Album review: JACK BESSANT – Lucky Mountain

CHEDX [Release date 14.08.20]

Jack Bessant is a solo singer-songwriter and the bassist in platinum selling rock band Reef. For Jack this album is something of a catharsis, confronting an intensely personal subject that has been buried deep.

“I had to deal with my brother committing suicide…” he explains. “It was heavy, it was horrific. I’ve managed to deal with it now through my music. I didn’t want to have to talk about it at the time, I didn’t want to have to say it out loud, but it’s important, we have to be able to be raw with each other…It’s been a dark horse on me and hopefully through my music I’m able to help other people, not just with coming to terms with something like that, but the realness of all our lives.”

He’s joined on this spiritual journey by Spex (guitars), Bruno Killingham (keys), Tommy Williams (keys), James Stewart (guitars), Marc MacNabb-Jack (drums), Martin Hedder (piano) and Julian Bath (slide guitar, banjo). Spex (who is also a skateboarding legend after a little web searching) and Julian Bath both played on Jack’s 2015 album ‘Jack Bessant with the Cheddar Experiment Band’.

‘Slow Burning Angel’ highlights the warm and mellow singing style of Jack Bessant. A truly superlative song and vocally Canned Heat’s Al Wilson came to mind. High register singing but never shrill and always soothing on the ears.

Nothing ever gets to rocky on this album, the guitars and drums only really crank up on ‘Peacemaker’, a mighty fine slice of Allman Brothers approved music.

Throughout the album Jack plays some stellar harmonica, none more so than on ‘Stack Up Beers’. ‘Save 1 Kiss’ is an emotional piece on how at Christmas time we think of the ones no longer with us. The piano and sleigh bells (I think!) underpin the vocals and guitar to great effect.

The overall vibe off the album is one of laid back music, something you can imagine playing on speakers down at a beach surf party or just an album to chill out to at the end of a day. Don’t go expecting Reef, but do dive in if you enjoy mellow, laid back rock with a distinct 70’s feel. ***1/2

Review by Jason Ritchie

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Power Plays w/c 9 December 2024

In this sequence we play ‘The Best of 2024′ GRTR! reviewer selections

Featured Albums w/c 9 December 2024

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2024 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003-2024 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2024 (Singer Songwriter)