Being a reviewer for the Bluesrockers web site comes with some great perks. Imagine receiving a “box o’blues” in the mail containing 35 CDs you’ve never heard before and being asked to review the ones you like. Where to start? On the back cover of one of the CD’s was a quote from Walter Trout which read as follows: “Danny is the finest up and coming guitarist in the U.K.”. Trout’s more extended liner notes on the inside cover revealed that he had known Danny Bryant as a boy, had conversations with him about the love of music, and watched his development as a musician. It was apparent that Walter Trout served as a mentor for Danny Bryant. Being an avid Walter Trout fan, this immediately piqued my interest.

The CD opens with the title track and you can immediately hear the Walter Trout influence in many aspects: singing, guitar playing, song structure, band lineup (guitar, bass, drums, and Hammond organ), and intensity. There is an unmistakable toughness to Bryant’s playing and vocals. I can safely say that if a friend played this track for me and asked me to guess who it was, I would immediately say Walter Trout. The rest of the songs are also similar to the styles heard on a Trout CD: a couple of slow, intense blues, one or two pop-oriented blues, an instrumental, and several mid- or up-tempo blues rockers. While Bryant’s guitar style is similar to Trout’s, Bryant does not often play the tremendously fast flurry of notes for which Trout is famous. Rather, Bryant seems to be influenced almost as much by British blues guitarists such as Eric Clapton and Peter Green as he is by Trout. He plays with impressive tone, emotion, and clarity.

I like every track on the CD and don’t often find that to be the situation. As an ardent fan of wah-wah guitar, I was happy to find that the last track, “Falling Tears,” ends with a nice wah-wah solo. A perfect close to a wonderful recording. Now, if the other 34 CDs would only contain just one by a group that can match Danny Bryant’s Redeye Band…..