Aynsley Lister

We are in the middle of a glut of superb Blues guitarists and writers. Guys such as Danny Bryant, Simon McBride, Laurence Jones, the 2 Nimmo brothers and ladies in the manner of Dani Wilde, Joanne Shaw Taylor, Chantel MacGregor are lighting up venues around Europe and Britain as well as crossing over to the US of A.

Of all of them though Aynsley Lister stands out as one of the best and on this showing, possibly the best.

He has been around for a while, playing across Europe and the UK and release an increasingly fine set of albums but the songs – almost all written by Lister - and the band here – Steve Amadeo on bass, Boneto Dryden on drums, Bennett Holland (keys) and a full horn section – seem to create as perfect a combination as I’ve heard in years.

Lister’s songs seem to echo someone with a world of experience and there are little touches of Blues, jazz and showtunes that you uncover in each number like a gem peeking out from under the moss. The moss in the meantime is pretty rich stuff, loaded with power and classic riffs and melodies to die for.

Take a track such as ‘Il Grande Mafioso’ where he creates a miasma of Mexican tinged rock with a whispering organ carrying the theme and his timeworn vocals alongside some stunning Link Wray-esque guitar. The honkytonk piano that closes the number out just makes the number perfect.

If you want raw emotion and soulful then take a listen to ‘Won’t Be Taken Down’ or straight out Blues/Rock then plug into ‘Handful of Doubt’ – terrific guitar and wailing Hammond set against some funk and punching like a pro. He can also do sweet and mellow/sad on a track like ‘Kalina’ which will potentially make a great live number.

A dozen tracks and all good or better.

Aynsley Lister has been building to this and he has delivered a cracking album, one that is going to sit on my deck for a long while methinks.