Let Life Flow (CD - 2008)

Louisiana bluesman Kenny Neal has been purveying his blend of blues, swamp, and soul since the mid-1980s, but LET LIFE FLOW is his first album for the Blind Pig label. It finds the singer/guitarist delivering both updates of classic R&B nuggets like "Since I Met You, Baby" and turning out his own infectious, soul-flavored blues tunes, inflected with everything from Jimmy Reed-like shuffle grooves ("Starlight Diamond") to greasy funk rhythms ("Another Man's Cologne").

Son of Louisiana bluesman Raful Neal, young Kenny had some big shoes to fill, but he's been more than up to the task. He plays bass, guitar, trumpet, piano and guitar, and worked in Toronto with the Downchild Blues Band as well as with his siblings in the Neal Brothers Band before returning to Louisiana in 1987 to cut his debut, Bio on the Bayou. Since then Neal has continued to blend his swampy roots with soul and R&B to put his own contemporary spin on the blues. Let Life Flow finds the 50-year-old bluesman in fine voice delivering four originals and seven covers. Neal accents "Louisiana Stew" with a long, jaunty, country flavored harp solo, while on "Fly Away" he drops a bit of sage spiritual advice into the mix. His Memphis-style guitar fills accent the tune, but it's his gospel drenched vocals that standout. The title track has a soulful '70s feel, with Neal's Al Green influenced vocal, and subtle horn accents from Joe Campbell's trumpet and LeRoy Harper's sax. "Since I Met You Baby," the Ivory Joe Hunter chestnut gets taken back to its blues roots by Neal's gritty delivery. His mellow guitar solo, full of slow bent notes and full round tones complement Lucky Peterson's rolling piano work. "It Don't Make Sense, You Can't Make Peace," a Willie Dixon tune, has a swampy groove with a slight Latin tinge, mournful backing vocals, and Neal's sanctified lead vocal. "Another Man's Cologne" tells a familiar story of infidelity. Neal's sneering, slightly bemused vocal and stinging guitar tell the sad story to a funky backbeat. "You've Got to Hurt Before You Heal," another simmering slow blues, lets Neal show off his soulful vocal style with Peterson supplying sanctified organ work. Neal is in fine voice throughout and his understated bluesy guitar works fine, but nothing here really catches fire. ~ j. poet minimize