Grant Lyle and Brotherhood

This disc packs a wallop, coming out of nowhere to reveal a serious musician who has spent many an hour wood-shedding away to his favourite albums by Mike Bloomfield, Stevie Ray Vaughan, some Gov't Mule and definitely some Marshall Tucker and Allman Brothers. The title track takes off on a slow, dreamy ride with its neo-psychedelic wah-wah before slipping into some standard SRV-style boogie on Willie Dixon's "Don't Go No Further," making the most of his surprisingly soulful voice. The disc features some great instrumental tracks, notably "Dig" with its rockabilly roots and the exceptional "Satellite" which showcases Lyle's maturity as a blues player. Throughout, bassist Scott Brammer and drummer Steve Woods up the musical ante while providing Lyle with a suitable home for his bed of sizeable licks and inexhaustible bag of influences. Now, if only the band would raise more than the $7.50 required to design the CD jacket, people might be convinced to look beyond and discover a book that is well worth the discovery, despite its cover. A solid effort.