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Larry McCray—Heartbreak City—KTBA Records

Larry McCray is an award winning blues artist from

Michigan USA. A renowned blues singer and guitarist
Larry’s latest album, “Heartbreak City” is produced by
Joe Bonamassa and Josh Smith.

The album opens with ‘Try To Be A Good Man’ a cool
soulful blues. The title track ‘Heartbreak City’ slows

things down a little before cutting back to a great guitar
solo. ‘Bye Bye Blues’ is a more old style soul ballad that brought to mind Van
Morrison in style before they take things down a notch with ‘Bright Side’. ‘Every-

thing Falls On Me’ has a LoFi beat that underpins a driving boogie.

Things slow down again with ‘I Know What I’ve Done’ which features Joe Bonamas-

sa. ‘Keep On Loving My Baby’ is a good old style foot tapping boogie that features
some great guitar work from Kirk Fletcher and Josh Smith and some lovely piano
from Reese Wynans. ‘Hangman’ has a great blues riff and there is a hint of Ry Cooder

to this gospel offering. ‘Stop Your Crying’ is a gentle paced blues before the album
closes with the funky ‘Crazy World’.

This album is well produced with good use of brass, keys and backing vocals and no
shortage of top notch guest musicians which really enhance the overall sound. As
for Larry himself he has a great soulful voice which makes him stand out from the

rest something similar to Bobby Bland in style. His guitar work is great too creating
a lovely tone with great dynamics and he does not look out of place alongside the
likes of Kirk Fletcher, Josh Smith and Joe Bonamassa on this album. Perhaps Larry’s

greatest strength is in his song arrangements which while still retaining the blues
feel manage to conjure up well crafted songs that go beyond the basic twelve bar
blues and really bring something different to the blues scene. This is a great album

and one I am sure will go down well with all blues fans.

Ged Wilson

Lonnie Mack – Live from Louisville 1992—The Last
Music Company

Lonnie Mack’s Live from Louisville 1992 is more than a

concert recording—it’s a time capsule of raw, unfiltered
blues-rock brilliance from one of the genre’s founding
fathers. Captured during a last-minute performance at

the Kentucky Center for the Arts on July 23, 1992, this
long-lost live set finally sees the light of day thanks to
Last Music Co., marking the first commercial release of

Mack’s music since his passing in 2016.