Apart from being an in-demand guitar for hire, with credits ranging from Republic Of Loose to Enya, Pat Farrell has also served time with blues rockers The Business. On this, his mostly vocal-free solo studio debut, he demonstrates why he’s so highly sought after among those requiring an axe with a sharper-than-average edge.
‘Zip And Hip’ and the more subtle ‘Bloomsday Blues’ highlight Farrell’s cutting blues style, although he never forsakes melody for mere showboating. On tracks like the elegantly slow ‘The Things That Never Happened’, ‘The M50 Mixup’ and ‘You Don’t Want Me’, he explores grittier territory. Richie Buckley adds his fiery sax to an incendiary ‘Further On Up The Yard’ and ‘Used To Go To Slattery’s’. Meanwhile, the Latino-tinged ‘Four Days In The West’ has Farrell in tasty acoustic mode. He moves to slide for a sublime ‘Bull Wall Blues’ and brings the fluency of Peter Green to ‘Something We All Know’.
Riff It Avenue isn’t merely for blues fans or guitar enthusiasts. Anyone who enjoys music with real heart and soul should check it out.