Customer Reviews

Talk to Your Daughter

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This album is one of the most entertaining and joyful album I ever had the pleasure to listen. It is a splendid sweet blues, fast blues, tender blues album. The line up is stellar Robben, Colaiuta, Ferrante and Roscoe Beck plus some guests for the horn parts. They all together deliver a blues based music that is a joy to hear. There's not a single weak tune in the entire album and Robben plays his trademark blues-fusion licks with phenomenal taste and wonderful time and sound. Robben sings very very well too. I don't understand the critics here. He has a polite voice, very clean, very sweet ... he sings great no doubt about it. He sings from the heart to me, he touches me. The production is very clean too, maybe a little too much, but in the end it is good to hear a very well recorded album sometimes. In the end this is absolutly a musthave for any guitar enthusiast or blues lover. No better, it is a fantastic album a musthave for everyone who has musical taste. Period.

I have intimate details in how this cd was made and let me tell you, when you listen to these tunes most of what you hear are "first takes"...the recording budget was extremely tiny and forced most of what you hear into the shining examples of how great musicians can overcome b.s. corporate hacks only concerned with the "bottomline". If you listen close you can even here Robben hit a couple of clams in his solos. It's beyond stupid for someone to say that the jackets members don't know how to play 12 bar blues, as well. The Yellowjackets can turn any blues form inside out and Russell Ferrante is one of the most proficient and versatile keyboard players in the world, period. When the recording budget is less than most people earn in a month, you end up with a hurried recording that focuses much more on the solos and less on production. But, as real musicians, what do we want to hear anyway? The solos! Good song writing, as well, but in the end I wait for the solos or cool musical cues. Despite the budget impediments, Robben is burning as is the whole band. This album and Mystic Mile are my two personal favorites and to me show off Robben's jazz-tinged, edgy blues playing to their fullest expression. If you've never heard Robben play blues it's nothing like SRV...it's much closer to Chicago in his rythm playing. His solo voice on guitar is pretty much his own. He sort of invented this kind of playing back in the 70's, well he and Larry Carlton. It's edgy but you can tell there's alot of polish under the grit. He can just as easily rip off Wes Montgomery or John Coltrane as Buddy Guy or the "Alberts". I understand some people not really digging his voice as it's very pure and doesn't have the stereo-typical gritty delivery that alot of blues or rock singers have, however there are plenty of vocalists that have the same kind of delivery and convey and interpret the tunes in their own cool way. Robert Cray for example...Robben sings just fine, he just doesn't sound like B.B. King. You won't be disappointed with this purchase. It's Robben at his most aggressive approach tone-wise and the spontaneity in the tracks can be felt, not just heard. Take it from a professional guitar player and bass player of 20 years you'll love this cd.

I'm 51 years old and have been playing guitar since I was 17. Twenty of those years I played professionally. This CD is the best blend of jazz/rock/and blues electric guitar I have ever heard. It's refreshing to see that so many others on here agree, but it's frustrating to see this CD criticized for the quality of the vocals. If I am not mistaken, one of the best and most respected modern blues/rock singers also has a sweet voice. In fact the first time I heard this CD, Robben's vocals reminded me of him. His name is Steve Miller. Aaaaaaah? If you want to hear a gruffy voice, there are plenty of other blues/rock albums you can listen to...but you won't hear guitar artistry like this on there. So please quit yer fussin! I think Robben's voice fits this music perfectly and his playing is brilliant. Some folks are never satisfied. Buy this and enjoy. This ain't Canned Heat...but it ain't bad!

Robben Ford's at his best on this album as he gets funky with blues. The title track has you snapping your fingers and up dancing. "Ain't Got Nothin' But The Blues" and "Born Under A Bad Sign" allow this guitar genius to really show his bluesy soul in his own rich style. This is a perfect introductory album to Robben's solo work. This is truly a fun and lively album.

Man, this is some no holds barred rocking blues. If you like rock and roll you need to own this album. Robben's playing is phenomenal, his singing voice has great personality and meshes beautifully with his guitar. Vinnie Coliatu (remember Black Page from Zappa) plays some of the most intricate and tasteful drums you are ever likely to hear. I think Sting must have heard this record and then hired Vinnie for his record. Don't miss this record.

Robben Ford is probably one of the best guitarists to ever grace CD plastic. Unfortunately, under recognized as well. His guitar work sounds effortless and right, like he knows the exact notes that need to be played. Notes just seem to flow together when he picks those strings. Very few guitarist have that ability, SRV was the best, but Ford is definitely up there. "Talk to Your Daughter" is one of the guitar classic that everyone who loves guitar must own. It's also one of Ford's crowning achievements.

It's hard to pick a place to begin in discussing this album, it's all so very good. The instrumental "Revelation" is a perfect example of what I was explaining. Sweet notes, good tone, and a sound that is easy on the ear. Ford's cover of Albert King's classic "Born Under a Bad Sign" is simply incredible. He also does great covers of "Ain't Got Nothing But the Blues" from Duke Ellington and "Help the Poor".

For as good as Ford's guitar playing is on this album, his voice isn't. The music on this album cries for a nice deep and gravely voice, and Ford's is thin and in stark counterpoint. In fact, on "Can't Let Her Go" he almost sounds like Kenny Loggins. Fortunately, his voice is decent on "Born Under a Bad Sign" and several other cuts. The incredible guitar work easily makes up for where he lacks in voice. This is a great album to start with if you've never heard Ford before.

I just did two other reviews on newer Robben Ford CD`s so please check those for that info. Just a short note to say that this being an earlier recording from 1988 in no way diminishes the quality of Robben`s playing and is a great blues CD. Less rock influence than on the newer CD`s, this CD is a nice blues album to listen to and there is not a bad tune on the CD. The title track "Talk to your Daughter" is great and touches home in the fact that I have a daughter who seems to have a boyfriend who wrote this song! Also, "Born Under a Bad Sign" and "Can`t Let Her Go" are great tunes. Highly recommend this early Robben Ford classic & a must for any serious blues CD collector! Cheers from Tokyo! Greg

I love this CD. Perhaps the guy that wrote the editorial review is not a guitar player, but anyone who is will love this CD. Robben Ford plays with great sophistication and intensity. The guitar is mixed hot. The vocals are excellent.

What an album !! Robben Ford certainly counts as one of the best blues guitarists around. He has that special sound and yet not very well recognized. But those that DO know of him will certainly appreciate the power of this album.

Propulsive Drumming, brilliant horn arrangements that never get in the way, and best of all -- THERE"S NOT ONE SRV CLICHE ANYWHERE!!! As regards Ford's singing voice -- I used to get a bit embarrassed by white guys with Jackson Browne voices doing stuff like this, but I've long since realized that if Ford sang like Joe Cocker he'd be a danger to the human species. The title cut feels like you're in the passenger seat of a Porsche turbo with the petal to the metal, and the final cut, "Can't Let Her Go," sounds like CCR, Robert Palmer and the Who all at once -- it should have been an FM classic. But that's true of the rest of it as well.