As I sit here on my 40th birthday, I was reflecting on what I was doing at the same age as Jonny Lang when he first hit the music scene. Honest to god, I was a singer in a rock and roll band!

I had a group where I was living in Port Huron Michigan. We would play the local circuit. We were nothing but a cover band, but not that bad either!

I can still remember playing this club called The Blue Banjo. It was in a town called New Haven down near where you start to see the urban sprawl of Detroit. This was right out of the Blues Brothers movie! We went in and were surprised to see chicken wire covering the front of the stage. It was there for a purpose!! We had more beer on us, then in us by the end of the night.

Anyway, that is just a little story about an experience that turns someone into a wolfman!

Anyway, every time I listen to Jonny, I get that nostalgic feeling for those old days! When I hit 30, I knew that the Detroit Tigers were never going to call, now that I hit 40, I know that I will never see a stage again. (This is for the best anyway!) But I again am starting to ramble on. Back to Jonny and his follow up to the smash album "Lie To Me."

As I listened to this album there was a couple of things that struck me. First off, it is, for the most part, a more laid back album then it's predecessor. It also seems to be his coming of age album. As if to say, I don't have to impress with my guitar alone. This time he sounds more confident in his singing and doesn't rely on that magic he can produce with the six string. This is not to say that he abandons the axe, not by a long shot! But his guitar is not the centerpiece of the music this time. There is a lot of experimentation with other instruments and styles.

So for your listening pleasure, let me present, Wander This World!!!!


This album starts out with a honky tonk piano doing this rather strange, fade in, fade out. It soon has a steady drum and bass to fire things up, then all of a sudden, Lang's guitar explodes into a very Clapton like intro to the song, "Still Rainin'." After telling you how much mellower this album is on a whole, this song is as fiery of a rocking/blues number as any he has done! His guitar playing is excellent. But he still leaves some of the work to the keyboardist Bruce McCabe. There is a great section where he uses this tinkering piano technique. Still this is one song where Lang and his six string do come out on top! His vocals are strong and he growls about lost love as if he has had so many of these experiences in his past! This song is worth the price of the CD alone. It is one of the best blues/rock efforts of the past few years.

The next song is a little different. "Second Guessing" has an almost Motown feel to it. This song is becoming one of my favorites on this album the more I listen to it. At first I thought of it as a bit of a throw away tune. But as I listened, I found the subtle way that he takes that great Detroit sound and blends in a very good, subdued, guitar solo to answer each verse he sings. A great tune where Lang spreads his wings a bit and the result is a great test flight!!!

The next song was written by Prince. The song "I Am" is a funky number that Lang handles better than I would have ever expected. This song takes on a whole different life as Jonny injects a large dose of his own guitar method into this definite Paisley Park type, rhythm and blues tune. His vocals on this one is good, except when he tries to stretch into those high regions that The Artist could get to, but are still a long ways up for Lang! Again, Lang shows a willingness to experiment with new sounds, even adding a sax to this one. This may not be the best song on the album, but it still holds up well!

A tender Jonny shows through on the song "Breakin' Me." Here he goes the acoustic route with a fantastic piano tinkling away sporadically in the background. This song about a guy who makes a big mistake by taking off on the girl who was really the one!! He doesn't realize it till too late. This is a very good ballad and Jonny's voice almost sounds like it is cracking with pent up emotion as he belts out the line "Baby please take me back, I don't want to be in love but you're makin' me!" This song shows a much more grown up Lang. Great stuff that was absent from previous recordings.

The title track "Wander This World" is a stark and lonely sounding song. Just as Lang intended! That is what this song is about. Being all alone. He uses his guitar and voice to give you a picture of a guy who has no one. This is as good of a blending of blues and rock as I have heard in quite some time. When a musician can paint you a picture as easy to see as this one, he has really accomplished something!

One of the songs that I love on this LP is "Walking Away." This tune is a slow blues ditty that will chill you to the bone! Every aspect of this song is right on!! His guitar is stunning and the lyrics as spitted out by Jonny, tell you that this is a guy that is fed up with his girl. Lang delivers them with venom in his voice and you believe that this woman deserves every bit of it! This is one magnificent tune. You will listen to it over and over.

"The Levee" is a throbbing blues song that comes right out of the Allman Brothers/southern rock brand of this music. This one is as good as many others in this vein, but I find nothing special in it. By Lang standards, it is just another good song in a growing catalogue of great music!

Next up is the full blown, low down, dirty blues ditty called, "Angel of Mercy." Lang's vocals on this song, are the stuff that many blues legends became known as such, for! I still think he is a 70 year old B.B. King trapped in this skinny 20 year old body! Add to that a simply irresistible guitar solo and you have a song that is as good as it gets! If you like the blues, this is a must have. This kid just knows what this music is all about!

"Right Back" is a song that displays Lang's ability to combine styles to create a unique sound. This song has elements of rock, blues, R&B and funk! Each instrument provides a different texture to this melody. To that, Lang gives a guttural vocal track that helps to give this song a simply amazing overall effect. There is little fault to find in this song as it hits on all cylinders!!!

The next song on this album is a slow bluesy/gospel type song called "Leaving to Stay." The county/gospel piano backing Jonny on this one, completes the overall church like quality as Lang sings "I've been waiting for the glory of the coming of the Lord." As strange as you might think this sounds for a song on a Jonny Lang album, it works! Just as Elvis pulled it off, Lang gives a very good performance and it is a song that just gets better each time you hear it!

The song "Before You Hit The Ground" is one where they pull out the wah wah and bring back shades of Sly and The Family Stones!! I really miss this type of music. I know most made fun of it when Sly did it back then, but just take a listen here and you will see what you are missing! Lang also has an added benefit. He has his guitar that he uses to make a solid statement in this piece! It is a different style for him, but he pulls it off and makes me want to hear more of this type of thing!!

The last song on the album is where they reach back to the blues roots and give us all a drink of "Cherry Red Wine." Lang does as masterful of a job with this song as any version that I have heard before. He also unleashes his guitar for a real blistering audio assault on your ears! Again he makes you think that this is a guy who has been doing this for 40-50 years, with the amount of fire that he puts into each note! Blues lovers....this is another must have!

This album makes me look forward to the next offering of Mr. Lang. Each effort on here shows that he is trying to provide the listener with the best possible music that he can deliver. It also shows that the blues are not dead, we are just turning the page and Jonny Lang is the next chapter!!!!



Recommended: Yes

Write a Review