Walter Trout: The Outsider

In a way, The Outsider isn’t just a fitting title for blues-rock singer/guitar slinger extraordinaire Walter Trout’s latest album — it’s a fitting description for much of his career. It’s not that Trout hasn’t seen his share of high profile gigs; he’s been a sideman for John Lee Hooker, a member of John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, and has released a slew of intense electric blues recordings over the last 18 years or so. But that “household name” status (at least in households that frequently spin this kind of music) has eluded him in many ways. Players like Joe Bonamassa, Kenny Wayne Shepherd and Johnny Lang grabbed the spotlight — deservingly so — while Trout, a player with decades more experience under his belt, has primarily remained known only in circles that were, well, “in the know,” as they say.

Cue up “The Love Song Of J. Alfred Bluesrock” to get an idea of what Trout’s all about. It’s not a groundbreaking musical formula — a furious shuffle with gritty vocals and “go for the throat” guitar — but the tune’s delivered with such absolute conviction that you know you’re hearing hundreds of gigs, hundreds of miles in every aching bent string. It likely doesn’t hurt to have a drummer like Kenny Aronoff pounding the skins behind you, either. “Child Of Another Day” offers up some driving rock and another element that separates Trout from the rest of the blues bound, Stratocaster wielding masses; good songwriting.

All through The Outsider, he paints vivid pictures and characterizations that go far beyond the whole “my baby gave me the blues” thing that’s been done so many times before. “Turn Your Eyes To Heaven” takes aim at religious zealots that use their beliefs like weapons, “The Next Big Thing” takes a few swings at flash in the pan “stars” with the staying power and depth of a half empty bag of Doritos, and the stomping “You Can’t Have It All” pretty much takes on the whole of American greed and superficiality.

All in all, Walter Trout offers up a fine disc of all the things he does best with The Outsider; powerful blues guitar work, furious vocals and finely polished songs. Might feel like an outsider sometimes, but Trout sounds perfectly at home here.

Watermelon Slim and The Workers: No Paid Holidays

Truck driving, Dobro abusing, blues singing Renaissance man Bill “Watermelon Slim” Homans has a backstory that fits the concept of the journeyman blues artist to a tee. He’s endowed with a sense of humor and wit that escapes many in this genre (“Call My Job” serves as a fine example of this) and even though he’s working in the time worn parameters of a music form we all know almost too well, the things he does within those confines is often astounding, and always entertaining.

Whether it’s the slinky groove of “You’re The One I Need,” the parental lament of “Dad In The Distance” or the hilarious spoken word blues of “I’ve Got A Toothache,” Slim always finds a turn of phrase that grabs your ear or makes you laugh out loud- sometimes both. Fellow slide master (though mostly of the electric variety) Lee Roy Parnell guests on “Bubba’s Blues,” swooping his way through Slim’s tale of determination and belief (again, told with that inimitable sense of humor) and for sheer country blues reminiscing, his fond recollection of “Max The Baseball Clown” delivers all the goods. On “The Bloody Burmese Blues” Slim spins the tale of helplessly watching a tragedy erupt in the streets from the window of his hotel room. Here he underpins the lyric with an awareness and sense of basic human responsibility to help one another that adds a depth unexpected in this otherwise straightforward minor key blues. Over the course of No Paid Holidays the playing is purely in the service of the songs — sure, everybody gets their proverbial “ya ya’s” out when the time is right — but for the most part the songs and Watermelon Slim’s vocals are the real stars. Gratuitous displays of chops? Not so much. Fantastic songwriting through and through? Absolutely. Highly recommended.

(Chris Cooper can be reached at thumbpick43@yahoo.com)