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REVIEWS

Tom Hambridge—Down The Hatch—Quarto Valley
Records

Lead vocalist, drummer, producer, songwriter and
arranger, Tom, has recently released his follow-up
album ‘Down The Hatch’, to his much lauded 2023

album ‘Blu Ja Vu’ on the Quarto Valley Record label.

The musicians joining Tom in the studio on the twelve

original compositions are; Tommy MacDonald & Anton
Nesbitt on bass, Glenn Worf; upright bass, John

Lancaster, Mike Rojas, Noah Forbes and Jimmy Wallace; keyboards, Kevin
McKendree; piano, with Tim Lauer on accordion.

The opener is ‘Willie Dixon’s Gone’, is an inviting, fast, punching, hurtling, guitar

driven steamroller. ‘Every Time I Sing The Blues’, is a more thoughtful, slower piece,
with gently calming guitar and mellow keyboards asking, why sing the blues?

‘I Want You Bad’, is a seriously foot-tapping, swinging, good time guitar wailing,
Chicago rolling blues. ‘How Blues is That’, is a lazy, evocatively tramping and
prowling, guitar wailing Chicago blues.

On ‘Hard Times’, echoing pain-filled guitar, and trudging percussion, emphasises the
list of woes. ‘What Does That Tell You’, is quite simply a joyful, piano and guitar led

blues rocker.

‘Believe These Blues’ is a tale of sorrow, pain and death, wrapped in, warm mellow,
enticing guitar. ‘Making Lemonade’, is a sweetly soothing, Cajun accordion and guitar

fuelled rockabilly foray.

‘What Might Have Been’, mellow, wistfully bubbling guitars and organ drives this

tale of, what if? The seriously foot-tapping instrumental, ‘You Gotta Go Through St.
Louis’, is a piano led rocking ode the one and only Chuck Berry, featuring Buddy Guy

on guitar.

The jolly, country blues influenced ‘Start Drinking Early Day’, is most definitely, an
ode to the pleasures and dependence on alcohol.

The breezy, inviting, rolling and enquiring ‘I Wanna Know About You’, has an engaging
burring, ringing guitar feel.

Recommended!

Brian Harman