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"A new tribute to blues classics, this EP does not go into nuance and shows a powerful and effective appropriation."
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3/5
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Two years ago, after the release of "Kentucky" (2016) and to wait before the release of "Family Tree" (2018), Black Stone Cherry offered a 6 track EP paying tribute to blues standards. This well named "Back To Blues" had met with considerable and unexpected success. It is therefore only half surprising to see the Kentucky quartet back in the spotlight in 2019 with an opus of the same format with the much sought-after title of... "Back To Blues - Vol.2".
With the help of Yates McKendree on keyboards, Chris Robertson and his band dusted off another half a dozen classics and successfully modernized them. Each track is easily recognizable but benefits from a relooking that sees for example the Chicago Blues of Freddie King's "Big Legged Woman" take on the southern colors typical of Black Stone Cherry. The guitar and piano soli follow one another in a deluge of dreadful efficiency and Robertson's voice does the rest. The same treatment for Robert Johnson's energetic 'Me & The Devil Blues' with its enhanced instrumentalization and for the fearsome version of Howlin Wolf's 'Down In The Bottom' with its gleaming harmonica. Adapted without the original brass, Elmore James' diabolical 'Early One Morning' has a formidable groove while Son House's 'Death Letter Blues' gets furious and glowing.
The effectiveness of this opus cannot be questioned but what is likely to be debated is a certain lack of particularly sensitive finesse on Otis Rush's "All Your Love (I Miss Loving)" which hardly bears comparison with the version of the late Gary Moore. It is palpable that Black Stone Cherry is trying to ease off a little bit and there is nothing prohibitive here. Everything will depend on the degree of tolerance of the amateurs, some blues specialists sometimes showing fundamentalism and only moderately appreciating that some classics can be too personalized. And it must be recognized that here, beyond the intrinsic quality of the whole, the trademark of the performers crushes everything in its path and removes any nuance from the proposed titles. It is indeed a Black Stone Cherry album and there is no doubt about it.
Endowed with undeniable qualities, this EP must be taken for what it is: a good time to help to wait before a future long-lasting opus. The balance between homage and appropriation is found, even if it is at the expense of a very relative nuance. At the same time, Black Stone Cherry having a strong identity for several years now, it would have been surprising if he had taken a different path. - Official website
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TRACK LISTING:
01. Big Legged Woman - 4:39
02. Me & The Devil Blues - 4:15
03. All Your Love (i Miss Loving) - 3:34
04. Down In The Bottom - 3:20
05. Early One Morning - 4:11
06. Death Letter Blues - 5:42
LINEUP:
Ben Wells: Guitares
Chris Robertson: Chant / Guitares
John Fred Young: Batterie
Jon Lawhon: Basse
Yates Mckendree: Guitares / Claviers / Invité
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STAFF:
3/5 (1 view(s))
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