Kenny Wayne Shepherd is one of the great custodians of the blues. Like Joe Bonamassa, he not only lives and breathes the genre with his original compositions but, through projects like 10 Days Out: Blues From The Backroads, he ensures that the names of the pioneers are accordingly revered. Such passion cannot fail to translate into an artist’s recorded work and that is surely the case with Dirt On My Diamonds, Vol. 1, Kenny’s tenth solo album. Recorded at FAME Studios, in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, it is Kenny’s third consecutive album with Marshall Altman (following the wonderful Lay It On Down and The Traveller) and, as with everything Kenny puts his name to, it shines as brightly as the titular diamonds.
It starts with the breezy and brass-soaked Dirt On My Diamonds, a gloriously soulful blues rocker with an addictive melody and blistering lead work. You couldn’t ask for a better opener and it kicks the album into gear with brio. Kenny and his band maintain the pace with the seriously funky Sweet & Low, a track that doesn’t so much walk into the frame so much as strut right into the centre of the picture. With its stabbing guitar lines and Joe Krown’s organ swirls, Sweet & Low will leave you with a goofy smile plastered across your face that will only grow when the wah-inflected solo rings out. For sure, Kenny and his band are on a roll and, two tracks in, Dirt On My Diamonds, Vol. 1 has your undivided attention. The next track, Best Of Times, is a perfect mix of contemporary and classic, with gleaming production underpinning an old school vocal, recalling elements of Gary Moore’s A Different Beat, only with the electronica of that record supplanted by a hyper-modern funk. Of course, it all builds to a soaring chorus, and you’ll find yourself singling along, whether you will it or no. The first half of the record concludes on a calmer note, with You Can’t Love Me taking on a smoothly soulful Robert Cray vibe. It provides a nice counterpoint to the razor-sharp grooves of the first three tracks, while offering the poignant observation that “you can’t love me, if you don’t love you”.
Opening the second half, Man On A Mission has a Motown vibe, with the horns leading the way and a more subdued vocal, although the track itself is driven by Chris Layton’s rippling percussion, which serves to keep things lively. However, things really kick into gear with a surprise cover of Elton John’s Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting – a taut rocker that always stood as of Elton’s harder-edged pieces, despite the modern production it retains rather than embellishes the attitude of the original, although the concluding solo positively rips! With the album racing to its conclusion, Bad Intentions is a gritty blues rocker, reminiscent of Kenny’s work with The Rides, and providing a showcase for Kenny’s electrifying lead work. The final track, Ease On My Mind, is also one of the album’s best. Dialling things back to a Buddy Guy vibe, with slinky organ stabs and plenty of guitar, it’s a classic blues outing, delivered with skill and style by a true aficionado. It’s a fine closer and a reminder that, no matter how much Kenny may stretch the genre to keep things fresh, he’ll never leave the blues behind.
Another cracking outing from Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Dirt On My Diamonds, Vol 1. is a sparkling collection that offers a variety of takes on the blues, from the fresh and funky opening tracks, to its gloriously traditional finale. With sumptuous production combining the best of modern technique with analogue grit, and fantastic performances from all concerned, it’s one of those album that showcases the enduring potential of the blues, and it leaves the listener in no doubt as to Kenny’s love for the form. 9/10
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