CHRISTIAN COLLIN

Spirit Of The Blues

C-Train Records

By Greg Easterling

     Spirit Of The Blues is both the inspiration and the title of up-and-coming guitarist Christian Collin’s new C-Train Records release.  Recorded at Joyride Studio here in Chicago, this is Collin’s second solo effort and utilizes the talents of some of the area’s top blues players including Billy Branch and Matthew Skoller on harp, Johnny Iguana on keyboards, Pete Galanis (Howard and The White Boys) on slide guitar, Jen Williams on backing vocals and a swinging Chi-Town horn section of Rodney Brown,  Bill McFarland and Kenny Anderson.

     Born and bred in the ways of the Detroit Motor City music scene by a father who was once an A&R man for Capitol Records and also Bob Seger’s  road  manager, Collin now calls the Windy City home. Along with his road tested trio of Alex Evans on bass and Chris Morrow on drums, Collin’s new album of all original material is sure to make an impression on his adopted home turf where he has gigged recently at Harlem Avenue Lounge and Lincoln Tap Room.

     Spirit Of The Blues   kicks off with “One and Only,” a funky blues rocker with Colin delivering a catchy riff that fairly leaps out of the speakers, a highly effective way of beginning the album.  “Players Game” follows, a lyrical dissection of the kind of bar cruiser who’s hunting for “some tail on a Friday night.” The tone of the song is not approval; it’s more of an observation.  Matthew Skoller weighs in on harp here in the first of four appearances,  providing an authenticity that isn’t always possible,  but certainly within reach, for albums recorded in Chicago with the wealth of local talent that is available.

     While the lyrics occasionally lapse into cliché, a trap that is hard to avoid, there’s plenty of heartfelt lines that hit home especially on the next few songs, starting with a “A Woman Like You,” a cautionary tale. “I took you home to mama, she warned me about you/ A woman like you will give a man the blues.” Johnny Iguana shines on some tasty honky tonk piano here with Skoller soaring on harp and some blazing solo guitar work from Collin.   It may come as no surprise that Spirit Of The Blues gets more bluesy the deeper you wade into the album.  “Dance The Blues Away” is an ode to dancing and good times that benefits from deft keyboard touches  by Iguana and vocal highlights by Jen Williams while Collin plays another notable solo.

      Collin delivers one of his most emotional vocals on the album next on “Without You,” a soulful, sad portrait of lost love that still burns. “Oh how I try to forget you/Oh how I try to get through.” It’s a ballad that also evokes some of the more subdued but smoldering tracks by blues-influenced bands like Thin Lizzy and Savoy Brown.

        In the very personal title track, Collin name checks the sources of his blues influences such as Chicago, Baton Rouge, Texas, Kansas City and more,  kind of a primer on the blues, delivered slow and with feeling. “Highway Song” features some nice interplay between Collin’s lead and Skoller’s harp. Collin’s slide work is showcased on “Dead Man Walking” while Billy Branch appears at last on “The River (Unplugged)” for an acoustic workout between Collin and Branch. Horns are added on the album’s final track, the optimistic “Forever Friends” for some of that retro Stax Record feeling.

        Music has surrounded Collin his whole life. With a parent in the industry, he heard music at home growing up.  Seeing Little Feat with Lowell George in concert at an early age was a big influence on Collin who picked up the guitar at age 13. He’s been playing the Midwestern bar circuit for 15 years, some of those as the front man for the band Molasses with whom he recorded two albums.  In 2012, his debut album, American Art was released.  Spirit of the Blues is Collin’s sophomore effort.

        Calling one’s new album, Spirit Of The Blues is a heavy thing for a young, up-and-comer blues performer not yet well known in Chicago. Here’s hoping Christian Collin will break through in a sometimes crowded field and help to keep that spirit alive, as well as the blues, for many decades to come.

For more information, visit:

www.christiancollin.com

 Greg Easterling holds down the 12 midnight – 5 a.m. shift on WDRV (97.1 FM) He also hosts American Backroads on WDCB (90.9 FM) Thursdays at 9 p.m.