Joe Bonamassa – Black Rock (Provogue Records).
Black Rock is the tenth solo album from the industrious Mr Bonamassa and sees him team up again with producer Kevin Shirley of Black Crowes, Aerosmith & Led Zeppelin fame. Shirley, of course, produced 2009s critically acclaimed The Ballad Of John Henry. The albums title comes from the recording studio in Santorini where Joe wanted to get a ‘world’ feeling for the songs. Steal Your Heart Away is a grinding opener. Joe is on form immediately on vocal and guitar. I Know A Place remains on the slower side but this has power all the way. However, don’t let that fool you into thinking that the craft isn’t there, this is a majestic musician at work. He introduces dobro on When The Fire Hits The Sea and he switches between acoustic and electric effortlessly. This old style blues shouting lets his show the expression in his voice. Quarryman’s Lament has him stepping away from the blues for a more straightforward rock that has folk and Celtic leanings. Great harmonica too. Spanish Boots, written by Jeff Beck, is a blues rocker with Joe’s fingers in a blur. If there is anyone better in the genre then I’d like to hear him or her. Joe likes to throw in some Middle Eastern/Asian influences from time to time and on Bird On A Wire Is Black Rock’s. This Leonard Cohen song, made famous by The Neville Brothers, will grow and grow on you. It’s completely different from their version and it may well become a Bonamassa staple.
Three Times A Fool is a great old Otis Rush song an Joe plays it as a classic blues rock. He’s never sounded better vocally too. Willie Nelson’s Night Life is turned into a big, brassy blues with BB King, who originally made the song his own, adding his not inconsiderable talents. BB’s voice is still one of the best on this up-tempo version of his classic. Wandering Earth is an expansive Chicago style blues with a Joe twist. James Clark’s Look Over Yonders Wall is a fast paced, energetic blues Athens To Athens, that’ll be Greece to Georgia, USA, has a bouzouki as well as guitar giving us Delta blues for the 21st century. Joe throws in all sorts of strange instruments here. Blue And Evil is a rousing penultimate track. It confirms his status as a consummate performer but he often says that he plays too many notes. That may be so, but they are all in the right place. The closing track is Blind Boy Fuller’s Baby You Gotta Change Your Mind which exudes class and tops off another blinding Joe Bonamassa album.
Joe Bonamassa was recently named as Best Blues Guitarist in Guitar Player magazine’s Readers’ Choice Awards for the third consecutive year – glad to hear that I’m not the only one who thinks he is the best that we have heard for some time!
http://www.provoguerecords.com/
http://www.jbonamassa.com/
David Blue.
Black Rock is the tenth solo album from the industrious Mr Bonamassa and sees him team up again with producer Kevin Shirley of Black Crowes, Aerosmith & Led Zeppelin fame. Shirley, of course, produced 2009s critically acclaimed The Ballad Of John Henry. The albums title comes from the recording studio in Santorini where Joe wanted to get a ‘world’ feeling for the songs. Steal Your Heart Away is a grinding opener. Joe is on form immediately on vocal and guitar. I Know A Place remains on the slower side but this has power all the way. However, don’t let that fool you into thinking that the craft isn’t there, this is a majestic musician at work. He introduces dobro on When The Fire Hits The Sea and he switches between acoustic and electric effortlessly. This old style blues shouting lets his show the expression in his voice. Quarryman’s Lament has him stepping away from the blues for a more straightforward rock that has folk and Celtic leanings. Great harmonica too. Spanish Boots, written by Jeff Beck, is a blues rocker with Joe’s fingers in a blur. If there is anyone better in the genre then I’d like to hear him or her. Joe likes to throw in some Middle Eastern/Asian influences from time to time and on Bird On A Wire Is Black Rock’s. This Leonard Cohen song, made famous by The Neville Brothers, will grow and grow on you. It’s completely different from their version and it may well become a Bonamassa staple.
Three Times A Fool is a great old Otis Rush song an Joe plays it as a classic blues rock. He’s never sounded better vocally too. Willie Nelson’s Night Life is turned into a big, brassy blues with BB King, who originally made the song his own, adding his not inconsiderable talents. BB’s voice is still one of the best on this up-tempo version of his classic. Wandering Earth is an expansive Chicago style blues with a Joe twist. James Clark’s Look Over Yonders Wall is a fast paced, energetic blues Athens To Athens, that’ll be Greece to Georgia, USA, has a bouzouki as well as guitar giving us Delta blues for the 21st century. Joe throws in all sorts of strange instruments here. Blue And Evil is a rousing penultimate track. It confirms his status as a consummate performer but he often says that he plays too many notes. That may be so, but they are all in the right place. The closing track is Blind Boy Fuller’s Baby You Gotta Change Your Mind which exudes class and tops off another blinding Joe Bonamassa album.
Joe Bonamassa was recently named as Best Blues Guitarist in Guitar Player magazine’s Readers’ Choice Awards for the third consecutive year – glad to hear that I’m not the only one who thinks he is the best that we have heard for some time!
http://www.provoguerecords.com/
http://www.jbonamassa.com/
David Blue.
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