<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Why is it that I do not like child prodigies? \u00a0Jackie Evancho is a wonderfully talented young woman, but even at the ripe old age of 15, I can\u2019t enjoy her music. \u00a0Why? \u00a0Because she was a child phenom. \u00a0In trying to sort out my feelings about child prodigies, I have finally honed in on the childhood incident that no doubt scarred me for life. \u00a0I used to go to an up the street friend\u2019s house to play when I was in early elementary school. \u00a0He had a younger brother named Rusty and I think it was Rusty who started my lifelong revulsion to child phenoms. \u00a0Rusty\u2019s sin? \u00a0He could color within the lines of his coloring books. \u00a0Not only could he color within the lines, he could color so smoothly, his coloring book pages looked more like paintings by the old masters. \u00a0He was two or three years younger than we were and it both impressed and repulsed me how much better he could handle his Crayolas than we could. \u00a0Yep, that is my story and I am sticking to it: \u00a0it is all Rusty\u2019s fault.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0This leaves me in a bit of a quandary because I now have to face up to the fact that I can no longer hide under this blanket statement. \u00a0\u00a0Why? \u00a0Because I absolutely love Joe Bonamassa and not only was he a guitar playing child prodigy, he has grown into one of the greatest unsung musicians on the planet. \u00a0It goes against everything I have stood for (or against, if you will) that I can\u2019t hear enough of Joe Bonamassa\u2019s work. \u00a0Lucky for me, his newest release <\/span>Blues of Desperation<\/span><\/i> has just arrived.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Born in New Hartford, NY in 1977, Bonamassa had a guitar in his hands at age four and his first band was opening for blues great B.B. King by age twelve. \u00a0Not only was he opening for King, he was invited to join the King of the Blues on stage and jam, so yes, he did have all the qualifications necessary to be a child phenom. \u00a0At the advanced age of eighteen, he collaborated with the sons of Miles Davis<\/span>, Robbie Kreiger<\/span>\u00a0and Berry Oakley<\/span>\u00a0in the band Bloodline (a whole band of CPs). \u00a0They didn\u2019t make as big an impact as their record label had hoped for, but the band did get Joe B. \u00a0more widespread attention. \u00a0He released his first solo album in 2000 (<\/span>A New Day Yesterday<\/span><\/i>) and his output since then has been nothing short of, well, phenomenal. \u00a0Over the last 13 years, Bonamassa has released 15 albums, 11 of which have made it to #1 on the Billboard Blues Charts. \u00a0Joe himself attributes this to the fact that his fans still buy CDs, but one does not make the charts these days on CD sales alone.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0I started to take notice of Bonamassa while randomly surfing YouTube videos searching for traditional and newer versions of songs about the legend of John Henry. \u00a0I was aware of Bonamassa\u2019s collaborations with Glenn Hughes (Trapeze, Deep Purple), Jason Bonham (son of Led Zeppelin founding drummer John Bonham), and Derek Sherinian (Dream Theater, Project X) in the band Black Country Communion. \u00a0It was in a live BCC clip that I found a version of Bonamassa\u2019s <\/span>The Ballad of John Henry<\/span><\/i> that served as my modern take on this legend of Americana music. \u00a0Once I started clicking on other Bonamassa videos, I became immersed in his live work, particularly <\/span>Live at Royal Albert \u00a0Hall (2010), \u00a0\u00a0Live at Radio City Music Hall (2015), <\/span><\/i>and <\/span>Muddy Wolf Live at Red Rocks (2015).<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n The <\/span>Muddy Wolf<\/span><\/i> project was a live tribute to the music of both Muddy Waters and Howlin\u2019 Wolf and he is following that up with a 2016 tribute called <\/span>British Blues Explosion<\/span><\/i> that will further explore his musical roots that sprouted from the English guitar players that rocked his guitar obsessed world.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0His latest studio effort, <\/span>Blues of Desperation (2016),<\/span><\/i> is his latest collaboration with producer Kevin (the Caveman) Shirley. \u00a0Hailing from South Africa, Shirley<\/span> has worked as a music producer and mixer for many artists: \u00a0Journey, Iron Maiden, Rush, Led Zeppelin, Beth Hart, Slayer, Dream Theater, Hoodoo Gurus, Tyler Bryant, Mr. Big, \u00a0Europe, The Black Crowes, and Joe Satriani to name just a few. \u00a0Shirley\u2019s work with Bonamassa goes back to <\/span>You and Me<\/span><\/i> (2006) and they have been joined at the hip right up through <\/span>Blues of Desperation<\/span><\/i>.