Since he departed the ranks of Thin Lizzy over 35 years ago, ace guitarist Eric Bell has had a varied career, releasing several solo albums as well as enjoying stints with various supergroup outfits including The Clonakilty Cowboys (with Jimi Hendrix bassman, Noel Redding). He has of course made regular and hugely popular appearances at various Thin Lizzy tributes and Phil Lynott memorials, including at the most recent Vibe For Philo. A bluesman at heart, Bell’s distinctive guitar style is rooted in the electric blues of the ‘40s and ‘50s. His latest solo album is a tour de force of the genre, his trademark Fender Stratocaster the star of the show on almost every track.
There’s plenty to relish here; from his reworkings of standards such as Muddy Waters’ ‘Hoochie Coochie Man’ And Elmore James’ ‘Shake Your Moneymaker’ (with an intro that sounds uncannily like his most memorable riff on Lizzy’s ‘The Rocker’) to the Canned Heat-style boogie, ‘On The Road Blues’. He pours scorn on modern living on his own ‘Me And Technology’ where he bemoans that, “every time I press the right button something else seems to go wrong”, while adding some very tasty acoustic picking on ‘Belfast Blues’ – a nostalgic look back at the early years in his hometown.
Eric demonstrates some slick slide/bottleneck playing on a version of Johnny Winters’ ‘Dallas’, though it’s not all strictly blues. The closing instrumental, ‘Táimse Im Chodladh’ finds him exploring a more ethereal, mystical sound, albeit one not a million miles away from that ‘Whiskey….’ lick. Great playing should never be underestimated.