The overall sound of Blue and Beyond manages to express the dark and grinding ache of longing that is the foundation of the blues, with a few unexpected moments of humor--from the virtuoso instrumental performances, to the resonant vocals. The instrumentals with harmonica, slide guitar, and keyboard, especially, feel more authentically American than a lot of what passes for "country" music on the airwaves today. For just a minute, if I hadn't known I was listening to something recorded recently, I might have thought I was hearing a Smithsonian heritage blues recording.
Alyssa Barber Ventura CA
