David Starr: Must Be Blue Review
David Starr has released over eleven previous albums in his career, and his brand new project, Must Be Blue, may, very well, be his best. This new album, released on Quarto Valley Records, is a musical style sometimes referred to as “bluesicana”, but whatever you might want to call it; it is good stuff. I rarely cross paths with an album that I enjoy from start to finish, but this one was enjoyable to listen to throughout. Growing up in Arkansas, Starr said that blues music was some of the first music that he heard as a youngster, and he added that blues music always centers him in a way that no other music does. David Starr, an accomplished singer, songwriter, and guitarist, has shared the stage or collaborated with artists such as John Oates (who also appears on this new album), John McEuen, Steve Cropper, Jim Lauderdale, America, Jim Messina, and Survivor. John Oates said this of Starr; “His music is authentic, his songs are honest; full of emotion and truth. A voice that you will never forget.”
Must Be Blue contains ten “honey for the ears” tracks that will leave you wishing that the recording were a double album so that you could hear more. It opens with “Hole In The Page”, a song about ending love. “There’s a hole in the page where your name used to be”, David Starr sings. I love the little growl just before the really tasty guitar solo and the great vocals throughout the song. Track four is “Lonesome Train,” and there is some great mandolin picking in this tune. Face it; what would any blues album be without a song about a train? This tune doesn’t disappoint. “I don’t want to go on traveling, on a lonesome train, on a lonesome track”. If one blues song talking about a train is good, then two in a row has got to be great. “Listen To The Rain” is a really nice tune. Starr sings, “I believe I’m gonna go outside and listen to the rain. And maybe if I listen hard, I can hear that southbound train”. There’s more great, smooth guitar work in this song, and the organ really adds the backdrop for it. Track number nine is “I Wait For Mine”. The lyrics of the song paint such a clear, but mysterious picture. “We all find redemption in our own sweet time”, David Starr sings, “I wait for mine”. The very last song on Must Be Blue is a cover of The Allman Brothers Band song, “Whipping Post”. If there is an exact science to gauge a blues artist and their performance, it might be based on how well they can spin their own version of an Allman Brothers song. Here, David Starr aces it and also puts his own spin on a great one from the past.
Every cut from Must Be Blue is enjoyable and well done. The result of my listening experience was to send me searching for more of David Starr’s previous recordings. I was more than impressed with the present and the past. I would encourage listeners to check out this current recording and then explore some other past ventures. I don’t think you will be disappointed.
The Review: 9/10
Can’t Miss Tracks
– Hole In The Page
– Lonesome Train
– Listen To The Rain
– I Wait For Mine
– Whipping Post
The Big Hit
– Hole In The Page