When Steven Stills and Kenny Wayne Shepherd get together everyone at MVM is interested. Bernard reviews it, though
I always felt that Stephen Stills was considered by the press to be the lesser partner in both CSN and CSN&Y. Completely unjustified of course – he has a great singing voice and his guitar playing can rock with the best of them. I was therefore interested to hear his latest project as part of The Rides, a modern day super-group that also features Barry Goldberg on keyboards and Kenny Wayne Shepherd on guitar. Add to them a cracking rhythm section of Kevin McCormick on bass and Chris Layton on drums and the album ought to be a cracker. This is their second album so the question is does it deliver?
In the main the answer to that is an emphatic yes. The music is well recorded (almost a given these days), the playing and singing is exemplary and the song choice in the main is top drawer.
‘Kick Out Of It’ opens things in fine style; it’s an up-tempo rocker that has Stills in full flight. KWS then moves to the fore on ‘Riva Diva’ which is a Fabulous Thunderbirds Texas style boogie that is, well fabulous. It’s not all driving rock though, ‘Virtual World’ is an exquisitely played slower number with shades of Stills’ former bands and ‘By My Side’ is a simmering slow blues. ‘Game On’ is a terrific blues shuffle and ‘Mr Policeman’ could be a summer-time hit. There are two covers on the album. The first of these, ‘I’ve Got To Use My Imagination’, is brilliant. As well as showcasing Goldberg’s keyboard skills, it has some stinging guitar work to take it deep into blues territory. The other cover, Willie Dixon’s ‘My Babe’ is less successful, coming across a bit lightweight and generic and the same could be said of the self-penned ‘I Need Your Loving’. However these are minor gripes that don’t really detract from the overall quality and where the musicians’ love for the music continually shines through.
Initial copies also come with 3 bonus tracks which were not available at the time of review.
8/10
