Peter Ward — Blues On My Shoulders

Label: Gandy Dancer Records

Peter Ward should be proud. He’s just released an album, Blues On My Shoulders, so satisfying that it must be exactly what he had in mind.

It’s a collection of top-notch musicians: Peter Ward (guitar, vocals), Ronnie Earl (guitar), Sax Gordon Beadle (sax), Sugar Ray Norcia (vocals, harmonica), Monster Mike Welch (guitar), Anthony Geraci (piano), Mudcat Ward (bass), Neil Gouvin (drums), along with Bob Berry (bass), Joe Delia (bass), George Dellomo (drums), Erik Kilburn (mandollin), and Rusty Scott (organ). It’s also a collection of varied songs that run the gamut of attitudes to be found in the blues, each performed with crisp and convincing conviction.

But, it is essentially a solo project in that it trows the spotlight brightly on Peter Ward, who wrote nearly every song, and who proves that he knows what constitutes a solid album. He has taken the chords of memory from a lifetime of loving (and making) blues and jazz and arranged them into a reminder of where he’s been, thus continuing the voyage forward in supreme style.

Essential Downloads: “She Took It All,” “It’s On Me,” “Colletta.”

To preview or purchase this album on iTunes, click here.