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Back to the Blues

by Gary Moore

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Guitarist Gary Moore is an anomaly: a testosterone-driven rocker with jazz and romantic leanings, equally at home pacing the stage with the Thin Lizzy boys, fusion riffing with Jon Hiseman's Colosseum or pouring out his heart in any one of the many versions of the same minor ballad that he keeps penning (represented here by "Picture of the Moon" and "The Prophet"). Mind you these are good minor ballads and no more repetitive than your average blues or country tunes. Speaking of the blues, with this CD Moore shows that he can also remind us what we liked about British blues in the first place: genuine feeling, great tone, and an energy that puts the electric in electric guitar. Those that miss the fire of Clapton's Bluesbreaker years will find it here. "You Upset Me Baby" shows that Moore can swing, and if some metal plod occasionally seeps into tunes like "I Ain't Got You" or "Looking Back" we can forgive him, for in a world blighted by way too much irony and cold craftsmanship, this man's honest passion is something to be treasured. --Michael Ross