Search - Kenny Neal :: Walking on Fire

3 1/2 stars. A nice listen

Docendo Discimus | Vita scholae | 05/15/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"You can't go wrong with any of multi-instrumentalist Kenny Neal's excellent Alligator records, and this one is no exception.

"Walking On Fire" is not quite as consistent as its excellent predecessor, "Devil Child", but even Kenny Neal's worst album is good, and this one is not it.



Not everybody will appreciate Neal having hired James Brown's Horny Horns to back him on about half of these twelve tracks, but most of the time the horns works very well, and even those who like their blues horn-less and gritty should appreciate the two fine acoustic numbers "Morning After" and "Bad Luck Card" and the horn-less "My Only Good Thing". And if you do happen to like a bit of sax-and-trombone on top of your blues, well, the delicate "I Been Missing You" and the soulful "I.O.U" utilizes them to maximum effect.



This is very consistent record. Not every song is great, but there is not real a clunker among the lot, and one of the things that make Neal so good is his ability to mix acoustic country blues with modern, soul-flavoured R&B and sound equally convincing either way. And songs like "Caught In The Jaws Of A Vise" and "The Truth Hurts" rank among Kenny Neal's best.



Neal plays some fine lead guitar on this album, and lays down a couple of very good harp solos, particularly on "Bad Luck Card", the slow burner "Things Got To Get Better", and "Caught In The Jaws Of A Vise" which features a very effective harmonica/horns combination.

If you don't own any of Kenny Neal's albums, I'd start with "Deluxe Edition" or "Hoodoo Moon", but they're all good, really..."

Not bad from a lightweight

Bob Davis | Christchurch New Zealand | 01/24/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Generally Kenny Neal has failed to live up to his early promise. This album however is actually quite good. Here his harmonica and guitar produce some memorable moments. My favourites are the two acoustic numbers 'Morning after' and 'Bad luck card'. In addition the slow blues 'I put my trust in you' is outstanding despite the need to add occasional horns. The album also benefits from the keyboards of Lucky Peterson. His diversity is shown by 'My own good things' with some low down gut guitar playing. My frustration is highlighted by 'I been missing you, too' which has some talented guitar but ends up sounding like a big band sound. If he had just played the blues and dispensed with the brass this could have been a brilliant album."