Released By : Angel Air Records
Genre : Electric Blues
Links : http://www.foghat.net/
Tracklist:
1. Born For The Road
2. Needle And Spoon
3. So Many Roads, So Many Trains
4. Last Train Home
5. Shake Your Money Maker
6. It Huts Me Too
7. I Feel So Bad
8. Louisiana Blues
9. 495 Boogie
10. Rollin’ & Tumblin/ You Need Love
11. In My Dreams
12. Good Good Day
Now before I start this review proper, I am going to presume that everyone reading this already knows who FOGHAT are thus delving into their 39 year career will not be necessary. So let’s just focus on the material at hand, the new album LAST TRAIN HOME which is actually FOGHAT’S first studio release since FAMILY JOULES back in 2003.
This time around the band have opted to record what is pretty much a straight-up electric blues album, but slightly tinged with their signature boogie-rock feel. Fans of the band will acknowledge this as a pretty natural progression as it’s not the first time they dabbled in songs of this style, but that doesn’t mean it’s a fan only release or anything like that. In fact it’s a very enjoyable album that while maybe a bit light in substance makes up for it in the pure fun factor.
Put simply though, FOGHAT fans will probably be divided about this one as it does deviate somewhat from what we have come to expect from them. This can probably be forgiven when allowing for the fact that there is only one band member left from the original line-up, the tub-thumping Roger Earl.
Musically I guess the album can be compared to this years BINGO release from STEVE MILLER BAND or even the new album done by THE BLUEMASTERS and MICKEY THOMAS. So the order of the day some blues standards from different eras mixed in with, I believe, a few newly written tunes that fit the style. The first song of the album to hit me was SO MANY ROADS, SO MANY TRAINS which almost comes close to matching the energy of the version done my JOE BONAMASSA earlier this year. SHAKE YOUR MONEY MAKER is a tune that is straight out of the rock ‘n’ roll era of the fifties and is a quite fun little tune. Following this is the pure highlight of the album, a great version of IT HURTS ME TOO, which was originally written in the forties by TAMPA RED but since been recorded by ELMORE JAMES, ERIC BURDON, THE ROLLING STONES, ERIC CLAPTON and many, many more. Sure this may not me the best version of the song I’ve ever heard, but it is one of the better ones and it’s always nice to hear this song done well.
The only slight qualm I have with this disc is that is seems a little unimaginative and the tracklist is a little predictable, but if you like modern sounding electric blues and enjoyed earlier 2010 releases from STECE MILLER BAND and THE BLUESMASTERS, LAST TRAIN HOME is yet another disc that will please you in many ways. Just don’t expect it to get too much of a good rap from critics in general as I know a lot of them despise when good bands release these discography filling blues standards albums.
Written By ZeeZee
Rating : 7/10
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