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Joanne Shaw Taylor The Blues Album Review by Gary Hill Joanne Shaw Taylor is known as the Queen of Blues Guitar. Well, if this album is any indication, I think that she's worthy of the title. This is a strong album with a good range of sounds. It never feels repetitive or tired. This review is available in book (paperback and hardcover) form in Music Street Journal: 2023 Volume 1. More information and purchase links can be found at: garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-2023.

Track by Track Review

Stop Messin' Round This thing is smoking hot. I love both the guitar and piano soloing, but the whole tune just oozes cool.

If That Ain't a Reason This is less of an in-your-face tune. It has more of a groove to it. The horns lend some magic, and the whole thing just works well. The backing vocals are also a great touch.

Keep on Lovin' Me A jazzy bluesy groove, this is both a number real winner and yet a different flavor. The horns are again put to good use here.

If You Gotta Make a Fool of Somebody Horns lend something special to this tune. The song seems cut from almost a B. B. King cloth. I love the guitar solo on this so much. The whole thing is just pure magic, though.

Don't Go Away Mad Here we get a fun older styled blues romp. This has plenty of jazz in the mix. Joe Bonamassa lends his guitar expertise to this tune, too.

Scraps Vignette This is a short instrumental piece with some killer guitar work.

Can't You See What You're Doing to Me Feeling rather like something Stevie Ray Vaughn might have done, this blues rocker is on fire.

Let Me Down Easy A slow moving, retro styled blues sound is on the menu as this cut gets going. It builds outward further down the road. It also features some soaring guitar soloing. The horns and an organ bring plenty of retro styling to this. The cut is one of the most dynamically growing and evolving tunes here.

Two Time My Lovin' While this isn't really a highlight, it does have a catchy chorus. It's more of a mainstream old-school blues rocker. It definitely has plenty of charms.

I Don't Know What You've Got The organ lends some serious gospel music vibes to this. The cut is very much a traditional sounding number. It's not one of my favorites here, but it does add some variety to the proceedings.

Three Time Loser This is another old-school blues jazz groove. The cut works really well. I really love the guitar solo on this tune.

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