THE BOB LANZA BLUES BAND
FROM HERO TO ZERO
CONNOR RAY MUSIC CRM 2420
FOR LOVING YOU–ALL OVER AGAIN–LOVE AND KINDNESS–FROM HERO TO ZERO–AIN’T NOBODY’S BUSINESS–I WOULDN’T TREAT A DOG–MY HOME IS A PRISON–IT AIN’T ABOUT ME–EVIL WORLD
Connor Ray Music has been on quite a roll of late. We have had the esteemed privilege to have reviewed excellent sets recently from guitarists The Mighty Orq and Mark May. We now add to that list a killer collection from The Bob Lanza Blues Band. Hailing from north New Jersey, Bob plays a mean blues guitar reminiscent of the Chicago legends with a touch of Texas, by way of Freddie King and SRV. That new album is entitled “From Hero To Zero,” with nine cuts that feature Bob’s full band, with everybody hittin’ on all 8 to bring a mix of roadhouse boogies, slow-burners, and a poignant, socially-conscious cut to the table.
If you are in a party mood, tho, you have sho’ nuff come to the right place! Bob kicks the whole thing off Elmore James-style, with the down-home slide boogie tale of a bad love affair. “That’s what I get For Loving You” leads him right into a case of the “Hong Kong Flu!” The title cut features harp from Steve Krase, and modifies the rhum-boogie beat as Bob laments another sour affair, goin’ “From Hero To Zero in six short years!”
Bob pours us a wicked shot of slow-blues with the classic “Ain’t Nobody’s Business if we do,” and closes out with a predominantly-acoustic shot of pure Delta blues, “Evil World,” where, sometimes, the best thing to do is just “go get your friends and have a drink!”
We had two favorites, too. This whole crazy world could use plenty more “Love And Kindness,” ’cause “you can’t have one without the other.” This one is especially on-point, given the sorry state of national current events. And, Bob takes ol’ Lonesome Sundown’s Excello hit from ’57, “My Home Is A Prison,” and turns it into seven minutes of pure, slow-burnin’ blues bliss, complete with a sanctified, testifyin’ climax!
Note for note and song for song, “From Hero To Zero” from The Bob Lanza Blues Band is a heavyweight set from a real-deal veteran of the contemporary scene. We guarantee you’ll put this one in heavy rotation in your playlist the moment you give it a spin! Until necxt time…Sheryl and Don Crow, The Nashville Blues Society.
donandsherylsbluesblog 