Jeff Healey's Third Great One In A Row FEEL THIS is Jeff Healey's third great album in a row. The song "Cruel Little Number" is a blazing rocker with some sizzling Allman/Winter licks, and the other songs are great, too. It was rare for young artists in 1992 to maintain such consistency, but Healey made it look easy. This album's instrumental intensity made the franticness of such artists as Nirvana and Pearl Jam sound like bubblegum.
Basing a review from one song? Not here! From reading the other reviews here, it sounds like some of them were based on one song on this album: "If You Can't Feel Anything Else". While I understand their assessments of this song and even remotely agree with them, the song DOES NOT discount the album as an exemplary blues record with strong rock accents. The song can be described as somewhat experimental, combining rap with Jeff's soaring guitar solos. It initially sounded peculiar to me, but I eventually appreciated the song for what it is...I have even come to like it!
As for the rest of the album, it is truly a work of art from this blues guitarist. Largely unknown and unpromoted, the album demonstrates the sheer virtuosity of Jeff Healey and his band. Many of the songs are blues pieces with hard rock lingering through each one. Excellent examples of this are "Cruel Little Number", "House That Love Built", "Evil and Here To Stay", and "My Kind Of Lover".
My favorites here are "Leave The Light On", "Baby's Lookin' Hot", "Lost In Your Eyes", and "You're Coming Home". In the latter song, this ballad has Jeff making his guitar sing with delightful solos that literally give me chills. The song also has a very positive message; kind of ironic for a blues artist. "Leave The Light On" is a bluesish melodic rocker with more premium guitar work. "Baby's Lookin' Hot" REALLY rocks! It has heavy rhythm guitar and drums in addition to Jeff's incredible guitar solos and vocals; the song just screams with blues and rock accents. Lastly, "Lost In Your Eyes" comes across as a sensational ballad that Jeff probably tried to release as a single. Originally written by Tom Petty, this song has a beautiful melody perfect for relaxing with a loved one.
There is one discrepancy with this album: the production quality. It is obvious that this album was merely pasted from tape to CD material without adequate digital remastering. As a result, the treble input is a little excessive, while the bass input does not have enough power or emphasis. This is especially apparent with the heavy rockers. Despite this error, I still rate this album 5 stars and highly recommend its purchase for its unparalleled songwriting and pure musical talent provided by Jeff Healey and his band.
Just OK Another fine example of great musicians who can't write a great song. This CD has Jeff Healey searching for a new direction and ending up somewhere between rock and dare I say it rap. Even the stronger songs seem to have elements that seem out of place. A good example would be "Leave the light on". Probably the strongest song on the CD. It is marred by distorted guitars from start to finish. This is a long way from the blues rock that Jeff was known for. If that is what you are looking for, look elsewhere
SAMPLE SONG NUMBER 8, IT IS THE BEST ONE ON THIS CD! I GIVE THIS ALBUM 4 STARS BECAUSE OVER ALL IT IS NOT AS GOOD AS THE JEFF HEALY BANDS "HELL TO PAY" ALBUM. FOR ANYONE NEW TO JEFF HEALY PURCHASE "HELL TO PAY" FIRST. IF YOU FIND YOURSELF WANTING MORE THEN PURCHASE "SEE THE LIGHT". THIRD IF YOU ARE A DIEHARD FAN PURCHASE THIS CD. TOO BAD YOU CAN NOT OMIT TRACK NUMBER 10 BECAUSE OF ITS RAP LIKE SOUND. I WAS SURPRISED TO FIND IT INCLUDED ON THIS ALBUM. I COULD NOT HELP BUT THINK OF 9-11-2001, WHEN I LISTENED TO THE LYRICS OF TRACK NUMBER 8, EVEN THOUGH THIS CD CAME OUT AROUND TEN YEARS BEFORE THAT TRAGIC DAY.
Rockin Or Rappin I believe that Jeff Healey got caught up in the rap movement that started to explode across the music scene in the early 90's. "Feel This" is an example of trying to meld music, experimenting with new sounds. Definitely, less bluesy sounding, while rock dominates this album he also tries to give several songs the short staccato sound of rap. Overall, this is a pretty decent album.
Jr. John appears on "If You Can't Feel Anything Else" a horrible attempt at a rap that melds in Healey's dive-bombs and squealing guitar. We can't blame Healey though, everyone had to try it (Aerosmith succeeded and Billy Joel didn't). Fortunately, that's the worst song of the album. "Lost In Your Eyes" is a great ballad that expresses Healey's voice, as does "Heart of an Angel". "My Kinda Lover" and "Baby's Lookin' Hot" are a couple of up-beat rocking tunes. I also enjoy "Dreams of Love" and "You're Coming Home".
Healey is able to put some good licks on each song. He is definitely a good guitarist, but it is not enough to save some of the songs off of this album.
Anything Goes Trivia
Megaton Man
Tailipoe
Trevor
