Gary Clark Jr Blak and Blue
Release Date: 22 October 2012
Label : Warner Brothers
Format : Mp3@320



On his major-label debut Blak and Blu, you can hear the roar in Gary Clark Jr.'s blues guitar, and in his vocal throughout "Bright Lights." It's one of the few straight-up blues songs on what is essentially an introduction to one of the most highly praised young blues guitarists in recent times. While Clark comes out of a blues tradition, he's also a twentysomething who's taken in all of contemporary music.
"I don't believe in competition, ain't nobody else like me around," he sings in "Ain't Messin' Around." It's a boasting song, a chunk of neo-soul with a vehement horn section. Stylistically, Clark is all over the map. In "The Life," Clark speaks conversational verses, not rapping but not full-out singing, either, inviting some hip-hop rhythm and percussion into his music. And sometimes Clark breaks out with some Chuck Berry-ish rock 'n' roll, as in "Travis County."
The showpiece of Blak and Blu, Clark's calling card for dexterity as well as authenticity, is probably the nine-minutes-plus medley of Jimi Hendrix's "Third Stone From the Sun" combined with Little Johnny Taylor's "If You Love Me Like You Say," a combo that Clark can reportedly stretch out to 20 minutes in concert. I'd say he serves himself even better with the awe-inspiring blare of his own composition "Numb," as well as a concise blast of blues-rock called "Glitter Ain't Gold."[/size]



Tracklist:
1. Ain't Messin 'Round
2. When My Train Pulls In
3. Blak and Blu
4. Bright Lights
5. Travis County
6. The Life
7. Glitter Ain't Gold (Jumpin' For Nothin')
8. Numb
9. Please Come Home
10. Things Are Changin'
11. Third Stone From The Sun/If You Love Me Like You Say
12. You Saved Me
13. Next Door Neighbor Blues
14. Breakdown (Bonus Track)
15. Soul (Bonus Track)