Mick Taylor's
Stranger in This Town was recorded mostly in Sweden in the summer of 1989, except for
"Little Red Rooster," recorded in Germany, and
"You Gotta Move," the traditional
blues number found on
the Rolling Stones'
Sticky Fingers, recorded in Philadelphia in December of 1989. This is a
blues album, make no doubt about it, and it is one of
Taylor's finest. Co-produced by the guitarist and
Phil Colella, the performances feature former
Jeff Beck sideman
Max Middleton on keyboards,
Shane Fontayne on guitar,
Wilbur Bascomb on bass, and
Eric Parker on drums. Only
"You Gotta Move" has different musicians,
Joel Diamond on keys and
Beach Boy Blondie Chaplin on guitar.
Keith Richard producer
Rob Fraboni re-mixed the title track, as well as the almost six minute version of one of
Taylor's favorite
Stones tunes,
"Jumpin' Jack Flash." It's the most
rock & roll song here,
Taylor's voice lending itself well to the song.
Carol Bernson's photographs of the
rock legend are something to behold;
Taylor under a blue light performing with his shadow reflecting on the floor adorns the back of the CD, as well as the inside four-page booklet. The front cover has the journeyman with his guitar and a long, black coat, and there's an impressive black-and-white portrait inside the booklet. He performs
Albert King's
"I Wonder Why" and
"Laundromat Blues," citing
King in the liner notes as "a big influence, and a man who is wise and whom I respect and admire." He calls
Jimi Hendrix a genius, genuine, and "the greatest guitar player who ever lived," and pays tribute to him with a superb version of
"Red House," which is combined with
James Oden's
"Goin' Down Slow." The
Santana feel that
Taylor brought to
"Can't You Hear Me Knocking" by
the Stones lives again in his co-write
"Goin' South," which, at ten minutes and 20 seconds, contains some of
Taylor's finest guitar work on the record.
Maze had a distribution deal with
A&M in Canada when this was released in 1990, but the label didn't have the resources in this pre-Internet time to deliver such a beautiful album to a mass audience. If only
Stranger in This Town was the album
Mick Taylor released on
Columbia when he first left
the Rolling Stones. Were that the case, he would have had the opportunity to enjoy the popularity of a
Buddy Guy or
B.B. King, and the general public would have a better understanding of this superb and highly underrated artist. Musicians know, and all the evidence needed is on this disc. ~ Joe Viglione
