Product Description
BUDDY GUY - AIN'T DONE WITH THE BLUES
Featuring Christone "Kingfish" Ingram, Joe Walsh, The Blind Boys of Alabama,
Joe Bonamassa, and Peter Frampton
RELEASE DATE AUGUST 1, 2025. ORDER YOUR COPY TODAY!
Ain’t Done With The Blues marks Buddy Guy’s 14th studio album with RCA Records. In celebration of his 89th birthday, the album showcases Buddy’s unrelenting dedication to the blues. With featured artists such as Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, Joe Walsh, The Blind Boys of Alabama, Joe Bonamassa, and Peter Frampton, Ain’t Done With The Blues was produced at Blackbird Studio in Nashville, TN.
BUDDY GUY
Ain’t Done With The Blues
Silvertone/RCA Records
Buddy Guy likes to try on other people’s skins. During a concert a few years back at the Greensboro Coliseum, Guy had already tried on Freddie King, John Lee Hooker , Muddy Waters, Clarence Carter, and Otis Redding before an exasperated fan yelled, “Play some Buddy Guy!” Guy snapped back, “Everything I do is Buddy Guy,” then proceeded to play a few licks of Eric Clapton’s “Strange Brew” from his Cream days. He stopped after a few bars, saying, “Now this is Buddy Guy,” slamming into his signature tune,1991’s “Damn Right I’ve Got The Blues.”
For his latest, Ain’t Done With The Blues, Guy celebrates his 89th birthday with a collection of songs written by others but inhabited solely by Guy, with only one writing credit on the 18 track release, “Dry Stick,” a co-write with producer Tom Hambridge and Gary Nicholson.
Guy has said that this release is about where he’s been, where he’s going, and the people he learned everything from. Producer Hambridge is obviously tuned in to Guy’s career broadcast, crafting tunes that enable Guy to stay true to himself while showcasing his roots as well.
“Been There Done That” brags that he’s been everywhere and done everything, pulling himself up from being a cotton picker to flying his own plane: “I’ve been all over the world/My home is on the road.” The guitarist throws out his signature licks on a dazzling array of vintage guitars, strutting out with a 2023 Black and White Polka Dot Relic Fender Strat on this one.
The lyrics on “Swamp Poker” sound like something Tony Joe White would come up with: “Go down to the river for some swamp poker/Fireflies dancing, crawling Kingsnakes/Bullfrogs croaking/Getting half-baked/Filling up a pot full of poker chips.” But the guitar is definitely Guy, slashing his way through the swamp using his ‘58 Sunburst Fender Strat as a machete aided by Chuck Leavell’s Wurlitzer burbling counterpoint, sitting high and dry on the riverbank.
Joe Walsh contributes slide guitar and some of his distinctive vocals to the autobiographical “How Blues Is That,” a slam-bang dissertation on overcoming hard times: “Went to Chicago/Tried to get a break/Had lots of doors slammed in my face/Sang on the corner/Poured out my heart/Picked up my change/Slept in the park.”
Joe Bonamossa tosses in some fireworks on “Dry Stick,” a Guy/Hambridge/Nicholson composition that sounds like it fell out of a Blind Boys of Alabama setlist. Guy takes on a few covers, but stays in his own skin to flesh them out. Little Richard put “Send Me Some Lovin’” on the B-side of “Lucille” in 1957. Guy’s version is smoother, more swamp pop than R&B and without Richard’s signature hiccups. Guy also covers Earl King’s “Trick Bag,” adding a blistering solo in the middle aided by his 2015 Blue and White Polka Dot Fender Strat.
It’s all Guy, all the time, fulfilling his promise to keep on upholding tradition while still holding his own.
– Grant Britt