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Danny Bryant’s Redeye
Band - Black and White |
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Black and White, Danny Bryant’s sixth CD, comes almost
exactly one year after his Live CD and is his second on the Rounder
Europe label. I have reviewed all five of his previous CDs for
Bluesrockers and, perhaps more so than any other artist, look
forward with anticipation to a new release from him. Each of my
reviews so far has been glowingly positive, so there is always that
feeling that the newest CD may be a letdown. I am happy to report
that this couldn’t be further from the truth. As a matter of
fact, Black and White serves as a culmination of all the positives
I have discussed in my other reviews. I will not rehash all of them
again; suffice it to say that Danny Bryant continues to excel in
his guitar playing, vocals, intensity, and songwriting. The Redeye
Band, consisting of Danny’s Dad Ken Bryant on bass guitar and
Trevor Barr on drums, again prove themselves to be
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powerful, in-the-pocket rhythm section.
The CD starts off with Tell Me, a tough blues/rock track with a
chugging, locomotive beat. Bryant makes superb use of the wah
pedal, achieving a piercing, gritty effect with it that you
won’t often hear. It serves to reach out, grab you by the
collar, and shake you into the recognition that he is an artist to
be reckoned with.
Between the Lines, a slower blues, again makes use of the wah
pedal. The lyrics of this song show an ever increasing maturity in
Bryant’s songwriting and, as is always the case with his
solos, contains a series of jaw-dropping notes.
The next song, a ballad, is entitled Love Remains. Unlike typical
ballads, this song maintains Bryant’s trademark for intensity
for both his vocals and guitar playing.
The next track, Twenty One, picks up the pace and is perhaps the
song on the CD that most typifies the blues/rock genre. Bryant
plays stinging lead guitar while double-tracking his wah guitar. It
is a tremendous performance and should be a staple of his
concerts.
At over six minutes, Any Wonder is the longest track on the CD.
More wah guitar, played at a slower pace, the song may also be the
most heartfelt. Everything comes together on this track. A slow,
lengthy song runs the risk of being boring. Instead, the listener
does not want this one to end.
Low Down Blues is a wonderful shuffle that reminds me of the type
of English blues that were played in the 60’s and 70’s,
with traces of both Clapton and Peter Green.
Walk Away reminds me somewhat of an arena-rock power ballad. It
begins with acoustic guitar but soon metamorphoses into an electric
solo. If an early version of Whitesnake hired Bryant as their
guitarist and vocalist, the result would sound like this.
Old Blues Song contains some of the CDs best single-note picking,
flurries of notes with impressive dynamics in the shifting tone of
the guitar playing.
The Last Goodbye is the “rocker” track of the CD and
fits perfectly after the preceding two slower songs.
Black and White is the concluding track with Bryant playing
unaccompanied acoustic guitar in a blues setting. It is an
environment that he is not often in but it fits him well. Future
CDs deserve one or two tracks like this one.
Well, there you have it. Another masterpiece from Danny
Bryant’s Redeye Band. You rarely find a group that
continually improves on their previous recordings, especially when
the standards for these recordings are already extremely high. As I
said last year, I can’t wait for the next release.
Al Kaplan
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Personnel:
Danny Bryant – Guitar and Vocals;
Ken Bryant – Bass;
Trevor Barr – Drums
Tracks:
1. Tell Me; 2. Between the Lines; 3. Love Remains; 4. Twenty One;
5. Any Wonder; 6. Low Down Blues; 7. walk Away; 8. Old Blues Song;
9. The Last Goodbye; 10. Black and
White
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