MelodicRock.com Reviews


GARY MOORE
BACK TO THE BLUES
Sanctuary Records SANCD072
Produced by: GM & Chris Tsangarides
Released: OUT / Website
Closest Relative: Ten Years After
GENRE: Blues Rock
OVERALL: 83%

  1. Enough Of The Blues
  2. You Upset Me Baby
  3. Cold Black Night
  4. Stormy Monday
  5. Ain't Got You
  6. Picture Of The Moon
  7. Looking Back
  8. The Prophet
  9. How Many Lies
  10. Drowning In Tears

Gary Moore returns to the sound of his most commercially successful recording of his 20 year plus career. Having made a living of playing guitar shredding hard rock in arena's over the world, the aging guitarist took to his love of the blues, in a smoking album of rocked up blues numbers titled Still Got The Blues.
The album was an instant hit and gained the man a legion of new devotees. But subsequent releases failed to reach the high's of that album and his last album of modern experimental tones failed to hit any mark and his contract with Virgin Records expired.
On new label Sanctuary Music, Gary Moore has taken the wise choice of revisiting his best blues work on Back To The Blues.
This album could have alternatively been titled Still Got The Blues 2, so closely does it mirror the feel and style of that album.
Fans of Gary's earlier hard rock work are unlikely to see him return to those days when he obviously so passionately loves the blues style he now becoming more renowned for.
Taken out of any other context and look at for what it is, Back To The Blues is a smashing album of mainly uptempo and good fun hard rocking blues guitar.
The album is every bit as good as Still Got The Blues, with production, guitar shredding, songwriting and vibe all upholding what was best about that release.
BOTTOM LINE: You can tell Gary knows that these are good songs and he believes in what he is doing.
There is just so much great guitar work on here, the guy is incredible and lovers of fine blues guitar should shop no further.
True that a couple of songs mirror that of it's blues predecessor, but as he failed to hit these high's on his past couple of albums, he could be forgiven for this minor point.
An album that is basically flawlessly executed and on which the playing is immaculate.
PRODUCTION: 88% SONGS: 85% VIBE: 80%ATTITUDE: 80%
ESSENTIAL FOR:
RECENT DISCOGRAPHY:Still Got The Blues . After Hours . Blues Alive . Ballads & Blues . Blues For Greeny . Dark Days In Paradise . The Very Best Of . A Different Beat . Back To The Blues



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