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Dirty Deal Album Review -
Coco Montoya -
11 tracks/50:51
Alligator Records - www.alligator.com
This release on Alligator finds Coco
Montoya getting plenty of help from members of Little Feat. Paul Barrere
helped produce the disc while adding rhythm or slide guitar, backing
vocals and even percussion on seven tracks. The Feat rhythm section of
bass guitarist Kenny Gradney and drummer Richie Hayward appear on four
cuts while Bill Payne on keyboards and Fred Tackett on guitar each
contributes to one track.
The disc opens with the title track, "Last Dirty Deal", with Montoya
rockin' hard on this tale of betrayal. Coco belts out the lyrics with a
deep, powerful voice while snapping off stinging phrases on his guitar.
This medium tempo rocker, co-written by Montoya, makes a fine opening
statement. The next track, "Three Sides to Every Story", is a funky
workout on a downbeat song that would be right at home on a Little Feat
recording.
Things slow down on "How Do You Sleep at Night" but Montoya keeps the
intensity turned up, shouting out his lead vocal. Subtlety is a trait
often lacking in Montoya's singing. His guitar work does display some
restraint but he clearly enjoys every opportunity to go all out. When he
dials down the intensity, he can still produce a compelling performance,
as he does on a cover Johnny Copelend's slow blues "It's My Own Tears",
one of the highlights of the disc. Coco lays down a vocal that conveys
the tortured nature of lyrics while ripping notes from the guitar
strings that emphasize the pain at the heart of the song. Both songs
benefit from outstanding keyboard work from Tony Stead. Barrerre uses
him to flesh out the arrangements and to provide a solid foundation for
Montoya's guitar solos.
On "Clean Slate", things shift from the blues/rock format to a soulful
tune that serves as a nice change of pace with its refreshingly
restrained performance. It is followed by the final three tracks that
find Montoya cranking up the guitar and shouting out his vocals over
driving beats. These cuts rock hard, showing no mercy and taking no
prisoners. It is Montoya doing what he does best but sometimes it gets
to be a bit much. A little bit more restraint could have made this
package even stronger.
Nevertheless, this ranks as one of the best of Montoya's recordings from
start to finish. Barrerre's production creates a engaging musical
backdrop for Montoya to work off of. The supporting musicians are
outstanding, especially Stead, who adeptly fills each track with his
fine keyboard work. Montoya brings it all together with his driving
vocals and high energy guitar playing. Definitely a disc worth checking
out - especially for fans of Blues/Rock guitar. (Review by
Crossroads Blues Society)
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