Blues With A Feeling I

FORREST MCDONALD BAND – “Colorblind” CD ’04 (World Talent, US) When you’re flipping through a used CD section, there are certain standards that you must set for yourself. One of these is that if you pull out a disc that has picture of a Gibson Flying V plastered across the front of it, you buy it. You don’t worry about genre and you don’t give a rat’s ass if you’ve never heard of the artist. That makes it even better, actually. You just buy it. That’s what put “Colorblind” in my hands and the $ 6.99 that went into the record store’s till will not be missed by your’s truly. Gotta say, I was a little confused at first. After getting home & taking a harder look at this one, the word “Blues” was jumping out all over the place. Funny thing was, when I hit “play,” an almost-dance electronic rhythm came bee-bopping out of the headphones and I’m thinking I got the wrong disc. Then, as the first cut “Big John” unfolded, Billy Gibbons-like vocals join the fray as well as some pretty tasty Strat licks. Yeah, blues can take many forms. And they do here. “I Wasn’t Looking For Trouble” picks up a classic Allman’s ballad feel. “Oh Happy Day” is short and sweet, with it’s brush cymbals, jaunty feel and acoustic pickin.’ After an introspective opening, 7+ minute “Thru These Days” takes on a decidedly Santana-esque vibe and “Blues In The Basement” sounds like 2:00 AM in a smoky old Chicago club. Through it all, Andrew Black's throaty voice and FORREST's sweet tone are a perfect foil for the crystal clear, modern-style production job. MCDONALD’s playing is smooth, cool and lyrical, sounding very much like the seasoned veteran who calls this the 8th album of his career. If you want to hear how it’s done from a totally classy pro, let the Flying V point you in this direction. The Color Blue

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