JOHN EMMS MUSIC REVIEWS

Blues Rock is getting big again.

It may not reach the heights of Cream, prime Johnny Winter, ZZ Top,  or the Texas Blues of Stevie Ray Vaughan but  adding rock power to blues inspired songs is what the public wants

And Dudley Taft and his band are right in the thick of it on their new album Screaming in The Wind

Working with producer Tom Hambridge (Buddy Guy) and SRV’s mojo organ man Reese Wynans this album bends into modern blues without loosing  clout.

Tracks like the hard hitting Red Line, the open tuning crunch of Sleeping In The Sunlight, a cover of Freddie King’s Pack It Up with the Muscle Shoals Horns Section, and the pop sensibility of Barrio (which would kill at mainstream radio) Taft and his band don’t miss the mark.

Believe or not Tears in The Rain has an almost Soundgarden-esque vibe, while Wynan powers up the B-3 organ on the excellent The Reason Why.

Bassman John Kessler and drummer Jason Patterson stick to Taft’s riffing and solos which adds glue in the right places.

Bottom line has always been the songs.

Tracks like  ZZ Top’s Beer Drinker’s and Hellraisers, Cream’s Sunshine of Your Love or Canadian blues rocker Colin James’ Just Got Back have hard crunching radio friendly hooks

Taft has plenty on this album too.

JOHN EMMS is a veteran music journalist, online radio host and founding member of Canadian Blues Rockers THE SHAFTMEN

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