James Leg - Blood on the Keys

by Daniel Cressey

published: 26 / 11 / 2016

Label: Alive Natural Sound
Format: CD

Essential blues rock which proves deserving of a wider audience on third solo album from raw-voiced Nashville-based musician James Leg

Review

For his third solo album James Leg doesn’t stray from the template he laid down previously, and praise be for that. Once again Leg conjures an amazing rock and roll rumble from his piano while pouring his scouring howl of a voice into every song The opening track ‘Human Lawn Dart’ shows how Leg has perfected the rowdy, punked-up blues template, all driving chords and vocals that sound like they’ve been filtered through a system constructed entirely from whisky, cigarette smoke, and the sweat of toiling bluesmen past. But Leg also throws some newer elements into the mix for this release. The son of preacher goes notably gospel on ‘I’ll Take It’. A female backing line sneaks through ‘Huggin the Line’. ‘St Michel Shuffle’ slows things down from the standard frenetic pace and adds in some strings, and to great effect. There’s even a distinctively Leg take on a track by Mungo Jerry (don’t worry, it’s not 'In the Summertime'). While his bringing the roof down credentials have never been in doubt, Leg adds new strings to his bow and proves surprisingly comfortable and adept with them. 'Blood on the Keys' was always going to be an essential release for people who like their blues raw. But with this album Leg proves he deserves a wider hearing.

Track Listing:-

1 Human Lawn Dart
2 Hugging The Line
3 Mighty Man
4 St Michel Shuffle
5 I'll Take It
6 Ain't You Hungry
7 Dogjaw (Do Some Things You Say)
8 Tao Te Leg
9 Blood On The Keys
10 Should've Been Home With You