"I love the variety of material, sounds, production and arrangements."
Holger Petersen - CBC Saturday Night Blues

To say that I have enjoyed this collection of material would be an understatement. It is a brilliant collection of songs, the type of tunes that will leave you in a better frame of mind than when you started listening.
STEPHEN HARRISON - Blues Matters UK

A special album, that's what it is... this album has no weak spots! When do you hear something like this?! Everything just fits: beautiful stories, meaningful lyrics, excellent music, great solos... Absolutely recommended, with 12 out of 12 as favorites!
Gerard Haarhuis - Bluestown Music Netherlands

It’s a cool collection of tunes that felt like a great live set list. There’s something about the variation on the grooves as you move through the record…. but it’s part of what keeps you engaged.  The musicianship is alive and engaging along with that incomparable “Max vernacular”.
David Leask - songwriter

Johnny Max & His So-Called Friends is a catchy, high-quality album with deep roots in traditional American music styles, packaged in a fresh and playful performance.
Walter Vanheuckelom - Concert Monkey

This joyous band thus offers a remarkable feelgood record that will keep you standing tall, your feet tapping and your smile beaming, even in the midst of the worst turbulence. 
Patrick Dallongeville, Paris-Move, Illico & BluesBoarder, Blues & Co

Good stuff across 40+ minutes “Johnny Max & His So Called Friends” is a bright offering of Canadian Blues rock as we head into the unknown of 2026.
Fervor Coulee - music reviews & thoughts

I’ve been playing your album in the car for the last week and loving it. Every thing about the playing and singing is stellar. I believe this is your best yet! Well done!
B Tyrrell

Walter Vanheuckelom - Concert Monkey 2025

Johnny Max & His So-Called Friends is an album in which The Johnny Max Band summarizes their long track record in blues and roots music in a catchy feel-good package. Musically, the record nestles between rhythm ‘n’ blues, honky-tonk, and Louisiana-style grooves, with occasional touches of rockabilly and gospel influences. The sound remains organic, warm, and above all lively, with plenty of room for vibrant instrumentation such as piano licks, slide guitars, and tuba accents, plus soulful backing vocals. Johnny Max & His So-Called Friends is a catchy, high-quality album with deep roots in traditional American music styles, packaged in a fresh and playful performance. (7.5/10)

Patrick DALLONGEVILLE - Paris-Move, Illico & BluesBoarder, Blues & Co

From Toronto, Ontario, comes the eighth album from this band, whose existence we had not even suspected in our foggy climes. Led by singer-songwriter John McAneney (aka Johnny Max), the band has been around for a quarter of a century, and continues to tirelessly tour the clubs, taverns and festivals of the vast Canadian territory, unabashedly dispensing their Louisiana R&B, largely inspired by the Crescent City, as evidenced by the exhilarating (and sultry) opening track, ‘You Can Do Better Than Him’.

Between Huey 'Piano’ Smith and the Little Feat of the late Lowell George, the band plays with a great deal of slide guitar, a tortuous second-line beat and a piano that is as rough as a barn door (believe it or not, their keyboard player is named Bill Evans!), and you could not ask for a better introduction.

A little further on, ‘Kiss From Joanne’ uses more or less the same formula, but ‘How The Other Half Lives’ previously brings in a guitar picker of the highest calibre in the person of a certain Wayne DeAdder, who plays in the manner of Scotty Moore on a vintage rockabilly groove, while Evans plays the Hammond organ, and the backing vocalists, among whom we can mention the distinguished Suzie Vinnick, give the piano a good thrashing. The roadhouse spirit of this jovial band (which is obviously well-versed in the art of road trips) is evident on their honky-tonk  ‘I’ve Said All The Sorrys I’m Gonna Say’ (where the same DeAdder reigns with panache), and they sink a little deeper into southern swamp territory as they proceed with this ‘Might As Well Be On Mars,’ which the Band’s vintage sound would probably not have disdained a Dixie feel to. It’s his co-writer, guitarist Neil Chapman, who takes his turn with a solo as concise as it is flamboyant, while house drummer Jim Casson matches the late Levon Helm himself in lowdown backbeat.

The comparison with the Big Pink gang is even more pronounced with this ‘I’ve Never Met A Bridge’ backed by a raucous tuba. After a delicious sidestep into the swing lounge jazz of the forties in the Cole Porter vein (‘These Are The Things That Make Me Think Of You,’ with brushes, piano and a cornet solo), the salacious and slithering funk of ‘Memphis Women & Fried Chicken’ (with the solo on six strings by the no less evocative Dylan Wickens) becomes an invitation to a boogaloo barbecue.

‘What’s Good For The Goose’ proves to be a characteristic Nola boogie, duly led by the lively ivories of a frolicking Evans, and traversed by another dazzling solo by the same Wickens.

