Tales Of Time
J&R, 2023
10/10
An excellent live recording that features tracks from his latest #1 studio album, Time Clocks, Joe Bonamassa captured this set at the legendary Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado in August 2022.
“Notches” opens the listen with cultured drumming and spoken word, before Bonamassa’s soaring guitar and the thumping drums enter the soulful blues rock, and “The Heart That Never Waits” follows with a trio of soulful backing singers complementing the rhythmic landscape.
Deeper into the set, the thick and rugged “Questions And Answers” uses dreamy percussion strategically, while “Known Unknowns” showcases the cautious rhythm section amid Bonamassa’s powerful pipes and meticulous guitar.
Further still, the busy and melodic “Just ‘Cos You Can Don’t Mean You Should”, the set’s best, is both intimate and hard hitting in Bonamassa’s inimitable version of the blues, and “Evil Mama” exits with plenty of crunch alongside the atmospheric organ and gospel influences.
Perhaps his most progressive and biggest production yet, Bonamassa and his superb band flesh out one memorable blues song after another, and the DVD portion comes with songs not on the CD plus bonus material, for yet another essential release from today’s best in the area of the blues.
Travels well with: Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band- Trouble Is… 25; Walter Trout- Ride;