ROBBIE McINTOSH
Emotional Bends (Compass Records)
Reviewed by Shaun Dale

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Best known for significant tenures as the lead guitar with the Pretenders and with Paul McCartney, it would be natural to expect Robbie McIntosh's solo debut to be a guitar slinger's solo-fest. That expectation is confounded by his appearance as a solid, rootsy singer/ songwriter.

McIntosh is a player of, ahem, a certain age, and his music reflects that to some degree. For listeners of a similar age, much of it will be reminiscient, drawing from the kind of blues, country and rock roots that inspired the tougher-edged singer/songwriters of the seventies. For those who are somewhat younger, the music will fit into the "Americana" bag well enough to gain contemporary credibility. More than anything, the quality of the songs and the performances point to the timelessness of truly good music of any time or genre. And there's a good deal of truly good music on this disc.

Bottom line? Robbie McIntosh is one of the best American singer/ songwriters England has ever produced.

Track List:

Scarecrow * Joe And Me * Hang Me On The Line * Emotional Bends * Roll Away * Cactus Juice * Good Punchtime * Simple Thing * Cheque Book And Pen * Dadi

© 2000 - Shaun Dale