The lively gospel ‘When You Love Somebody’ carries all reluctance (including backing singers and church pump organ), and our friends head for the exit with the no less enthralling ‘Be Good To Yourself’ (an anthem to be repeated twenty times a day) and the brief Appalachian rag ‘Plastic Jesus’. This joyous band thus offers a remarkable feelgood record that will keep you standing tall, your feet tapping and your smile beaming, even in the midst of the worst turbulence. Public health, for sure!

STEPHEN HARRISON Blues Matters UK

This is the 8th album from these chaps, and a very fine album it is. It contains Country, Americana, Boogie, and some Rock, but above all else, it contains a sense of humour. The humour comes from the lyrics, and also from the brilliant way in which lead singer, Johnny Max, delivers the songs. His vocals are brilliant; you can almost imagine him in the studio, a mischievous grin on his face, amongst some fantastic musicianship. I’ve Said All The Sorry’s I’m Gonna Say has a huge Country twang, with Wayne DeAdder on guitar playing as if he’s auditioning for the Beverly Hillbillies, people of a certain age will understand. As well as the aforementioned genres, there is one tune that stands out for me, These Are The Things That Make Me Think Of You. A stunning Jazz-like tune, once again brings out the very best vocal from Max. Memphis Women and Fried Chicken represents the Rockside of the album, harder and rougher than the other tunes, and with far less of a smile. To say that I have enjoyed this collection of material would be something of an understatement. It is a brilliant collection of songs, the type of tunes that will leave you in a better frame of mind than when you started listening. Plastic Jesus is the final track, if memory serves me correctly, it featured in the movie, Cool Hand Luke. Great way to end.

Gerard Haarhuis, Bluestown Music NL

With so many friends, it must have been a jolly time recording in the two studios where this album was recorded: Mark Lalama's "The Old Sumbler House" and Jim Casson's “The Cherry Pit Studio."

Time to put our friendship to the test!

The album opens with "You Can Do Better Than Him," a cheerful intro in which Johnny Max tells us that his father always challenged him with the words "You Can Do Better Than Him!" Relatable. A nice melody, easy singing, piano solo, ditto on the slide—in short, a bit of a Dr. John song with the continuous piano under the melody. Beautiful.

A spoken intro by Nan McAneney precedes the swinging "How The Other Half Lives." A beautifully driven melody. Johnny sings: "I don't have love, I had my fun," and now it's time to discover how the other "half" of the world lived, "How The Other Half Lived." Sung with fervor and matching background vocals, the accompaniment roars on like a rocket! Beautiful!

Apparently, "I've Said All The Sorry's I'm Gonna Say" isn't enough, because it doesn't impress her enough to dissuade her from the idea that their relationship "comes to an end." Sad stuff, which can't be said of the song itself, as it has a great melody, deep, old-fashioned guitar playing, excellent drums and bass. Beautiful, high-pitched background vocals. Beautiful.

"Might As Well Be On Mars" was written by Neil Chapman and Graeme Williamson and released as such as a track by the Pukka Orchestra, of which both were members. Johnny was eager to include the song on his album and even found Neil willing to take on the guitar! A nice, "sawing" track with lots of keyboards. Johnny imagines a life sitting in his penthouse, reading the New York Times, so that he feels like his life is "Might As Well Be On Mars" where only the stars have any meaning… A delusion that seems to afflict more and more people who think their fat bank account is solely their own doing… Oh well… what goes up must come down! Always! And in advance: Get well soon and put on some good music. That helps. Always!  A nice, cynical track with some great guitar riffs!
 
Long awaited, but here's Jay Burr on his tuba in a true tuba melody, subtly accompanied by an acoustic guitar. That's "I've Never Met A Bridge." Another delightfully cynical piece about social life with colleagues you work with who will never be your friends, family members you'd rather not talk about, and other such "joy-enhancing" relationships. Absolutely beautiful!

A lovely, slow melody, introduced by Dave Dunlop's delightful trumpet playing, gives Johnny the opportunity to muse about "These Are The Things That Make Me Think Of You." Wonderfully relaxing. Fantastic! Dave Dunlop isn't mentioned in the bio, but he certainly belongs there, especially with such fine trumpet playing!

There are such combinations… Memphis Women & Fried Chicken. Johnny is hungry for love, but also for fried chicken, and according to Johnny, you're guaranteed to find that with Memphis Women! Sung with great gusto and plenty of backing vocals, this Dan Penn song has been on the JMB setlist for decades but never made it onto an album. Until now, and rightly so.

Tight drums, percussion, bass, and guitars kick off the funky Kiss From Joanne. More connections to New Orleans, or rather, Dr. John… And as sociable as this song truly is, Johnny only wants one thing: A Kiss From Joanne. Top-notch, a bit of Iko Iko and some fine guitar playing accompanied by subtle keyboards. Nicely varied, too!

