I was very happy that the band paid
tribute to long time STB guitarist, the late Steve Harvey by recording his song “Long Gone,” rocking it out complete with a horn section. Steve would be so proud. Calvert’s “Chain Gang” has been entertaining audi- ences for a few years now, and it sounds great on record, with all the swagger of a Lynyrd Skynyrd tune. Randall sounds as hot as ever on lead guitar and even takes lead vocal du- ties on this one. “Spirit in the Hills,” written by Mark
Brinkman and arranged by Silver Travis has all the lyrical quality the best Charlie Daniels song with a swampy rock vibe. I was taken by that song the very first time I heard the band play it at Music On The Tracks in Landrum, SC. So good. The album is a nonstop thrill ride be-
ginning to end, with great tracks like Upton’s “Stop Running” and the horn backed “Baby Blue;” Calvert’s rocking “Waiting for My Ride” and “You Lie” and the beautiful “Love Fades Away;” and Daniel Jackson’s awesome “Lesson Learned.” The boys from Spartanburg, SC really
outdid themselves on this one. I look for big things from these guys moving forward. Ex- pect no quarter.
-Michael Buffalo Smith
Buddy Guy The Blues is Alive and Well (Silvertone/RCA) In an age where true
guitar heroes seem to be dying off at an alarming rate, one true legend continues to
record and tour, and amazingly continues to outdo himself with each album. That man is Buddy Guy. The 81-year old-guitarist and
singer won a Grammy for his most recent album, Born to Play Guitar, in 2016, and that same year toured as opener for Jeff Beck, sell- ing out venues across the United States. Guy recently had one of his most personal inter- views with David Letterman for Dave’s Net- flix series My Next Guest Needs No Introduction, and brought down the house at the closing of B.B. King’s Blues Club and Grill in New York. On September 12, Buddy will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Americana Music Association in Nashville. For The Blues is Alive and Well, fre-
quent producer and collaborator Tom Ham- bridge approached Guy with a set of songs that he felt were perfect for Buddy to record as a new album. Tom was right. Guy sounds just as good today, if not better than he did in his early career. His gritty guitar is at the forefront on songs like “Bad Day” and hot solo on “Somebody Up There.” Buddy brought along a few guests on
the new record, including James Bay, who joins Guy on the soulful slow jam, “Blue No More,” and Rolling Stones front man Mick Jagger who sits in on the swaggering barroom rocker “You Did the Crime.” For “Cognac,” Guy is joined by the other Glimmer Twin, Keith Richards along with Jeff Beck. Some se- rious guitar playing going on! Buddy pulls out all the stops on the
Sonny Boy Williamson song “Nine Below Zero,” and blazes across the strings on “A Few Good Years” and the funky “Whiskey for Sale.” The blues is truly alive on “Milking Muther for Ya,” a tune that clocks in at less than a minute to close out this fine album. With 50 years in the business, 7
Grammy Awards, 37 Blues Music awards, Kennedy Center Honors, NARM Chairman’s Award for Sustained Creative Achievement, Billboard Music Awards’ Century Award for distinguished artistic development, Presiden- tial National Medal of Arts and induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Blues
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