Buddy Guy/ Ain't Done With The Blues

 

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR 

Buddy Guy/ Ain't Done With The Blues

Genre: Blues

Label: RCA Records

Rating: ****

Chicago blues legend Buddy Guy shows no signs of slowing down. To mark his 89th birthday on July 30, he did what he loves best - release an album. Aptly, he titled it Ain't Done With The Blues.

Like BB King about 15 years ago, Buddy has attained the status of 'Godfather' in this genre. We in India acknowledge his role of playing at Mumbai's Mahindra Blues Festival five times, and spreading the word about the annual event among younger players. Even if he played a similar set each time, he has had his diehard fans.

The new album contains a whopping 18 songs spread over 64 minutes. Maybe, he should have cut down a few, despite their short length, to make the album tighter. The question, perhaps, was what to leave out. Obviously, he had the material and wanted to go the whole hog. The result is a good balance of autobiographical numbers, tributes and standards. Buddy maintains his singing abilities, and his guitarwork is as magnificent as one could imagine. Producer Tom Hambridge, who's played drums and co-written most of the songs, is a fabulous support.

Interestingly, the album has some prolific guest artistes. Joe Walsh of the Eagles fame appears on 'How Blues Is That', and Joe Bonamassa plays on 'Dry Stick'. Not that they add much value as these songs could have featured anyone else. But Christone 'Kingfish' Ingram's appearance on the uptempo and funk-driven 'Where U At' is a neat choice.

The Blind Boys of Alabama feature on 'Jesus Loves A Sinner', a gospel-blues song with the lines, "Jesus loves the sinner but he hates the sin, he'll keep you out of danger, just trust in him". And there's good old Peter Frampton on 'It Keeps Me Young', a song where Buddy expresses his own thoughts on the lines, "Chicago blues, I like it loud, I turn it up, never turn it down".

Of the other autobiographical songs, Buddy tells his own story on 'Been There Done That', as he sings, "I've been there and done that, stories I can tell, I've been there and done that, still alive and well".

Appropriately, Buddy begins by paying tribute to the great John Lee Hooker on the minute-long opener 'Hooker Thing'. On 'Blues Chase The Blues Away', he talks of Jimmy Reed, BB King and Little Walter, and the short 'One From Lightnin' is a nod to Lightnin' Hopkins.

The reinterpretations include the Earl King-penned 'Trick Bag', which has a very different arrangement. JB Lenoir's 'Send Me Some Loving', popularised by Little Richard, is very old-school evergreen style, though this is one song where Buddy sounds shaky on some lines. 'Talk To Your Daughter', earlier recorded by Robben Ford, has a dash of humour.

One of the clear highlights is 'I Don't Forget', where Buddy sings of the unfortunate days of slavery. The lines, "I don't forget my people's history, I've still got scars across my memory, I don't forget the things I've seen, they stay in my head, I don't forget" strike a chord, and the guitar solo is filled with pain. And there's the Hambridge-written 'Swamp Poker', which is a blues-rock beauty.

Clearly, Buddy is having a good time. Earlier this year, he appeared in a cameo role in Ryan Coogler's blues- themed vampire film Sinners, where he even sang the song 'Travellin'. This album sees him continue his prolificacy. As he sings on 'It Keeps Me Young' - "It keeps me young, man I'm having fun, it makes me feel like I did, when I was twenty-one". That's Buddy Guy The Legend for you.