Wily Bo Walker
Album: Moon Over Indigo
Label: Mescal Canyon
Tracks: 10
Website: http://wilybo.com

Wily Bo Walker is a Scottish blues singer with a distinctive voice. It's a cross between a rasping saw and a gravel drive. Think Tom Waits and you'll be halfway there.

He's a songwriter, and a pretty good one too, nominated for Best Song (Long Way From Heaven) in the 2015 British Blues Awards. Here he has written or co-written eight of the ten tracks, plus covers of Bo Diddley's Who Do You Love and Willie Dixon's Same Thing.

This album is a good example of Wily Bo's diverse styles. It's blues in the widest possible sense.

It kicks off with Walking With The Devil, a standard blues theme if ever there was one. It's a voodoo-mix based around some stand-out slide guitar from Graham Hine. The vocals are so dry they're almost grunted.

The next track is more funky. I Want to Know is more upbeat with lots of brass. Excellent sax and backing vocals.

Walk In Chinese Footsteps - the Free Tibet mix - wears its heart on its sleeve. The smoky Moon Over Indigo has a jazz feel, while When The Angels Call your Name has a New Orleans Bourbon feel. Yes there is a lot diversity here.

There is so much going on is some songs - guitars, keyboards, vocals and brass - it feels over the top. It is a very full sound.

Thankfully a couple of songs have a simpler structure. For The Children is a touching ballad, which still has the odd production flourish but is heart-felt.

The strongest song on the album is Jenny (Traces In My Arms) with its simple structure - kicking off with double bass and vocals - working a treat.

Wily Bo tries very hard, occasionally too hard, on this big production job. It's a shame as his songs are good enough to stand on their own.

John Knighton