<\/span> \u00a0Like the excellent live concert DVDs he has released, Bonamassa\u2019s studio work showcases his guitar chops as well as his ability to write and arrange songs in his own style. \u00a0He collaborates well and the new CD boasts one original (<\/span>What I\u2019ve Know for a Very Long Time<\/span><\/i>) and 10 other tunes penned with James House, Tom Hambridge, Gary Nicholson, Jeffrey Steele, and Jerry Flowers. \u00a0Of these, I am only familiar with Hambridge who has worked with another teen phenom, Quinn Sullivan. \u00a0Like Bonamassa, Sullivan was noticed at an early age and has been mentored by another blues legend; \u00a0Buddy Guy.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Other notable contributors to <\/span>Blues of Desperation <\/span><\/i>are drummer Anton Fig from David Letterman\u2019s studio band and keyboardist Reese Wynans. \u00a0Wynans was an integral part of Stevie Ray Vaughan’s Double Trouble from the release of <\/span>Soul to Soul<\/span><\/i> (1985) until Vaughan\u2019s tragic death.. \u00a0Unlike some producers, Shirley doesn\u2019t get any songwriting credits on <\/span>BoD, <\/span><\/i>but his hand is firmly on the wheel. \u00a0He makes sure that Bonamassa keeps the songs taut and on track. \u00a0In the liner notes, Bonamassa says that, \u201c<\/span>Blues of Desperation<\/span><\/i> is a record that I wanted to make as a follow up to <\/span>Different Shades of Blue<\/span><\/i> as an all-original work.\u201d \u00a0It seems that he has indeed accomplished what he set out to do.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0It isn\u2019t a traditional blues album but it is a blues rock album that blends both ends of the blues-rock spectrum together quite nicely. \u00a0The opening track (<\/span>This Train<\/span><\/i>) chugs out of the station driven by an almost clickety-clackety drum groove and Bonamassa\u2019s signature slide guitar punctuating the verses. \u00a0<\/span>Mountain Climbing<\/span><\/i> has a slower, heavier beat and features background vocalists that include Mahalia Barnes who popped out because we have heard her recently on some of Lachy Doley\u2019s work. \u00a0The tom work and combined drumming of Fig and Greg Morrow make <\/span>Drive<\/span><\/i> a moody piece that features a totally different vocal vibe of the first two tracks. \u00a0Bonamassa seems to have no trouble slipping in and out of different musical styles, be it vocally or with his guitar playing. \u00a0All in all, it makes for a very listenable album.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>No Good Place for the Lonely<\/span><\/i> is a greasy affair that slips and slides out of the dark city alleys with an interesting guitar lick that drives the verses. \u00a0The album\u2019s title track again rides Fig\u2019s tom work and a funky guitar-wah wah sound that breaks out into yet another signature Bonamassa lick that connects the verses. \u00a0Joe B – he knows how to write a catchy guitar lick. \u00a0<\/span>The Valley Runs Low<\/span><\/i> would be a good example of the \u201cNash-Vegas\u201d inspiration that helped fuel this album. \u00a0It isn\u2019t exactly country but it sure pulls together the country blues with a tinge of Motown soul in the background vocals.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Track seven (<\/span>You Left Me Nothing but the Bill and the Blues<\/span><\/i>) could have sprung off a Vaughan brothers sequel to <\/span>Family Style.<\/span><\/i> \u00a0It has just the right amount of jump-blues feel and Texas twang backed by Wynans keys and organ. \u00a0Seven segues into the driving <\/span>Distant Lonesome Train<\/span><\/i> featuring the most tribal sounding drumming yet as well as more stellar organ work from Wynans. \u00a0Track nine (<\/span>How Deep the River Runs<\/span><\/i>) starts off like a lazy, languid river that lulls you into its deep, swamplike feeling. \u00a0Swamplike right up to the chorus, that is. \u00a0The river picks up the pace and drives on with some interesting dual guitar soloing before hitting the swampy flats again. \u00a0<\/span>Livin\u2019 Easy<\/span><\/i> returns to the greasy feel of <\/span>No Good Place for the Lonely<\/span><\/i> but the main groove here is carried by Mark Douthit\u2019s sax.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The album closes with Bonamassa\u2019s <\/span>What I\u2019ve known for a Very Long Time<\/span><\/i>. \u00a0A slow blues crawler about love, misery, and trouble that leads the blues man to the recognition that love is what he needs. \u00a0Anybody who would accuse Bonamassa of being a blues guy who plays too many notes need only hear how he lets this song breath to blow up that stereo type. \u00a0It is fair to say Bonamassa has grown from a guitar playing child prodigy into a full grown music man. \u00a0He has grown beyond a kid who can play guitar into a \u201cjack of all trades\u201d musician who displays the ability to be \u201cthe master of all\u201d rather than the \u201cmaster of none.\u201d \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The child phenom may be closing in on forty years of age now, but as the seventeenth album of his solo career shows, he continues to grow and produce music on his own terms. \u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The top piece video goes back to a 2007 appearance at the North Sea Jazz Festival – back when Joe was a mere 30 year old phenom!