The Claudettes

Garage Glamour

Pravda Records

The Claudettes were founded by Brian Berkowitz, known professionally as Johnny Iguana. He had previously played organ in the indie rock band Oh My God, but is a highly regarded Chicago blues pianist, having recorded with Junior Wells, Carey Bell, Lurrie Bell, Matthew Skoller, and Lil’ Ed. He appears on the 2009 Grammy-nominated and Blues Music Award–winning Chicago Blues: A Living History and its sequel, 2011’s The (R)evolution Continues, and also on 2015’s Muddy Waters 100 project. He and Claudettes co-founder, drummer Michael Caskey, released their debut, Infernal Piano Plot…Hatched!, in 2013. Follow-up albums include 2015’s No Hotel; 2017’s Pull Closer to Me; 2018’s Dance Scandal at the Gymnasium; and 2020’s High Times in the Dark.

Iguana, the Claudettes’ composer/pianist, has also played with Derek Trucks, Johnny Winter, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Buddy Guy, and James Cotton. He is also co-composer of the original score to the Emmy-winning FX/Hulu series The Bear. His co-creator of that score, JQ, joined Johnny to co-produce two tracks on Garage Glamour. In addition, Grammy-winning producer and musical renaissance man Steve Berkowitz (Johnny’s uncle) flew from New York to Chicago to co-produce much of Garage Glamour.

The band includes keyboardist/vocalist Iguana; Zack Verdoorn, bass, guitar, and vocals; and Caskey, drums and percussion. Ella Feingold, an additional guitarist, is added on one track, but the big coming-out party here belongs to lead singer Rachel Williams, who has been dropping jaws at Claudettes shows since early 2023 and now makes her album debut with the band. Riveting concert crowds with her powerfully soulful vocals and dazzling array of stunning outfits, Rachel simply amazes. She joins Grammy-nominated guest singer/guitarist John Primer on the deeply moving opener “(You Are My) Whole World.” To listen to the 80-year-old Primer pour his whole heart into this duet with Rachel is something supremely special, as they sing, “My whole world, would come crashing down around me, if you didn’t hold it up for me, you are my whole world and I’ll hold up yours for you, just as long as you want me to, when people choose to be cold to you, I’ll be ready to warm you up, just think of that, on your way home to me, when you’re down, I’ll lift you back up,” with the rhythm section of bassist Verdoorn and drummer Caskey laying down the strong foundation.

Rock-steady grooves highlight the galloping “Winter Came While You Were Gone,” as Rachel chimes, “You wanna go back to how we had it once, you say you wanna go back to how we had it before, but the light went out when you closed the door…winter came while you were gone,” with some great organ from Iguana.

On the heist-gone-wrong “That Could Be Arranged,” Rachel bursts, “You say you want to get together with me? That could be arranged, you want to do that thing together with me? That could be arranged, then you could move to warmer weather with me, that could be arranged, you mindless man, so guilible, so blind to angles, imbecile, you’ll find escape impossible, because your mine.”

The funky “Touch You Back,” with guest guitarist Feingold (Erykah Badu), features the lyric, “When I said I wanted revolution, I was askin’ you to spin around, when I said we should get movin’, I didn’t mean get outta town…I don’t know what you think you heard, but I can tell you this, touch me and I’ll touch you back…I’m ready for an uprising, and I don’t mean I want a fight, don’t waste time analyzing consider this a green light,” with Iguana on piano.

On the reverb-soaked rock ‘n’ roll of “Whirlpool,” first recorded by Wanda Jackson in 1962, Rachel chimes, “You’ve got me…look at me, my sweet darling, you’ve got me spinning round and round, loving good and loving true in a whirlpool…whirl whirl whirlpool, crazy, crazy over you, in a whirlpool, I’m loving you,” with more great piano from Iguana.

On “Mr. Pecker’s Apoplexy,” Rachel sings, “Mr. Pecker’s got his hands on something dark and sexy, either bend to our demands or contend with Mr. Pecker’s Apoplexy. This whole thing got hectic when you launched your investigation Mr. Pecker’s apoplectic. He smelled a raunchy situation…you are risking litigation ’cause Mr. Pecker’s apoplectic,” again with Iguana’s piano.

“No Matter How Much” features the lyric, “No matter how much magic potion I drink, you will not appear behind me, and throw your arms around me as I stand at the bathroom sink, then kiss me ‘gainst the wall, and lead me by my hand back down the hall…no matter how much magic potion I drink…I’m stuck alone and unlucky, shame on you, Kentucky!” As Iguana hammers the piano, we get to blame it on bourbon.

On “The Aftermath,” Rachel sings, “How will I deal with the aftermath if there’s no calamity? If you follow something that never was, were you ever meant to be? I was next in line after nobody, so I never did arrive, are they still looking for me?…How can I go on summer break if springtime fails to bloom?”

“Don’t Give It Up to the Thieves/There Is No Other Side” features the lyric, “I’d like you to consider becoming naive again to reconsider feeling forever aggrieved, and then I want you to prioritize protecting your innocence, don’t give it up to the thieves…No heaven, no Eden, No hell, no grand elysium, no pandemonium, so where are we headed? wide eyed from the truth, we knew it in our youth. There is no other side. Anger starts to die when you realize, heaven, hell and war are built on lies, there is no other side,” again with Iguana’s piano.

On the Claudettes’ new Pravda Records album, Garage Glamour, we hear red-hot dance cuts, ice-cold noir songs, rabid rock, and passionate soul, as the Claudettes reach a whole new level of sound and style. Catch them while they are on tour.

Richard Ludmerer