CHAPEL
HILL, NC – Guitarist/singer Dudley Taft announces a May 7 release date for his
new CD, Deep Deep Blue, coming from his own American Blues Artist
Group Records. On Deep Deep Blue, Taft
pulls together his influences – geographical, biographical and musical – and
filters them through his blue soul. The result is a genre-busting slab of tunes,
blending his Midwestern roots with his love of the blues, the British Invasion
and Southern Rock, seasoned with songwriting and musicianship nurtured through
30-plus years as a musician. The new album, the second solo release from Taft,
includes eight originals, plus deft takes on a diverse group of covers from Bob
Dylan (“Meet Me in the Morning”), Lou Reed (“Sally Can’t Dance”) and Freddie
King (“Palace of the King”).
Of the
original tunes, Taft points out several for discussion. “‘God Forbid’ is an
extension of the spaghetti western type of song we did on my last
CD. Using the same protagonist who finds himself left for dead on the
first album, the song provides a glimpse into the character's history. We kind
of figure out what he did to make a certain person want to chase him down.
‘Wishing Well’ is my Americana song; it’s about hope and what you want
out of life. It’s got an acoustic Neil Young flavor, a Crazy Horse-type of feel.
And ‘Bandit Queen’ is a song I wrote about Pearl Hart. She was a girl who grew
up reading Cowboys and Indians comic books around the turn of the century and
decided she wanted to be like one of the characters. She left home, fell in love
with a gambler and they robbed a stagecoach at a time when nobody was robbing
them anymore. They got the money and were trying to hide, but ended up going in
a big circle and getting caught close to where they robbed it. No one really
knows what happened to her. One legend is that she joined Buffalo Bill’s Wild
West Show.”
Dudley
Taft’s slashing style of guitar playing, honed from years of work in a host of
rock bands based in cities from Indianapolis and Houston, to Los Angeles and
Seattle, has given his blues-fueled repertoire a decidedly edgier tone, which
accentuates the tension and energy of the songs.
The
songwriting and planning for Deep Deep Blue began in 2012, shortly
after he moved to Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The new CD was recorded at
Seattle's Studio X and London Bridge, with drums by Scott Vogel and Chris
Leighton, bass by John Kessler and keyboards by Eric Robert. Overdubs and Taft's
guitar tracks were recorded at his home studio in Chapel Hill.
“I’m
not going to try to be something that I’m not,” Taft says. “I’m not about
regurgitating stuff that everybody has done before. The blues legends of old
were breaking the rules; they were doing what they wanted. I'm just doing what
comes naturally to me.”
That
musical sensibility was nurtured by influences ranging from Ted Nugent, Kiss and
Rush, to Foghat, ZZ Top and The Allman Brothers Band. In the early 1980s, Taft
headed east to Connecticut. While attending prep school, Taft met Trey Anastasio
(who would go on to play guitar for Phish) and formed Space Antelope, his first
real band.
“Then
it was out west to San Bernardino,” Taft recalls. He attended college there, but
the call of music was too much for the burgeoning fret shredder, however, and he
soon found his way into LA where he tried to find a band.
“It was
all about the image and I had terrible hair,” he remembers. “In the summer of
1990, I heard Mother Love Bone’s EP, Apple, and it resonated
heavily with me. It was REAL music. I drove up to Seattle to stay two weeks and
ended up moving up there.”
For the
next 20 years, Taft would become a fixture in the Seattle scene, forming Sweet
Water, who toured the U.S. extensively with bands like Monster Magnet, Candlebox
and Alice In Chains, and later Second Coming, who snagged a deal with Capitol
Records and had a No. 10 hit single with “Vintage Eyes” and a song placed in the
Bruce Willis movie, The Sixth Sense.
After
the demise of Second Coming Taft, dug deep into his soul and uncovered the roots
of the blues that had been planted there as a youth.
“I
decided I wanted to do something different than another rock band,” Taft says,
and after preparing to form what was initially going to be a ZZ Top tribute
band, Taft discovered the magic of Freddie “The Texas Cannonball”
King.
“That
got me excited about having my own blues band,” Taft says. “I watched videos of
Freddie, and the music is a bit looser and there is a lot of cueing going on.
All the guys in the band are watching Freddie like a hawk. I wanted a band that
understands that communication. And I thought: ‘dude I can play lead guitar all
night long!’”
Teaming
up with some A-list Seattle musicians, Taft recorded his first solo album,
Left for Dead, and inked deal with Made In Germany records. A
European tour ensued and was followed by Taft's relocation from Seattle to his
new home in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
“I’m
just doing what comes naturally for me,” he says “I don’t have to write the next
hit single. My original songs gestate themselves and emerge as they are. I don't
try to make them fit any category. And if people like it, that’s good. I just
play the guitar, keep my head down and roll with the
changes.”
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I just received the newest release, Deep Deep Blue, from Dudley Taft. Opening with Dylan's Meet Me In The Morning, Taft put's his own modern twist on modern delta style blues. On The Waiting, Taft ups the tempo to a Golden Earring style with a slick driving rock track showing flashy guitar riffs by Taft. On God Forbid, heavier rock track with a bit of bite, sounding a little like Black Label Society. This is a cool track with a interesting guitar solo. On Lou Reed's Sally Can't Dance, has a real cool southern rock twist and tasty guitar riffs. Deep Deep Blue is a slow bluesy ballad that gives Taft a wide open highway to blow the dust off of the frets and he steps up and plays a beautiful melodic bluesy solo. Feeling Good Now is a light springy track with a bit of back beat. This is a track that should easily attract broad radio listening. Wishing Well opens with some clean finger picking developing into a street smart rock track with vocal harmonies and a twist of the south. Satisfy You is a clever rocker with strong construction and a good hook. A cool balance between stiff rock and attractive vocals make for a very radio ready track. Taft lets the dog off the leash for a few minutes here and rips a few good guitar licks but this is really a cool vocal track. Bandit Queen has some really nice chord work and along with super bass and drum rhythm, some really nice guitar work by Taft. Leon Russell's Palace of The King really has a different take sounding more like Mahogany Rush. Nice job creating alternate dynamics. Finishing up with Shanks Akimbo, Taft continues to explore a funky blues form of rock with good beat and smokin riffs.
This is a pretty interesting release with a lot more rhythmic music than I usually hear. It's always refreshing to hear something different especially when it's well executed.
