Reviews

Comprising traditional blues, modern New Orleans shuffles and country and western tales, Terri Brinegar's program makes use of her originals and a few classic tunes. She's backed by a rock-solid band that drives easily with a comfortable charm. Like most of the album, her title track finds Terri telling a story about life's ups and downs. "Right From Wrong", "Prison Blues", and "I Choose The Bottle" offer sensible lessons in living. Being born on the wrong side of the tracks and "livin' a hard life" make sensible grist for contemplation. It's easy to compare your own situation to that being presented here. Contemporary guitars and keyboards create excitement, while Terri's tales of unrequited love, drowning one's sorrows, workin' for a living, starting all over again, and finding peace of mind do their work. She's convincing. The emotional strength and solid power of her voice carry the album's message emphatically.
Originally from various parts of the country, this blues/rock band is based right here in the Southland. This, their first recording, brings all the emotion and charged energy they've shown at local gigs into our living rooms. It's an accurate representation that bodes well for the band's future.

A solid blues band with an easy-to-like drive, Terri and the T-Bones interprets dramatic material with a loose, laid-back ambience. Terri Brinegar gets powerful backing from electric guitars, drum set, bass guitar and Hammond organ to round out each song. Ranging from traditional blues to modern New Orleans shuffles and country & western tales, the singer's program is largely original. Django Reinhardt's "Nuages" offers only one minute of history translated by the band. However, it serves as an appropriate introduction for the "Mexican Moon". The piece turns sharply on its tango-like rhythms to blend all sorts of Americana into one landscape. Argentina's vast countryside, New York's urban jet setters, Albuquerque's lonesome nightscapes and Tijuana's exotic personalities blend into one moody song about romance. "Prison Blues" reveals the true nature of the band. Brinegar's convincing tale of being "born on the wrong side of the tracks" and "ain't smiled one single day" for 25 years, reveals the singer's real strength. The blues carries over into all their other originals as well, but the stories sometimes get sidetracked for the power and flash of electronics. Brinegar sings of unrequited love, drowning in one's sorrows, workin' for a living, starting all over again, and finding peace of mind. Not bad. And the strength of her voice carries the album forward. Readers who enjoy a good story and a solid blues band will love this one.

Terri Brinegar finally has a solo disc. Terri & The T-Bones' 99 Miles (Juke Joint 001) takes a West Coast blues approach with clever songs and high-class arrangements. Best Cut: "Gun Your Motor", jerky funk that suits Brinegar's heavy soul voice to a tee.

Powerful band leaded by the explosive Terri, a charming woman who has an original special different voice. I do not say that as a pejorative description, rather on the opposite sense. Gifted with an harmonic balance together with a tremendous expressive strength and a performing ability, Terry turns her voice into a weapon of great caliber for minds and hearts thirsty of good rock & roll. I can trust that if you like the powerful sound of californian white bands soaked of deep tasty rockin' blues, you will enjoy a lot. GOOD

I first saw her at the recent Catalina Blues Festival, singing with the Fuzzy Knight "Blowin Smoke R&B Revue" as one of Fuzzy's "Smokettes." Terri Brinegar stood out because of her beauty (tall and blonde with hair down to here) and vocal gifts (on a par with the likes of Janis). Now Terri and her own band (Daniel Gilbert, Robert Calva, Nick Ours, Owen Goldman and others) have cut a CD and what a four-star effort it is. Terri is truly a Texas tornado, a gal with roots in the southwest, where life is hard, the road long, the sky endless, and love elusive. It's great country for a blues singer, though, and that's what Terri is, the real thing. She wrote all but three of the 16 songs on her CD, proving that she creates as well as she interprets. Her songs are about the basics: unrequited love, cheatin' boyfriends, the lure of the bottle, bein' band, comin' home, hangin' on to life no matter what. All are delivered with fire, heart and joy, backed up by equally intense and passionate musicianship.

Fledgling record label Juke Joint Records chose to sign the Los Angeles-based roadhouse blues/rock band Terri and the T-Bones as their inaugural recording artist. The T-Bones kicked things off for Juke Joint with what is also their debut album "99 Miles." Texas-native blues belter Terri Brinegar supplies the band with fine lead vocals in the vein of Janis Joplin, and a dynamic guitar duo provides the T-Bones with a solid rhythm attack as well as some tasty lead solos. Those things as well as excellent backup vocals and strong writing make "99 Miles" a respectable first effort for both Juke Joint Records and Terri and the T-Bones. The title cut is a blues/rock shuffle that gets the album off to a rocking start. "Voodoo Queen" is an infectious groove that showcases some of the album’s best guitar work. "Voodoo Queen" is followed by the slow tour-de-force "Borrowed Time", which, like a few other tracks on the album, features fantastic backing vocals. Additionally, Brinegar delivers some of her most captivating lead vocals in "Borrowed Time." Interestingly, the band covers the European jazz titan Django Reinhardt’s "Nuages" (which means "Clouds" for those of you who, like myself, do not speak French.) "Nuages" is a short but beautiful acoustic guitar solo, and it serves as a fantastic segue into the Santana-esque "Mexican Moon." The two complement each other so well that it initially seemed as though "Nuages" was merely the introduction to "Mexican Moon." The pair of tracks represent the album’s strongest point. The album’s weakest point is the out-of-place space-age sounding introduction and conclusion on "Evil," an otherwise acceptable offering.
Terri and the T-Bones offer a high-energy brand of Texas-style blues with "99 Miles." Mix in a few powerful slow blues numbers ("Borrowed Time", "Prison Blues", and "I Choose the Bottle Over You") and, voilá! You’ve got yourself a decent debut album.

