Self-released
Release date: October 19, 2018
Album length: 47:58 min
Production: Nick Dover
Genre: Blues
Rating: 9.5 / 10
Kirk Fletcher belongs in the league of the devilishly good guitarists of modern blues. “Hold On” is his fourth album overall, and with it Kirk follows up “My Turn,” which came out in 2010. A long gap, then, and you can hear it in how far apart the two records are in maturity. Sure, in those eight years Kirk did put out a live album. Still, the former member of Mannish Boys and Fabulous Thunderbirds, whom some of you may have spotted on a Joe Bonamassa live recording, hanging out in the background as the rhythm guitarist, almost motionless, quietly keeping the stage scenery “garnished” with his presence and services, now speaks to us with a solo album that is entirely his own writing. Completely personal in its lyrics, too. It doesn’t get more personal than this. And all of it is rounded off, of course, by the exceptionally delicate sensitivity of Kirk’s guitar wizardry.
Kirk, whom we got to admire at his recent Slovenian show as part of this year’s Bluesland festival, assembled a hard-hitting trio for “Hold On”, calling in the seasoned Hammond player Jonny Henderson, who also works with Mat Schofield, plus drummer and percussionist Matt Brown, known for his work in Black Nite Crash and Trespassers William. No bass player. Henderson covers the bass lines with his pedals.
The sound of the album is warm, velvety, organic. A wonderfully successful imprint of how it was played in the studio. It’s real purism in that sense, and the whole way through it gives the listener the feeling that it was nailed in the first take, the way a trio would play live (in the studio, of course) and with no after-the-fact fixes or add-ons whatsoever. The chemistry between the building blocks of the sound, and the way they pick up on each other, is exceptional. Over the years Kirk has grown, next to being a top-tier guitarist, into an excellent singer too. He approaches the verses with incredible sensuality, and his voice carries a genuine imprint of sorrow, pain and longing, as the man “with a lump in his throat” and in the style of a true bluesman “keeps carefully complaining without end”. A vocal with the charisma that only a black musician embodies. No piercing power, but with tenderness and, at the same time, plenty of vocal charisma. Even on the vocal side alone, which is really the cherry on top next to the guitar playing, and which you can’t fairly demand from Kirk when he’s the guitarist up front anyway, “Hold On” comes across as incredibly intense and appealing.
When it comes to guitar playing, Kirk is a one-of-a-kind original. Every now and then he fleetingly recalls the late Michael Burke, but that’s another story. He plays with just his fingers and mostly uses only clean tone. Every note is refined, carries character, the guitar groans and, through the playing, embodies the musician’s feelings, emotions and passions in an incredibly captivating way. A cream-colored Telecaster that literally comes alive in the hands of Kirk Fletcher, instantly winning you over and thrilling you with both sound and playing.
The Hammond thickens the sonic space warmly in the background, the snare effects and the delicate touches of cymbals act as a contrasting counterweight, while the guitar playing is of course the focal point. In the solos, which this musician develops with incredible, sensual intensity, you get swept up by his internalized sense of tone control and his free-form “bending” of it, and as a classic soloist Kirk can be very unpredictable too, yet always in exactly the right spot at every moment. He’s downright a staggering “feel player.”
Racing quickly through the album’s content, there are eight tracks, but they’re very varied, and The Answer takes a special place among them. It’s a mini blues suite that shows Fletcher has matured into an outstanding composer. It builds atmosphere with finesse and hits a crescendo in the chorus melody. It’s full of little tricks in the transitions, or they “lie” in the phrases (between verses), but above all it’s the ferocious solo in the closing section that gets you, one that seems to have no end and in which the guitar in Fletcher’s hands, in all its sensitivity, literally screams and weeps. A touch as soft as Kirk’s is hard to find in modern blues these days. The Answer alone makes “Hold On” a must for blues connoisseurs. The album opens with Two Steps Forward! A mid-tempo Rhythm And Blues track, with guest vocals from Mahalia Barnes, it brings great variety to the atmosphere, and in his soloing on this track Fletcher theatrically reaches for the wah-wah, then seasons the closing solo with a cheeky nod to the main phrase of Layla (Derek and the Dominos). The sensuality is underlined and deepened further on by You Need Me, into which funky extras fit in beautifully (the chorus), while Sad Sad Day gravitates toward a boogie gallop, boosted by a lively honky tonk piano. Another special story on the album is the all-instrumental Dupree, which is the most fun moment of the record, with the “chicken-scratch” of the guitar digging nicely into a funky foundation. With a few tweaks, the track could easily have drifted into ragtime waters. In Times Ticking, Fletcher borrows a few more decibels in the opening phrase, while Gotta Right is a classic bluesy number where even the legendary B.B. King would feel right at home. The album closes with the excellent title track, where Fletcher once again reminds us how strong he is in the expanses of sensual softness. A brilliant ending to the album.
“Hold On” is Kirk Fletcher’s fourth studio album overall. It’s his first to be fully self-written and, frankly, the one where Kirk finally nails down his own musical label and the trademarks of his guitar playing. Fletcher keeps evolving as an artist and with “Hold On” surely hasn’t said his last word, so it will be interesting to follow his future songwriting ventures.
by: Aleš Podbrežnik
Tracks:
1. Two Steps Forward
2. You Need Me
3. Sad Sad Day
4. The Answer
5. Times Ticking
6. Dupree
7. Gotta Right
8. Hold On
Lineup:
Kirk Fletcher – vocals, guitar
Jonny Henderson – piano, Hammond, Wurlitzer
Matt Brown – drums, percussion
Guest musicians:
Mahalia Barnes – vocals on track 1
Jade McCrea – vocals on track 8
