Big Shoes – Fresh Tracks
Qualified Records – 2023
12 tracks; 49 minutes
Big Shoes is something of a Nashville ‘super group’, consisting of musicians who have played with a who’s who of stars such as Bobby Bland, Etta James, Van Morrison and Delbert McClinton, amongst many others. Lead singer Rick Huckaby is a session singer in Nashville and is the main songwriter here with involvement in seven songs; Mark T Jordan (Bonnie Raitt’s keyboard man on her live album Road Tested) had a hand in two songs and guitarists Will MacFarlane and Kenne Cramer contribute to five; the band is completed by drummer Lynn Williams, bassist Tom Szell and percussionist Bryan Brock. Guests include Shaun Murphy who adds backing vocals to four cuts, Vickie Carrico who is on three songs and horns are added to four songs by Dana Robbins (sax and arrangements) and Quentin Ware (trumpet). The album was recorded at Kevin McKendree’s Rockhouse Studio.
Rick has a good voice that works for this kind of material with tinges of country, blues and soul; light with a touch of grit. Opener “I Got You Covered” is a great start with the twin guitars laying down a strong riff, the horns adding punch, the slide that country feel, while Rick offers himself: “If you need a shelter or a shoulder, if you want two arms to hold you closer…I got you covered”. “Hole In The Sky” is more of a shuffle, with nice guitar embellishments and a sympathetic horn arrangement. Just two songs come from outside the band: “If The Blues Was Green” is a clever song with plenty of fun wordplay from writers Randy Handley and Richard Fleming (a familiar name from collaborations with Tom Hambridge and Buddy Guy), Mark’s piano work to the fore; “You Can’t Love Me Like That” drops the pace for a tender country ballad from the pens of Pat McLaughlin and Kenneth Wright.
Using color again as a metaphor, “Roses Are Blue” has baritone guitar which fits the rather ‘down’ lyrics about losing love, another slower song with fine harmonies from Shaun and Vickie and a shimmering guitar solo. Rick and Mark combined to write “Permanent Midnight” and the horns are back, another song that suits Rick’s voice really well before Mark’s rocking “I’ve Seen The Light”, full of slide and pounding piano. “There Ain’t Nothin’ You Can Do” is a familiar title but this one is Will’s song with a Mexican border feel, the sort of rhythm to which you find yourself swaying! The horns’ final appearance comes on “Drunk On Love”, a sprawling tune that opens with discordant piano before developing into the sort of song that would suit Delbert McClinton. “Tell Me I’m Wrong” has some lovely picking from the guitarists, light piano work and a rhythm aided by additional percussion, again giving a border feel. “That’s What I Get For Loving You” reminded me of Little Feat with slide and a jagged rhythm and the album closes with the ballad “Dreaming Again”.
A wonderful album but there is little straight blues here. However if you enjoy the sort of mixture of styles you find on albums by the likes of Delbert McClinton, this album will be a winner.