Voted as one of the "Top 100 Unsigned Bands" in Los Angeles!!

Scorching a path out of Southern California, Terri & the T-Bones put some of the very best roots-rockin', Texas-flavored blues on the plate that you have ever sampled. Terri Brinegar's vocal talent is superb. She has style, punch, emotion and a voice that captivates. But the band does not rest there as they provide great backup singing on several cuts. A 2-pronged guitar attack will please those needing a serious effort in that department. There are a variety of styles presented on this record and each song is well written and backed by fine production values. Every aspect of this recording sounds fabulous, and the Alpha Male at DWM gives it top marks. These guys are a major label deal just waiting to happen. Try it - you'll like it.

Lordy! What a kick ass group I've discovered. Terri and the T-Bones and their CD "99 Miles" comes rumbling down the blues-rock highway totally ignoring all warnings to slow down. Lead singer Terri Brinegar can belt out a song like nobody's business. The women's compelling and gripping vocals reminded me of singer by name of Janis Joplin. If you are young enough to remember, Joplin was the premier rock-blues singer until her untimely death. In my opinion, Terri's vocal style is much more appealing than a singer in the vein of Joplin. Her voice has more substance and versatility. When Brinegar lets out a wail you can feel all the emotion and heartfelt soulfulness coming right from her toes. With all the originality and sincerity driving each song, it's easy to transform into one of the characters in a song. The words and music become one, and your hooked. Your desires to be part of the passion play are now a reality. Music this convincing is hard to find.

The song "99 Miles", is a rockin' opener that really brings it on home, and it sets the precedence for the entire CD. Terri is backed by some awesome musicians. Daniel Gilbert and Robert Calva play hell bent for leather rockin' blues licks that set the tone for the vocals. Nick Ours thumps out the bass lines and gets everyone in a steady groove while Owen Golden bangs out the beat on some driving and solid drums. This group sounds like they were meant to be together. A perfect combination of vocals and music.

Like to rock?, get down with the blues?, check out Terri and the T-Bones. No fluff and no BS, they are the real deal. This group is like a smokin' gun, but the gun is still smokin' long after the bullets have been fired.

Terri & The T-Bones perform a wide range of styles that manage to manifest into one distinctive brew. But even as they pushed the envelope of tradition, they didn't alienate the purist since Brinegar's vocals were so bluesy. Her midnight-soaked vocals are velvety smooth and blue-country in flavor. There's a slight hint of Bobbie Gentry in her voice that lends itself well to her storytelling style. Her bandmates set the mood for each song, with Gilbert usually leading the way, until the full band kicked in. Terri & The T-Bones could be called a blues band, but they are a notch above most and aren't restricted by the genre. Their forays into other styles are all blues-based, but give the music a new feel and fresh attitude. With Brinegar's vocals being the high-light of each song, this act's music has a consistency and signature that is very much their own.

"This is probably the warmest and sassiest blues you're ever likely to hear. Delivering a collection of covers and originals, Terri & The T-Bones found a home in many hearts with a blend of roadhouse blues and a passionate performance that stirred the room. Terri Brinegar was especially adept at interpreting the material in such a way that it made even the older covers sound new. Her voice is surely one of the strongest on the scene;but its most significant characteristic this evening was the passion it conveyed. She put soul in every note and projected her heartfelt love of the genre. This group has that down-home quality, making their music the real deal. Not only did the crowd become part of the act, a few members of the audience sang along with their requests. This process was so natural that it elevated the entire event from a mere performance to something that was, in its own way, almost spiritual."

"As for Terri and The T-Bones, she was excellent. She reminded me a little bit of Sass Jordan, but sounded more like Aretha Franklin. Not bad for a white girl with long beautiful blonde hair. The thing that I liked the most about Terri Brinegar's voice was her range and her ability to sustain her notes. That is very important when performing this very difficult style of blues. Her band was very tight. I love great clean tone blues guitar. It is always a style that is most difficult to master. Solid bass playing combined with great drumming make for a very good back-up band. The combination of all of these great musicians makes for a superb musical ensemble. I enjoyed Terri and the T-Bones very much."

"Terri and The T-Bones, fronted by Terri Brinegar, is a California girl with pipes to die for. This lady can sing the blues and caught the room by total surprise with her intense vocalizations. Everyone was enraptured by her voice and on the edge of their seats when she took off into the stratosphere with her big high end vocals."