As the headliner of the Legendary Rhythm & Blues Revue, Tommy
Castro is a missionary for classic R&B. And with his albums, the
Bay Area guitarist/vocalist/songwriter has made his mark as a standard
bearer for the music — one of a handful not only keeping the
old-school sound alive but making it still matter. An incisive
instrumentalist additionally armed with pipes that exude power and
confidence, Castro completes the hat trick, collaborating on
genre-savvy originals that can stand toe-to-toe with well-chosen
covers.
On Hard Believer, that savvy — and a grand display of
artistic cojones — is evidenced on the title track. Castro and
company’s impressive duplication of the classic Otis Redding ballad
style, complete with a vocal unabashedly in the style of the master,
just about dares purists to have a problem with it. The man is just as
nervy with an in-your-face homage to Wilson Pickett on “Ninety-Nine and
One Half.” While Castro’s monster axe is largely put in service to the
varied song fare on this set, there is more than enough guitar work to
keep that side of his rep in good order. It’s his total skill
base that’s the show here, and a solid show it is. — Duane
Verh
This article appears in Aug 26 – Sep 1, 2009.
