angel? Oh, yeah. That’s Lisa Mills – the lady with the flame-thrower voice that can burn a man and kill him at 20 paces in the sure knowledge that he at least died happy. The place in quest was The Maltings Arts Theatre, St Albans, the artist the inimitable, raunchy lady from Mississippi USA who knows how to give an audience a real party while having a good time herself on stage at the same time. To know Lisa is to love her – there’s no half measures. She appears on stage in tight jeans and top, her face lit up with a huge smile that never falters all evening. This is supposed to be blues – after all, the event has been put on by Bob Ayre’s Shades of Blues, fast making itself a top reputation in music circles across the region. But Lisa’s just so darn cheerful that it’s hard to keep feeling sorry for yourself. And even when her voice cracks with emotion and she’s belting out a number at full decibels, you can only shake your head in wonder that this woman has such awesome firepower at her disposal rather than just feel gloomy. Only one woman could ever step into the shoes of the late, great Janis Joplin, and that’s Lisa Mills. And that’s exactly what she did as a three-year project, appearing up front with Joplin’s Big Brother And The Holding Company band to knock out some timeless ‘60s hits. But Lisa is no Joplin clone. Nor is does she have anything like Joplin’s stage persona. And thank God for that, because otherwise she’d end up dead pretty soon. Joplin, who eventually died of a drugs overdose, notoriously imbibed Southern Comfort whiskey from the bottle on stage in copious quantities. When Lisa asked for a bottle at The Maltings, it was mineral water only, thanks folks. And, to my knowledge, she didn’t go near a Joplin number all night, either. Her appearance on Saturday at St Albans as part of a current UK tour was a wonderfully uncomplicated, relaxed affair. Just Mills and her trusty 1980 Alvarez acoustic guitar backed by the incredibly talented upright acoustic bass player, Ian Jennings. What a team. A country/soul/blues singer of the highest order and no mean flat-picking guitarist, alongside one of the most exciting, original and imaginative bass players around. An awesome combo. The Maltings proved a perfect setting for this kind of laid-back gig – a café type setting with tables loosely arranged at the front of the stage, the rest of the audience seated more formally behind. No great game plan - in fact Mills and Jennings lost or abandoned their running order before the halfway stage had even been reached. Before that time, we’d been treated to a set of Mills’ own numbers, with a highly eclectic range of songs encompassing country blues, soul, ballads, with even a little calypso flavour hear and there to spice things up. Of these, typical was Better Than This (I Don’t Need You Anymore) sung in tribute to a surviving friend and divorcee, and the contagiously cheerful I Need A Little Sunshine, both from her latest album I’m Changing. Heart-rending songs of desertion and betrayal and strong women asserting their rights , seeking only truth from cheating men. Sound familiar? But this was just a taster for things to come and after the break, the set got even better, though this was hard to believe after the first hour. Now we were treated to Mills’ full range of abilities, mostly with a blues slant but also some wonderfully uninhibited rock’n’roll , country rock and slow jazz. Picking highlights is a bit like asking kids which firework they like best when they’re all going off at the same time – almost impossible. As she memorably pointed out: “Everything with emotion and truth in it is the blues.” But if pushed I’d have to go for the dark and dangerous gospel number Wish I Was In Heaven (Sittin’ Down), an incredibly moving version of Jimi Hendrix’s Little Wing which sent us home chilled, the traditional Baby Please Don’t Go and the irresistible Bad Moon Rising. She also did full justice to Billie Holiday’s Ain’t Nobody’s Business. And the best lyric of the night? “You can have my husband but please don’t mess with my man.” Listening to Lisa Mills is a mesmerising experience. She pulls the audience in with her warmth, is a sparking entertainer and a simply unbelievable singer. When she open her mouth wide and gives us the full benefit of her lungpower, it can make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. But she can stun us by switching to half-power mid-note, flicking up an octave effortlessly or whispering as soft and sensuous as the sexiest lover you’ve ever known. As promoter Bob Ayres said at the end: “That was absolutely bloody magic.” Scores of new Lisa Mills fans applauded unreservedly.

Shades of Blues website

American soul and blues star Lisa Mills (pictured) returned to Tenby on Thursday 17th July to perform a concert that was a preview for this year’s blues festival to be held in the seaside town over the weekend of 14th-16th November. A packed De Valence witnessed an electrifying show from one of the very best performers of blues music. With her sultry voice and stunning presence, Lisa captivated the audience and left them spellbound. Her ability to go from a low moan to a full throated blues wail without ever losing musicality was breathtaking. Although her wonderful voice has drawn inevitable comparisons with the likes of Bonnie Rait, Janis Joplin and Etta James, Lisa has her own unique style. Joined on the night by long time collaborator guitarist Rick Hirsch (who has worked with The Allman Brothers and Joan Armatrading) as well as Big Town Playboys bassist Ian Jennings, Lisa’s show was a delight for fans of live music – whether fans of the blues or not. Quite simply this was a stunning, entertaining show. The show was made all the more memorable by the warm and intimate atmosphere created in the De Valence by the use of twin stages, sensitive lighting and other creative touches. Support on the night came from local rhythm ‘n’ booze band Cottonmouth. The next Blues Festival gig, on Friday 26th September during Tenby Arts Festival week which features the legendary R’n’B band Dr Feelgood, is eagerly anticipated with tickets already selling well

The Sensational Lisa Mills @ the De Valence 17th July 2008

With her red-ish hair, fiery voice and Bluesy swagger, it would be easy to hail Lisa Mills as the next Bonnie Raitt. Close your eyes as the Mississippi-born singer-songwriter performs 'Do It' or 'Time To Say Goodbye' and you would swear that you were listening to one of Ms Raitt's early Warner Bros releases, when she was backed by the likes of Lowell George and Freebo.

"By Invitation Only" was recorded in front of an audience in Fairhope, Alabama in May 2006. As a former singer with Big Brother And The Holding Company, Lisa still carries Janis Joplin's spirit in some of her singing and her songs, but the funky backbeat is most definitely her own.

Having supported no less than Robert Plant on tours of the USA and Europe, Lisa has clearly honed her stagecraft and this is a polished performance. Her voice swoops from tender and heart-breaking on 'Better Than This' and sultry on 'Shake It'. Her band, which includes Rick Hirsch on guitar, can rock out when the tempo dictates it - 'Ain't Your Baby' - and bring the songs to life. If Ms Raitt is looking for inspiration, then maybe she should give Lisa Mills a call. A little competition can go a long way.

Jamie Hailstone, in Blues Matters, Issue 40

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