An album of blues as real and authentic as mud pie

COUNTY Wexford might be a long way from the Mississippi Delta or the Florida swamps but that doesn’t mean that when it comes to the blues the county has some of the finest exponents of the genre in the world.

New Ross based guitarist and songwriter, Victor Stafford, has been a stalwart of the local music scene for many years and his longtime group, the Fishdrinkers, are highly regarded locally.

However, his most recent album titled, ‘Working Life’, showcased to perfection the various strands of blues that influence on him as a songwriter.

Opening track ‘Lumpman Joe’ is immensely catchy and memorable and is a fantastic introduction to the album.

The track is set to a wonderful shuffle beat - courtesy of percussionist Brendan Carthy, who also recorded the album at his Orchard Studio in Enniscorthy.

The song also benefits from the input of Matthew O’Brien on banjo and Jay O’Sullivan on fiddle and guitar.

While Stafford might sing ‘I’m a Wexford man right or wrong’, there is no getting away from the fact he is a sincere blues man.

Rory Gallagher proved you don’t have to be from the deep south of America to embody the blues and Victor Stafford also compounds that fact on ‘Working Life’.

The second track ‘All Over You’ takes things down a notch and is a slow, moody blues-infused ballad.

Having witnessed Stafford perform live on many occasions it’s usually been within the context of a solo acoustic performance.

A brilliant live performer his songs benefit enormously from the ‘live band feel’ captured in the studio.

Credit goes to Brendan Carthy too as the overall mix of the album is fantastic with each instrument allowed plenty of room to breathe.

‘All Over You’ has the slow broody feel of early Rolling Stones tracks and is all the better for it.

It’s the type of track that fans of Chris Stapleton will love.

‘One Man’s Meat’ is without doubt one of the most commercial tracks on the album.

A mid-tempo country-tinged number it benefits from some fantastic subtle fiddle playing courtesy of Jay O’Sullivan.

The chorus is immensely memorable and invokes images of Blackberry Smoke crossed with Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, and the overall song has a wonderful arrangement.

There are many moods evident throughout the album and the title track, ‘Working Life’, takes the listener off on an industrial blues path.

While the vocals throughout the album are brilliant Stafford’s execution of the melody on this particular track is fantastic.

The subtle use of backing vocals throughout the album is brilliant and very effective - as is evident on this particular song.

While Stafford is predominantly a guitar player he also plays bass on the album and his lines provide an added groove to the material throughout.

‘A Better Woman’ is an ode to a love lost as a result of finding ‘a better woman than you’.

‘A Crooked Smile’ begins in a slightly different manner to the other songs on offer.

A solitary guitar line eases the listener in before a rhythmic shuffle lets the track take off.

While electric bass is used on the recording there is actually an upright bass feel to the accompaniment that adds greatly to the overall vibe of this song.

From an arrangement point of view the reintroduction of the opening guitar line as an instrumental break in the middle of the track is exemplary.

This is another of the stand-out tracks on the album.

‘Flying’ has a very strong country-folk influence and wouldn’t be out of place performed around a camp fire in the Appalachian mountains.

The song has a very strong chorus that immediately grabs the attention and embeds itself in the listener’s memory.

If the Waterboys was a blues band they might write a track like this.

If there is such a thing as ‘dangerous blues’ then ‘Lie With You’ would personify the genre to perfection.

While on the surface the song is a tribute to a lover there is a sinister undertone to the music accompaniment that is intriguing.

One of the common threads throughout the album is the strength of the choruses and again that’s the case with this track.

From an arrangement and production perspective the use of what sounds like double-tracked vocals on the chorus along with backing accompaniment is brilliant.

‘Deep Down in the Night’ takes things off on a completely different tangent.

Fully embracing a reggae vibe the song has a slight 80s feel to it which makes for very interesting listening.

The interplay between drums and bass is brilliant and provides a very solid rhythmic foundation.

‘Trouble Down Below’ finishes things off and while it has its heart in the blues there is also a reggae and country feel to the track which is wonderful.

The overall sound of the album is exemplary and production wise there is brilliant clarity to recording.

Anyone who loves blues or top quality songwriting will find something of interest on ‘Working Life’; an album worth its place in any collection.