Ron Spencer Band: “Into The Blue” (2018) CD Review

Ron Spencer Band delivers some seriously good blues and rock music on Into The Blue, which was released in 2018. The band at that time was made up of Ron Spencer on guitar and vocals, Mark Gibson on vocals, Bob Purdy on bass and vocals, and Ross Moe on drums. In December of 2020, Mark Gibson died from complications related to COVID-19, after playing at a venue that did not comply with state restrictions. His death was a terrible blow to the music community in Syracuse and beyond. This album features mostly original material, written or co-written by Mark Gibson. A few special guests join the band, including Dan “Cato” Eaton on keyboards, saxophone, percussion and vocals. Jeff Moleski, Sharon Allen and Donna Colton provide backing vocals.

The band gets right to it with “Closer To The Bone,” the album’s opening track, which features some delicious stuff on keys, as well as a strong vocal performance. The song’s first lines certainly speak to us in these troubled times: “We’ve got some hard, hard times/No need to read between the lines/We’re gonna reap just what’s been sown/We’re living closer to the bone.” I appreciate the straightforward, honest drive of those lyrics. And check out these lines: “We don’t know who to believe/They all got something up their sleeve.” Remember, this album came out during the mendacious Trump administration. But even since then, deceit and misinformation abound. And these lines are delivered to the drum beat just before the end: “We got distraction by design/We’re out here on our own.” All in all, it’s a really good opening track.

“(I’m Doin’) Ah-ight” begins by describing some typical woes of the blues: having a job that doesn’t pay well and a car that doesn’t run. “How I survive is anybody’s guess/But I’m doing all right/For an average guy.” Yes, this song has a positive bent, no matter how poorly things are going. And isn’t that the trick these days? This track too features some wonderful work on keys, and halfway through there is a really good lead on guitar. “Well now, money don’t buy happiness/That’s a fact, that’s true/But I just need a little taste/To get rid of these blues.” Sure, it’s true that money doesn’t buy happiness; but it could certainly pay for things that would make us happy, and removing the stress and anxiety of poverty would be pretty damn close to happiness, so far as I can tell. But sometimes we just have to go out, whether we can afford it or not, as they remind us here. “We’re going to get a little dinner, do a little dancing and maybe knock a few down/We’re going rock it on up, we’re going to dance real slow/And how I’m gonna pay for this, I don’t really know.” Then just before the end, there is some nice stuff on saxophone, helping to give the track a lively ending.

“Addicted To You” quickly establishes a good groove. This one was written by Mark Gibson and Ron Spencer. “You’re the first thing I think of when I wake up/The last thing I think of every night/I’m begging you please/I’m down on my knees/Only one thing going to get me right/I can’t help myself.” Oh yeah, but it feels so good to have it that bad, doesn’t it? To be that goofy for someone. I love that guitar lead in the middle of the action. Then we get the album’s first cover, Moon Martin’s “Cadillac Walk,” which was recorded by Mink DeVille. It is delivered as a fun boogie, sort of how ZZ Top might present it. That’s followed by the album’s other cover, “I’d Rather Be (Blind, Crippled & Crazy),” here listed simply as “Blind, Crippled & Crazy.” This song was written by Charles Hodges, Daryl Carter and Don Robey, and originally recorded by O.V. Wright. Ron Spencer Band delivers a good, soulful rendition with a classic sound, a cool bass line, and some wonderful backing vocal work.

Mike Davis joins the group on organ for “So Wrong For Each Other,” a song that explores the idea of opposites attracting. “We’re so wrong for each other that we’re almost right,” they sing here, and of course we get the sense that this couple is going to be more successful than most. Partly that’s because the song boasts a totally enjoyable rhythm. I’m digging that percussion. That’s followed by “It’s Time,” and the moment that guitar comes in at the beginning, I’m fully on board. This is another of my personal favorites, and it’s an interesting choice to follow “So Wrong For Each Other.” Maybe I was wrong about that couple being successful, for here Mark Gibson sings, “Well, it’s time/Time for us to walk away/It’s time/Ain’t got nothing more to say/We can’t get along/Nobody’s right, nobody’s wrong.” But it is that guitar work that speaks even more strongly to me. So good.

I love that sax right from the start of “Callin’ To Me,” a song that contains another great, enjoyable groove. “It’s where I was raised up/It’s how I came to be/No, I don’t want to go home/But it’s callin’ to me.” Then some excellent guitar work gets “Fine, Fine Woman” off to a great start. This is a fun, lively number featuring some totally delicious stuff on keys as well as guitar, a song that is guaranteed to get everyone in the bar dancing, even that jaded slob in the corner. A rockin’ love song, oh yes! It makes me happy every time I listen to it. The album then concludes with “Cold Outside,” another fun number. “My baby threw me out/I don’t know the reason why/But I can tell you what I do know/Man, it’s cold outside.” Oh, that is rough. How heartless to throw the poor bastard out during winter and then lock the doors and windows. But we can all warm ourselves grooving to this wonderful tune.

CD Track List

1. Closer To The Bone
2. (I’m Doin’) Ah-ight
3. Addicted To You
4. Cadillac Walk
5. Blind, Crippled & Crazy
6. So Wrong For Each Other
7. It’s Time
8. Callin’ To Me
9. Fine, Fine Woman
10. Cold Outside

Into The Blue was released on September 28, 2018 on Real Gone Records.