Joe Bonamassa
Time Clocks
Review by Gary Hill
I really have to preface this review with a little bit of a rant about music and fandom in general. For musicians, the path of plying their trade means that their art music evolve and grow. If you are just repeating yourself, you aren't really maturing as a person or an artist.
The problem is, for some fans, that puts the musician's interest in opposition to what the fans want. Certain music fans just want more of the same thing they've gotten from the artist before. Think about the debacle that ensued with Bob Dylan went from acoustic to electric arrangements. That's just one example. Joe Bonamassa seems to be in the middle of one such situation. Some of his hardcore old-school fans seem to lament the fact that he has moved more toward a rock music equation from a pure electric blues one. The thing is, it's his music. He gets to choose the direction he wants pursue. Of course, if it doesn't fit with their tastes as well as his older stuff does, it's their prerogative not to buy it. I think they do him a injustice by complaining about his growth as an artist, though. Be happy with the releases he did that fit with your tastes and be happy that he's evolving, even if it means he's growing beyond your particular interests.
So, with that out of the way, I think this is a great album. Bonamassa always delivers quality. Then again, I always heard the rock angle to his sound. I remember the first time I heard him thinking that he was creating a sound that was like a more traditional version of the bluesy stuff Led Zeppelin used to do. So, maybe I recognized this side of his sound before, while those other fans did not. However, you slice it, though, this is a strong release. I am not sure I like it as well as I did its predecessor Royal Tea, but I do like it a lot.
This review is available in book (paperback and hardcover) form in Music Street Journal: 2022 Volume 2. More information and purchase links can be found at: garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-2022.
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