Savoy Brown
Album: Songs From The Road
Label: Ruf
Tracks: 12+14
Website: http://www.savoybrown.com

With their invite to be the latest addition to be part of the iconic "Songs From The Road" series on Ruf, Savoy Brown join an elite group of artists that includes the likes of Jeff Healey and Luther Allinson, top company indeed.

Recorded on a single night at the Muiktheatre Piano in Dortmund, "Songs From The Road" comes as a double pack of the concert, CD and DVD, with the DVD footage containing two extra tracks.

As the history of blues continues to be written, more and more tells of the contribution that British musicians made in the blues rock evolution of the genre and the Kim Simmonds lead Savoy Brown has been pretty close to the front since the early seventies.

Like the music its self, Kim Simmonds has been back and forwards across the Big Pond, the musicians in the band have come and gone, but the spirit of being a bluesrocker has never left him and that's really highlighted by "Song From The Road", an album that captures Kim and the band in their natural environment, on stage.

This is hard rocking blues, searing riffs and solos, some great horn, Joe Whiting's sax is quite simply outstanding. You can feel the band really getting to grip during the songs, you just know that the way you're hearing it here is the only time it sounded like that, next night would have different improvisation. That is why this sounds as fresh as it does, the band are living the music flying from their instruments.

"Songs From The Road" is what concert footage should be, both visually and orally, the brows may be getting wrinkled but there's plenty of life in the old dog yet. Also worth a mention, do check out the interview with Kim on the DVD, he's got some interesting things to say

Neil King