Tuesday, January 05, 2010


LZ Love & Lightning Red – Gut Bucket Blues (Own Label).

LZ Love has an impressive list of artists that she has sung and toured with including Joan Armatrading and Luther Vandross but she has returned to her blues and gospel roots to team up with guitarist Lightning Red. The opening Been Lonely is drawled out and LZ has such a soulful voice. Red strums away in the background and adds some background vocals towards the end. You can feel her pain with every syllable. Wang Dang Doodle is the famous old Willie Dixon song with Howlin’ Wolf’s version being the best known. This version is earthy and highlights LZ’s powerful voice. Live No More is a pleasant Country blues with Red taking the lead vocal but LZ returns for the plodding Something Good. The title doesn’t really fit the song as this is nothing special.

Backyard Boogie is a bit more like it. A slide blues instrumental and well played by Lightning Red. Baby, What You Want Me To Do is a Jimmy Reed song and Red deals with it is a suitably stand off manner. Can’t Help Myself tends toward Delta blues – a good track with an ethereal feel. Cotton Pickin’ is another slide instrumental and Red keeps up the high standard. He takes the vocal again on Gates Of Heaven, a Southern blues rocker which could easily be a big Lynyrd Skynyrd style song given the correct production.

http://www.lz-love.com/
http://www.lightningred.com/

David Blue.

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