DIFFERENT SHADES OF BLUE
Joe Bonamassa
(J&R ADVENTURES)
One of the best Blues-Rock guitarists of the modern era, check! Great tunes all written by said guitarist check! Killer BV’s, check! Your usual assortment of gun musicians (most notably Anton Fig, from the CBS orchestra, on the drums), check! Award winning producer Kevin Shirley, check! Do I need to say any more? Well, this is a review so I will.
Firstly, I am a fan of Joe’s but please don’t take this as a biased opinion. I’ve always preferred his live releases but “Different Shades of Blue” sees Joe Bonamassa pushing the envelope even further this time with an album chock full of gold that makes you feel like you’re right there in the room and everything is on the fly. It really is a journey to listen to from start to finish. Stand out tracks for me are “Oh! Beautiful”, and of course the pinnacle of the journey, “Different Shades of Blue”. But if you have a spare 45 minutes, give it a blast from front to back. Blues-Rock with Horns, and a pleasure to hear. All is not lost.
DYLAN BOYD