Earl Slick ★★★ Fist Full Of Devils SCHNITZEL. CD/DL/LP Acclaimed sessioneer’s allinstrumental first solo album since 2003. When David Bowie decided both that his own studio guitar work on Diamond Dogs wasn’t up to Mick Ronson’s standard and that his l
needed a dynamic guitarist, he settled on New Yorker Earl Slick, who would become an on-off presence until The Next
Day. Slick would also feature on John Lennon & Yoko Ono’s
Double Fantasy and have a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it stint as a touring New York Doll in 2011. His solo career, though, never took hold, despite 2003’s
Zig Zag featuring Bowie, Robert Smith and Joe Elliott. There’s no such lurch towards commerciality on Fist Full Of
Devils, but it’s a handsome showcase for Slick’s densely textured, blues-tinged work. It’s at its best on the rampaging J.W.L. (see also the closing Dr Winston O’Boogie) where Slick cranks out stentorian riffs against thunderous keyboards, while the gentler Lost shows Slick can be slick too.