What starts as discrimination is leveled by Johnny. What's good for one is also good for the other. What's Good For The Goose Is Good For The Gander! A lovely piano boogie with rattling "bee" sounds. Nicely driving, with a starring role for Bill Evans! Fantastic!

A bit faster, on keyboards with group vocals, creating a true gospel sound, complete with "Oooh" by one of the singers. When You Love Somebody. With a fitting keyboard solo, accompanied by female vocals. I say it often, but try sitting still for this! It's impossible! Fantastic!

In times of need… Johnny sings in "Be Good To Yourself" that "You can count on me when it's a friend you need." A song attributed in the bio to Frankie Miller, who did have a hit with it in 1977, but the song was actually written by Andy Fraser in 1975, although other sources state that Andy co-wrote it with Frankie.

For the younger visitors of Bluestownmusic.nl: Andy Fraser was a bassist and, at the age of 15, formed The Free with singer Paul Rodgers, guitarist Paul Kossoff, and drummer Simon Kirke. They are known not only for "All Right Now" (with a more prominent bass part in later versions), but also for songs like "Mr. Big," "Oh I Wept," "Heavy Load," "The Hunter," and many more! Recommended for your listening pleasure! Wonderful BLUES music!

But… back to Johnny Max and his so-called friends with Be Good To Yourself, in which he guarantees to be there when “a friend” is needed. But at the same time, “Be good to yourself every day and every night!” because Graham Nash already sang the wise words in Wounded Bird on his iconic first solo album, Songs For Beginners: “In the end, remember it’s with you you have to live.” This album is also highly recommended! I played it a lot during my military service, along with Déjà Vu by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, and came home with the necessary grains of sand between the grooves… In the case of Be Good To Yourself by Johnny Max, we have a nice, pounding, continuous song, the lyrical content of which will now be clear after my extensive explanation above.

Ever heard Paul Newman sing in a movie? A bit coyly, but still. In the film Cool Hand Luke, Paul sings "Plastic Jesus." The melody is the same as Woodie Guthrie's "Oklahoma Hills," and the 1967 film itself depicts Paul Newman/Cool Hand Luke in prison after vandalizing some parking meters. During his sentence, his mother dies, and the warden refuses to let Luke attend the funeral, fearing he'll escape. Ultimately, Luke does, and does so several times, ending up in a church for the last time, where he complains to "God" about his life. And that song that Paul Newman sings, Plastic Jesus, is supposed to be a parody because that Plastic Jesus is a plastic Jesus figure on the dashboard of his car… Sung very basically by Johnny and accompanied only by a simple guitar, everything comes together in this very short song: Johnny Max's favorite movie, the song in the movie sung by Paul Newman, the original melody by, how could it be otherwise, Woodie Guthrie, and the fact that Johnny Max, his Band, and the so-called friends close the album with it. Could it be better?!

A special album, that's what it is. Because without high-flown hits, this album has no weak spots! When do you hear something like this?! Everything just fits: beautiful stories, meaningful lyrics, excellent music, great solos, and actually a very personal album from Johnny Max! Absolutely beautiful. So beautiful, in fact, that I've happily taken the liberty of occasionally (...) digressing to "others" who, however, have more than apparent similarities with the wonderful music on this album and are therefore worth mentioning, even though it's obviously Johnny Max, his band, and their so-called friends. And by digressing to The Free and Graham Nash or even Dr. John, I just want to emphasize how wonderful this album is!

Absolutely recommended, with 12 out of 12 as favorites!

Article - Joe's Place - The Johnny Max Band: Dishing Out Authentic Roadhouse Soul Music

"Johnny Max We have to thank you! Your performance was brilliant and the atmosphere was fantastic. Many thanks for the great performance!"
New Orleans Meets in Zofingen Festival, Switzerland

"It's A Long Road" will surely please fans of the Johnny Max Band, and it is also going to attract a lot more new fans to this excellent band as well....It's A Long Road" gets my highest rating of 5 Stars... Highly Recommended and Thoroughly Enjoyable..."
Review By John Vermilyea (Blues Underground Network)

"A heavy dosage of Gumbo R&B, nods to Rock’em Sock’em Soul, and hints of all-out Boogie work-outs and Tom Waits styled tonalities."
Michael McClune

"The Johnny Max Band, filled with New Orleans style R&B and soul with a hint of boogie woogie. Throughout the CD, Johnny plays the role of storyteller supreme!"
Rick Davis Crossroads Blues Society

"Fantastic Saturday night show and rolling through my Monday morning with the Johnny Max Band. Simply sublime. Thanks Johnny, you the man."
Michael Fazackerley

"Thanks John!! Great to see you!! Always love your shows!! You really should bottle that on stage energy you have and sell it though!! lol Get rich quicker!! lol See you in September.......at the Shuffle!!"
Ann (Audience member at Peterborough Market Hall)