Eddy Surmont

Eddy Grant has often been categorized as a reggae singer, but reggae is only a part of what he's done. In fact, Grant's best known hit, "Electric Avenue," awasn't reggae at all. On this inspired and unpredictable CD, the British singer successfully embraces everything from reggae-pop ("Talk About You," "Welcome To La Tiger") to guitar-powered rock ("Wildcat," "I'm Not Alone Tonight") to country-rock ("Sweet On The Road"). With its haunting acoustic guitar, the title song has a Neil Young-ish appeal. But the album's best song of all is "Gimme Hope Jo'Anna," a indictment of South Africa's cruel apartheid system. Quite enjoyable, Barefoot Soldier was a welcome addition to Grant's catalog.

Eddy Clearwater is equally talented as a bluish singer and as an improvising guitarist. On Reservation Blues, he ranges from Chicago blues to rock & roll, throwing in a couple instrumentals too. His repertoire includes both socially relevant lyrics and good-time music, featuring some of the latter when the former gets a bit too somber. Although there are some solid solos from his supporting players (including three guitar spots for Duke Robillard, two fine solos from tenor saxophonist Dennis Taylor, and a guest appearance by Carey Bell on harmonica during "Find Yourself"), Clearwater is the main star throughout. Fortunately, he is heard in prime form, whether happily jamming "I Wouldn't Lay My Guitar Down" and "Blues Cruise" or singing in a more serious mood on "Winds of Change" and "Everything to Gain." A gem.

A multi-instrumentalist who, like Stevie Wonder, mixes genres effortlessly, Britain's Eddy Grant deserves a wider audience, but for those who want just the hits, this collection fills the bill.

After the worldwide success of Killer on the Rampage, Eddy Grant took a three-year sabbatical to build his own studio. By the time he returned in 1987, the rest of the world had caught up, and wandered off down the road into the sterility of disco/synth-pop. Still, that doesn't explain why Grant felt obligated to follow suit. Of course, Born Tuff isn't "pure" club: "Melody of the Night" has a hint of Bruce Springsteen and the title track a touch of Bob Marley, while there's a soca flair here and Afro-beats there (most of the underlying rhythms are reggae-based). The problem was, Grant fell into the same trap as the rest of the synth scene, believing it possible to overcome the soul-lessness of the genre, and failing miserably.

Here's the guy everybody knows for his monster rock/reggae/electro hit "Electric Avenue." What did he ever do after that? Almost nobody knows, and that's what this Music Club collection attempts to inform the world of for a budget price. Personally, I love Music Club reissues; they are priced super reasonably, they have lovely packages that feature enough tracks to give a representative sample with a few rarities tossed in, and they offer an adequate set of liner notes to educate the listener. This is helpful in the case of Grant, who, at least in the U.S., is a one-hit MTV wonder. Eddy Grant had an awesome band of rockers and soulsters together in the 1960s called the Equals who had a string of modest British hits – including "Police on My Back" – that everybody identifies with the Clash.

In 1986, Duane recorded with Art of Noise, a collaboration that brought a new twist to his 1960 best seller, "Peter Gunn." The song was a Top Ten hit around the world, ranking #1 on Rolling Stone Magazine's dance chart for six weeks that summer. As further confirmation of it's success, "Peter Gunn" won the Grammy for Best Rock Instrumental of 1986. The following year, a new album, the self-titled Duane Eddy, was released on Capitol. As a tribute to his influence and inspiration to so many young players, a crowd of unbelievable talent came along to be a part of this project. Tracks written by Paul McCartney, Jeff Lynne, and Ry Cooder were recorded. The "band" included Cooder, McCartney, George Harrison, John Fogerty, James Burton, David Lindley, Steve Cropper, and original Rebels, Larry Knechtel and Jim Horn.

Clearwater comes up with a compelling mix of tunes on this 10-track outing, his first for the Bullseye Blues imprint. The southpaw guitarist covers a wide range of styles (as befitting a true West Side guitarist, where versatility is a badge of merit) including Magic Sam's "Look Whatcha Done," and Nat King Cole's "Send for Me," Gene Allison's "You Can Make It If You Try" and Clearwater originals like "Party at My House," "Don't Take My Blues," "Hard Way to Make an Easy Living," "Love Being Loved By You," and the title track. Produced by Eddy and utilizing his regular working band with guest appearances from Jerry Soto on keyboards, Mike Peavey on saxophone, Steven Frost on trumpet and Billy Branch on harmonica, this is the Chief just laying it down simple and hard, doing what he does best - delivering taut and shimmering West Side guitar and vocals with a vengeance.