The Windy City Strugglers: Kingfisher

By GRAHAM REID

(Herald rating: * * * *)

The longtime Strugglers from the capital are an institution which, while seemingly lacking in great career ambition, are the better for having slowly developed from a band which mostly played blues/roots covers to something with a unique voice — albeit in songs which work through the familiar chords and concerns of their chosen idiom.

But with the voices of Bill Lake and Rick Bryant up front, their effortless-sounding roots music has character and distinction.

This all-originals set from Lake, Bryant, keyboardist Geoff Rashbrooke and non-member Arthur Baysting moves through snaky blues (She Drives), aching balladry at the midpoint of soul and country (the Bryant-led Waltz of the Wind, Old Fashioned Love), backporch strum (Short Story) and piano blues (Loving You is Not an Easy Game).

Consistently good, sensitively produced and all up a modest winner. Don't let the funereal cover put you off, this — despite its melancholy subject matter — will bring you many wry smiles.

Label: Red Rocks