Back To Reviews page

Dave Fields - All Wound Up

FMI Records

http://www.davefields.com/home.htm

http://www.myspace.com/davefieldsmusic

Dave Fields is a modern blues/rock guitarist from New York City and displays ample guitar, vocal, and songwriting chops on his latest CD release, All Wound Up, and gives listeners a set of music that is at once respectful of tradition and as current as today’s calendar page. Fields’ influences range from Hendrix to Fats Domino and give him a wide palette from which to color his music and this is one of the most interesting things about him: from song to song, one never knows what is coming next.

Fields is the son of famed pianist/producer/composer/arranger Sammy “Forever” Fields, who surely provided a stimulating musical climate for his son and his precocious talent, which saw Dave playing recording sessions with his father by age 15 and writing big band scores by age 16, finally ending up at Berklee College of Music in Boston. This depth of background is evident all over All Wound Up, as Fields effortlessly shifts styles, grooves, and feels from rock to funk second line New Orleans beats, all while maintaining his own sound, a sound that modern audiences should find appealing.

Fields has more songwriting in him than many blues-oriented performers and that ability makes his music stand out a bit more than some of his contemporaries. There are no covers on All Wound Up, which is somewhat unusual in the blues world, but makes perfect sense for Fields. “Train To My Heart” is a rocker in the Jimi style, but features smoother, Robben Ford-esque vocals that make the track unique. “Ain’t No Crime” is a cool, funky number that is nothing but fun and “Let’s Have A Ball” is Fields’ take on the music of the Big Easy. Through it all, Fields makes all this genre-hopping look like the most natural thing in the world due to the fact that, for him, at least, it truly IS natural.

Fields is one of the most promising musicians playing the blues today and those open to contemporary blues music would do well to seek him out.

Reviewer Mike O'Cull is a noted Chicago music writer and Blues Blast contributor. Visit his MySpace page at:

www.myspace.com/mikeocullmusic

 To submit a review or interview please contact: