Saturday, December 29, 2018

#368 : Shaw Davis & the Black Ties - Tales From the West



2018 – Chin Music Records

By Phillip Smith; Dec. 29, 2018

Tales From the West, the second release from Florida blues-rock trio Shaw Davis & the Black Ties, is an engaging balls-to-the-wall smash hit.  Front-man Shaw Davis coaxes a tsunami of sound from his guitar, culminating in an explosive performance.  The remainder of this killer band is comprised of bassist Patrick Stevenson, and drummer Bobby Van Stone.  

With a taste of Texas blues, “Take My Hand” rocks hard, and begs to be heard loudly.  Davis takes the listener to the cosmos and back with his stellar guitar commandeering.  The psychedelic groove on title track “Tales From the West” is ominous and infectious.  It digs right into my skull, and hangs out quite a while.  “Mamma Told Me” brings more Texas blues back in full regalia.  It sounds fantastic.  Davis takes another jammin’ venture into the cosmos of psychedelia on “Atomic Groove”. 

This band is the first I have ever heard to fearlessly take on Frank Zappa.  When “Willie the Pimp” began, I was not only impressed at the cajones it took to cover a Zappa song, but I was amazed at how great this sounded.  The only other cover on the album, “I Gotta Try You Girl”, from North Mississippi blues legend Junior Kimbrough, is loaded with searing guitar and rock-solid vocals.

Tales From the West is an astonishing forty-seven minute listen. The louder it’s heard, the better it sounds.  It’s just that good of a record.








For more information about the artist, visit this website..   https://www.shawdavisblackties.com/

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