No one will debate the scope of Buddy Guy’s influence on the current musical climate, but in what may be the ebbing of his monumental career, he still has the time to impart on his listeners a few more words of musical and moral wisdom. After 45 years of innovative output, Guy uses his latest album, Skin Deep, as a soapbox of sorts. He takes advantage of the acclaim and respect he has undoubtedly earned to voice his concerns and advice to a new musical generation. Skin Deep is also the first of Guy’s albums to feature 100 percent original material. Enlisting the help of other guitar greats such as Eric Clapton and Robert Randolph, Guy falls just short of another masterpiece. Even at 71-years-old, he’s still got it.
Lacing the tracks with his simple, strong vocals, Guy showcases his legendary guitar skills, no worse for the wear. He opens with “Best Damn Fool,” one of the strongest songs on the album, and reintroduces himself to his listeners as, “one man that you won’t forget.”
Guy wastes no time reverting back to an aching ballad with repetitive, wrenching lyrics sung with blues’ sweetheart, Susan Tedeschi. A self-proclaimed student of Guy, Tedeschi and her husband, Derek Trucks, suitably accompany each other’s wails of “I cried in vain,” bringing the album into full bluesy gear with the second track, “Too Many Tears.”
Trucks rejoins the stellar cast of the album on the title track. “Skin Deep” epitomizes Guy’s inspiration for the entire album, recalling personal experiences and lessons that led to the development of his creed, “underneath we’re all the same.” The song almost entirely abandons the swelling guitar featured on the rest of the CD and relies solely on Guy’s strong vocals. At least his advice as an old-timer is well taken, and we believe him when he says, “I been around a while… things ain’t always black and white.”
On one of the last songs of the album, Guy pays homage to some of his own influences, notably Robert Johnson. Guy relays the impact of Johnson’s brief career, advising, “Robert Johnson heard it and made it his own/ He got it started/ Now we gotta carry on.” Almost in answer to his question, the song titled, “Who’s Gonna Fill Those Shoes,” features 9-year-old guitar protégé, Quinn Sullivan, who has been playing among impressive company for some years and holds a promising future in the blues.
Glimpses of Guy’s farewell intentions for this album are clearer in songs like “Everytime I Sing the Blues.” An evenhanded dissection of every one of his blues songs, Guy explains the anatomy of his music as “inspiration, desperation” and “sad, sad stories.” He describes the things that have always prompted him to sing the blues, like “a brother who still can’t make a beat or some fallen sister selling it on the street.” Both coming in at almost eight minutes long, this song and “Lyin’ Like a Dog” provide the sharpest and strongest guitar on the album. Those aren’t the only highlights of the album though – tracks like “Hammer and a Nail” feature the over-amplified and distorted guitar sound Jimi Hendrix adopted from Guy and made famous.
Skin Deep is probably one of the last hurrahs of one of the last blues greats. While the bulk of the album is occupied with the styles and figures of the past, Guy offers enough innovation to release something contemporary and relevant. The tributes and reverence woven into the album complement the bravado and fun found throughout the rest of it. Proving the music scene he helped develop still has room for the authenticity and rawness of his blues style, Guy’s latest won’t go down as a classic but is still a worthwhile listen.
esti@umd.edu
RATING: 4 out of 5 stars
