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BUDDY GUY Heavy Love (Silvertone) Buddy never fails to please his old fans and always gains a few new ones. Heavy Love features mostly covers, with two Buddy Guy originals i.e. ‘Had A Bad Night’ featuring Steve Cropper (Booker T. & The M.G.s), and ‘Let Me Show You’. Jon Tiven has written the first two songs on this album; the title track is delightful soul with a tinge of blues, and the other is the sensational ‘Midnight Train’ featuring the young Jonny Lang. Jonny is not only a fantastic guitarist, but he is also an impressive vocalist for all of his 17 years. Do you think Buddy would have recorded with Jonny if he thought Jonny wasn’t up to it? Gene Barge’s ‘I Got A Problem’ is a musical dialogue about a man who has problems between his wife and his other lovers. I especially love Buddy’s soulful rendition of ZZ Top’s ‘I Need You Tonight’. Louis Jordan’s ‘Saturday Night Fish Fry’ is revitalised with a country-swing flavour. ‘Had A Bad Night’ has those soaring highs that were the theme for his Alligator release Stone Crazy. ‘Are You Lonely For Me Baby’ is pure soul, featuring Jessica Boucher and Bekka Bramlett on background vocals. Willie Dixon’s ‘I Just Want To Make Love To You’ is an old favourite and this should prove to be a real crowd pleaser at concerts. One of my all time favourite Tony Joe White songs is ‘Did Someone Make A Fool Of You’, and Buddy performs this so intimately. Cropper only appears on tracks 2, 3, 4 & 6, whereas his own ‘When The Time Is Right’ is performed by Buddy and Buddy’s own band; and it is one of those songs that is perfect for Buddy, and would have been perfect for Wilson Picket and Otis Redding. Buddy rounds off Heavy Love with the slow gentle blues of ‘Let Me Show You’. One last point, the front cover art is very periodical considering the lounge revival. Great cover-great album-fantastic musicians! Gazz Click on album image to see larger album cover 
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