Local Southsea Bluesman Andy Broad is well known as the public face of the Bullfrog Blues Club and for his regular gigs in the area, either solo or with his three different themed bands. That familiarity can serve to diminish the regard held for an artist's talents by those, seemingly all too prevalent in Portsmouth, who are not prepared to pay to see live music.
Andy is an accomplished and talented guitarist who has worked hard on his sonorous vocal timbre to produce a more nuanced steely edge that sits well on this fine release of predominantly original material. He begins in acoustic mode with a big rich fingerpicking tone and light stomp on a traditional 12 bar with that sonorous echoey vocal with advice on how to treat your woman, before taking up the slide, picking and stomp, on 'Ain't Scared' another fine Blues about romantic tribulations.
Sandy Walker's buzzing organ features on 'Paper', with a compelling singer songwriter vibe about the creative process, writing songs and surrounded by pieces of paper. 'The Crying Has To End' is another haunting 12 bar with a lovely emotive lyric about love as opposed to friendship, with empathetic accompaniment, both fingerpicking and stomp, and that nicely nuanced vocal.
'Holding Those Feelings' sees Andy take up his Les Paul for some fluid and articulate work redolent of Otis Rush, alongside warm pulsing organ and poignant lyric. 'One More Day' is a melodic and catchy return to acoustic with a plea from a lonely town for his lover to return his phone message.
More singer songwriter with a compelling riff before the lone cover, a nicely executed 'Shake' from Sally Strawberry. Back to the Blues with an up tempo and punchy 'Too Late' with a passionate heart felt vocal telling us not to delay in expressing our feelings to a loved one.
The excellent Bluesy title track follows with bobbing organ and more crying warm toned work on that Les Paul before an effective organ guitar interplay, "my feelings are real, go with me baby and I'll give you every penny of the deal".
An aptly named instrumental 'Mosquito Hunt' named in a fan competition, precedes the final bonus track 'Pretty Nose' recorded live in France. This is two numbers in one, with an evocative Spanish style Blues intro morphing into a love song with a simple poetic lyric. This is a very creditable release showcasing Andy's song writing talents in addition to his fine guitar playing and distinctive vocal timbre which deserves exposure to a wider audience. Wearing his heart on his sleeve, this is a splendidly executed series of personal songs played with a refulgent passion and certainly worth every penny of the deal.
Bob Chaffey - Blues In Britain Magazine