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» Features » Fiction » Reviews
| REVIEWS Gordon Haskell
(**** 4 Stars)
You have the fine whiskey, you have the old friend you want to catch up with, you have the suede jacket, the back porch and the lazy early evening. Now buy the album, for this is the smooth, cosy soundtrack you've been waiting for. A seasoned veteran of the business, Haskell has jammed with Hendrix, sang for King Crimson, been broke and played every down and out bar from his hometurf in the West Country through to Denmark, where he took a bit of a mid-career 'sabbatical' (ie ran away from his debts, played music to get back in the black). All that bar-room trawling has given him countless songs, lots of vocal practice and a good smack of the blues. With hints of jazz, hints of Clapton and a real sense of substance and soul - pretty rare these days - this album recalls classic releases from years gone by. While every other Tortoise fan might call it boring AOR, 'Harry's Bar' is an album you (and your dad) will want to
listen to over and over. The hit single 'How Wonderful You Are' (not a cover version, but a song about hearing the original) is an obvious highlight, but there's no bad tune here - clearly they've all been honed over countless live performances. 'Voodoo Dance', 'Feelin' Loose' and 'Feeway To Her Dreams' are others that linger - the latter track sporting the great lyric "Her secrets in her shoulder bag/ they're sewn into the seams". Other wise words from the old geezer: "You can give your heart or merely lend it/ but when you give me that look/ I hear what you're saying" ('Roll With It'). Very good then. Now where's that whiskey…
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