It’s been two years since Cactus first unbarred the doors to the Temple Of Blues, a 15-track slab of headbanging, hip swinging heavy blues rock whose subtitle, ‘Influences And Friends,’ roped in a host of special guests, all of whom held the band very close to their hearts.
Now the Temple opens again, this time for an all-star aggregation that recalls Ted Nugent, Billy Sheehan, Bumblefoot, Dee Snider and Pat Travers from volume one, alongside an all-new wave of heavy hitters including Steve Morse (Deep Purple), Tracii Guns (L.A. Guns), Joe Lynn Turner (Rainbow, Deep Purple), Rudy Sarzo (Ozzy Osbourne, Quiet Riot), Alex Skolnick (Testament), and a whole lot more!
The original Cactus grew out of Appice’s past experiences with Vanilla Fudge and Beck Bogart and Appice, debuting in 1970 with a self-titled album and an immediate impact on the live circuit. And Temple Of Blues II takes us back to their birth. That summer, Cactus were among the main attractions at the Isle of Wight Festival in England, and the new album’s “Purple Haze” reunites them with both another of that bill’s audience favorites, Melanie, and its overall headliner, Jimi Hendrix.
Elsewhere on this thunderous sequel, Pat Travers returns for the mighty “Moanin’ At Midnight,” Joe Lynn Turner joins Morse, Carmine’s Guitar Zeus bandmate Tony Franklin and Derek Sherinian (Dream Theater) for “Bad Stuff,” Dee Snider (Twisted Sister) and Tracii Guns (L.A. Guns) lead the way for “The Little Red Rooster,” and Ted Nugent and Bob Daisley (Rainbow) join forces for an astonishing “Spoonful.”
But every track here expands the raw blues rock vision of volume one with even more fire, swagger, and authority. And Carmine, of course, anchors the proceedings with his unmistakable power, groove, and feel, driving every track and reaffirming his status as one of the most influential drummers in rock history.
Track List:
1. Back Door Man Pt. 1 & 2 feat. Eric Gales & Billy Sheehan
2. 300 Pounds Of Joy feat. Ty Tabor
3. Moanin’ At Midnight feat. Pat Travers
4. Down In The Bottom feat. Dug Pinnick
5. Token Chokin’ feat. Bumblefoot
6. Bad Stuff feat. Steve Morse, Joe Lynn Turner, Derek Sherinian
& Tony Franklin
7. Tail Dragger feat. Rudy Sarzo & Alex Skolnick
8. The Little Red Rooster feat. Dee Snider, Tracii Guns, Jimmy
Haslip
9. Purple Haze feat. Melanie
10. Spoonful feat. Ted Nugent & Bob Daisley
