Dead at just forty-one, Jeff Healey still managed to pack a remarkable career into a life that was cut far too short. Over the course of his life he amassed a remarkable back catalogue, especially considering it was over a period which stretched only from 1988 (which marked the release of ‘see the light’) to 2008 when Jeff sadly passed away from lung cancer. Like many artists who were prolific in their life time, left-over material has appeared periodically in the subsequent years, but there is no question that the crowning glory was the release (on what would have been Jeff’s fiftieth birthday) of ‘Heal my soul’, a lost album cut between 96-98 and the first unreleased material to be heard from Jeff in some 16 years. Produced with careful input form the Healey estate, it was a remarkable tribute to Jeff’s restless creativity and it was followed by ‘Holding on’ which serves as a companion piece to that record. Released via Provogue records and featuring five session outtakes as well as a bristling, ten-track live set (recorded in Norway in 1999), it features some impressive songs that completists will undoubtedly be eager to get hold of, as well as a live set that does much to capture Jeff and his band in full flow.
The opening track says it all really – a blistering cut entitled ‘love takes time’, there’s a raw emotional energy to the track which is emphasized by Jeff’s visceral lead guitar work which blazes across the track with an authority that is undeniable. Smoother and more restrained, ‘Every other guy’ swaps ferocious guitar action for a more relaxed swing that recalls the handsome melodies of Robert Cray whilst ‘Dancing with the monsters’ is a highlight, capturing a similar hip-swinging action to that which the Blues Brothers so effectively tapped into and sending it howling out into the moonlight with some stinging lead work. It’s hard to believe that anyone would intentionally relegate tracks like this to the scrap heap of history, but then the late 90s was a period of such relentless innovation for Jeff that only the very best got through. Nonetheless, ‘Dancing with the monsters’ is so full of vitality that it’s hard not to regard it with a bittersweet sense so accurately does it capture the combustive spontaneity of Jeff’s playing. Possibly the biggest surprise is ‘All that I believe’, a track that emerges from an explosive beat to capture the vibe of the alternative rock bands of the day. With its fast-strummed acoustic guitars and gnarled vocal, the likes of Pearl Jam, Soul Asylum and the Spin Doctors come far more readily to mind than the blues artists with which Jeff is more traditionally equated and the production, too, is very much in a 90’s vein. The session outtakes conclude with ‘CNIBlues’, a short, sweet, trad blues outing that seems to have been recorded solo, perhaps during a break in sessions. An honest moment that seems to have been recorded on a whim, it’s a fitting conclusion to the studio material.
The remainder of the disc is taken up with a ten-track live set recorded at the Rockefeller Music Hall in Oslo, Norway back in 1999. Sadly it features nothing from either ‘Heal my soul’ or the outtakes that open this album (that would have been wonderful), and the quality, whilst relatively clear, has a slightly tinny, washed out feel that is made all the more apparent by the direct contrast with the beautifully produced and mastered tracks that precede it. That said, the concert is still eminently listenable, and by the time the blazing ‘my little girl’ and the solo-packed ‘dust my broom’ (which open the set) have been dispatched, any gripes about audio quality have been consigned to the dustbin such is the force of the set itself. The latter track is so impressive a showcase for Jeff’s exquisite guitar work that it will leave even causal listeners plastered back against their sofa, eyes glazed and mouth dribbling as the song reaches a climax so intense it damn near blows the speaker cones. From there on in you’re hooked and it’s lovely to hear Jeff’s sense of humour come alive as he chats with the audience between tracks. Slow blues tracks like ‘How blue can you get’ and ‘I think I love you too much’ are deftly combined with well-chosen covers like ‘stuck in the middle with you / tequilla’ and it only goes to further demonstrate the sparkling wit and the humbly-worn talent that made Jeff such a special performer. Delivering solos like a hurricane, you can almost feel his fingers flashing over the fret board as the track progresses.
The final third of the set sees a truly beautiful and heartfelt rendition of ‘Macon Georgia Blues’ which gives way to a swinging take on ‘I can’t get my hands on you’ and a truly dirty take on the Beatles classic ‘Yer Blues’. When you consider not only the power of the original, but also the grungy nightmare of the Dirty Mac version (featured on the Rolling Stones’ ‘Rock ‘n’ roll circus’ LP), Jeff does a great job of making the song his own, palm muting his guitar for extra depth and miring his guitar in so much distortion it’s a miracle his tubes didn’t burst into flames right there. ‘Holding on’, from which this record takes its title, is a masterclass in how to deliver a blues track with plenty of rock energy, impeccable fret work and still come in under five minutes in length. The set ends both predictably and gleefully with ‘See the light’ and your own emotional reaction to the joyful music pouring form the stage will give some indication to how the audience must have felt on that special night.
Clearly ‘holding on’ is not the place for someone with a casual interest in Jeff Healey to start their collection – any of Jeff’s first three solo albums would serve that purpose far better – but as a companion piece to the wonderful ‘heal my soul’ it draws together the loose threads that that project left hanging and adds in a cracking live set as a bonus. The studio material is largely excellent (perhaps with the exception of ‘all that I believe’ which is interesting rather than essential), and fans of Jeff will quite possibly have already purchased the set for that reason. The live set is compelling despite its sonic limitations but, if you’re after a dose of Jeff live, then the three-disc set ‘As the years go passing by’ is fairly exhaustive compared to this short offering. Overall, this is an excellent companion piece that will certainly appeal to fans, but newcomers should be aware that there are better places with which to start their collection. 7
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