First class versatility
Although
pop was the basis for his hitmaking Sixties
career, Dave Berry has always been a fervent
R'n'B enthusiast.
And
this new album - his first since "Hostage to the
Beat" in 1987 - allows him to indulge his passion
in magnificent fashion. The first has him
striding straight into a slick, assured groove -
and all 11 songs are delivered with the panache
of a committed aficionado with the talent to
match his devotion.
Longevity
speaks for itself and the quality of the
distinctive Dave Berry voice tells its own story,
even when he's away from his more familiar domain
- reprising his stage theatrics on the pop
nostalgia circuit.
Here
he is joined in his endeavours by a first-class
team of musicians whose readily apparent
versatility allows them to bring unflagging
creative support to a studio set encompassing a
variety of moods.
The
repertoire - which includes two compositions
apiece from J.J. Cale, John Hiatt and Arthur'Big
Boy' Crudup - covers rollicking power blues and
more laid-back materialal. Berry's cohorts are
the Junkyard Angels, and his genuine affection
for the genre is evident throughout an album
which is enhanced by a thoroughly contemporary
feel.
One
real highlight is a rendition of Tony Joe White's
"Taking The Midnight Train which has a poignant
stately beauty - and is punctuated by a guitar
solo heartbreaking in its intensity. The final
track is a version of "My Baby Left Me", harking
back to one of the minor Berry hits in 1964 which
preceded his dramatic chart emergence with "The
Crying Game".