Throughout his fifty-five-year career, of which thirty-five as a solo artist, the legendary guitarist, singer and songwriter WALTER TROUT has made an impressive number of records, which have contained loads of lovely songs. Only a few examples are “Tremble”, “On The Rise”, “Playin’ Hideaway”, “Wanna Dance” and “All Out Of Tears”. Trout’s latest album “Ride” came in August 2022, which included the fantastic “Better Days Ahead”, “Waiting For The Dawn”, “I Worry Too Much” and “Follow You Back Home”. Walter’s incredibly creative vein continues to produce music and on March 1st he releases his thirty-first solo album “Broken”.

The American bluesman’s guitar playing in the 80s lineup of JOHN MAYALL’s legendary BLUESBREAKERS became a highlight of Trout’s career, but for most fans, it is his solo career since 1989 that is number one. Walter is considered one of the world’s greatest blues guitarists and he has won a lot of awards over the years. The veteran is still hungry for what life and music can bring. “I know I’m not young, but in my head I’m still 25. I want to get better and do something I haven’t done before. I have more to say.”

”All of us are broken, but no one is beyond repair.” It is a philosophy that WALTER TROUT lives by. His new record “Broken” is about the bitter contradictions of modern life. The world is more shattered than ever by politics, economics, social media and culture wars. “But I always hold on to hope”, he says. The material was recorded at Kingsize Soundlabs in LA with producer Eric Corne. It is their fifteenth album together. As usual, Trout has a bunch of skilled musicians with him, among others the excellent drummer Michael Leasure.

“Broken” opens with the wonderful title track, which is a duet with Soul & Blues singer BETH HART. The song is about all kinds of brokenness. There are so many emotions here. It is painful, touching and genuine. Walter’s lovely voice sometimes has a slight raspiness. Beth has a fragile, emotional tone in her vibrato. When they sing together it sounds fantastic. Trout is a brilliant guitarist and his playing is magnificent.

The Blues music is trotting on and it slowly rolls forward in “Turn And Walk Away”. A lively harmonica playing can be heard in the background. A pumping, bouncing sound from the rhythm section gets the listener’s body moving. It continues to roll in the following “Courage In The Dark”, but at a slower pace that puts the listener in a relaxed mood. This tune has a 70’s style with Hammond organ. Here we also find an incredibly good guitar solo. A very good harmonica playing slides in and starts up “No Magic (On The Street)”. A nerve filled with energy runs through the whole song. The guitar playing and the music in general is super lovely.

“Talkin’ To Myself” has a nice flow and a driving force in the music. WALTER TROUT performs acrobatics with fingers and strings. The melody and atmosphere of the song is absolutely fantastic. “Bleed” is an energetic Blues Rock piece, which features the expressive harmonica player Will Wilde. He plays an awesome solo, which then transitions into an equally good guitar solo from Trout.

“Breathe” has a slow, swinging tempo in Southern Rock style. The song was written during the covid pandemic by Richard “T.Bear” Gerstein and is about just concentrating on breathing, or as the lyrics go: ”When you are having a tough day, remember…breathe.” I have heard T.BEAR perform the song in a nice, emotional way, with his deep bear voice. WALTER TROUT makes a very good version, which has more energy, both in terms of vocals and music.

Dee Snider, singer in TWISTED SISTER, posted a live clip of Trout on his Twitter and said: “Listen to this guitar hero!” Walter and Dee started talking to each other and became friends. Snider entered the studio. Trout felt he absolutely wanted to do a song with him and wrote “I’ve Had Enough”. It’s a catchy, punchy Blues Rock song that puts the listener in an extraordinary good mood. The track also brings strong live performance vibes. It’s an adrenaline-fuelled tune that gets better and better every time you hear it. Sitting still to this energy boost is next to impossible. Snider has a rougher voice and when they sing together it becomes a really cool result. In short, this material is awesome!

His guitar playing is wonderfully good. Walter makes his guitar speak to us, as if it sometimes sings instead of him. The skilled performer handles the strings brilliantly on the new material “Broken”. It is noticeable that WALTER TROUT puts his whole soul into everything he does and he once again delivers a superb album. I wrap it all up by agreeing with Trout; “Music can help us overcome brokenness, one note at a time”. (Anna)

Bewertung:

 9 / 10

Anzahl der Songs: 12
Spielzeit: 53:36 min
Label: Provogue Records
Veröffentlichungstermin: 01.03.2024