Gary Clark Jr.
The Story of Sonny Boy Slim Warner
Gary Clark Jr.’s credentials, which include performances with the Rolling Stones, Foo Fighters, Paul McCartney, Dave Matthews Band and other heavyweights, suggest this Texan bluesman is a firm favourite among the rock establishment, and thus perhaps a little inoffensive. And while the smooth production and virtuosic guitar playing may seem the dominant features on first listen here, further immersion reveals a record of more depth and variety than that suggests.
Clark’s brand of blues-rock is fairly conservative – a vehicle for his elaborate solos, and certain tracks stick to that limited template. On others, however, flavours of gospel and, most strikingly, funk and hip-hop take Sonny Boy Slim into a different realm. Opener “The Healing”, once you overlook some uninspiring…
