Smokin' Gun
Bad Luck Blues
Appletone - 1997
Review Published December 15, 1999
Visit the Official Smokin' Gun Website
|
Track Listing
- Bad Luck Blues
- Don't Touch My Girl
- Nothin' Good To Say
- I Need You Baby
- Born Under a Bad Sign
- Don't Go
- A Fool For Your Stockings
- The Blues Ain't Nothin
- Roadhouse Blues
- Fast Train
EB Rating - 4.0+
|
Smokin' Gun is a high energy roadhouse blues band working in the US Northwest since 1992. The band's line-up
includes duel lead guitars, bass, drums and lead vocalist. Their independent release, "Bad Luck Blues", features a diet
of primarily hard-drivin' Southern flavored blues-rock. The guitars are strong throughout the CD, delivering plenty
of potent blues-rock riffs. Vocals are distinctive, roughly approximated by combining the singing styles Clarence Spady, Popa Chubby,
and James Mangrum (Black Oak Arkansas).
The CD is comprised of 6 originals and 4 cover tunes. The band's original material is mostly good stuff
holding up fairly well in the mix with the powerful covers the band plays in this set.
Most notable among the originals are the hard groovin' "Don't Touch My Girl", the
Southern Rocker, "Fast Train", and the CD's one slow blues entry, "Nothin' Good To Say". The later features
some strong sax work, complimenting nicely, or more acurately, setting the mood of the song.
|
As I mentioned, Smokin' Gun selected some high powered covers for this CD. "Born Under A Bad Sign" is
given good treatment, but my favorites among the covers are ZZ Top's "A Fool For Your Stockings", on which
Smokin' Gun achieves a very true ZZ Top sound both vocally and instrumentally, and the Door's "Roadhouse Blues".
"Stockings" seems to me to be a somewhat unusual selection for a cover by a blues band. Unusual, but not inapropriate...
the song works very well. "Roadhouse Blues" is obviously the set's finale, despite the fact that it comes one song prior
to the end of the CD.
Blues-rock guitar fans should enjoy this CD, and it's a good bet this is a great band to see live
if you like guitar driven blues-rock, and plenty of it. If "Bad Luck Blues" is any indication, their shows must be
packed with high-energy rockin' blues, and pretty well devoid of soulful ballads and the like.
|
|
