Double Trouble When Texas Flood's

Stevie Ray Vaughan (or SRV as he is often known) was an Austin guitarists/singer/songwriter, releasing only five studio albums before his life was untimely ended in a helicopter crash. With his unique guitar tone and individual style, Stevie is still considered one of the greatest rock-blues guitarist of all time, inspiring young players to this day.

A mixture of originals and covers, 'Texas Flood' demonstrated SRV's technical abilities and soulful playing. With both upbeat songs, such as 'Pride And Joy', as well as more typical blues songs, such as 'Dirty Pool', the album takes the listener through an audio adventure of tone, emotion and style. Stevie's voice is as much a part of his style and sound as his guitar playing and this album show's how passionately he would sing. Combined with the superb backing of Layton and Shannon, the songs are easy to listen to, demanding as much attention as you wish to put in. Pleasant to have on as backing music, but equally enjoyable to focus on, I always find myself moved by Stevie's tone of voice and guitar. Listening to his first outing you realise just why he became such a 'legend' and it makes you think what he could have achieved had he continued to live.

The bonus tracks are all "Previous Unreleased" recordings, with three of the five tracks being Live versions of songs from the album; however, of particular interest for me is 'SRV Speaks', a short extract of Stevie talking about how he approaches his playing. Although under forty-seconds long, I think this is a nice bonus track which I found both insightful and inspiring, making me want to pick up my guitar as much as the actual music on the album does.

Some might criticise the number of covers, four of the original album (i.e. not the remastered version with bonus tracks) and four of the five bonus tracks being covers. Whilst perhaps it would be interesting to hear more of Stevie's songwriting, it's understandable when you consider this is a debut album and that blues is not about the song, but the way you play it. I personally don't mind the number of covers as Stevie and the band stamp their own style onto them.

I would thoroughly recommend this album to anyone interested in either rock or blues - it may even appeal to country fans, as Stevie has somewhat of an 'Austin-twang' to his playing. Guitarists and non-guitarists alike should find 'Texas Flood' an enjoyable addition to their collection.