Old New Ballads Blues

• Artist: Gary Moore
• Rating:
• Release Date: May 02, 2006
• Genre: Rock

Review

Since the early '90s Belfast guitar whiz Gary Moore has returned again and again to the blues, leaving his metal phase far behind. Old New Ballads Blues is exactly what the title says it is, a mix of old blues (covers of songs by Elmore James, Willie Dixon, and Otis Rush), new blues (five Moore originals), ballads (half the album) and, well, blues (by one definition or another, everything here passes for blues). The real surprise is that the strongest songs are the original Moore-penned ballads, as Moore gives powerful and atmospheric performances (both vocally and as a guitarist) on "Gonna Rain Today," "No Reason to Cry," and a solid horn-augmented remake of one of his best songs, "Midnight Blues," from what is easily his best album, 1990s million-selling Still Got the Blues. The James and Dixon covers ("Done Something Wrong" and "You Know My Love" respectively) seem disappointingly by-the-numbers, while the Rush song, "All Your Love," fares a bit better, but Moore's own compositions shine brightest here, giving him plenty of room to weep on the old Les Paul, which is a very good thing, since vocals have never been Moore's strongest suit and his lyrics are often on the slight side. All of that vanishes when his guitar takes over a song, and on the instrumental "Cut It Out," Moore's muscular guitar tone says as much or more about life inside the blues as any of the vocal numbers. ~ Steve Leggett, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
Done Something Wrong		Gary Moore	(3:07)
You Know My Love		Gary Moore	(7:17)
Midnight Blues (2006)	Gary Moore	Gary Moore	(5:45)
Ain't Nobody		Gary Moore	(4:51)
Gonna Rain Today		Gary Moore	(4:40)
All Your Love	Otis Rush	Gary Moore	(4:29)
Flesh & Blood		Gary Moore	(4:52)
Cut It Out		Gary Moore	(5:35)
No Reason to Cry		Gary Moore	(9:01)
I'll Play the Blues		Gary Moore	(6:03)

Credits

Gary Moore (Brass Arrangement), Gary Moore (Guitar), Nick Payn (Baritone), Ian Taylor (Engineer), Taz Mattar (Assistant Engineer), Ian Taylor (Audio Engineer), Darrin Mooney (Drums), Gary Moore (Audio Production), Chris Tsangarides (Track Engineer), Nick Pentalow (Sax (Tenor)), Pete Rees (Bass), Greg Jackman (Engineer), Gary Moore (Producer), Jonathan Noyce (Bass), Sid Gould (Trumpet), Ian Taylor (Producer), Nick Webb (Mastering), Archibald Alexander MacKenzie (Assistant Engineer), Graham Walker (Drums), Stuart Green (Artwork), Don Airey (Keyboards), Don Airey (Brass Arrangement), Gary Moore (Vocals), Vic Martin (Keyboards), Frank Mead (Alto), Ian Taylor (Audio Production), Josh Blair (Assistant Engineer)

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