It scarcely seems possible that 36 years have passed since Tesla released Five Man Acoustical Jam.
That live album contained a cover of “Signs”. I loved the thing then and I still do now. It is pleasing to discover that, all these years later, Messrs Keith, Hannon and Wheat – the three men here who were there back then – have lost none of their ear for interpreting somebody else’s song.
For Tesla fans, much of the immediate interest in Homage will naturally centre on “Never Alone”, given that it is the only original song here. It is typical Tesla, too: classy, heartfelt and put together with the kind of care their ballads have always deserved.
The rest of the record, however, is exactly what its title suggests. This is Tesla paying tribute to the singers and songs that helped shape them, and choices such as Sam Cooke’s “Bring It On Home” provide perfect, bluesy fodder for the band.
They deserve credit for occasionally heading off the beaten path, too. After all, if you are going to cover Queen, avoiding the songs everybody else reaches for is probably a wise move. “Spread Your Wings” is an inspired selection and one that fits Tesla rather better than you might initially expect.
There is plenty of soul running through Homage, and the first real indication of that comes with The Temptations’ “I Wish It Would Rain”. Tesla are surprisingly adept at this sort of thing, never attempting to mimic the original and instead allowing their own personality to come through.
It is difficult to improve upon perfection, and Bob Seger’s “Night Moves” is about as perfect as songs get. Such is Jeff Keith’s voice, though, that it somehow ends up sounding unmistakably like Tesla.
Speaking of perfection, nothing has ever looked more rock ’n’ roll than Elvis Presley performing “If I Can Dream” during the 1968 Comeback Special. Tesla are never likely to replace that image in anybody’s mind, but fair play to them for having a stab at one of the most powerful performances in popular music. They treat the song with the respect it deserves without becoming overly reverential.
The tragic story of Badfinger means that any opportunity to hear one of their songs is welcome, and “Come And Get It” receives a pretty decent treatment here. It is followed by James Brown’s “I Got You”, which Tesla attempt to make funky. It inevitably lacks James Brown – most things do – but it is fun nonetheless.
I went to the cinema in the late 1990s to watch Magnolia and came away a Supertramp fan, so “Give A Little Bit” is an interesting inclusion. Tesla give it a slightly tougher edge without losing the warmth that made the original so enduring.
“I Love You” is one they have recorded before, but this 2026 version feels more like them. Perhaps that is simply what happens when a band lives with a song for long enough: eventually, the cover stops sounding borrowed and becomes part of its own history.
“The Ballad Of Curtis Loew” remains one of my favourite Lynyrd Skynyrd songs and provides further proof that the very best material is almost impossible to get wrong. Tesla understand what makes it work and wisely resist the temptation to interfere too much.
The same applies to Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Have You Ever Seen The Rain”. If you are going to tackle something that familiar, you had better do it well. Tesla do.
Etta James’ tearjerker “I’d Rather Go Blind” is another of the album’s unexpected soul selections, and it is one of the best things here. Keith’s weathered voice lends it a different kind of ache, while the band keeps the arrangement restrained enough to let the emotion breathe.
Then there is “Mind Your Own Business”, transformed into a swaggering 12-bar blues to finish things off. It is simple, loose and enormous fun. You will struggle to hear it without smiling.
It is easy to look down your nose at covers albums. It is also easy to forget that, before streaming killed the traditional single, many of these recordings might have appeared as B-sides, fan-club releases or bonuses scattered across different formats.
Stop being so po-faced, though, and simply enjoy it. Homage is played by musicians who clearly love these songs and understand that paying tribute does not mean producing a facsimile. Tesla bring enough of themselves to make the record worthwhile, and after nearly four decades, they remain very good indeed at making somebody else’s songs feel like their own.
RATING 8/10
