Description
Label Review.
2019 album. Blues.
Our Overview.
Canadian blues guitarist is a veteran performer, whose work has had an influence on many western Canadian blues musicians and now Big Dave’s newest songs, on ‘Pocket Full Of Nothin’’ joyously communicate several musical flavours while keeping the integrity and continuity of the recording intact. Plus he is finally getting his recognition, at an age when the rest of us are getting around to contemplating retirement because the release of ‘Pocket Full Of Nothin’’ coincides with the thrilling announcement that Big Dave will receive an appointment to the Order of Canada award for his contributions to the nation’s cultural life.
The first thing Big Dave McLean will tell you about ‘Pocket Full Of Nothin’’, is that it isn’t a straight-ahead blues album. For, even though Dave has been playing the blues since he first heard John Hammond perform at the Mariposa Folk Festival fifty years ago, he’s always been open to a variety of musical styles and approaches to presenting a song. As Dave puts it, ‘Music is just music and when it’s good, you forget about the genre or whatever label you want to put on it, and just appreciate the beauty of what you’re hearing.’ Truer words were never spoken. It doesn’t matter if he’s playing country, folk, rock, R&B or blues. It all sounds right and true when Big Dave sings it.
‘Pocket Full Of Nothin’’ was never envisioned as a simple blues album. With an assembled group of Black Hen regulars including Steve Dawson on multiple stringed instruments, Jeremy Holmes and Gary Craig handling bass and drums, and Chris Gestrin on piano and organ making up the nucleus of the band, what sets this recording apart from his previous efforts is the addition of a fully realized horn section. It was then a thrill and a pleasure when Steve brought in Jerry Cook on Baritone sax, Dominic Conway on tenor sax and Malcolm Aiken on trumpet. This truly made Big Dave’s sound complete as the ensemble dug right in and recorded the album mostly live off of the floor in just a few days.
A few well-chosen cover songs are included to complement Big Dave’s original compositions, but on every track, Big Dave’s bellowing, prairie storm of a voice conjures smoke and fire as he delivers the most impassioned performances of his career. Big Dave explains, ‘you just have to be open. The Blues is a feeling, and you should play it the way you feel it.’