The name Curtis Stigers and the word ‘blues’ rarely appear in the same sentence. After all, this international jazz crooner and commercial pop artist had a Top Ten hit in the USA and UK, with “I Wonder Why” and contributed to the film soundtrack of The Bodyguard. What has he got to do with the blues? The answer lies in Songs From My Kitchen, Volume 1, released on March 21st, which affirms that the purity of our beloved genre is in good hands. Stigers composes, sings, and plays the saxophone and acoustic guitar with an emotion and integrity consistent with his long-term deep connection to the blues.
Curtis moved to New York City in 1987 when he was 21 years old in order to pursue rock music but found himself more at home in blues and jazz clubs, His musical influences include Bonnie Raitt, Ray Charles, John Hiatt, and B.B. King. Stigers’ sensational version of the iconic gospel blues song “John The Revelator” with The Forest Rangers in 2009 has 24 million streams on one platform alone, three times more than the recording by the legendary Delta bluesman Son House. Even The New York Times has acknowledged and praised the fact that “Stigers’ buzz-saw voice, much like that of Tom Waits, slices away glib sentimentality.”
In 2020, with the arrival of the pandemic and being sidelined at home with his wife and four dogs, Curtis continued to make music through creating an internet live stream show from his kitchen. The freedom of playing solo with his guitar allowed him to rediscover older material and previously unrecorded songs in an acoustic setting. Stigers explains: “Being stuck at home allowed me to challenge myself and to grow as an artist. It was one of the most creative periods of my life, that strange year and a half. Some of the original songs are relatively new and some are many years old and only now getting a chance to be heard and sung. I like to think I curated this album as much as I created it.”
Curtis brought in a handful of local musicians mainly from Boise, Idaho, comprising: Bernie Reilly on acoustic bass; Shaky Dave Manion, electric guitar; Casey Miller, percussion; Andrew Cortens on Wurlitzer electric piano; Jens Kuross, keyboards and percussion; with Catherine Merrick adding harmony vocals.
“Until You Were Gone” (John Fullbright)
Fullbright is one of Stigers’ favorite singers and songwriters, his composition “She Knows” a highlight of the latter’s 2020 Gentleman album. This beautifully arranged song sets the scene with its typically blues inspired theme about ‘the one that got away.’ Manion’s soulful and tasteful electric guitar licks feature prominently alongside the breathtaking saxophone interpolations.
“I Have Everything” (Bill Harvey and Curtis Stigers)
Curtis emphasizes the message of what his life story is in this one song: “No matter what, we have within ourselves EVERYTHING we need to survive, to live, grow and thrive, as long as we have patience, grace, gratitude and love.”
The melody has a country vibe oozing reminiscences, reinforced by the background Wurlitzer.
“Burn It Down” (Curtis and Jake Stigers) was written by the two brothers, the lyrics based on a vivid memory of a school trip to the ‘draconian sandstoned-wall hell’ which was the Old Idaho Penitentiary. It is the turn of Jens’ haunting keys to create the spooky soundscape.
“Don’t Look At Me That Way” (Brian Kennedy and Curtis Stigers)
The context is that Curtis met Kennedy on the steps of Belfast City Hall in 1995. “Brian sang with Van Morrison that night and some years later Brian and I got together in New York to write but I left it for him to record. I bumped into him backstage at a show several years later and he reminded me of the song and I fell in love with it.” This blues-infused, slow burner with its deep saxophone tones complements Stigers’ melancholic vocals.
“Old Fashioned” (Bill Coffey)
Curtis describes this as autobiographical in light of his early success in, and eventual disillusionment with, the pop music business. A reflective, harmonious ballad with trademark sax appeal.
“Good To Know You” (Curtis Stigers)
Curtis outlines the context of this highly personal and moving tribute; “I was born in October 1965 but I didn’t meet my biological father until the summer of 2012. It’s a long story best told over dinner and a bottle of red wine, but ‘Good To Know You’ is my musical reflection about gaining a father at midlife and learning how to navigate that relationship. Spoiler: It has a happy ending.” Stigers’ mellifluous vocals and sparkling saxophone solos are consistent with that finale.
“Goodbye” (Patty Griffin)
Griffin’s lyricism is sublime:
And I wonder where you are
And if the pain ends when you die
And I wonder if there was
Some better way to say goodbye
Curtis had been singing this for over two decades until he found a reason to perform it. “I lost my mother in 2023 and that suddenly changed. I sang the masterpiece of grief and healing at her memorial and I dedicate it to her every time I perform it.”
“It Doesn’t Have To Be Now” (Curtis Stigers and James Coberly Smith)
This is a dark love song about a pair of lovers who know their affair is wrong and ultimately doomed but they keep putting off the inevitable because of love. Catherine’s harmonies enhance the impeccable vocal delivery.
“Golden Thread” (Jeffery Martin)
Six years ago Curtis attended a concert where Jeffery Martin sang this song which made such a profound impact, especially the line, “Teach me how to shut my mouth, shut my mouth.” Stigers proves that he is a consummate storyteller and master of suspense.
“The Song” (Curtis Stigers)
The latest epic novel, Cloud Cuckoo Land by the Pulitzer Prize winning author Anthony Doerr, a friend of Curtis, inspired this folksy song which showcases incredible acoustic guitar and expressive vocals.
“Lighten Up (It’s Christmas)” (Curtis Stigers)
What a glorious way to end this album! With its anthemic chorus: “Hey Hey, Ho Ho Ho’ and tongue in cheek humor, ‘You gotta lay your burden down/Before the fat man comes to town,” it is the ultimate Christmas song. Stigers wrote this to sing at an annual fundraising concert which he hosts to raise money for a local homeless charity established 18 years ago.
The final words are Stigers’: “It remains a reminder to myself to be grateful and graceful, even when this world is threatening to break my heart.”
Overall this is a brilliant, life affirming and heartwarming album. Hopefully Volume 2 will appear soon now that Curtis has whetted the appetite of the listeners. It is a glorious, unpretentious recording, the songs performed by an intimate group of talented musicians who are also friends and, in some cases, neighbors, who clearly love what they do.
Credits:
Recorded at Cunningham Audio
Scott Schmaljohn designed the cover artwork.
2025 Pandemic Poodle Records
Videos by: Rossana Masuello
