LESLIE WEST – Still Climbing (2013)

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In many ways, LESLIE WEST’s new album “Still Climbing” is another hard-rocking link in a very long musical chain. West is best remembered, of course, for being the guitarist and vocal belter in Mountain that started in the late sixties, and in the decades to come, some would recognize that Mountain was an obvious precursor to what would become hard rock / heavy metal.
After all, Black Sabbath supported Mountain in the British band’s first U.S. tour.

Throughout the 11 songs of “Still Climbing”, clear nods to this past are evident in both style and substance along with equally clear signs of artistic development and personal growth. This new Leslie West record features guest stars Jonny Lang, Johnny Winter, Twisted Sister’s Dee Snider and Alter Bridge/Creed’s Mark Tremonti, a diverse crew which help to obtain that classic rock sound but also brings an updated feel to these songs.
Lang shares vocals and lead guitar on a track that harkens back to West’s origins, a cover of Percy Sledge “When a Man Loves a Woman,” one of many reminders why West should be known for his deep-throated soul singing as well as his hot guitar licks. In fact, West credits his quitting smoking for the strength in his current delivery, which is one area he feels is dramatically improved in this release.

Speaking of ballsy vocals, the pairing of West with Snider on “Feeling Good” is another song underlining the albums themes of affirmation and survival. Written by Anthony Newley and made famous by Traffic, the song opens with a simple piano introduction before the singers take off with shouting bluesy choruses. To be honest, I didn’t know Snider could fit so well into a bluesy setting.
Of course, that is exactly the musical recipe you’d expect West and Johnny Winter would thrive in together, notably on the slide fest “Busted, Disgusted or Dead”. Equally hard-edged songs include the album’s opener, “Dyin’ Since the Day I Was Born” (which Slash described as one of the heaviest songs West has ever done) and the crunching “Hatfield or McCoy”.

Not everything is so dramatic. A more romantic theme is evident in “Fade Into You,” which opens with acoustic folk rock verses before exploding into ’70s-era arena rock choruses complete with synthesizer support. The slow ballad, “Tales of Woe,” also has acoustic chords under fluid electric guitar lines punctuating the unhappy lyrics. “Not Over You at All” is gritty blues rock with very cool sax spicing up the bridges.
One strong echo of Mountain is in the hard-driving “Don’t Ever Let Me Go”, but the most overt reference to West’s famous band is a reworking of Mountain’s “Long Red”, a number that’s enjoyed a bit of a renaissance. It’s been sampled by Jay-Z, Common, and Kanye West. The Still Climbing version has long time friend Larry West on bass and is the version Leslie West is doing on stage now.
Speaking of bass players, the album closes with “Rev Jones Time (Somewhere Over the Rainbow)”, a short version of a bass solo ‘Rev Jones’ plays at the shows. For trivia buffs, ‘Rev Jones’ is actually professional musician Jim Jones Jr. No, he’s not a real reverend.

Co-produced by West & drummer Mike ‘Metal’ Goldberg and mixed by expert Mike Fraser, “Still Climbing” is distinguished by a big guitar sound played on four of his Dean signature model guitars with his Mountain of Tone humbucking pickups plugged into his Blackstar amps with no pedals.
All the playing is loud and raw, and that’s the way it should be. Balls, guts, heart – these words are part of West’s legend and describe the roaring crescendos and deep emotional roots of “Still Climbing”.
The bottom line is: some guitar gods just keep getting better and better. With those pipes, Leslie West is the perfect rock and roll package to prove the founding fathers of hard rock and heavy metal can still teach upcoming generations a trick or two.
And if younger players want to survive in the rock and roll world, the lessons Leslie West teaches are all about climbing and climbing for both triumph and renewal.
“Still Climbing” will rock your socks off, crank it to 11 and enjoy.

01. Dyin’ Since The Day I Was Born [feat. Mark Tremonti]
02. Busted, Disgusted or Dead [feat. Johnny Winter]
03. Fade Into You
04. Not Over You At All
05. Tales Of Woe
06. Feeling Good [feat. Dee Snider]
07. Hatfield or McCoy
08. When A Man Loves A Woman [feat. Jonny Lang]
09. Long Red
10. Don’t Ever Let Me Go [feat. Dylan Rose]
11. Rev Jones Time (Somewhere Over The Rainbow)

Leslie West – Guitars, Vocals
David Biglin – Acoustic Guitar, Hammond B3, Piano, Strings
Rev Jones, Larry Weinstein – Bass
Mike ‘Metal’ Goldberg – Drums, Engineer, Producer
Dylan Rose – Guitar
Elaine Caswell – Backing Vocals
Dee Snider – Guest Vocals
Jonny Lang – Guest Guitar, Vocals
Johnny Winter – Guest Guitar
Mark Tremonti – Guest Guitar, Vocals

thanks to Wesley Britton

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mascotlabelgroup.com/mlg/releases/still-climbing/
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