It's harmonica heaven as a quartet of hard-blowing harpists with experience stretching from the classic Muddy Waters band to contemporary rocking-blues units strut their stuff in a friendly competition. The legendary James Cotton is the main attraction, and he lives up to his reputation, ripping through his individual showcase "The Hucklebuck" and dueling successfully on the group cuts. Fellow veteran Charlie Musselwhite, who displays another side of his talent by playing guitar on the acoustic "If I Should Have Bad Luck," is also in fine form. The younger members of the quartet, Chicago stalwart Billy Branch and former Roomful of Blues frontman Sugar Ray Norcia, hold their own, especially when they pair up on their originals "Mean Little Mama" and "Put My Baby Out." But there's more than just harmonicas as former Fabulous Thunderbirds guitarist Kid Bangham and stylish boogie-woogie pianist David Maxwell spice up things between harp solos. With material including everything from the vintage rock of "Route 66" to the Tommy Dorsey big-band hit "T.D.'s Boogie Woogie," the disc offers a rare and well-rounded overview of the harmonica heroes, concluding with more than 11 minutes of the four musicians going head-to-head on "Harp to Harp." --Michael Point