BUCKET and Co – Guitars, Beers & Tears (2010-11)

Following years of providing stellar fretwork for iconic groups such as Humble Pie, Bad Company (beginning in 1990 with their blockbuster comeback, ‘Holy Water’), as well in ASAP (Adrian Smith And Project), Dave “Bucket” Colwell has stepped out to showcase his talents as a world class writer/guitarist with a rock solid, debut solo disc “Guitars, Beers & Tears”.

Bucket has surrounded himself with good company over the years, and many of his friends are featured guests on his record.
We have ex Iron Maiden’s Adrian Smith lending vocals and lead guitar to “Make Up Your Mind” and vocals on “Reach Out” . He sounds a lot like Sammy Hagar circa 1984 on the latter, an adorable melodic rockin’ tune.
Edwin McCain has a very classy voice similar to Night Ranger’s Kelly Keagy. On the melodic rocker “Why You Call” the man is great with an emotional performance, while on the bluesy “Survive” his style is more rough. Cool track by the way, with a hot guitar.

Steve Conte from The New York Dolls sings “If You Need Me At All”, a simple but beautiful ‘on the road’ midtempo.
The Quireboys’ vocalist Spike was the right choice for ““Girl Of My Dreams”, a great rhythm semi-ballad with tons of feeling. He sings too on “I’d Lie To You” a rocker with a potent riff and hammond organ.
Robert Hart shines on “Somebody To Love”, a lovely ballad with calm pace filled with acoustic instruments.
“Life” is performed by Danny Bowes from Thunder. His presence in the disc enhances this album to a higher level.
All songs are excellent, but my favorite is the title track “Guitars, Beers & Tears”, not only it’s a wonderful retro-tune, it features one of the best melodic rock vocalists ever: Chris Ousey (Heartland, Virginia Wolf). Awesome rockin’ track!

Bucket has a long and storied career in the music business and has appeared with many artists including Bon Jovi, Slash, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and ZZ Top to name a few, and you’ll hear bits and pieces of their influence and others throughout “Guitars, Beers, and Tears”.
There are lots of excellent tunes that blend classic rock with those sweet AOR melodies from ’80s rock. Colwell is a terrific songwriter bringing fun, memorable melodies back into rock.
Now properly distributed, “Guitars, Beers, and Tears” is one of the most pleasant melodic rock surprises recently.
This is Dave ‘Bucket’ Colwell’s self-proclaimed labor of love, and it is a record that demands to be on everyone’s bucket list.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Tracklist:
01 Guitars, Beers & Tears (Colwell)
Vocals – Chris Ousey (Heartland)

02 Girl of My Dreams (Colwell)
Vocals – Spike (The Quireboys) Keyboards – Mark Read

03 Make Up Your Mind (Colwell/Adrian Smith)
Guitarist/Vocals – Adrian Smith (Iron Maiden)

04 Somebody To Love (Colwell/Tommy Lee James)
Vocals – Robert Hart (Bad Company)

05 Why You Call (Colwell)
Vocals – Edwin McCain, Keyboards – Mark Read

06 If You Need Me (Colwell)
Guitarist/Vocals – Steve Conte (NY Dolls)

07 Reach Out (Cowell)
Vocals – Adrian Smith (Iron Maiden)

08 I’d Lie To You (Frankie Miller)
Vocals – Spike (The Quireboys), Backing Vocals – Bekka Bramlett

09 Survive (Colwell)
Vocals – Edwin McCain, Harmonica – Judd Lander

10 Life (Colwell/J. Leo)
Vocals – Danny Bowes (Thunder), Keyboards – Mark Read

11 Why Can’t It Be (Colwell)
Vocals – Seth Romano

12 Mr. Nobody (Colwell)
Vocals – Dave Colwell, Backing Vocals – Lauren Harris

Dave ‘Bucket’ Colwell : Guitars, Vocals
Jaz Lochrie : Bass, Backing Vocals
Gary ‘Harry’ James : Drums

www.myspace.com/bucketco
IF YOU LIKE IT, BUY IT!