Steve Howell was only thirteen when he first listened to Mississippi’s John Hurt. That was a real revelation and made him discover a new musical universe. He became interested in all acoustic black guitar players like Robert Johnson, Son House, Gary Davis or Blind Blake, becoming an excellent guitar player and an expert in fingerpicking style. But he did not stop in these styles, he started to study the influence of the great swing, jazz and rhythm & blues big bands in urban music, as well as pop, country and seventies rock music. All these influences have made Steve treasure a wide musical background, although he usually decides to play rural blues and traditional jazz, styles that really fill him.

For this album Steve Howell has selected ten classic songs, many of them easily recognizable form most listeners, that move between gospel, blues, pop, jazz or soul, all of them performed with an exquisite elegance and good taste, that range from Betty James & Clarence Carter’s “I’m a Little Mixed Up,” a blues song they recorded for Chess Records, to “San Francisco”, a hippy hymn by John Phillips,  “99 ½”, a gospel song that gives tittle to the album, “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” popularized by Eric Burdon & The Animals, “Stony Pony Blues” coming from Charley Patton, a traditional gospel song “God’s Gonna Cut You Down”, or “Apache” by The Shadows.

A varied repertoire, easily digestible and always pleasant to listen to, especially if it is displayed with knowledge and good technique, where Steve Howell is on vocals and acoustic and electric guitar, together with Chris Michaels on electric guitar, Jason Weinheimer on bass and Dave Hoffpauir on drums.