Doug MacLeod – Raw Blues 1
Sledgehammer Blues
7 songs – 31 minutes
Doug MacLeod has been releasing consistently excellent recordings since the early 1980s, and Raw Blues 1 is no exception. He has always had a knack for writing great songs that also tell memorable stories, even when mining traditional blues themes of love and loss. His lyrics often stick in the mind for their sharp wordplay or distinctive similes, as evidenced on “I’m Gone”: “Trying to love you is just a waste of time. Love is a two-way street but you’ve got a one-way mind…. Just like a fox with a chicken, I ain’t stickin’ – I’m gone.” He is equally comfortable however dealing with societal issues on a song like “Children Like You” (with its haunting closing lines of “What you’ve seen is surely true, we need love and compassion to see us through. Remember my words for my words they true, they once was children, just like you”) or recounting a wry tale of trying to track down a cheating lover in “Plaquemine.”
Raw Blues 1 is solo acoustic blues at its best. MacLeod’s voice is warmth and impassioned while his guitar playing is a thing of rare beauty, combining technical prowess with emotional depth. His command of dynamics on tracks like “Hey Bartender” or the Delta blues of “What’s Been Heard (Maybe Ain’t Been Said)” draws the listener in and refuses to let them go. His jaunty finger-picking on the instrumental “Walking With Mr. Smith” recalls the dexterity of Robert Lockwood Jr., while his ferocious slide guitar work drives tracks like “Unmarked Road”
Producer Andreas Werner has captured an excellent sound to match the outstanding performances by MacLeod.
The only disappointing thing about Raw Blues 1 is that it is so short, with the seven self-written songs lasting just over half an hour. But there isn’t a wasted note in that time. Let’s hope that a Raw Blues 2 is in the pipeline. In the meantime, this is a really enjoyable release from one of the masters.
