Search - Roy Buchanan :: You're Not Alone

Landmark Recording

R. B. Houchens | MD, USA | 04/11/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

""You're Not Alone" was Roy Buchanan's 3rd album of his Atlantic trilogy ("A Street Called Straight" the 1st and "Loading Zone" the 2nd) and his 1st endeavor recording using a Gibson Les Paul instead of his signature wood grain Fender Telecaster. The results were phenomenal. Roy's Tele-twang transforms into a spacey soaring tone best decribed as flying, thus the airborne themes on 4 of the 7 tracks. Also using synthesizers here more extensively than on previous outings makes this album by far Roy's most unique album ever. Along with fabulous session musicians considered some of the best are backing Roy on this one including Willie Weeks on bass and Andy Newmark on drums, who have appeared on many other successful albums. The great Luther Vandross also makes an early career appearance on backing vocals.

Highlights include Joe Walsh's (Barnstorm's) "Turn To Stone" lending itself to be ripped to shreds by Roy in one of his most hard rocking cuts ever.

"1841 Shuffle" was a reflection of the struggles Roy received from the Atlantic Records 1841 Broadway address bigwigs.

Neil Young's "Down By The River" had long been part of Roy's live act but is forever caught here in studio as a totally new and distinct expression unto itself. While playing off the fret board, Roy quite possibly hits his highest notes ever. Absolutely eardrum piercing.

The final track "You're Not Alone" is the ultimate proof of Roy's genius.

I would recommend all 3 albums of the Atlantic trilogy, but "You're Not Alone" is the finest of the 3 and may be the best of all Roy Buchanan albums depending on your particular taste. It is my favorite for blasting in the car turned up to 11 on a hot summer day."

Roy fan?

mark a. pappas | bradley beach, nj United States | 12/30/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Some Roy diehards would say that this obscure recording falls short of others by Roy Buchanan. It is different for sure, but it is very good. Roy was a magician when it came to the guitar and if you love listening to genius, you will love this recording!"

Roy Buchanan: the final frontier

Al | Canberra, ACT Australia | 07/28/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is Roy Buchanan at his most experimental and dangerous. After this album, he recorded three (quite good) straight blues albums. This one must've worn him thin. The opening track, MILES FROM EARTH (Roy doesn't feature here) sets the mood: a vast soundscape is formed as the mesmeric piano plays and the space-like synthesizers fade in and out. Anything is possible now. The next song, from the opening whip, will flatten you - TURN TO STONE. Roy hasn't rocked this hard since HEY JOE. The Joe Walsh cover then drops into a jazzy cruise before picking up where it left off with 2 mins to go. The next track, FLY NIGHT BIRD, will give you 2 minutes to breathe before the bird takes flight. Then we are given a moody blues song that betters with every listen. Though not my personal favourite, there are some amazing periods in this when Buchanan makes his guitar imitate the hovering, soaring and screeching of seagulls - again, with a backdrop that seems set in space.The next tracks, 1841 SHUFFLE and SUPERNOVA are fairly standard blues riffs that struggle to materialise because Roy's Telecaster is having a well-earned rest. DOWN BY THE RIVER however is brilliant stuff. (If you want the best RIVER experience, listen to the original by Neil Young, then this, then the live version on the SWEET DREAMS compilation)



Then the title song. Through the slow drums and bass buildup, the synthetic cries and the atmosperic keyboards, we board the ship into space. Our captain Roy Buchanan then signals liftoff with a flick of the wrist and we soar. In the unknown we discover Roy's world - his final frontier. And with 3 mins remaining, keyboards drop the platform and ring out the message that Roy Buchanan believes and we come to believe through him - that we aren't alone. When we drift through this new world with Roy's indefatigable fretwork leading the way... THE END."