Dion DiMucci June 17, 2011
by Nikki M. MascaliWeekender Editor
When Dion sings, “I got nothing but miles to put between now and back then” on the title track of his latest album, it seems almost prophetic.
He’s come a long way since his bevy of hits in the late ’50s and early ’60s — notably “Runaround Sue” and “The Wanderer” — to his third blues album since 2006’s Grammy-nominated “Bronx in Blue.” Unlike its two predecessors, “Tank Full of Blues” is mostly original, though these tracks sound like they were weaved in the Delta decades prior.
“I Read It (In the Rolling Stone)” has a moody flair, and Dion’s vocals have the rasp of Gregg Allman while “Holly Brown” has a very traditional blues bassline at its core. Like in any good blues tune, Dion wonders if he has the love of his woman on John Mooney’s “Do You Love Me Baby,” which has a scorching riff and a hint of guttural bass.
The one-two punch of “Ride’s Blues (For Robert Johnson)” and “Two Train” are standouts. The former is a stellar tribute to the legendary blues master (plus Dion’s hero, Jimmy Reed) with a fantastic dusty guitar solo. The latter, a medley of Muddy Waters’ “Still A Fool” and Johnson’s “Ramblin’ On My Mind,” has Dion’s voice ringing out strong and true over searing guitar and throaty bass that together sound like trains racing down the track.
“You Keep Me Cryin,’” about a lover doing no good, saunters on moodily. “I’m Ready to Go” is light and jaunty with handclaps and a chugging riff. The closing “Bronx Poem” is the album’s only misstep, despite Dion’s heartfelt, spoken-word storytelling about his past and his love of God that has him riding “with the King of Kings” over acoustic and electric guitars.
He might have grown up in the Bronx and the fairly sunny world of ’50s and ’60s teen idoldom, but somewhere along his life’s wandering, Dion got steeped in Mississippi blues — and he wears it well.
Rating: W W W 1/2
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