This is Swindon based Built For Comfort’s third album and it continues the high standard set by the previous two.  The band remains the same except for a new bass player, Dave Miller and the addition of keyboard player Barry Archer.  This twelve song set is a selection of covers ranging from the usual suspects, Chuck Berry, T-Bone Walker and Lowen Fulson, through less well known songs from  Muddy Waters and Little Walter to more obscure items from Fred James, Guitar Slim and Earl Green.

The CD opens with a ‘usual suspect’, "T-Bone Shuffle” which settles in to a steady rolling rhythm with good harp and guitar and some swirling organ filling out the sound, a great start to the album and one of the highlights.  The title track chugs along in fine style and is enhanced by some tasty slide.  Little Walter’s “You’re Sweet” has some blasting harp work.  Earl Green’s “No Glue In The World” has a chunky, funky New Orleans type rhythm complete with piano and the band seem particularly tight on this number.  Again the band is tight on “Well Alright” which rocks along nicely.  Things then slow down for Fred James “Life Is Hard”, a deep blues with a very tasty guitar break.  Then it is back into rock and roll territory with Berry’s “Nadine” which has a chopped out rhythm and some excellent harp, another highlight for me.  Muddy’s “I Don’t Know Why” is a another example of good ensemble playing with short sharp solos and again the organ filling out the sound.

There is a nice arrangement of Fulson’s “Reconsider Baby”, and a romp through the classic tale of woe “It Should’ve Been Me”.  The rhythm section drive along “I Got Over It”, a Guitar Slim song that here uses Robben Ford’s arrangement, and there is some mean slide too, a cracking track!  The CD closes with the instrumental “Hepology”, a Bruce Katz number with all three front liners taking a solo.

Whilst each individual band member contributes, it is the overall band sound and ensemble playing that impresses me.  Alec Adams’ vocal are light but very effective.  Both guitar and harp supply good fills and effective, tasty solos.  The rhythm section is tight and provides the necessary punch on the up-tempo material.  The keyboards add that extra width and fill out the sound.  Oh, and this is a Blues album.  There are no rock excesses here!

It is good to see that this band is continuing to perform and producing a quality CD like this which was a pleasure to review.

Rating 8 (Jim Greaves)

Blues In Britain  June 2008